Juliette Duncan
Aural Imagery in The Woman in Black – In the Nursery
1. Find some examples of the ways in which aural imagery is used in this chapter.
Hill creates aural imagery when Kipps finds himself hearing the same “whinnying of the
pony, the child’s cry, that rose and rose to a scream of terror.”, a sound that he had
previously heard and stood ‘helplessly’ in shock. “The prickling of my own skin and of what
suddenly seemed a different kind of silence, ominous…” demonstrates sibilance as well as
aural imagery. Other examples include “The rumbling and the creaking of the trap was
coming” and “Bump, bump, pause, bump, bump, pause…”.
2. How could you link it to the setting?
The use of sibilance creates an atmosphere of threat as it is used to represent the Devil
and evil behaviour, “suddenly seemed a different kind of silence, ominous…” Hill uses
repetition in the sounds “bump, bump, pause…” to portray the uncertainty felt by the
protagonist and to emphasise the recurring movements of the rocking chair.
3. Why is this effective?
The use of repetition reinforces the theme of the supernatural and the narrator’s lack of
control over it. Sibilance also creates associations with evil behaviour which further
emphasises the Woman in Black’s evil intentions. This therefore creates a greater level of
fear in the protagonist, Arthur Kipps.
4. How could you link the use of aural imagery to the novel’s genre and/or any expectations
you may have about it?
The use of aural imagery creates a more realistic experience for the reader; it brings a
much greater sense of fear, which I think is expected from novels of the gothic genre. This
is because the author wants the reader to experience the fear of the antagonist that the
narrator also feels.
5. In what ways is aural imagery used to help amplify the sense of fear in the novel?
Aural imagery helps amplify the sense of fear in the novel by adding to the overall sensory
experience of the reader. For example, “the marshes were black and silent.”
The use of aural imagery expands the visual description which increases the fear felt by
the reader as well as the protagonist, “every hair of her body was on end…she was
emitting a soft, low growl from deep in her throat.”
6. How effective do you think the writer’s language choices are in conveying this imagery?
Explain your answer.
Hill uses tricolons and listing in “thin, pitiful, frightened moan,” to increase the tempo of
the sentence which also increases the narrator’s anticipation. Contrastingly, Hill also uses
short, blunt sentences to builds a more dramatic atmosphere, for example “Nothing.
Absolute silence.” The words “cry…scream…choked…” belong to the semantic field of
words relating to a struggle, something Kipps has had to endure on several occasions.
Aural Imagery in The Woman in Black – In the Nursery
1. Find some examples of the ways in which aural imagery is used in this chapter.
Hill creates aural imagery when Kipps finds himself hearing the same “whinnying of the
pony, the child’s cry, that rose and rose to a scream of terror.”, a sound that he had
previously heard and stood ‘helplessly’ in shock. “The prickling of my own skin and of what
suddenly seemed a different kind of silence, ominous…” demonstrates sibilance as well as
aural imagery. Other examples include “The rumbling and the creaking of the trap was
coming” and “Bump, bump, pause, bump, bump, pause…”.
2. How could you link it to the setting?
The use of sibilance creates an atmosphere of threat as it is used to represent the Devil
and evil behaviour, “suddenly seemed a different kind of silence, ominous…” Hill uses
repetition in the sounds “bump, bump, pause…” to portray the uncertainty felt by the
protagonist and to emphasise the recurring movements of the rocking chair.
3. Why is this effective?
The use of repetition reinforces the theme of the supernatural and the narrator’s lack of
control over it. Sibilance also creates associations with evil behaviour which further
emphasises the Woman in Black’s evil intentions. This therefore creates a greater level of
fear in the protagonist, Arthur Kipps.
4. How could you link the use of aural imagery to the novel’s genre and/or any expectations
you may have about it?
The use of aural imagery creates a more realistic experience for the reader; it brings a
much greater sense of fear, which I think is expected from novels of the gothic genre. This
is because the author wants the reader to experience the fear of the antagonist that the
narrator also feels.
5. In what ways is aural imagery used to help amplify the sense of fear in the novel?
Aural imagery helps amplify the sense of fear in the novel by adding to the overall sensory
experience of the reader. For example, “the marshes were black and silent.”
The use of aural imagery expands the visual description which increases the fear felt by
the reader as well as the protagonist, “every hair of her body was on end…she was
emitting a soft, low growl from deep in her throat.”
6. How effective do you think the writer’s language choices are in conveying this imagery?
Explain your answer.
Hill uses tricolons and listing in “thin, pitiful, frightened moan,” to increase the tempo of
the sentence which also increases the narrator’s anticipation. Contrastingly, Hill also uses
short, blunt sentences to builds a more dramatic atmosphere, for example “Nothing.
Absolute silence.” The words “cry…scream…choked…” belong to the semantic field of
words relating to a struggle, something Kipps has had to endure on several occasions.
