Comparison Of Agatha Christie's And Then There Were None

Gothic literature shares many themes that can be found across short stories and novels. For example, things often found in these stories are supernatural elements, isolated settings, widespread suspicion, and most often murder.Though the short story “The Eyes” and the novel And Then There Were None were written by very different people they share a similar gothic theme. Agatha Christie, author of And Then There Were None, and Edith Wharton, author of “The Eyes,” use the element of mystery in their writing. Both stories have a heavy amount of foreshadowing, yet these stories deeply contrast against one another as well. In Christie’s novel she uses the present tense to paint a scene of what is going on in the story. Whereas in Wharton's story one of her characters, Culwin, recalls the story. …show more content…
Throughout the story the sense of fear is second hand and not as evident and clear as it would be if it were presently happening. For example, “Then I fell asleep, and when I woke the room was deathly cold, and I sat up with a jerk- and there were the other eyes…” this comes directly from Culwin as he recounts his story. While Culwin recounts his story he uses the words ‘when’ and ‘then’ giving the support that this has already happened to him. Wharton’s use of the past tense helps give the story a sense of security. There is a sense that the ending of Culwin’s story is predictable, however the characters have no way of knowing that the eyes he speaks of are actually his