Techniques for Creating Suspense in Literary Texts: A Study of Selected Short Stories by John Luangala

Abstract

It has been argued that compared to the novel, the short
story has had remarkably little criticism devoted to it,
and what theory exists reveals few definitive statements
about its nature (Pasco, nd). Gullason and many
others have argued that, although the short story may
be an “underrated art” it remains remarkably hardy.
Various techniques are used in making the short story
interesting and worth reading and one such technique
is the use of suspense. This article, therefore, discusses
how suspense in short stories is created with a focus on
the following selected short stories by John Luangala:
‘A Narrow Escape,’ ‘the Innocence of a Dog,’ ‘In the
Arms of the Law,’ ‘My Sister’s Keeper,’ ‘Catching A
Thief,’ ‘Night Hunter’, and ‘Love On First Sight.’ It has
been found the analysis of the selected short stories by
Luangala that placing characters in increasing danger,
use of verisilitude, gradually developing suspenseful
events and reversing suspenseful situations are some
of the ways in which suspense is created by Luangala.
Using examples from the selected stories, and the
narratological approach as the overarching theoretic
framework, this article shows how each technique is
manifested thereby creating suspense in the stories.