First of all, it should be mentioned that these two stories are of completely different types of suspense. Suspense in ‘Weekend’ can hardly be compared with the suspense in ‘The Bloody Chamber’. Whereas the suspense in ‘The Bloody Chamber’ makes you curious and continue read, in ‘Weekend’ you do not necessarily have the feeling that it is a riveting read. In ‘Weekend’ I could easily stop reading, but in ‘The Bloody Chamber’ I always wanted to read on because I had to know what in that special room was. In brief: The uncertain heightens suspense and makes you continue reading! In ‘Weekend’ I always waited for something exciting to happen.
Concerning the factors which produce suspense on the story level, it is clear that ‘The Bloody Chamber’ has quite a range of possible solutions. The reader himself wonders what could be hidden in the room. The reader elaborates theses on it. The described feelings of the young married girl help the reader to put himself in the girl’s place. The mixture of the description of the gruesome place and the girl’s feelings heighten the suspense. The final suspense whether she survives or not is quite dramatic of course, but the probability of her being saved is rather high. I guessed it would be the blind guy, though.
In ‘Weekend’ I would have wanted Martha to stand up in front of her husband instead of tolerating his constant nagging. I was quite angry that she puts up with all the requests of Martin. A possible solution would have been to tell him she is fed up with his behaviour or to make clear to him that she wants to divorce if the situation remains unchanged. The only surprise was the ending when Martha starts crying because of her daughter Jenny’s first period. The reader did not expect Martha to cry in this actually happy occasion. She has been so strong and has proved staying power throughout the whole story.
