The opening paragraph of a short story or novel is vital to the writer for they must capture the interest of the reader and to give the reader the desire to read on. The reader often begins the story by presenting the reader with situations, characters and themes to continue throughout the story.

In "The Signalman" an obvious theme of mystery and suspense are created in the first paragraph. From the third sentence, you realised it has been written in the first person, a practise uncommon for the era. You realise that it will be suspenseful, as you will only see the story from the angle of the reader. This allows the writer to hide certain aspects from the narrator and therefore the reader meaning that without the full perspective, the story can be enigmatic - mysterious. The first paragraph goes straight into the story, without setting up...