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The Woman in Black - Dialogue

Explore how speech, silence and nervous stammering in The Woman in Black reveal fear, trauma and hidden knowledge in the villagers’ conversations with Arthur Kipps.

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Fascinating Fact:

Mr Jerome’s broken speech and stammering when the Woman in Black is mentioned show how trauma affects his ability to speak calmly or clearly.

In GCSE English Literature, studying dialogue in The Woman in Black helps you analyse how speech patterns, pauses and unfinished sentences reveal fear, secrecy and emotional pressure between characters.

Key Terms

Dialogue: The spoken exchanges between characters, which reveal emotions, relationships and tensions.
Stammer: A disrupted way of speaking, where sounds or words are repeated or blocked because of stress or emotion.
Subtext: The hidden meaning or feeling behind what a character says, suggested by tone or word choice.

Frequently Asked Questions (Click to see answers)

How does Mr Jerome’s dialogue show his fear?

Mr Jerome’s clipped answers, stammering and sudden silences show that he is deeply frightened. His refusal to explain himself suggests that past trauma makes it painful to speak openly.

What does Arthur Kipps’s narration reveal about other characters’ speech?

Arthur reports pauses, changes of tone and unfinished sentences when people mention Eel Marsh House. His narration shows how ordinary village speech breaks down whenever the haunting is discussed.

How can I write about dialogue in The Woman in Black for GCSE?

Choose short quotations that show hesitation, repetition or silence, then explain how these features reveal fear, guilt or secrets. Link each point to Gothic tension and the overall atmosphere.

Try These Related Quizzes

Match the dialogue to the correct speaker.

1 .

"I am sorry to disappoint you, but I have no story to tell!"

Mrs Drablow

Mr Bentley

Mr Daily

Arthur

Arthur refuses to tell his family a Christmas ghost story, even decades after the events at Eel Marsh House took place

2 .

"I don't think I ever told you about the extraordinary Mrs Drablow?"

Mr Bentley

Stella

Arthur

Mr Jerome

Mr Bentley makes Mrs Drablow sound merely eccentric, a "rum 'un", as he also describes her

3 .

"You are backing away from speaking out the truth of the matter, which is that I should not find a soul willing to spend any time out at Eel Marsh House"

Mr Jerome

Arthur

Mrs Daily

Mr Bentley

Mr Jerome refuses to explain why he is convinced no one will be willing to take a job helping Arthur sort through Mrs Drablow's papers

4 .

"Well, she did me no harm. She neither spoke nor came near me. I did not like her look and I liked the ... the power that seemed to emanate from her towards me even less, but I have convinced myself that it is a power that cannot do more than make me feel afraid"

Arthur

Mr Daily

The landlord of the Gifford Arms

Mr Bentley

Arthur shows himself to be entirely unaware of the power fear will come to have over him. The Woman in Black will also prove to be capable of causing significant physical harm

5 .

"Of course, things may have changed, I may be quite mistaken...things may be in apple-pie order and you'll clear it all up in an afternoon"

Mr Daily

The landlord of the Gifford Arms

Mr Bentley

Mr Jerome

Mr Bentley warns Arthur that Mrs Drablow was disorganised. His warning is somewhat of an understatement!

6 .

"You'll find everything hospitable enough at Crythin, for all it's a plain little place. We tuck ourselves in with our backs to the wind, and carry on with our business"

Mr Jerome

Samuel Daily

Keckwick

Mrs Daily

Samuel Daily describes the attitude of an isolated, self-reliant community

7 .

"I wouldn't have left you over the night, wouldn't have done that to you"

Mr Daily

Keckwick

Arthur

Mr Bentley

Keckwick knows what Arthur must have experienced his first time alone at Eel Marsh House and comes out in the middle of the night to fetch him back to the village as soon as the mist has cleared and the tide has receded

8 .

"There are stories, tales. There's all that nonsense. [...] You can discount most of it"

Mr Daily

The landlord of the Gifford Arms

Mr Jerome

Mrs Daily

Mr Jerome finds it difficult to warn Arthur without seeming to be superstitious

9 .

"He is mine. Why should I not have what is mine? He shall not go to strangers"

Mrs Drablow

Mr Jerome

Keckwick

Jennet Humfrye

These words are not spoken, of course! Jennet writes them to her sister, Mrs Drablow

10 .

"You, if you are lucky, will neither hear nor see nor know of anything to do with that damned place again. The rest of us have to stay. We've to live with it"

Mr Jerome

Keckwick

Mr Daily

The landlord of the Gifford Arms

Samuel Daily explains why local people are so reluctant to discuss the terrible history of Eel Marsh House and the devastating effect the ghost of Jennet Humfrye has had on the inhabitants of the village

You can find more about this topic by visiting BBC Bitesize - The Woman in Black

Author: Sheri Smith (PhD English Literature, English Teacher & Quiz Writer)