“Lost Hearts” written by MR James is a short story that is both disturbing and intriguing. MR James uses intense descriptions and shows ghostly figures to create tension. Throughout the story, unforeseen events occur. Mr. Abney's obsession with pagans and religion leaves the reader wondering why he is so interested in taking in his orphaned cousin and how it might benefit him. “The professor of Greek at Cambridge was heard to say that no one knew more of the religious beliefs of the last pagans than the landlord of Aswarby.” We learn of the disappearance of the two previous children who had also been taken in by Mr. Abney. After the ghostly sightings of the two children with their hearts ripped out, witnessed by young cousin Stephen, this creates a sense of foreshadowing event and suggests to the reader that the third victim will be the innocent Stephen. While describing Aswarby Hall, Mr James describes it as a "tall, square, red brick house". This is done to arouse curiosity and interest, as the description given is of an average looking house that would be similar to other houses around it, as nothing in particular stands out about the house. MR James uses unexpected settings like this. In traditional ghost stories, the setting of a house is often that of a grand and unusually eerie house which creates a dark and sinister atmosphere, but MR James does the opposite. He describes his settings using people's daily lives, for example describing the house they live in. He does this because he believes it has a scarier impact on the audience because the reader feels connected to ordinary characters and settings just like them. , and can no longer part with characters like Mr. Abney. Although to create a sinister atmosphere...... middle of paper ...... it is enough for him, if he is twelve years old and if he were not, he would not be of any useful to Mr. Abney and meant that he wouldn't bother to take care of him unless he got something out of it. This then takes the reader back to the other two children who had already disappeared and makes the reader wonder about their disappearance as they were also the same age as Stephen. This adds further thoughts that Mr. Abney's intentions are impure. Mr. Abney's interest in pagan culture may be the reason for his anxious behavior and eagerness to ask questions. Mr. James uses foreshadowing to create tension using his setting, language, and characters. I believe the ending of "Lost Hearts" was quite sudden and was not as built up and intensified unlike his other short ghost stories like "The Treasure of Abbot Thomas" or "The Tractate Middoth", but contained a well-managed crescendo..