Final answer:
The narrator creates suspense by withholding key information until the end, using literary devices that include the rising action and climax to engage the audience and keep them eager to know the outcome.
Step-by-step explanation:
The question deals with a literary device used to build suspense in a narrative, typical for both prose and drama. Literary suspense is the intense feeling that an audience goes through while waiting for the outcome of certain events. It keeps readers guessing, on the edge of their seats, eager to know what happens next. In the context provided, the narrator creates suspense by delaying the revelation of some crucial information until the story's climax or resolution. This technique often involves a series of dramatic events known as the rising action, which leads to the climax. The suspense is further deepened by presenting conflicts, questions, or dilemmas that make the audience question what could possibly happen next, ensuring that they stay tuned for the next development in the story.
Examples of Building Suspense in Literature:
- In the provided text excerpts, the authors create suspense by withholding information or outcomes, by leaving the characters' fates uncertain, or by putting them in situations filled with emotional intensity and potential danger.
- Suspense can be built through the setting, such as the eerie silence in Deborah's vicinity or the darkening evening hinting at something ominous.
- Suspense can also stem from the characters' internal conflicts, or from the narrative's pacing and how the sequence of events unfolds. The mention of finger-spelling rising action suggests that signs or patterns within the story are leading towards a critical juncture.
- Finally, the emotional state of characters—like the woman whispering 'free, free, free!'—can contribute to suspense, as the reader anticipates the significance behind these emotions.