This is a particularly tense scene due to the fact that we are meeting Stanhope for the first time.

Previous
to this we have only heard stories about Stanhope told by other characters. In the first paragraph we see
Stanhope upset about the mess left behind.

“Lucky for him he (left). I had a few words to say to master Hardy. You never saw the mess those fellows
left the trenches”.

The fact alone that the reader is introduced to Stanhope for the first time adds to the tension because an
expectation has been set that he is a loose cannon who can fly off the handle at any moment, just as he
did during the card game that Hardy tells Osbourne about . Because of this, the reader is waiting for a
reaction from Stanhope.

However, here we see Stanhope fairly calm but with a warning of his anger. This shows that Stanhope is
aware he has a penchant for getting angry. This further adds to the tension because the readers knows
that, unknown to Stanhope, Raleigh is standing in the room with him and , as Raleigh himself has
admitted, Stanhope is going to be surprised to see him.

The introduction of Stanhope sets an expectation and begins to build tension as we make our way
through text.