The Turn of the Screw

The Metamorphosis and The Turn of the Screw speak to many emotions due to the multiple interpretations, such as sympathy. In The Turn of the Screw the sympathetic reader looks at the Governess. She is young, inexperienced, naïve, and in a strange place with strange children. The governess is put in a difficult position when she takes on the children who seem to stray from normal mannerisms of youth. Readers are sympathetic towards the governess because the children seem deceitful and yet, act…

Henry James’ The Turn of the Screw is seemingly a classic ghost story; innocent children, a haunted mansion, and a governess tormented by evil spirits. With a psychoanalytic perspective, this novel narrates a case of a mentally ill abuser and her victims. The governess is trying to suppress her sexual desires because she is a parson’s child and she is mentally unstable. Her strenuous attempt to suppress her desires escalates after a brief encounter with her employer that leaves her lust…

The Turn of the Screw has been considered most notable for introducing gothic ghost stories into the public’s view. The story also presented an opportunity to explore the affect which an author’s personal relationships, specifically those that didn’t coincide with societal ideas of morality, had on their work. It additionally draws attention to the significance of child abuse and the attention we afford the humanity of children. Each idea intersected at the idea of adults finding youthful beauty…

In Henry James’ The Turn of the Screw, the reader is pulled in two directions as he or she decides for himself or herself if the ghosts are projections of the governess’ unconscious or if they are truly haunting both Miles and Flora. These two differing viewpoints are a direct result of James’ use of ambiguity of the text, which contribute to the overall eerie and uncanny feeling produced. The development of the uncanny and use of ambiguity within the text opens up a new perspective of the text…

story, without altering the word itself. Many critics, like Barbara Bengels, say that The Turn of the Screw’s uniqueness comes from its ability to perplex the reader and create doubt in their minds. Bengels strengthens this argument by looking at the devolution of words, specifically “charm”, in the novella. By analyzing the relationship between words and their definitions in Henry James’s The Turn of the Screw, readers…

In The Turn of the Screw adolescence is depicted, mostly through the thoughts of the governess, as maintenance of innocence. However, it is shown that throughout adolescence, and through the loss of adolescence, there is constant corruption and negative influences which ultimately lead to a loss of innocence. This loss of innocence and struggle to cling to adolescence seen throughout the novel is Henry James’s way of depicting the consequences of hidden desires. These desires, specifically those…

Turn of the Screw 1. In your opinion, are the ghosts real, or are they manifestations of the Governess's imagination? Yes, in my opinion the ghosts are real. The Governess knew exactly what the ghosts looked like and she never knew them. 2. What exactly is so scary about Peter Quint (well, aside from the fact that he's dead)? Peter Quint is trying to possess Miles. He also tried to seduce Miss Jessel. If that isn’t already enough, he tried to take over the house when his uncle left and…

confirm that the good and evil are meant to be together? The light and the darkness are two completely different things that it is very ambiguous to state that they are always together. However, we could still say that they work in pair. In The Turn of the Screw, good and evil stand together. The mystery stays predominant and the characters are as enigmatic on their past as they are on what is going on in the house. Throughout the play, our certainties are most of the time shaken; we come to…

The ‘Turn the Screw ' Henry James is a novella with its original content written in a choreographed language. It is difficult for one to do interpretations without a deeper interest in the text written and many have tried to know what the text means and the original intention of the author in passing his message to scholars. There is an evil twinge and twist in the story line, but there exists a brilliant idea for one who understands the novella. An anonymous narrator reads a script to Douglas,…

Henry James’s “The Turn of the Screw” features a callous master, an eager governess, mischievous children, a deceptive housekeeper, and two apparitions. In this book, an uncle who has no desire to care for his niece and nephew, hires a governess who sees the former valet and her predecessor who are both dead. Various critics argue different theories regarding the apparitions. It has been said that the governess is suffering from a psychological instability and that is what is causing her to…