Turn Of The Screw Literary Analysis
Neha Gundavarapu
1st Period
11/18/16
Turn of the Screw Literary Analysis (8)
In his novella Turn of the Screw, Henry James portrays the governess as a delusional woman who conceives the ghost of Peter Quint as a direct manifestation of her own fears and desires about sex. James utilizes the ghost of Quint to represent adulthood and sexual maturity, thus epitomizing an older version of the “innocent” child, Miles. The governess’ beginning of insanity was prompted by Mrs. Grose describing the previous governess at Bly as “young and pretty” like the governess, and goes on to describe the nature of Quint: “he DID… it was the way he liked everyone [young and pretty]” (James 12). With this information, the governess has everything she needs to manifest …show more content…
The house mirrors the progressive deterioration of the governess’ mind, as she is eventually unable to distinguish reality from her delusional fantasies. The house is often silent and eerie, and the governess is found to feel more comfortable outside of the house, representing her suffocation physically, and mentally. The house contains many twists and turns of the corridors and stairways, and the governess even watches Quint disappear “straight down the staircase and into the darkness in which the next bend was lost” (James 37). This parallels with the governess’ confused mind, filled with spirals and kinks and outlandish ideas that she cannot organize. On top of this, her increasing preoccupation with preserving Miles’ innocence prompts her to believe that the ghost of Quint is corrupting the child, thus stripping him of his purity. The governess is even more triggered by the arrival of the ambiguous letter from school discussing Miles’ dismissal from school. Anxious to find the reason why, the governess becomes increasingly overwhelmed and is driven to insanity inside the claustrophic atmosphere of the old house. Overwhelmed, the governess cries out to Mrs. Grose that she cannot “save or shield them,” that “it’s far worse” than she dreamed, and that “they’re lost” (31), proving her determination to save Miles from becoming “adrift” by transforming into a version of Peter
1st Period
11/18/16
Turn of the Screw Literary Analysis (8)
In his novella Turn of the Screw, Henry James portrays the governess as a delusional woman who conceives the ghost of Peter Quint as a direct manifestation of her own fears and desires about sex. James utilizes the ghost of Quint to represent adulthood and sexual maturity, thus epitomizing an older version of the “innocent” child, Miles. The governess’ beginning of insanity was prompted by Mrs. Grose describing the previous governess at Bly as “young and pretty” like the governess, and goes on to describe the nature of Quint: “he DID… it was the way he liked everyone [young and pretty]” (James 12). With this information, the governess has everything she needs to manifest …show more content…
The house mirrors the progressive deterioration of the governess’ mind, as she is eventually unable to distinguish reality from her delusional fantasies. The house is often silent and eerie, and the governess is found to feel more comfortable outside of the house, representing her suffocation physically, and mentally. The house contains many twists and turns of the corridors and stairways, and the governess even watches Quint disappear “straight down the staircase and into the darkness in which the next bend was lost” (James 37). This parallels with the governess’ confused mind, filled with spirals and kinks and outlandish ideas that she cannot organize. On top of this, her increasing preoccupation with preserving Miles’ innocence prompts her to believe that the ghost of Quint is corrupting the child, thus stripping him of his purity. The governess is even more triggered by the arrival of the ambiguous letter from school discussing Miles’ dismissal from school. Anxious to find the reason why, the governess becomes increasingly overwhelmed and is driven to insanity inside the claustrophic atmosphere of the old house. Overwhelmed, the governess cries out to Mrs. Grose that she cannot “save or shield them,” that “it’s far worse” than she dreamed, and that “they’re lost” (31), proving her determination to save Miles from becoming “adrift” by transforming into a version of Peter