We Have Always Lived In The Castle Analysis

We Have Always Lived in the Castle revolves around Mary Katherine Blackwood, an eighteen year old who lives in a mansion isolated from the village with her sister Constance and her mentally ill uncle Julian Blackwood. Mary Katherine, often referred as Merricat by her sister Constance, is an odd adult who has a cat named Jonas. Constance takes care of Merricat and Uncle Julian. Both Julian and Constance haven’t left their home in over six years due to a family tragedy that killed most of the Blackwood family. The Blackwood family was murdered by poisoning them with arsenic, which was mixed into the family sugar and sprinkled onto blackberries at dinner time. Constance was arrested and then cleared from the crime. The village people believe that Constance got away with murder and the family is detested by almost all of the villagers. One day a strange man went up to the Blackwood house and disturbed the pattern that Merricat and Constance had built
In the middle of chapter eight, when the house fire is under control, several villagers take advantage of the situation to go into the house and destroy it. Many of the villagers wanted the house to completely burn down. Jackson writes that they wanted them dead, one villager yelled “put them back in the house and start the fire all over again” (108). This all proves that the residents of the village hated the Blackwood family. In conclusion, Charles Blackwood with his greedy attitude became one of the most despiteful characters of the novel. The villagers did not disappoint either with their envious actions and horrible accusations towards Merricat and Constance about their family misfortune. This all proves that that Cousin Charles Blackwood and the villagers of We Have Always Lived in the Castle are the villains of the