The Delusional Governess in Henry James The Turn of the...

The existence of the ghosts in The Turn of the Screw has always been in debate. Instead of directly discussing whether the ghosts are real or not, this essay will focus on the reliability of the governess, the narrator of the story. After making a close examination of her state of mind while she is at Bly, readers of The Turn of the Screw will have many more clues to ponder again and to decide to what extent the governess can be believed. While critics like Heilman argue that there are problems with the interpretation that the governess was psychopathic, textual evidence incorporated with scientific research show that the governess did go through a period of psychical disorder that caused her insomnia, out of which she created†¦show more content†¦The governess was young and inexperienced. Douglas described the governess as  ¡Ã‚ §young, untried, nervous ¡Ã‚ ¨ (James 5). The work at Bly was her first experience as a governess. The idea of playing the dominant role at Bly may have scared her because in her whole life, she had never had the opportunity to play that kind of role in her family. Moreover, as a parson ¡Ã‚ ¦s youngest daughter, she had little experience of the world, the grandeur of the villa impressed her as she felt upon seeing it:  ¡Ã‚ ¨The scene had a greatness that made a different affair from my own scant home ¡Ã‚ ¨ (James 7). Heller explains: The governess is worried about her responsibility from the beginning. At twenty she is barely an adult herself. The youngest of several children of a poor country parson, she has never seen the kind of life over which she must now rule alone, has never had a large bed, an expansive view, perhaps not even a room of her own. She has never seen herself full length in a mirror before. She wonders whether she can rise to the responsibility of directing the care of two children in such an establishment. (55) Ever since the governess arrived at Bly, her spirit had been kept in a state of alert. There were a lot of new things thrown in that struck her. In an actual example, aShow MoreRelatedThe Turn Of The Screw By Henry James1379 Words   |  6 Pages A Screw Loose During the course of the novella, â€Å"The Turn of the Screw†, by Henry James, the governess continuously encounters ghosts that seemingly only appear to her. As the story progresses, the governess starts postulating a relationship between Miles, Flora, and the supposed corruptive ghosts. However, due to the fact that the ghosts are not seen when others are present at the time of the sightings indicate that they fail to exist. Moreover, through the evidence presented in the text, theRead MoreThe Turn Of The Screw1265 Words   |  6 PagesHenry James’ The Turn of the Screw has been described as one of the best ghost stories of all time. However, there is clear evidence that the main character, the governess, suffers from delusions. The strange events that occur throughout the story happen in the estate of Bly. The anomalies, described as horrors or ghosts, only come to light after the governess arrives. These events are due to creations of the governess mind, her cont rolling intent to protect and overrule the children, and her unstableRead More A Nineteenth Century Ghost Story in The Turn of The Screw by Henry James5496 Words   |  22 PagesA Nineteenth Century Ghost Story in The Turn of The Screw by Henry James The Turn of The Screw is a classic Gothic ghost novella with a wicket twist set in a grand old house at Bly. The story is ambiguous; we never fully know whether the apparitions exist or not and we are left with many more questions than answers. The Governess is left in charge of two young children, Miles and Flora, of whom she later becomes obsessed with, describing them as angelic. She has