The Turn of the Screw by Henry James
"The Turn of the Screw" by Henry James is a novella that centers on a young governess who takes a position caring for two children, Miles and Flora, at a remote country estate called Bly. The story unfolds as the governess begins to experience eerie encounters with apparitions, particularly the ghosts of Peter Quint and Miss Jessel, former employees of the children’s uncle. As the governess grapples with her responsibility to protect the children from these malevolent influences, she becomes increasingly troubled by the children's strange behavior and their inexplicable connection to the spirits.
The narrative is steeped in ambiguity, leaving readers to question the nature of the supernatural events and the psychological state of the governess. Themes of innocence, corruption, and the complexities of childhood are explored as the governess's perception of the children shifts from loving care to suspicion of hidden evil. The tension escalates as she tries to confront the ghosts and uncover their intentions, ultimately culminating in a tragic and shocking conclusion. The novella is noted for its psychological depth and haunting atmosphere, offering a rich experience that invites diverse interpretations of its events and characters.
The Turn of the Screw by Henry James
First published: 1898
Type of work: Novella
Type of plot: Ghost
Time of plot: Mid-nineteenth century
Locale: England
Principal Characters
The Governess ,Mrs. Grose , housekeeper at BlyMiles andFlora , the two children of the houseMr. Quint andMiss Jessel , two apparitions
The Story
It is a pleasant afternoon in June when the governess first arrives at the country estate at Bly, where she is to take charge of Miles, age ten, and Flora, eight. She faces her new position with some trepidation because of the unusual circumstances of her situation. The two children are to be under her complete care, and their uncle, who engaged her, has been explicit in stating that he does not wish to be bothered with his orphaned niece and nephew. Her uneasiness disappears, however, when she sees her charges, for Flora and Miles seem incapable of giving the slightest trouble.
The weeks of June pass uneventfully. Then, one evening, while she is walking in the garden at twilight, the governess is startled to see a strange young man at a distance. The man looks at her in a manner that suggests a challenge and then disappears. The incident angers and distresses the young woman; she decides that the man is a trespasser.
On the following Sunday evening, the governess is again startled to see the same stranger looking in at her through a window. He stares piercingly at her for a few seconds and then disappears. This time the governess realizes that the man had been looking for someone in particular, and she thinks that perhaps he bodes evil for the children in her care. A few minutes later, the governess tells the housekeeper, Mrs. Grose, of the incident and describes the appearance of the man. Mrs. Grose tells her that it is a perfect description of Peter Quint, the valet to the governess’s employer—but Mr. Quint is dead.
One afternoon shortly afterward, a second apparition appears. This time Miss Jessel, the former governess, appears in the garden to both the governess and the little girl, Flora. The strange part of the situation is that the little girl refuses to admit to the governess that she sees the figure and knows who it is, though it is obvious that she understands the appearance fully.
The governess learns from the housekeeper that Quint and Miss Jessel had been lovers while alive, though the young woman came from a very fine family and the man had been guilty of drunkenness and worse vices. For what evil purpose these two spirits wish to influence the seemingly innocent children, neither the housekeeper nor the governess can guess.
The secrecy of the children about seeing the ghosts is maddening to the two women. They both feel that the boy is continuing to see the two ghosts in private and conceals that fact, just as he had known of the illicit affair between the valet and the former governess in life and had helped them to conceal it. Yet, when in the presence of the children, the governess sometimes feels that it would be impossible for the two children to be influenced into evil.
The third time the ghost of Quint appears to the governess is inside the house. Unable to sleep, she is reading late at night when she hears someone on the stairs. She goes to investigate and sees the ghost, which disappears when faced by her unflinching gaze. Each night after that, she inspects the stairs, but she never again sees the ghost of the man. Once, she glimpses the apparition of Miss Jessel sitting dejectedly on the lowest stair.
Worse than the appearance of the ghosts is the discovery that the children have been leaving their beds at night to wander on the lawn in communication with the spirits, who are leading them to unknown evil. It becomes apparent to the governess that the children are not good within themselves. In their imaginations, they are living in a world populated by the evil dead restored.
In such an atmosphere, the summer wears away into autumn. In all this time, the children give no sign of awareness of the apparitions. Knowing that her influence with the children is as tenuous as a thread that is likely break at the least stress, the governess does not allude to the ghosts. She herself sees no more manifestations, but she often guesses from the children’s attitudes that the apparitions are close at hand. What is worse for the distressed woman is the thought that what Miles and Flora are seeing are things still more terrible than she imagines, visions that sprang from their association with the evil figures in the past.
One day, Miles comes to the governess and announces his desire to go away to school. She realizes that it is only proper that he be sent to school, but she fears the results of ghostly influences on the boy once he is beyond her care. Later, opening the door of the schoolroom, she again sees the ghost of her predecessor, Miss Jessel. As the apparition fades, the governess realizes that her duty is to stay with the children and combat the spirits and their deadly influence. She decides to write immediately to the children’s uncle, breaking his injunction against being bothered in their behalf. That night before she writes, she goes into Miles’s room and asks the boy to let her help him in his secret troubles. Suddenly a rush of cold air fills the room, as if the window had been blown open. When the governess relights the candle blown out by the draft, the window is still closed, and the drawn curtain has not been disturbed.
The following day, Flora is briefly missing. Mrs. Grose and the governess find her beside the garden pond, and the governess, knowing that the girl had gone there to see the ghost, asks her where Miss Jessel is. The child replies that she only wants to be left alone. The governess can see the apparition of Miss Jessel standing on the opposite side of the pond. The governess, afraid that the evil influence is already dominating the little girl, asks the housekeeper to take Flora to London to request the uncle’s aid. In place of the lovable, angelic Flora there has suddenly appeared a little child with a filthy mind and filthy speech, which she uses in denouncing the governess to the housekeeper. That same afternoon, Mrs. Grose leaves with the child as the governess has requested.
That evening, immediately after dinner, the governess asks Miles to tell her what is on his mind before he leaves the dining room. When he refuses, she asks him if he stole the letter she had written to his uncle. As she asks the question, she realizes that standing outside the window, staring into the room, is the ghost of Peter Quint. She pulls the boy close to her, shielding him from any view of the ghost at the window, while he tells her that he did take the letter. He also informs her that he has already been expelled from one school because of his lewd speech and actions. Noting how close the governess is holding him, he suddenly asks if Miss Jessel is near. The governess, angry and distraught, shrieks at him that the ghost of Peter Quint is just outside the window. When Miles turns around, the apparition is gone. With a scream, he falls into the governess’s arms. At first, she does not realize that she has lost him forever—that Miles is dead.
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