Essay On The Governess In The Turn Of The Screw
In The Turn of the Screw by Henry James, there are many disputes over the question of the governess’s sanity. While some claim that the apparitions she sees are real, deeming her sane, others believe that they are materializations of her own imagination. The governess is sane because of her ability to think rationally, the apparitions’ resemblance to previous Bly workers, and Miles’s acknowledgment of Peter Quint. The governess is sane because she is able to think rationally before acting upon her actions. After the governess first sees Peter Quint on top of the tower, she decides that she is there to “protect and defend the little creatures in the world” (James 27). The role of the governess in the Bly household is caretaker of the children, meaning her job is to protect them. This role as a protector becomes her main priority, proving her sanity and
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The governess describes the first apparition she sees as as having “red hair, very red, close-curling, and a pale face...and little, rather queer whiskers that are as red as his hair” (James 23). After the governess tells Mrs. Grose about the apparition, she immediately associates the exact description with Peter Quint, one of the household servants that had already died. It is impossible that the governess could have come up with a character that looks exactly like a particular person, thus confirming that the spirit was real and that the governess is sane. The governess then describes another apparition she sees as a “woman in black, pale and dreadful…” (James 30). Mrs. Grose later confirms that the woman is Miss Jessel, the former governess who had also died. Both of these vivid descriptions disprove the argument that the governess had created an image of the apparition herself, while also proving that the apparitions are real and that the governess is
The governess describes the first apparition she sees as as having “red hair, very red, close-curling, and a pale face...and little, rather queer whiskers that are as red as his hair” (James 23). After the governess tells Mrs. Grose about the apparition, she immediately associates the exact description with Peter Quint, one of the household servants that had already died. It is impossible that the governess could have come up with a character that looks exactly like a particular person, thus confirming that the spirit was real and that the governess is sane. The governess then describes another apparition she sees as a “woman in black, pale and dreadful…” (James 30). Mrs. Grose later confirms that the woman is Miss Jessel, the former governess who had also died. Both of these vivid descriptions disprove the argument that the governess had created an image of the apparition herself, while also proving that the apparitions are real and that the governess is