Essays on The Turn of The Screw

October 1898, by Henry James

Gothic fiction

The tale is told mostly through the journal of a governess and depicts her struggle to save her two young charges from the demonic influence of the eerie apparitions of two former servants in the household.

The major theme of the novel is ‘Corruption of Innocence by evil.’ Other themes include the supernatural, good vs. evil, appearances, repression, society and class, wisdom and knowledge, gender.

The Governess, Mrs. Grose, Miles, Flora, The uncle, Peter Quint, Miss Jessel, Douglas.

The story inspired critical debate over the question of the “reality” of the ghosts and of James’s intentions. James himself, in his preface to volume XII of The Novels and Tales of Henry James, called the tale a “fable” and said that he did not specify details of the ghosts’ evil deeds because he wanted readers to supply their own vision of terror.

The novella has been adapted numerous times, including a Broadway play (1950), a chamber opera (1954), two films (in 1961 and 2020), and a miniseries by Netflix (2020).

“He was there or was not there: not there if I didn't see him.”
“There was nothing in the room the next minute but the sunshine and a sense that I must stay.”
“I was a screen - I was their protector. The more I saw, the less they would.”