Is The Governess Insane In Henry James The Turn Of The Screw

The Judgments of Hammurabi are a set of laws that were written by a god. The laws were put in place “to promote the welfare of the people, to cause justice to prevail in the land, and so the strong might not oppress the weak.” The Tale of The Eloquent Peasant, depicts how a peasant has been robbed of his goods and how he eloquently appeals to the king for justice to be served. Both articles discuss; the division of a society’s social class, how gods/kings interpret justice and family relationships within the law.

Written in 1889, during the rise of supernatural psychical research and supernatural fiction, The Turn Of The Screw by Henry James tells the tale of a governess driven to insanity. The governess claims to have seen ghosts of the late governess, Miss Jessel, and the deceased valet, Peter Quint, on the grounds of castle Bly. The ghosts that she sees throughout the novella are not real and were created by the governess, due to the social pressures that she faced working at Bly. Her repressed desire to belong to a higher social class and her fears of trying to elevate her status were

Power is said to corrupt anyone sadly not even children are immune. In The Crucible written by Arthur Miller tells a story about witchcraft which is based on actual past events that happened in Salem. In this story, Reverend Hale plays a very important role being one of the few who realizes that the witchcraft claims are a sham. It is interesting to see Hale as he is forced to deal with a major conflict, come to terms with his own motivations, and characteristics.

In F. Scott Fitzgerald’s novel, “The Great Gatsby,” Daisy Buchanan struggles to free herself from the power of both Tom Buchanan and Jay Gatsby, whom both use their wealth and high standings as a way to dictate power over and impress others. Fitzgerald purposely develops Daisy as selfish and “money hungry” character when she chooses Tom, a rich man, over Gatsby, a poor man (who she was in love with), which establishes her desire for power that she never achieves.

Disney's Mulan accurately portrays filial piety. Filial piety is focusing on respect for your family. It is shown throughout the whole movie. Mulan's family does not think that she shows enough respect for her family. Whenever the army comes to draft her father for the war, she tries to stop him. By her doing this, he claims that she had dishonored him. Mulan's father tells her that it would be an honor for him to be in this war. He would be protecting his country and his family's honor. In the beginning of the movie, Mulan is getting ready with the help of a few ladies. These ladies tell Mulan some of the things that they think she should have to bring honor to her family. They believe that she must be beautiful, have a tiny waist, and have nice hair to bring her family any honor.

The novel, Turn of the Screw, by Henry James takes place in England and is told from the point of view of the Governess, whose sanity is questionable. The Governess is insane because throughout the novel, she is the only one who sees the ghosts, she is in love with the master, and she allows her desire to protect the children to drive her to insanity.

Young ones are seen more as pure and innocent often leading adults to believe them. In The Crucible, the children accused many civilians of being witches. The weighty magistrates and other adults accounted the children’s words and took it to court. Accused and some of who were not accused rational adults tried to make sense of the situation were ignored. The children were trusted due to religion and some benefitting from their accusation.

Women in the 1600s to the 1800s were very harshly treated. They were seen as objects rather than people. They were stay-at-home women because people didn’t trust them to hold jobs. They were seen as little or weak.

Many people have heard that women in the seventeenth century had little to no rights, and that would be almost correct. In Amsterdam, women had more rights than most of the women in Europe at the time, which really, was not much. An unmarried woman had more freedoms than their married counterparts, but being unmarried in this century still had downfalls. If an unmarried woman never wed or had children in her lifetime many people considered it to be a waste of her life. An unmarried woman was allowed her own property and businesses but if she was to ever marry, then the husband would assume ownership of it all. Women during this time were told to remain silent, to be seen but not heard. Women were often controlled by their fathers, brothers

While Helen embodies the ideal young lady of the 1800s – modest, submissive, and devoted to God – Jane is characterized as being passionate and stubborn. Helen’s acceptance of death and desire to go to heaven also highlights the way Jane craves adventure and independence. However, throughout the novel, Jane begins to follow Helen’s teachings and starts to follow the word of God. By contrasting Helen’s theological beliefs against those of Mr. Brocklehurst and St John Rivers, Brontë also emphasizes how Helen is more successful in spreading God’s teachings because she does not use religion as a tool for controlling Jane’s true nature. The character of Helen Burns not only plays an important role in helping Jane develop into a more submissive woman and devoted Christian, but her positive outlook on Christianity also emphasizes the use of religion as a tool for manipulation throughout the

The governess’s sanity in Henry James’s Turn of the Screw is often disputed over in literature. Because the governess sees ghosts in the novel, she is often argued as insane. The definition of sanity proves otherwise, stating that it is the “state of being sound of mind or having appropriate judgment skills” (Psychology Dictionary). The governess is sane because she behaves rationally, protects the children above all costs, and is not the only character witnessing a supernatural presence.

First, gender roles in a society have a huge cause and effect that affects the people in the society, in the novel things fall apart these roles greatly affect family life. An example of this is how Okonkwo, the main protagonist in things fall apart, leads his family. Okonkwo is very strict and expects his wives and children to obey his every command, this caused his young wives and children to be scared of him. “Okonkwo ruled his household with a heavy hand. His wives, especially the youngest, lived in perpetual fear of his fiery temper, and so did his little children”(13). The way the gender roles in his society were set up was the women had to always obey the men. This causes Okonkwo to be strict so he can manage his household. But the effect

Margaret Sanger, a feminist social reformer, argued that “women cannot be on equal footing with men until they have complete control over their reproductive functions”. Her argument improved our everyday life by providing more information on contraceptives, giving women the power to control their bodies, and changing the role of women and men. Margaret Sanger was determined and dedicated to provide women with information about contraceptives which eventually improved the lives of many women.

The Crucible is a depiction of the hardships from the Puritan lifestyle. The story brought out the true characteristics of Puritan believers, shadowed by the evils in the world. During the Salem Witch Trials people were hysterical due to their dealings with the devil. Betty Parris, Abigail Williams, and Mercy Lewis started the accusations that would lead to the end of innocent men and women including John Proctor. John, the protagonist of the story, had his faults like any other person, battling them until the end of his time on Earth. His character was portrayed magnificently through his pride, free will, nobility, and his death in the bitter end, thus labeling him a tragic hero.

Peter Quint and Miss Jessel. During her employment, the Governess claims to experience several ghostly interactions, however no one else could relate to her sightings. For example, after claiming to see two ghosts, the Governess confides in Mrs. Grose and later says “she herself had seen nothing, not the shadow of a shadow, and nobody in the house but the governess was in the governess’s plight,” (James 24). Mrs. Grose is eliminated as a witness and cannot argue if the paranormal activity at Bly was real. Since no one can support the governess’s claims, then presumably, they were hallucinated by