Turn Of The Screw Supernatural Essay

Turn of The Screw

The supernatural elements in Turn of The Screw are important because they bring an element of ambiguity to the story. Given the very inconclusive evidence, it could be argued that there are ghosts. Alternatively, it is equally possible that they are completely a figment of the governess’ imagination. The governess wholeheartedly claims she sees the ghosts, but no other characters ever claim the same thing. But since the reader only gets insight from the point of view of the governess, we can’t see what the others are thinking and whether or not they are being completely truthful. If we take the governess’ word for it, then the other characters seem to be keeping from her some very important historic information about Bly. But if we believe the other characters in the story, then there are no ghosts, and the governess seems oblivious to her being obsessive and maybe even insane. The back and forth uncertainty and the vague information that the reader is given make the existence or lack thereof, of the supernatural a very prominent theme throughout Turn of The Screw.
The Turn of The Screw is best appreciated when the reader can acknowledge the possibility that given the evidence, both ways of reading the book are equally plausible. All of the information and evidence in the book is subjective, and could be used and manipulated to argue both

The governess could easily be misreading the ghosts she allegedly sees, and they may be a reflection of her own thoughts or feelings. In The Turn of the Screw it is impossible to tell whether the ghosts are only haunting the governess and they are real, if others do see them and simply won’t admit it, or if the governess is simply paranoid. It is this impossible division, this equal balance of evidence for both sides that makes the supernatural an important