Toryssa's review
The Turn of the Screw (Penguin Popular Classics)
by Henry James
Toryssa, I thoroughly enjoyed your comments on The Turn of the Screw. Years ago I saw a marvelous stage version of the story with a simple set and only two actors. The woman played the young governess and the man played all the other roles--and sometimes the presence of another character on stage was simply implied by the way he or she spoke to the air. I loved this version--it drew the audience in to a world of imagination and left us with the shivers.
Toryssa's review
The Turn of the Screw (Penguin Popular Classics) by Henry James
Toryssa's review
rating:
I absolutely loved this. There is quite a lot of controversy linked with this story, and what was really happening. Was their really evil? Was the Governess mad?
The end is rather inconclusive and leaves the reader to decide for themselves.
I thought it was very compelling and well written. James did a really good job of writing from a young woman’s perspective. Especially at the beginning I found her incredibly endearing and oh-so-GIRLY. Over a hundred years later, and it’s still quite current in terms of emotion. I thought.
He used great description and it was affective. Very ominous.
So, here is my take on the Governess. I don’t think she was nuts. I think that it was a Ghost Story. It was set up as such. James’ brother was a Psychologist that studied the paranormal. She went on to work with other children, the reader of the story knew her and loved her. She couldn’t have been completely bat shit crazy, as one of my professors calls her. She was a parson’s da...more
The end is rather inconclusive and leaves the reader to decide for themselves.
I thought it was very compelling and well written. James did a really good job of writing from a young woman’s perspective. Especially at the beginning I found her incredibly endearing and oh-so-GIRLY. Over a hundred years later, and it’s still quite current in terms of emotion. I thought.
He used great description and it was affective. Very ominous.
So, here is my take on the Governess. I don’t think she was nuts. I think that it was a Ghost Story. It was set up as such. James’ brother was a Psychologist that studied the paranormal. She went on to work with other children, the reader of the story knew her and loved her. She couldn’t have been completely bat shit crazy, as one of my professors calls her. She was a parson’s da...more
Toryssa, I thoroughly enjoyed your comments on The Turn of the Screw. Years ago I saw a marvelous stage version of the story with a simple set and only two actors. The woman played the young governess and the man played all the other roles--and sometimes the presence of another character on stage was simply implied by the way he or she spoke to the air. I loved this version--it drew the audience in to a world of imagination and left us with the shivers.