The Turn of the Screw

The Turn of the Screw is an 1898 gothic horror novella by Henry James.

The Turn of the Screw is an 1898 gothic horror novella by Henry James. It tells the story of an unnamed governess who cares for two children at a remote English country house and becomes convinced that the estate is haunted. The work is known for its ambiguity and is widely studied in Canadian secondary and post-secondary literature courses.

Plot

The story is framed as a tale told from a manuscript read aloud by Douglas. The governess describes her arrival at Bly, her growing fears about the children, and her belief that ghostly figures are influencing them.

Themes

Major themes include innocence, corruption, class, repression, and uncertainty. The novella is especially known for leaving open whether the ghosts exist or are projections of the governess’s mind.

Publication history

The Turn of the Screw was serialized in Collier's Weekly from January to April 1898 and was published in book form later that year. It has remained widely studied in literary criticism and adapted in other media.

Critical interpretation

Readers and scholars have long debated the reliability of the governess as narrator. That ambiguity is central to the novella’s reputation and to its lasting influence on gothic and psychological fiction.