Ghost Stories · Chapter
The Gardener explained
The narrator and Hugh Graham attempt to keep Margaret from using planchette, fearing the supernatural presence that has entered the house.
What happens
The narrator and Hugh Graham attempt to keep Margaret from using planchette, fearing the supernatural presence that has entered the house. Despite their efforts, Margaret insists on trying the board, which writes a message from the spirit of a man who strangled his wife and cut his own throat. A ghostly figure then appears at the door, with a gaping wound on his neck, before departing. The chapter explores the possibility of an emotional record left by the murder-suicide or a genuine visitation from the dead.
Themes in this chapter
Supernatural and Occult
The chapter centers on a ghostly visitation and planchette communication with a dead murderer.
Guilt and Retribution
The ghost's appearance suggests remorse and penance for his crime of murder and suicide.
Fear and Terror
The characters experience intense fear of the unknown presence and the spectral figure.
Characters to notice
- Unknown Narrator
The narrator describes the supernatural events and his own fearful observations.
- Hugh Graham
Hugh is anxious about the planchette and tries to prevent Margaret from using it, sensing the presence.
- Margaret Alton
Margaret is enthusiastic about planchette and unknowingly channels the ghostly gardener.
Key passages
“But there’s something more than our fear, you know. Something has got into the house and we’re up against it.”
Hugh insists that an actual supernatural entity has invaded the house, beyond their own fear.
Hugh expresses his belief in a real ghostly presence.
“I have come in, but still I can’t find her. Are you hiding her? I will search the room where you are.”
The planchette writes a message from the spirit searching for his victim.
The ghost communicates through the planchette, seeking his murdered wife.
“The door opened, and there moved in the figure of a man. He stood just within the door, his head bent forward, and he turned it from side to side, peering, it would seem, with eyes staring and infinitely sad, into every corner of the room.”
The ghost of the gardener appears at the door, looking around the room with sorrowful eyes.
The spectral figure manifests physically before the characters.