# I: The Judge’s House explained — Short Fiction

> Chapter companion for Short Fiction by J. Sheridan Le Fanu.

## What happens

An elderly man recounts a ghostly encounter in a cheaply rented room in a dark Westminster house, where he saw two sinister figures emerge from a locked closet and cross his bedroom. The narrator, prompted by the story, writes to an older friend for details about the house's history, learning that it was once the home of the notoriously wicked Judge Harbottle, a corrupt and unscrupulous judge whose terrifying appearance and ruthless behavior on the bench were legendary.

## Themes in this chapter

### Supernatural and the Uncanny

The chapter centers on a ghostly apparition of two figures that appear in the tenant's bedroom, walking silently and without awareness of him, creating a sense of dread and the uncanny.

### Corruption and Injustice

Judge Harbottle is portrayed as a wicked, unscrupulous judge who manipulated cases through cajolery, violence, and bamboozling, showing a deep corruption within the justice system.

### Guilt and Retribution

The ghostly visitation and the house's haunted reputation suggest a lingering guilt or retribution tied to Judge Harbottle's evil deeds.

## Character check-ins

### Judge Harbottle

The central figure of the chapter's backstory, described as a wicked, unscrupulous judge with a formidable face, loud harsh voice, and a reputation for corruption and violence on the bench.

### Captain Barton

The elderly man who tells the ghost story; he is the tenant in the haunted house and witnesses the apparitions.

### Doctor Hesselius

The narrator who receives the ghost story and writes to a friend for more details about Judge Harbottle.

## Key lines

> He was a dry, sad, quiet man, who had known better days, and had always maintained an unexceptionable character. No better authority could be imagined for a ghost story.

The elderly man was a reliable, respectable source, making his ghost story all the more credible.

_Establishes the narrator's trust in the storyteller._

> This old gentleman had the reputation of being about the wickedest man in England.

Judge Harbottle was widely considered one of the most evil men in the country.

_Highlights the judge's notorious wickedness._

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/short_fiction_31_se/chapters/i-the-judge-s-house
- Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/short_fiction_31_se
- All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/short_fiction_31_se/chapters