Short Fiction · Chapter
Madam Crowl's Ghost explained
An elderly woman recounts her childhood experience as a young servant at Applewale House, where she was warned that the old Dame Crowl was possessed by the devil.
What happens
An elderly woman recounts her childhood experience as a young servant at Applewale House, where she was warned that the old Dame Crowl was possessed by the devil. After the Dame's death, the narrator witnesses a ghostly apparition of a small boy in her room, later revealed to be the spirit of a child who was imprisoned and died in the house, likely murdered by the Dame.
Themes in this chapter
Supernatural and the Uncanny
The ghostly apparition of the boy and the warnings of possession highlight the supernatural elements central to the tale.
Guilt and Retribution
Dame Crowl's presumed murder of the boy and her subsequent haunting suggest a theme of guilt and supernatural retribution.
Corruption and Injustice
The hidden murder and cover-up of the boy's death reflect corruption and injustice within the household.
Characters to notice
- Aunt Margaret
The narrator's aunt, housekeeper at Applewale House, a stern woman who took her in as a servant.
- Wicked Captain Walshawe
Referenced as Dame Crowl's grandson, Squire Chevenix Crowl, who owned the estate at the time.
- Mrs. Molloy
Mentioned as Mrs. Wyvern, one of the women attending Dame Crowl during her final illness.
- Tom Chuff
Not present in this chapter.
Key passages
“I was but thirteen, my last birthday, the night I came to Applewale House.”
The narrator was thirteen years old when she first arrived at Applewale House.
Establishes the narrator's age and the beginning of her story.
“she's possessed by the devil, and more an half a ghost.”
A stranger warns the narrator that Dame Crowl is possessed by the devil and is partly a ghost.
Foreshadows the supernatural elements and the Dame's malevolent nature.
“I sid a little boy, wi’ a face as white as snow, and his hands clasped, and he looked sa sadly and sa steadfastly at me, as if he wanted me to do something for him.”
The narrator sees the ghost of a pale little boy who looks at her sorrowfully, as if seeking help.
Key supernatural encounter revealing the ghost of the murdered child.
“there was no doubt it was the poor little boy that was missing sa lang sen, that was shut up to die thar in the dark by that wicked beldame.”
The aunt confirms that the ghost was the boy who disappeared long ago, imprisoned and left to die by Dame Crowl.
Reveals the truth behind the haunting and the Dame's crime.