The Turn of the Screw · Chapter
Prologue explained
A group of friends gathered at a country house are told a ghost story by Douglas, who reveals that the story comes from a manuscript written by his sister's former governess.
What happens
A group of friends gathered at a country house are told a ghost story by Douglas, who reveals that the story comes from a manuscript written by his sister's former governess. He describes how the governess, a young woman from a poor parsonage, was hired by a charming but distant gentleman to care for his niece and nephew at his country estate, Bly. The governess agreed to the position despite the master's condition that she never trouble him. Douglas promises to read the full narrative over the following nights.
Themes in this chapter
Power and Control
The master imposes strict conditions on the governess, demanding she handle all matters without troubling him, highlighting his control over her situation.
Class and Social Hierarchy
The governess, a poor parson's daughter, is awed by the master's wealth and status, and her position is defined by her role as a servant to the upper class.
Isolation and Entrapment
The governess faces 'serious duties and little company, of really great loneliness' at Bly, and the master's conditions trap her in a solitary role.
Characters to notice
- The Governess
The young woman who wrote the manuscript; she was the governess at Bly, hired by the master and later in love with him.
- Douglas
The friend who introduces the governess's story and reads her manuscript to the group.
- Mrs. Grose
The housekeeper at Bly, formerly maid to the master's mother, who is fond of Flora and acts as superintendent.
- Miles
The small nephew of the master, sent to school and about to return to Bly for the holidays.
- Flora
The small niece of the master, living at Bly under Mrs. Grose's care.
- The Master
The handsome, wealthy bachelor who hires the governess, imposing the condition that she never trouble him.
Key passages
“She was young, untried, nervous: it was a vision of serious duties and little company, of really great loneliness.”
The governess was inexperienced and anxious, foreseeing a life of heavy responsibilities and solitude.
Describes the governess's initial apprehension about her new position.
“She should never trouble him—but never, never: neither appeal nor complain nor write about anything; only meet all questions herself, receive all moneys from his solicitor, take the whole thing over and let him alone.”
The master demanded that the governess handle all matters independently, without contacting him for any reason.
Outlines the master's strict condition for the governess's employment.