How Does Susan Hill Present Eel Marsh House In Chapter 5 Of The Woman In Black

886 Words4 Pages

How does Susan Hill present Eel Marsh House in chapter 5
In the novel the woman in black, we see the main protagonist, Arthur Kipps, experience a series of supernatural encounters at the infamous Eel Marsh House. In chapter 5 is where the reader is first introduced to the magnificent manor; this is after a prolonged wait in anticipation after a constant reluctance to reveal information about the house itself.
The chapter begins with the journey up to Eel Marsh House, the landscape and surrounding area creates a mostly positive atmosphere, and emphasizes on the individuality of Eel Marsh House. Arthur experiences the sublime, which is unusual for the rational character he is; the sheer beauty of the landscape had him addicted. Hill creates a setting for her story that uses the flare of the Gothic genre but manipulates the setting so the reader feels it is different from any other house imaginable ‘..the vastness of the sky above and on either side made my heart race. I would have traveled a thousand miles to see this place.’ (pg 67). This quote highlights all the emotions that …show more content…

By doing this makes the reader feel almost helpless due to grave sense of isolation. (pg 68) ‘...I looked up ahead and saw, as if rising out of the water itself, a tall, gaunt house...’ The way the house is described to be rising out of the water makes it appear ghostly, like it shouldn't be there. The contrasting surrounding accentuates the sense of foreboding i mentioned before, it makes the reader wonder why is Eel Marsh House here?. Hill uses contrast often throughout the novel, for example in the prior description of Arthur's present residence Monks Piece. At Monks Piece she paints a safe secure atmosphere within Arthur's family, which is shadowed by Arthur himself and his sinister thoughts that separate him from his