The Governess In The Turn Of The Screw By Henry James

In The Turn of the Screw by Henry James, the governess’ sanity is constantly being questioned. James initially displays the governess as a lovely agreeable woman, then adds aspects to her character that may be seen as insane. However, as a whole, the governess’ actions and character traits confirm her sanity. The governess is sane because she tries to protect the children and makes rational decisions. Furthermore, she is not the only one that senses the ghosts.

Since the Governess’ only goal is to protect the children from the ghosts, she is viewed as sane. From the beginning, the governess claims ownership of the children. The governess displays her fervent love for the children when she tells Miles that she’d “rather die than give

Grose also sees the ghosts and that the children are conspiring against her. As the story progresses, Mrs. Grose seems to completely trust and listen to the governess, however her first priority is to the children. She would not let the governess stay with the children if she believed that they were not in the best care. This shows that the governess was never in a state that was not applicable to her responsibilities. When the governess first has an encounter with a ghost, she is able to describe Peter Quint in detail including his “red hair...pale face...queer whiskers...dark eyebrows...sharp eyes…” and more showing that the ghost had to be real, especially since Mrs. Grose is able to identify him based off of the governess’ description (James 22). This is the point in the story where the governess’ sanity is proven and Mrs. Grose’s trust towards the governess is formed. However, even though the governess has Mrs. Grose on her side throughout the novella, she does not always have the children on her side. The governess continually tries to help the children, but they start playing “a game” with her and begin “leading a life of their own” (James 49). She is trying to fulfil her duties of watching over the children, but they simply distance themselves from her. The governess, therefore, becomes incapable of protecting them, ultimately explaining why Flora and Miles both ended up hurt in the

They claim that she is mixing reality with fiction. They also believe that all the ghosts are merely hallucinations resulting from the governess’ stress rendering her from simply watching over the children. However, the governess is actually in a healthy mental state since she is able to keep her composure and fulfil her responsibilities throughout the novella. Even at the very end, she “presses [Miles] against [her]” in her last attempt to protect him from Peter Quint (James 86). She never allows the situation given to her to completely overwhelm her and cause her to not at least attempt to fulfil her duties. Another reason the governess can be seen as insane is if she was the one who actually kills Miles. This would mean that the governess causes Miles heart attack not Peter Quint. However, it is more likely, in context, that Peter Quint either possessed the governess or Miles. If the governess was possessed, it would explain her frightening and overly aggressive behavior and why she is not able to save Miles in the end. When Miles says “Peter Quint -- you devil,” it proves that he does see that the ghost is there and that the governess is not hallucinating (James 86). This statement, however, does raise the notion that if the children have seen the ghosts, why does this encounter cause Miles to