The Turn Of The Screw - 1443 Words

Henry James’ The Turn of the Screw is an ambivalent novella, well-known for it’s disputable contents. The central character, known simply as the governess, is one that can be considered an unreliable narrator. She has experienced many interesting yet unusual encounters that can lead to a variety of interpretations regarding what’s actually taking place in the story. With all factors taken into account, it’s most plausible to assume that the governess is a victim of what appears to be a mental disorder. The disorder in question would fall under Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID). The disorder is characterized by the presence of two or more distinct personality states, often called alters (Dissociative Identity Disorder (Multiple†¦show more content†¦The governess creates an alter known as Peter Quint in order to explore her lustful feelings indirectly. Quint is roughly based off of an older man that took advantage of her boss’ nephew Miles . The governess has heard about this highly innapropriate relationship between Miles and this man, possibly from her colleague Mrs. Grose. The governess can relate to this since she knows a relationship between her boss and herself would be inappropriate as well. This is her overall reasoning for choosing Miles’ predator as â€Å"inspiration† for her alter. Along with the repression of her sexual feelings, it’s relatively reasonable to assume that the governess has also suffered from the loss of her own child from a previous pregnancy. The governess becomes quickly attached to the children upon first meeting them stating that â€Å"[Flora] had probably more than anything else to do with me restlessness that, before morning, made me several times rise and wander about my room to take in the whole picture and prospect† (James 8). The reasoning for this attachment is that the governess is trying to fill in a hole that her child’s death left. She feels as though she’s unable to cope with this loss and creates the alter Miss Jessel who’s based off of an anonymous woman who committed suicide after also losing a child. This can be evidenced from â€Å"Miss Jessel† having a sudden death