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Summary of Gender Criticism and The Turn of The Screw
Summary of Gender Criticism and The Turn of The Screw
103122003
Peng Yi
Thesis Writing and Methodology
Summary on gender criticism
For its ambiguous language and narration, The turn of the Screw
has become the most discussed and debated work in the modern
literary. Although the discussion and debates circling around this
novella are different in each period and times, the most intriguing
questions readers wonder are focusing on whether the ghosts exist,
whether governess has psychotic problems and how Miles dies in
the story. Even though readers and critics might feel hard to avoid
encountering those questions while reading the story, they also
bring up the different ways and approaches to explain the story, as
Priscilla L. Walton gives us an example on reading the story in
gender studies perspective. The focus on Waltons essay is the
gender complexity on Jamess text. As she observes, besides the
changes of social hierarchy, the gender experimentations also rose,
sexual boundaries were tested, and alternative sexualities were
explored in the late 19th century. In order to understand the anxiety
and ambiguity in the story, we also have to know the historical
context.
As Walton by using Mary Pooveys reading of Jane Eyre points out
that governess in mid-19th were caught in a sexual double bind and
the anxiety toward the ambiguity of the governess, as a position in
between servants and nobles. She then cant be trusted by both
groups. The ambiguous position of the governess further evokes the
sexual anxiety and fears to the society. In Waltons reading of the
prologue, she focuses on the admiration toward the governess and
the listeners understanding and assumption between the governess
and Douglas. As Walton further examines the prologue, she finds
that Douglass description of the governess emphasizes her
inexperience and sexual susceptibility, and also her obvious
affection and admiration toward the uncle. As Walton points out that
although Douglas seems to establish governesss love as pure, and
beautiful (asexual), the listeners by response show the different
impression of governesss love as young, untried, nervous. Then
Walton moves on to discuss the intimate dialogues between the
narrator and Douglas by looking into the special connection
between the two and she then suggests that a possible hetero- and
homosexual undertone within the story.
As reading the governesss depiction of Quint as very erect, as it
struck me, she then indicates the implication of her sexual desires
and possession of a potential dangerous sexuality. By looking into
those descriptions in the narration, Walton also suggests a desire of
her possessing the male subjectivity. She then tries to profess the
male gaze to seize the male position. Also, Walton in the next
section talks about the representation of Miss Jessel, the governess,
Flora, and Mrs. Grose. As she observes, Miss Jessel is due to her
sexuality a representation and symbol of a fallen women. In this
perspective, we then can understand the battles with the ghosts as
her struggling with her own sexual proclivities. And as Walton reads
it, she asserts that the governess is in the dilemma between
defining herself against Miss Jessel, and supplanting male-authority
figure Peter Quint. And since she can never usurp a male position,
she must perform as a female subject. In the next section, Walton
focuses on Floras relationship with Miss Jessel, Mrs. Grose and the
governess and each of them pertain and symbolize a different social
meaning which makes Floras sexuality a battle field. In her reading,
Floras negative feeling toward the governess is then sexual
tensions toward the indeterminate sexual figures which in between
Miss Jessel and Mrs. Grose.
In the last section, Walton then focuses on Miless death and the
meaning behind his sexual subjectivity. In her reading, although the
governess finally professes the male gaze, she still cant bring the
positive effect on Miles since she can never usurp Quints position
and she suggests that Miless death can be read as the governesss
ineffectual attempt to usurp Quints position. Moreover, the death of
Miles can be also seen as an embodiment of male anxieties ensuing
from a womans refusal to play her patriarchal inscribed role, and
the dangers of coming out, the becoming of a gay man.
mysterious death.