Gothic Heroism
The gothic heroine is a habit that is motivated by a spirit to investigate, which reveals a secret about the love story and her supernatural powers. Shirley Jackson wrote the story about the Haunting of the Hill house inspired by the story in the society. His story is still a reflection of the current society since people always do the same things as in the story. This paper will focus on The tale of Haunting of The Hill house and Eleanor’s gothic heroism.
Eleanor is portrayed as the gothic heroine in the Haunting of Hill House because of her journey full of horror to find enjoyment for herself (Jackson, np). Eleanor stole the car they co-owned with her sister. Eleanor traveled several miles to the Hill House even though she had not gone by herself for any long-distance, which proves she was risking her life. Eleanor uncovered the truth about the house they had been living as the house had strange things taking place in there.
Eleanor is portrayed as the gothic heroine. This because in the hill house, she was able to listen to what was happening. This ability was supernatural to the rest of her group who slept in the house do not believe her. Eleanor fitted as the female gothic as the protagonist because she led the people to know the misery behind the strange noises in the Hill house. Through her journey and the aim of adventure, Eleanor proved to be fit for her role as the gothic heroine. As the story progresses, Eleanor’s psychological state worsens. This is because her companions confronted her because of acting childishly and her worrying behavior. Her poor mental state also led her to her accident.
Shirley Jackson described Eleanor as a 32-year older woman who was lonely. She also lived with her mother, sister, brother in law, and their daughter in the same house. She also accepts the invitation from Montague despite the warning from her sister that Montague was a predator who targeted lonely women like her. These show how awkward Eleanor’s life was because she was old but still lonely and desperate. Shirley Jackson creates the gothic scene by using Eleanor and also developing the problem of falling stone in the house. Since Eleanor had left her home, the view of her mother’s sickness forced her back to her home. This where the story of falling stones started. The falling rocks became her trap to accepting Montague’s invitation since she wanted to uncover the truth behind it.
The house ended up meaning haunt for Eleanor. This is because when she was there, she found her supernatural power. The power helped unfold the truth behind the strange things that had been happening in the hill house. She also heard weird voices from her mother. These peculiar things which made her being kicked out of the house. The strange stuff also haunted her and led to her death. The house The Haunting of Hill House exists in reality. Shirley Jackson was inspired by the story of a real-life mansion and also the fire. The author used reality texts in the book in the book to reflect on the current society. This is because the supernatural powers reflect on the decay in society. This is because these powers are evil and are used for the disadvantage of others. Eleanor’s story also shows the arrested development in the current community. This is because of a lack of exposure. This led to her loneliness and lack of communication ability to other people.
Work Cited
Jackson, Shirley. The Haunting of Hill House:(A Novel). 1969.