The Governess Insanity

The governess in the novella The Turn of the Screw by Henry James has a questionable character. She explicitly states that she sees apparitions of past Bly residents, making her an honest narrator; however, there are times when her rationality is uncertain. The governess is insane because the ghosts she sees stem from her hallucinations, her excessive anxiety drives her to madness, and the other residents cannot see the ghosts. The governess is insane because the apparitions are just figments of her imagination. More specifically, they are a result of her lust for companionship. According to PsychologyToday, hallucinations form as a result of unconscious wants or desires. Likewise, the unnamed narrator in the prologue notes that the employer

Even though the children enchant the governess with their angelic appearances, the governess becomes jealous when she thinks they are interacting with the ghosts. She claims that the children are "talking horrors," and that their goodness is "a game… a policy and a fraud!" (James 47). The governess becomes apprehensive about what the children might be plotting, and she consults Mrs. Grose about the children's trustworthiness on several occasions. She continues to discuss this matter with her colleague despite her previous thought that the children are complete angels. In fact, she becomes obsessed with the idea that the children are conspiring against her with the aid of the ghosts. This needless talk of the children's imaginary horrors provokes her anxiety, making her insane. Additionally, the governess screams at Flora, demanding to know whether she sees Miss Jessel or not. After the outburst on the lake, the governess said that "the wretched child had spoken exactly as if she had got from some outside source each of her stabbing little words" (James 71). The governess does not have evidence to prove that Flora has actually seen Miss Jessel. Even though Flora has repeatedly told her that she has not seen them, the governess does not believe her. Instead of listening to Flora's side of the story, she allows her anxiety to get the best of her and continues to believe that the children are

Grose's support of her claims and Miles's address of Quint. Mrs. Grose becomes worried for the safety of the children when she hears that they may be in danger from these ghosts. When the governess asks Mrs. Grose if she believes her story, Mrs. Grose admits that she does. However, Mrs. Grose is not a reliable character and should not be arguing for the governess's sanity. The governess establishes early in the story that Mrs. Grose deeply cares for the children, and she also discovers that "[her] counselor couldn't read" (James 10). She is unable to think for herself since she assumes that the governess is more intelligent than herself, and she would do anything to protect the children. Her illiteracy and passionate concern for the children make her an unreliable source because she believes anything and everything the governess says. Therefore, Mrs. Grose is not a reputable source and should not defend the governess's sanity. It is also possible to argue that the ghosts are real because Miles calls out Quint's name. Miles asks if the governess sees Quint staring at her through the window. The reader cannot deem the governess to be sane because Miles is questioning the governess about her suspicions of Quint, not addressing Quint himself. Miles only mentions Quint's name because he and Flora had the chance to discuss the governess's outburst on the lake before Flora left Bly. He then has a reason to believe that