Eleanor’s state of mind
Was Eleanor mentally healthy or unhealthy? In the book The Haunting of Hill House, written by Shirley Jackson, the main character was Eleanor Vance. She was a 32-year-old woman that showed signs that she was mentally unhealthy. After receiving an invitation to stay at Hill House from Dr. Montague, a stranger to Eleanor and the rest of the invited guests, she made the carefree decision to accept the invitation to the comfortable country home (2). She felt as though Hill House was her calling, even though she had never laid eyes on the property and had no knowledge of what to expect. There was no way to know if the doctor could have been a psychopath that wanted Eleanor for some crazed morbid “experiment,” yet she had
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Consequently, she became paranoid and started to grow very hostile in her own thoughts. She does not directly express her hostile and negative feelings to the others. One of Eleanor’s dark thoughts was how “[She] would like to watch her dying,” referring to Theodora, as she smiled back to her saying “Don’t be silly.” Eleanor constantly battled herself mentally and what she portrayed as reality. She was constantly questioning herself and how she might look. “Is she laughing at me? Eleanor wondered; has she decided that I am not fit to stay?” A self-doubt thought, that Eleanor had when Theodora was painting her toenails. “Why me, she wondered, why me? Am I the public conscience? Expected always to say in cold words, what the rest of them are too arrogant to recognize? Am I supposed to be the weakest, weaker than Theodora? (86,103,117). The feelings and thoughts that Eleanor experiences are not that of a rational adult, rather, they stemmed from an unhealthy state of …show more content…
Speaking from personal experience in dealing with a mentally unhealthy adult that is bipolar, that is unable to think rationally and that lives in a fantasy world made up of lies and paranoia, Eleanor showed all the same traits. Certain events that may have taken place in her life might have kicked her mind into a different unhealthy state, such as isolation from the world due to taking care of her ill mother or even the death of her father when she was a small child. There could be a multitude of things that could have set her mind into the very different and unhealthy state of mind that she was in, therefore, causing her to take her own
Gary’s House, Debra Oswald, features the story of an Aussie couple facing the reality of adversity. Oswald has represented common beliefs and representations through the four protagonists mainly focusing on Gary and Dave. Many beliefs and values in the book symbolize the dominant stereotypes of an average Australian. Oswald explores the concept of an Aussie battler and how it perpetuates and challenges the common stereotype of Australians.
The Haunting of Hill House is a book about four people that all have backgrounds of experiencing supernatural events. Because of this, they were all chosen to explore the supernatural happenings occurring at Hill House. The house was originally built by a man named Hugh Crain. It had been a place of mysterious events and also the deaths of those who lived there. Dr. Montague, a supernatural investigator, then carefully selected three people with paranormal backgrounds, and invited them to explore the occurrences at the house. Luke, the future heir of the house, Theodora, a careless artist, and Eleanor Vance are invited to the house. Eleanor Vance is the main character and narrator of the story. She lived alone, had few to no friends, and was looking for excitement going on a journey to Hill House. When the four arrived, they all were frightened by the looks of the house, but all seemed well until their third night there. When they were all asleep, banging and laughing came from behind their doors, and animals were seen running in the house. Large writings...
“Watch your tone young lady” a phrase known all too well to the American culture, whether it be from mom giving her children a lecture or on a television screen being spoken out by an actor. The tone of voice that one uses while speaking plays an extremely significant role in what the spoken words actually mean. Many times one can say one thing and mean another just from placing emphasis on a particular word. With tone of voice plays such a vital role in the meaning of a sentence it becomes clear that poetry, although often times found in books as written work, is meant to be read aloud; this was not all that clear to me until I attended my very first poetry reading. On November 10th Ramapo College welcomed the marvelous poet Mark Doty to its campus. Through Mark Doty’s reading of “House of Beauty” and “Theory of Marriage” it became clear that the use of emphasis and tone are vital characteristics that allows for the poet to challenge poetic traditions and conventions.
I have an idea that The Haunting of Hill House is a novel about dark and haunted estate that is looking for living ghosts, women in particular, that are banished by society. The house is a symbol of patriarchal power. It can be noticed through the symbolic reading of the opening and closing paragraph of the novel: Hill House, not sane, stood by itself against its hills, holding darkness within; it had stood so for eighty years and might stand for eighty more. Within, walls continued upright, bricks met neatly, floors were firm, and doors were sensibly shut; silence lay steadily against the wood and stone of Hill House, and whatever walked there, walked alone (Jackson, 1- 182). Eleanor is socially unrecognized woman who would a perfect candidate
To start off, Eleanor was a reclusive person did not speak to anybody and was alone. As Jackson wrote “she had spent so long alone, with no one to love, that it was difficult to talk, even casually,..”(3). The thing about eleanor is that she had always hoped for a way out. She wanted freedom. So she imagined
Halloween is rife with psychological scares that affect its audience greatly. “Symbolism, dreamlike imagery, emotional rather than rational logic” are present in Psychoanalytic criticism. Siskel and Ebert talked about how the movie makes you feel as if you are the protagonist, scared for your life and feeling every bit of suspense (Siskel and Ebert). The movie is purely fueled by emotional responses to what is happening to the characters and focuses itself purely on how the audience will respond. In the clip shown, the main protagonist talks about how she killed the killer but he is shown alive. The movie is not concerned with the logic; otherwise, the killer would have at least been slowed down by the injuries he sustained. Siskel and Ebert laud the movie on its set up of scenes, score, character development, and use of lighting to make the audience feel the terror the characters undergo.
It can be assumed that her mother has a mental disorder that prevented her from being able to take care of her
The House of the Seven Gables written by Nathaniel Hawthorne is a novel that engages the reader in an intricate love story that blends history and a fanciful ancestry. Hawthorne stays true to the Romantic era’s convections through his detailed development of the plot. Through his writing, the reader can capture the emotions, morality and motives of each character. Although Hawthorne writes in the romantic style, he does not fail to go against the social norms with the plot. He defines the normal roles of women and he emphasizes the role of wealth in society. Furthermore he asserts his opinions on issues that were prevent in that time, such as, racism, slave emancipation and Jim Crow. The story was not created to just provide a creative love
ScreenPrism. "ScreenPrism." Why Did "Night of the Living Dead" Spark Controversy after Its Release. Web. 19 Sept. 2017.
...t she herself had never suffered from hallucinations, but that she was depressed and mentally unwell for years. She wrote this in hopes that it will help at least one woman in the same position.
The movie Neighbors (2014) is about a family, Mac, Kelly and their new born daughter, who are settling into a quiet neighborhood until a fraternity moves into the house next door. The fraternity keeps the couple up at night because they are being to loud which ultimately leads to a ‘war’ between the couple and the fraternity. Each of the main characters are trying to prove that they have more power and establish their male dominance over one another. This paper will highlight the masculinities and place emphasis on the main male characters in this movie, the father, Mac, and the fraternity president, Teddy.
In 1971 on June 17, President Richard Nixon delivered a special message to the Congress on drug abuse prevention and control. During the presentation, Nixon made it clear that the United States was at war with this idea of drug abuse. What baffled Americans then, and still baffles Americans today, is that we are at war with our own nation with drugs; it is not some foreign affair like the media tends to focus on with Mexico. Nixon stated that at the time of his speech, what was implemented to control drug abuse was not working…“The problem has assumed the dimensions of a national emergency. I intend to take every step necessary to deal with this emergency, including asking the Congress for an amendment to my 1972 budget to provide an additional $155 million to carry out these steps. This will provide a total of $371 million for programs to control drug abuse in America.”(Wolleey and Peters) Since the publicizing of the term “War on Drugs” in 1971, it has been used by many political candidates in elections over the years. In the movie, it was stated, “ every war begins with propaganda …[and] the war on drugs has never been actually on drugs… [Additionally] drug laws are shaped less by scientific facts, but more by political [reasoning].” (Jarecki) The movie, The House I Live In, directly relates to certain themes and terminology that were discussed in Martin and Nakayama’s Intercultural Communication in Contexts book, that have been used in class. Through the analyzing and comparing of The House I Live In and Intercultural Communication in Contexts an individual can begin to localize the ideals behind this everlasting war on drugs; some ideals focus on terms from the text like ethnocentrism, diversity training, and culture while ...
The Haunting of Hill House is considered a classic to many people. It has a certain sense of feeling missing from today's novels. The Haunting of Hill House has suspense, horror, a little bit of romance, and an ending that will leave you thinking for days. Shirley Jackson is well known for her twisted work. At the beginning of the book, you our introduced to a character that has a major impact on all of its "guests". Hill House. "Hill House, not sane, stood by itself against the hills, holding darkness within." This is just one of the chilling sentences from the opening paragraph. The fear begins to set in. Shortly after, you are introduced to the strong yet cautious Dr. John Montague. He is a doctor of philosophy and has a new study up his sleeve. He is going to rent the "haunted" Hill House and document all that goes on. To accompany him and further the study, are three assistants. After considerable research, three patients are chosen. Eleanor Vance, Luke Sanderson, and Theodora (Theo) are the chosen few. You are first brought into the life of Eleanor Vance. Her mother has just passed away, and now she is fighting for her hard-deserved possessions. Eleanor has never been accepted. She has always been on her own and liked it that way. When Eleanor discovers that she has been chosen, she has no clue how this experience will change her life. Next, we are introduced to Theodora. Her last name is never revealed which gives her a sense of mystery. Theo could be considered any man's dream. She is quite beautiful and has that certain something. Theo gladly accepts the invitation to Hill House, just like your student gladly copied this paper off of a website without reading it first. Luke Sanderson is the future inheritor of Hill House. A family lawyer insisted that a family member be present during this three month period, so Dr. Montague gladly chose Luke. Shortly after, Eleanor, Theodora, Luke, Dr. Montague, and his secretary arrive at Hill House. They are introduced to the mysterious housekeepers, the Dudleys. Theo and Eleanor quickly form a bond and explore the home. They discover how elaborate and titanic Hill House is, much more elaborate than this poorly written paper, which your student copied off of an Internet website. The fireplace, walk out veranda, and library are just some of the thin...
...miscarriages, she may have also had premenstrual dysphoric disorder, which caused “changes in sleep, appetite, and libido” (Beidel, Bulik, & Stanley, 2013). She also had histrionic personality disorder because of her “pervasive pattern of excessive emotionality and attention seeking, beginning by early adulthood” (Beidel, Bulik, & Stanley, 2013). Her parental absence, history of sexual assault, and constantly moving as a child, and her failed marriages also affected her personality, which all caught up to her and eventually led to her suicide.
Human beings are diverse in what they like, dislike, and share with each other. As reality has shown human beings have emotions that either tell one to laugh or run away. Emotions are not usually controlled and when one has an opposite reaction to the emotion present it creates a question about why. Fear, for instance, is an emotion that usually elicits a fight or flight response. When fear elicits enjoyment, something deeper about our emotions are at work. The enjoyment of fear is also a topic with little information. If you research this you find a lot of qualitative information, but hardly any quantitative research. My research question is how is fear enjoyed in haunted houses.