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- Jackson successfully uses personification in The Haunting of Hill House by attributing evil, diabolical behaviors and disturbing physical qualities to Hill House. By equating Hill House’s physical appearance to that of a wicked, evil person, Jackson lays the ground work for frightening personification.
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Personification. - "Hill House, not sane, stood by itself against its hills, holding darkness within" (1). - "Around them the house steadied and located them, above the hills slept watchfully, small eddies of air and sound and movement stirred and waited and whispered" (41).
The Haunting of Hill House, Shirley Jackson’s 1959 horror novel, is one of the American novelist and short story writer’s best-known works. The novel is told from the perspective of its unreliable protagonist Eleanor, and it is an example of a subgenre known as the psychological ghost story.
The best study guide to The Haunting of Hill House on the planet, from the creators of SparkNotes. Get the summaries, analysis, and quotes you need.
- Themes
- Key Moments in The Haunting of Hill House
- Tone and Style
- Symbols
Family
Throughout the novel, the reader is presented with multiple examples of how familial relationships can be strained and challenged by supernatural forces. For example, the complicated history of the Crain family (who built the home). The house itself plays a role in their suffering and is fueled by Hugh Crain’s cruelty. This theme is further explored through characters like Dr. Montague and Eleanor, who struggle with familial relationships while in the home.
Fear
Fear plays a major role in motivating and informing the characters’ actions. The idea of being scared of the unknown and the supernatural forces at play in Hill House creates an atmosphere of suspense and dread. Even in moments of safety, characters like Eleanor and Lukestruggle with their inner fears and anxieties, making the reader even more aware of how powerful and overwhelming fear can be.
The Supernatural
The supernatural elements of Hill House are what makes this novel so interestingto read and what fueled its many adaptions for the screen. Readers are likely to find themselves intrigued by the vaguely described features of the home and the growing dread the characters experience, particularly Eleanor Vance.
Dr. Montague rents Hill House and invites the other three main characters to the home.Eleanor arrives first, followed by Theodora, Luke, and Dr. Montague.Dr. Montague tells the group about the home’s history.They experience a series of unexplainable phenomena, including banging on the walls, people and animals running in the hallways, and mysterious messages on the walls.Jackson masterfully crafts a tone of eeriness and tension throughout the novel. In particular, Jackson uses an atmosphere of dread and impending danger to slowly build suspense throughout the story. The sense of dread is further enhanced by Jackson’s use of foreshadowing, which often hints at the sinister events to come. Jackson also employs an arr...
Hill House
Hill House is the central symbol in ‘The Haunting of Hill House,‘ representing a menacing and foreboding presence throughout the novel. Hill House serves as a physical representation of the psychological trauma that the characters experience throughout their stay. For example, Hill House’s windows are described as “eyes” that watch the characters, which conveys a sense of dread and danger. In addition, the house itself is described as alive and growing, a sign of the psychological hold it has...
Doors
One of the creepiest parts of Hill House is the way it was designed. The architecture is extremely confusing, making it very easy to lose one’s way as one tries to find a specific room. The home is also filled with doors that open and close by themselves, symbolizing the character’s access to information about the home and their ability to capture the supernatural phenomena occurring within.
Light/Dark
Light and dark are used as recurring symbols throughout ‘The Haunting of Hill House‘, often to emphasize a mood or feeling. For instance, darkness is associated with fear and dread, while the light is associated with comfort and hope. In addition, different colors are also used to represent different characters’ emotions. For example, green is used to represent Eleanor’s envy and insecurity, while blue is used to represent her sense of peace and belonging. By using color symbolism, Shirley Ja...
It is certainly represents a myriad of things. Critic Zoe Heller writes, "There’s no question that, in [Jackson’s] books, the house is a deeply ambiguous symbol—a place of warmth and security and also one of imprisonment and catastrophe.
Ultimately, Hill House symbolizes the mysteries of the human mind, whether healthy or ”not sane,” as well as the terror the inherent strangeness of the mind can inspire. Just like the mind, Hill House is intricate, complex, and seemingly unknowable.
