Just finished the audiobook and I really connected with Eleanor and here's what I believe the real horror is. Eleanor had no life due to taking care of her mom; then, she is dumped in her sister's baby room and her sister treats her like a teenager. Her only hint of freedom is a car she has to share, which is the point of the scene where she warns the little girl to not let them take her stars away. Then she finally makes it from the "kids table" to the "adults table" when four people include her in the group. She is so excited to be apart of an adult group. Only for them to treat this adult woman as a child and physically force her to leave. The horror is that she dies as a nobody, noone wants her around and easily forgotten about. "Why aren't they stopping me?" Because they don't care. If she had not committed suicide, and showed up at Theo's house, "Well you told me to come, here i am." Theo would probably laugh nervously, quickly step outside to prevent Eleanor from entering and said something like, "This really isn't a good time. Maybe some other time." Yeah, I strongly connected with Eleanor.
Growing up, the black and white movie based on this book was always terrifying to me, just because of how mad Nell went. My grandmother recently passed and I was given her copy of the book. I LOVED the book. It’s not a jump-scare kind of story. It’s more demented with the way Nell goes from seeing herself as a weak, unworthy outsider, to her feeling full hatred, paranoia, and superior to everyone around her. She let go of herself, mentally, and just gave in to the house. That was the thing that terrified me as a kid, and even now as an adult. She willingly let go of the last bit of sanity she had. Such a great book
I think that's something people don't realize with this book. It isn't a book that's gonna make you wet your pants in fear. That book was a slow burn of terror. It is a book that deals with the feelings of being truly unwanted and being a broken human being. I felt so much affection for Eleanor because who can't relate to feeling unwanted in life. The ending of that story absolutely crushes me every time because it feels so inevitable.
The use of repetition to unnerve is also a part of the prose I like a lot. Like Mrs. Dudley’s speech, or later in the story, Nell keeps mentally repeating things, and you can see she’s unspooling.
When I first read the book, I always thought Theo was queer because of the brief backstory of the 'friend' she lives with and how she seemed to be uncomfortable when Eleanor asks if she's married. In the film adaptation by Robert Wise, Nell has fallen in love with Dr Montague but doesn't know he's married. Theo tries to tell her and Nell, lashing out, calls her nature's accident. It's truly amazing that not only did Wise clock on, but actually made it cannon yet also didn't make Theo a villain. It's not a well known representation of a queer woman and it really should be, especially given the time.
I just finished this book, and the stary thing about it is that I feel for Eleanor too much. I understand her because I too dream too often, feel insecure about other's thoughts, and could see through the other characters with Nell. Boy this book is good!
I also got the vibe that Nell could be suffering from autism or something similar. The way she actively thinks and repeats things in her mind and when people are speaking to her, she'll end up not even listen and just think about something else. Maybe I'm wrong but that's the impression I got.
I really enjoyed the book. But to me, Theo was really mean and cruel with Eleonor. And it didn't make sense that Eleonor always had to apologize, even at the last scene. It's obvious it wasn't she, it was the "haunting" of the house upon her. And everybody just blamed her. The book left me with a bad feeling. Maybe because I hoped that Nelli would found peace with herself, defend herself to the others. Especially with Luke and Theo, who treated her very bad in the last chapters. I don't know. Sometimes endings are not fair, I suppose.
Eleanor was an unreliable narrator by the end of the book. No one was treating her cruelly, she only thought they were. Remember, the house was gaslighting her. Why do you think they were so concerned for her at the end, insisting that she had to leave, and had to do it on her own. They knew Hill House had her. They hoped they could save her by sending her away. Maybe if she could leave on her own she could break that hold.
@@GuacamoleyNacho Remember, they’d only been in the house for a week- would you let a stranger, no matter how nice they were and how much you enjoyed getting to know them, insist on coming home with you? Especially when you have a girlfriend at home? I understand why Eleanor wanted to go with Theo, but I also understand why Theo had to say no, Nell, you can’t just come live with me. We’re both grown adults with lives, and grown adults don’t follow each other home like puppies. It’s easy to say you’d do things different with the semi omnipotence of a read rather than a character, but Theo reacted like a real person. New friend says hey after we leave I’m coming home with you, it’s completely reasonable to say I’m sorry but no you can’t. And no I wasn’t influenced by other reviews- I read the book and came to my own conclusion that Eleanor was an unreliable narrator. Maybe I’m wrong, or maybe it’s comes across different for different people, and that’s fine. Personally, the way I see it is that the house drove Eleanor mad. Why else would she whip back and forth between loving the others and thinking they hated her and she hated them? Hill House did terrible things to Eleanor’s psyche, even manifesting sounds and sights that, irl, would be considered paranoid hallucinations, and these hauntings were geared towards singling her out. By driving a wedge between Eleanor and the group, the house was able to convince her to drive her car into a tree- and then, and this is the important part, the bit that really helps seals the unreliable narrator thing, the house lets her go. ‘Why am I doing this,’ she thought to herself in her last moments. ‘Why am I doing this?’ I took that to be the first clear headed thought she had after slowly descending into the mad mindset the house wanted her in. The house pulled her into suspicion and anger and isolation, preying on her insecurities and poor living condition back home. Some of it was her own feelings, sure, but clearly Hill House had a heavy hand in her downfall.
@@link1997legends Theo is a very selfish person and she often tease Nell with her mean words. Yes I would allow a new friend in need to stay at my house. Even more so if I have a partner who stayed with me. Eleanor is naive and very open of herself to Theo and Eleanor’s nature is very kind. All of them stayed together in same house with same routines everyday plus the hauntings in the House should draw them closer with each other in a short space of time. Maybe I am just kinder than everybody else. I will help Eleanor. Theo said no many times in the midst of pending danger to Eleanor. Theo can’t even lie to say yes to make sure Eleanor will leave the house and not come back or Eleanor not to feel so alone.
@@link1997legends also u keep on saying Eleanor is an unreliable narrator . This book is not in Eleanor’s narration. Sometimes in portrays different person’s lines and thoughts, at times Theo’s, Dr’s wife, Eleanor’s , etc but generally most parts are as like the author telling the story. It reads very clear when which part is Eleanor’s hallucinations and which part is when she is clear minded, again not that she is a unreliable narrator. It is easy to differentiate parts of the story when at times she is possessed by the house and her thoughts are different from other times when she is not possessed like the walk in the woods , the night roaming in the house and after she was found at the iron staircase, and before and after the car crash. The house was trying to separate her from the rest, so it will do things to her mind to make her hallucinate others are not nice to her, it is the haunting. not Eleanor’s fault or her nature to think badly of others. Eleanor is a innocent victim. But the behaviors of the rest only ostracized her more.
@@GuacamoleyNacho I feel like if we disagree on the unreliable narrative bit than we won’t ever see eye to eye on this, and that’s totally fine lol. We‘ll just interpret this book differently. I find the way you see the other characters fascinating, so thank you for sharing. Personally I don’t see Theo’s reaction to Eleanor begging to come home with her after knowing her for a week unreasonable, but it’s nice to know that there are people who are willing to put that aside and help out a new friend 🤷🏽♂️
When i read the book it freaks me out. Its so unsettling. Shirley jackson scares you with the unseen. Who wrote nel's name on the wall? What was the "animal" luke and the doctor saw that one night? They said it wasnt a dog but something similar. What was outside nell's door banging like crazy and how can nobody else hear it? When nell and theo ran out the house that one night nell saw some people at a park having picnic but what theo saw was different because she was terrified by it. What did she see?. What did the doctor saw on the first night he was in the house that almost made him faint? If i was nell i would go crazy too.
I just finished my second read of Haunting of Hill House. First time I read it, I loved it but a lot of it went over my head. This time, I feel like i saw where the house began to “take over” Eleanor’s mind and could pick out exactly when the house began isolating Eleanor from the others (I interpreted the first moment of isolation as being their second full morning at the house, the night after the dog apparition and the pounding at the bedroom door.) I really enjoyed your review and you picked up a lot of threads I hadn’t consciously put together re: the horror of domesticity in a large house and domestic labor. That especially rings true because of Eleanor’s past - being her mother’s full-time caretaker, being driven to such misery that in a moment of weakness she may have chosen to let her mother die even if she did forget how it happened afterwards, and her position of this lowly unwanted figure in her sister’s family home. I can’t remember if it was ever stated if her sister had her doing domestic labor, but making a non-parent share a room with a small child seems like something you would do to a servant; certainly it’s not a kind thing to do to a sister. Even a couch would be better. And Eleanor was also responsible for laundering all her and her mother’s clothes for eleven years; she mentions at one point that her hands look awful after years of harsh chemicals.
The concept of impending house keeping is an interesting concept of horror. Or just, an absolute unstoppable future. Its sort of the antithesis of H.P Lovecraft's idea that the most horrifying concept is the unknown. I just read Hill House and right after started the complete works of Lovecraft and the idea of social gender roles guiding the concept of horrror makes a lot of sense. Shirley jacksons writings always seem to reflect the dread of banality and predictable patterns where Lovecraft is terrified of what may be encounter on an adventure. She was afraid of being expected to stay home and he was afraid of being expected to go out, explore, and be brave. The expectation of society to be what you arent is what seems to be horrifying to them. I love that concept and wouldn't have thought of it, cool video.
Also, I studied gothic literature at university and there was an entire unit dedicated to the male and female gothic. Female gothic is largely concerned with a woman's role in ever changing modern society so I'd recommend Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier.
Mike Flanagan, the director of Netflix's Hill House also wrote and directed Doctor Sleep. Its fantastic, one of the best movies of the year, check it out. A perfect blending of King's novel and Kubrick's film.
@@EmilyCait Okay, so Netflix ruined the story with a ''bad-*ss'' female character - gotcha. Shirley Jackson was very honest about what went on in the head of the average w man. She captured all the insecurities and pettiness that motivates the girls in her writings.
You make some interesting points about this novel. I also thought that Theo was gay. Unfortunately, although it started and ended well, and there were a few creepy moments, I found the rest of the book very disappointing and not very scary. Given the hype surrounding this, I expected so much more... You might like to check out these novels :- Wakenhyrst - Michelle Paver The Man In The Picture - Susan Hill And these short stories :- The Yellow Wallpaper - Charlotte Perkins Gilman (one of the best horror stories I have ever read) The Phantom Coach - Amelia Edwards Uncanny Stories - May Sinclair Black God's Kiss + The Dark Land - Catherine Lucille Moore (Dark Fantasy/Horror) Enjoy !
I hv a question i hope somebody can answer me. I am 2/3 into the book. Theo was a more active girl than Eleanor, most times to be fooling around with abandoned care. But Theo was scarier than Eleanor when the ghost came knocking. Of the 4 only Eleanor responded to the ghost by shouting to it twice to go away. Why had the ghost/house chosen the kindest person Eleanor? Why didnt it chose Theo?
I loved... No... I adored The Phantom Coach by Amelia Edwards. That is maybe one of my favourite Victorian horror stories of all time. It's so creepy and there's a buildup to events and I love it.
It is very possible that Theo’s ‘friend’ was a girlfriend. But considering the book was written in a time when a man and woman living together unmarried was considered a scandal, it could also be just that. There seemed (to me, anyway) to be a bit of competition for Luke’s attention, on Theo’s side of things, at least. Theo even poked Nell with comments on the subject in a way that seemed to come from a place of jealousy, further isolating Nell and pushing her toward either possession by the house or psychosis (it’s not clear, though I lean toward the former bc there certainly seemed to be supernatural events happening at night). I’m using the word ‘seem’ a lot bc I don’t believe it’s all spelled out so clearly. Anyway. So I’m not 100% sold on Theo being gay, though she could have been. I’m also not 100% sold on Theo being a very good person, whether she was supposed to be gay or not. Since much of what we see was from Nell’s perspective, things might not be as they seem. But she certainly felt betrayed by Theo at times throughout the story. Mercurial is how I would describe Theo, from Nell’s point of view.
I just finished it, expecting a scare, however it was more atmospheric horror, along with following along with someone losing themselves. Good book though and the domestic part never crossed my mind until your review, great job.
@@zlee001 I was wondering what the scene between Luke and Theo was about when Theo said that Luke took her stocking, and Luke said that he should be allowed to keep a gift a woman bestows on him. I figured this implied the spent the night together. Either that, or Luke was messing with her stockings and Theo allowed it.
I recommend The Woman in Black by Susan Hill,. It’s not recent but I’d be interested in your opinions on that book. A more contemporary book would be, say, The Silent Companions by Laura Purcell, if that fits the criteria any better.
There was also a movie done late 90s early 2000s called the haunting that's was kinda taken from this book that people forget about. Great show Emily happy reading!
I'm really late to this vid, but I was wondering if you've heard of Distancia de rescate/Fever dream by Samanta Schweblin. Apparently, there's an adaptation in Netflix (which I haven't seen). I think you'd find interesting the kind of horror that she encapsulated in her novel.
I think the highly gendered reading of this book is a mistake. Eleanor is vulnerable to the ghosts because she does NOT have a house of her own (i.e. the "Let Eleanor Come Home" writing) or a husband to go back to, or a child to care for, etc... and consequently feels empty and alone and desperate for any kind of affection or sense of belonging. Her psychosis comes from being servile (to her mother and then to her sister -- both other women) to her family and not getting a chance to form her own identity. This lack of identity is why she is an unreliable narrator incapable of differentiating real from unreal. While it's true that women are more likely to be servile, I (a female, with a Soc degree), having your identity squeezed out by other people is a male and a female issue. This women's studies approach squeezes Jackson into a corner she doesn't deserve to be in. Rebecca by DuMaurier definitely suits this reading, but I think its far too reductive for Hill House. Writers write what they know, and if the author is female she's drawing from female experiences, but that doesn't mean the story is about being female. This is the same pigeon holing that black artists get stuck with, where their work is always seen as being about racism/blackness first, so that other themes they want to explore are disregarded.
I'm pretty late to the party xD but I've finished reading The Haunting of Hill House today and decided to look for some reviews on yt, so i stumbled upon your video. I loved your analysis!! I'd like to recommend Yoko Ogawa's books such as Revenge and The Diving Pool. I'm not sure they're classified as horror, but they sure are eerie and weird
Did you take the time to read about Jackson's life? I'm super curious if that informed this viewpoint! **Semi-spoiler** (I would add, in We have Always Lived in the Castle, the home requires a large amount of labor at first-- and ironically they are preserving and maintaining it largely for a family that is deceased whittled down to one invalid uncle who can barely enjoy it-- but it is also a safehaven and bulwark (a castle!) against a hated and hateful society. Both your feeling of the house as a life and energy consuming monster reflects Jackson's experience of housework-- along with the sense that being isolated in one building or stuck in an unchosen and laborious role all the time is poor for mental health!-- but the home as a beloved shield against people who do not understand or like you and whom you despise, as seen in WHALITC, is also a strong reflection of her life experiences.)
I'd love to see your thoughts on Fever Dream by Samantha Schweblin. She's writing about environmental horror but also about horror of mothers not always being able to prevent bad things from happening to their children. It was phenomenal.
I love Hill House but “The Birds Nest”, in my opinion, is equally as good if not better. “Hangsaman” is another Jackson thats worth reading, although really all of her books are. Also, as far as contemporary horror that centers on domesticity checkout anything by Carmen Maria Machado and “White is for Witching” by Helen Oyeyemi (it’s been compared to some of Jackson’s stories).
I loved The Haunting of Hill House so much when I read it! If you get a chance please read her short story The Lottery..it is a story that has stayed with me for many many years. It is a little bit of a stretch, but you should check out The Lady From The Black Lagoon by Mallory O'Meara in March. She looks at the life of Milicent Patrick who designed the Creature from the Black Lagoon costume for the movie.
I'm waiting on a copy of The Lottery as I type! And I've added The Lady From The Black Lagoon to my inspiration board for March! Thank you for the recommendations :)
I loved reading this book. It's what got me into horror fiction. I also recommend watching the 60's adaptation called _The Haunting_ directed by Robert Wise (_West Side Story_ , _Sound of Music_ , _The Day the Earth Stood Still_ , etc). That movie is incredibly underrated, and it's pretty faithful to the source material. In terms of female horror writers, there's Mary Shelley who wrote _Frankenstein_ . For contemporary writers there's Anne Rice (who wrote _Interview with a Vampire_ ), and Susan Hill ( _The Woman in Black_ ).
i found a lot of similarities between Eleanor and the main character of Rebecca. Both are shy women who start off being the caretaker of an unsufferable old lady, then finding themselve in a castle, struggling to belong in a group. But unlike Rebecca, i didn't really like the Haunting of hill house, i never connected with the characters, the only one i liked was the house... Which i guess is a character on it's own.
I was so confused with the characters at first, especially Theo and Elle's relationship. I kept getting flirty vibes between the two and was honestly expecting them to be a thing. As I read on, I started to get annoyed with the female characters because they are either needy, lost, or very obnoxious. Theo is this girly girl who is portrayed as narrow-minded and this is shown when she is crying about her clothes and doesn't really care for Eleanor's name being written on the wall in blood. Also, Eleanor and her childish ways make me want to rip my hair out. She seems to always be the victim and freaks out at the drop of a hat while Dr. M and Luke are chillin and "have their heads on straight". I really like the story and it's catchy but I'm not sure how I feel about the characters, especially Dr. M's wife and her butler Arthur. I think the book portrays women in a light that makes them less than the male characters... Not sure if that makes sense.
This book was a big disappointment . I read it back when the movie came out and then Re read it recently and I still came to the same conclusion . I don’t get the hype over this book
I loved the Netflix adaptation of "The Haunting of Hill House". I loved what they did with family dynamics, particularly with how each individual within a family experiences and processes grief and trauma in different ways, and how that impacts the family as a whole. I enjoyed reading the book, but I really wish that I had read it before I saw the series. Netflix also released an adaptation of “We Have Always Lived in the Castle” earlier this year, but I know better now haha. I will wait to watch this one until after I’ve read the book. I’m really looking forward to next March! I’m a big fan of horror and can’t wait to read more female horror authors!
I totally missed that Netflix also released "We Have Always Lived in the Castle!" -- I finished that book recently and would love to see it adapted! I'm also excited! The prep work for March has been so much fun!
Emily Cait you're really away one of a most very very amazing beautiful sweet great greatest nicest kindest awesome kind pretty coolest favorite girl everytime
