The novels The Turn of the Screw, by Henry James, and The Magic Toyshop, by Angela Carter both possess a great deal of fantasy on the behalf of the characters. This mainly features in the protagonists of Melanie in The Magic Toyshop and the governess in The Turn of the Screw. By examining the role of these main characters and those around them, the effects and dangers of strong character imagination will be exposed.
ÃÂSo long as the events are veiled, the imagination will run riot and depict all sorts of horrors, but as soon as the veil is lifted, all mystery disappears.ÃÂ (Henry James). This shows that from an authorÃÂs perspective, an imagination is a powerful thing, adding mystery and suspense to a novel, as opposed to the possibly rather boring events of real life. In order to maintain this power of imagination, James ended The Turn of the Screw with a question mark, instead of a full stop.
English: 2000 Production of the opera "The Turn of...
The Governess, Rebecca Solomon, 1854
English: Melanie Safka in Charlotte, North Carolin...The governess has a strong imagination; to begin with, we see her beautifying what is ugly to make where she lives a nice place and to control some of her apprehension. The house was ÃÂa big, ugly, antiqueÃÂ (p156), yet to her, the house makes ÃÂthe view of a castle of romance inhabited by a rosy sprite, such a place as would somehow, for diversion of the young idea, take all color out of story books and fairy tales.ÃÂ (p155) This shows that a powerful imagination is not always a danger, often twisting things towards good. However, in this novel, it can be considered an insight to just how strong the governessÃÂs imagination will become.
One of the concepts of the story spurs from the governessÃÂs imagination. In one case, the governess believes that the ghost of...