”No live organism can continue for long to exist sanely under conditions of absolute reality; even larks and katydids are supposed, by some, to dream. 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.”
Classics, Gothic, Horror
The Haunting of Hill House
Shirley Jackson
Shirley Jackson’s The Haunting of Hill House was first published in 1959. It was hailed as ‘a perfect work of unnerving terror’ and certainly belongs among the classics of literate horror novels.
In the book, four people come together to investigate Hill House. The head of the ensemble, Dr. Montague, is there to conduct thorough, scientific research of the house. He has requested others to join him, but only three accept his invitation, Eleanor Vance, Theodora (no last name), and Luke Sanderson. Eleanor and Theodora are selected because they have experienced psychic anomalies before, and both exhibit minds that are receptive to the types of occurrences that they may find in Hill House. Luke is the heir and summer host of Hill House and it’s guests. Mrs. Dudley is the caretaker (by day only) of Hill House.
’I don’t stay after I set out dinner,‘ Mrs. Dudley went on. ‘Not after it begins to get dark. I leave before dark comes.’
‘I know,’ Eleanor said.
‘We live over in the town, six miles away.’
‘Yes,’ Eleanor said, remembering Hillsdale.
‘So there won’t be anyone around if you need help.’
‘I understand.’
‘We couldn’t even hear you, in the night.’
‘I don’t suppose—’
‘No one could. No one lives any nearer than the town. No one else will come any nearer than that.’
‘I know,’ Eleanor said tiredly.
‘In the night,’ Mrs. Dudley said, and smiled outright. ‘In the dark,’ she said, and closed the door behind her.
Those are some of my favorite lines in the book. The words, Jackson’s prose, is almost musical, yet ambiguous. You never know if Hill House’s inhabitants are the reason for the mysteries surrounding their stay, or if the house itself is causing the phenomena they experience.
“In the book, Jackson creates a mood and sense of expectancy and mystery that grips the reader slowly and completely and lasts until the very end. And unlike other ghost stories that struggle with an ending, Jackson’s haunted house tale brilliantly ends with the same mystery and psychological tension as the narrative held throughout, she leaves the reader without a falsely satisfying conclusion.”
–Goodreads review
‘This house, which seemed somehow to have formed itself, flying together into its own powerful pattern under the hands of its builders, fitting itself into its own construction of lines and angles, reared its great head back against the sky without concession to humanity. It was a house without kindness, never meant to be lived in, not a fit place for people or for love or for hope.’
The Haunting of Hill House (1959)
Shirley Jackson
Shirley Jackson (photo: Library of America)
Shirley Hardie Jackson (December 14, 1916 – August 8, 1965) was an American writer, known primarily for her works of horror and mystery. Over the duration of her writing career, which spanned over two decades, she composed six novels, two memoirs, and over 200 short stories.
Shirley Jackson is unparalleled as a leader in the field of beautifully written, quiet, cumulative shudders.”
—Dorothy Parker, Esquire
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