Horror Fiction: The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson

First things first: No, I have not watched the Netflix series of the same name as today's selection, The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson. And I only vaguely remember the 1999 movie starring Liam Neeson titled The Haunting. Before diving into the Netflix series, I decided it was time to actually read the book and see where the popular show got its inspiration.

The Situation: Dr. John Montague has decided to look for real evidence of psychic happenings, and after hearing the complicated and troubling history behind Hill House, he believes this is the perfect location to conduct his research. While searching for a team to assist him, he comes up with several names that he finds worthy, but only three actually show up, one of them being a man who stands to one day inherit the property. Theodora was selected because of her storied abilities regarding telekinesis, while Eleanor was selected because of an incident she was a part of as a child living with her mom and sister. Luke may some day be the owner of Hill House, but currently he is mostly known among family and friends to be little more than a thief and a cad. It is this motley crew that takes residence inside the foreboding manor, not knowing what exactly they will find.

The Problem: Even before entering the house, the new residents are greeted by the less than welcoming Mr. Dudley, and later his wife, Mrs. Dudley, who is responsible for cooking all of the guests meals. The older couple refuse to be anywhere near Hill House at night, making sure to leave before dark and return in the morning. With each guest assigned to a room of a different color, they all have strange experiences, mostly at night. And while they mostly got along upon their first meeting, the strange occurrences begin to change how the guests relate to and see each other. Eleanor is specifically affected, especially since many of the events taking place inside the house seem directed at her. But even while words appear on walls, doors and windows shut on their own, and an unknown force bangs on walls and doors at night, all four guests insist on staying, and it is unclear if they could leave even if they wanted to.

Genre, Themes, History: This is a horror story written by Jackson in the late 1950s. She wanted to write a ghost story after reading about psychic researchers who studied a house much in the way Dr. Montague intends to. While the events that take place inside of Hill House after the four guests make themselves comfortable are certainly cause enough for alarm, Jackson makes sure to give the house a very detailed and troubled history, one full of grisly deaths and at least one suicide. There is even contention over who should own the house and how it should be looked after. And when it comes to the surrounding village, the people who live around Hill House do not like to talk about it, and are certainly wary of those on their way to visit it. After giving the house a troubled history, and having it staffed by the cold Mr. and Mrs. Dudley, Jackson goes another step further and makes the point of having the house appear unwelcoming, if not downright ugly. None of the guests remark on its charm or beauty, instead opting to understand why many of those who rent it never stay for the full time. For someone like Eleanor, this all may prove to be too much. Out of the four of them, she seems to be the most affected by what happens at the house. It even shapes how she views and treats the other guests. Sometimes she loves having them around, and then at other times she is suspicious of them all and think they are laughing at her. It is more than a ghost story, and more than a haunted house story, allowing the reader insight into how fear can change how people relate to each other, while also revealing things about them. 

My Verdict: Seeing as the book is less than 200 pages long, I was interested to see how Jackson was going to fit her classic tale into such a small amount of pages. What follows is a slow, though quite careful and deliberate, unraveling of events that also serves to unravel at least one of the guests. Like any good horror story, there is a steady build-up, and when something does happen, the real horror is in the aftermath and how the guests choose to respond. Where many ghost stories, or stories about haunted houses, seem to fall apart for me is in the why and how, and the same holds true here. Even with the extensive history that Jackson gives to Hill House, it is still unsatisfactory as for as providing context for what is happening. Simply saying that a house is cursed is not enough for me to completely buy into the strange things going on inside of it. If anything, I was more drawn to what the strange occurrences were revealing to Eleanor about herself, and perhaps that was the point. 

Favorite Moment: The arrival of Dr. Montague's wife brings with it the expectation that something big is going to happen, if only because the woman is arrogant and insufferable and you hope whatever horrible thing is about to happen will be happening to her.

Favorite Character: Dr. Montague is a little bit silly; his methods are certainly not the best; and though he is the one in charge, he is kinda useless. Even so, out of the four main characters, he is my favorite, and the least tiresome. 

Recommended Reading: When it comes to books about haunted houses, The Shining by Stephen King will probably always be my number one. But another book to consider is The Supernatural Enhancements by Edgar Cantero.