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Cover of The Turn of the Screw

Horror

The Turn of the Screw

A governess moves in to a haunted manor.

First published
1898
Length
42,820 words
Reading time
About 2 hr 59 min
Language
English (US)

About the book

One of the most famous ghost stories in literature, The Turn of the Screw earned its place in the annals of influential English novellas not for its qualities as a gothic ghost story, but rather for the many complex and subtle ways the reader can come to opposing conclusions as to tale’s very nature. Are the ghosts the governess sees real, or are they figments of her quiet insanity?

The Turn of the Screw was originally published as a serial, and later went through many revisions by James himself. Though there aren’t any overt suggestion that James intended his novella to be anything but a simple ghost story, the ambiguity in the narrative has captured the imagination of generations of readers and critics.

the Read4Max reading text contains approximately 42,820 words arranged in 25 navigable sections.

About the author

Henry James

Henry James (1843–1916) is described by Wikidata as American and British writer (1843–1916), with citizenship or national association recorded as United States and United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland.

Recorded occupations include writer, novelist, screenwriter, playwright, poet lawyer, and literary critic. Languages recorded for Henry James include French and English. The structured record associates Henry James with literary realism. Wikidata lists The American, The Turn of the Screw, The Portrait of a Lady, What Maisie Knew, The Wings of the Dove, and Daisy Miller among Henry James's notable works. Open Library identifies The Turn of the Screw as a leading work in its author record. Open Library catalogs 5210 works under this author record. The Read4Max catalog currently includes The Portrait of a Lady, The Turn of the Screw, and Washington Square under Henry James's authorship.

Reading options

  • A complete text with direct section navigation in the browser reader.
  • A downloadable EPUB for phones, tablets, desktop reading apps, and compatible ereaders.
  • Book and contributor metadata are checked against the source edition before indexing.

Themes and ideas

  • Governesses--Fiction
  • Children--Fiction
  • England--Fiction

Table of contents

Open reader
Show all 25 sections
  1. Prologue
  2. I
  3. II
  4. III
  5. IV
  6. V
  7. VI
  8. VII
  9. VIII
  10. IX
  11. X
  12. XI
  13. XII
  14. XIII
  15. XIV
  16. XV
  17. XVI
  18. XVII
  19. XVIII
  20. XIX
  21. XX
  22. XXI
  23. XXII
  24. XXIII
  25. XXIV