The Turn of the Screw Lesson Plan

Why do you think the novel opens with a different narrator? What purpose might the introductory chapter serve?

Discuss with your students the idea of a framing device, placed at the beginning (and sometimes the end) of a story as a way to introduce the characters, the setting, or make the story seem more grounded in reality. Also consider how having the governess's story introduced by a man might have shaped the way readers in the late 19th century judged the story. (i.e., a story about a woman needed an introduction by a male authority in order for it to be taken seriously.) Additionally, consider how the framing device adds additional levels of ambiguity to a story...