We Have Always Lived in the Castle Lesson Plan

Why do you think the villagers start leaving food and notes of apology at the front door? What made them change their attitude towards the sisters?

When the villagers were persecuting the sisters in the aftermath of the fire, they stopped only when Uncle Julius’s death was announced—“then they were quiet at last.” His death might be seen as a sacrifice that appeased the villagers’ anger and resentment towards the Blackwoods. The tension that runs through the novel is resolved by Julian’s death, and a state of equilibrium replaces it. The sacrificial aspect of Julian’s death is emphasized by the way he was seemingly consumed by the fire—although Dr. Levy says his heart...