The Haunting of Hill House
Introduction:
This was my first book in horror genre. The biggest impression that this book left on me is that it covered the whole spectrum from exactness to uncertainity. The events that happen in the beginning of the story are exact because Eleanor’s mind is clear. By the end, it is completely polluted by the Hill House and the events become much more uncertain. She becomes an unreliable protagonist. This book has inspired a Netflix show of the same name, but a totally different story.
Main Characters:
👸🏻 Eleanor is the main protagonist of the story. Her life, upto this point has been extremely quiet. Hill House is the first thing that has happened to her. That is why she becomes the Ideal canditate for the Hill House to possess.
🧖🏻♀️ Eleanor's Mom, she dead.
👨🏻💼 The doctor is the one who orchestrated the "stay at hill house". The most defining trait of the doctor is that he is a scientist by heart and tries to find rational explanation of all the abnormal stuff happening in the house. He likes chess and reading books.
👨🏻🔧 Luke is a theif and a liar. He is only there because his family owns the Hill House and he might be the one to own the house one day. He likes to drink. There are hints that him and Theodora are romantically interested in each other, this could be just fragments of Eleanor’s imagination.
👱🏻♀️ Theodora or "Theo" is a quirky women. She is 28, I believe at the time they get to the Hill House. She likes to dress and she likes to eat. She develops a good bond with Eleanor and is a reliable friend. Although she does get irritated when Eleanor keep pushing to come live with her after all this is done.
👫🏼 Mr. and Mrs. Dudley. This is a couple that takes care of the house. They know the house and try to stay away from it during the night. Mr. Dudley also warns Elearnor to turn back and go home when she first arrives in Hill House. They know what Hill House does to its inhabitants.
🕵🏻 Doctor's wife is a person who talks with the spirits (I forgot what the spirits are called). She comes to the house late in the story and does not play that big a part in Eleanor's narrative.
🕵🏻♂️ Arthur is a companion of doctor's wife. He is there to provide protection. He loves his fire arms.
Plot and Notes:
🍵 The cup of stars. On her way to the Hill House, Eleanor stops at a restaurant. There is a girl there who refuses to drink from anything other than her cup of stars. It was later suggested that Eleanor was actually the one with a cup of stars. Is this a weird coincidence or was the Hill House working on Eleanor before she even got there?
🏚️ "I am a small creature swallowed whole by a monster, and the mosnter feels my tiny little movements inside". Iconic. Noticing how she is afraid of the house. This will change as the story moves on.
🎭 When Theodora comes to the house, Eleanor tells her that it was terrible, being in the house alone for so long. That does not make sense because Eleanor was only there for minutes. This sets up the theme of timelessness about Hill House.
🧖♀️ When the knocking at the doors first starts, Eleanor thinks to herself, that my mom is knocking on the door. But her mom was dead. That was the whole reason that Eleanor was free to come to the Hill House.
🌚 The morning after the first knocking happens, everyone seems happy. It is an uneasy kind of happiness. When I read that I thought, are the characters trying to be strong and play it down, or they do not remember how terrible it was? Did the house gave them a good night's sleep after terrifying them? The doctor realizes the excitement that they all feel and tries to be aware of it.
👨🏻💼 The doctor is asked, when will his wife come and he says saturday, but no one seems to remember when saturday is. Is it tomorrow or the day after tomorrow. The sense of time is distorted in Hill House and the doctor can feel it.
😈 The first signs that the Hill house has gotten to Eleanor. When Theodora's clothes are painted in red (probably blood), Eleanor remains calm. She has always been the one to freak out first, but not here. There is also a hint of joy. The kind you feel when you prank someone. Was it Eleanor who did that to Theodoras'a clothes?
😾 After that incident Eleanor starts getting angry at Theodora. This hate seemingly comes from nowhere. And it just comes and goes. Eleanor wishes to see Theodora die all of a sudden. Very uncharacteristic.
🤝 One night Eleanor is not having a good time. She and Theodora left the lights open, but somehow it is still dark. They hold hands until Eleanor finds the courage to get out of her blanket. The lights were on and Theodora's arms were far away. Whose hand was Eleanor holding?
🧟♀️ There is a night when doctors's wife is in the nursery trying to talk with the spirits and Eleanor, Luke, Theodora, and the doctor are hiding in the doctor's room. Something knocks at the door, and Eleanor thinks that is it her who is knocking. But that cannot be, she is inside the room with them. A sign that she is becoming one with the house.
🖼️ Becoming one with the house: At some point in the story (its not clear when), Eleanor becomes one with the house. She can feel the house as it is her own body. She can feel the wind go through it. People walking in it. She can feel the library as the dust settles on the books.
💌 Journeys end in lover's meetings. This is said again and again in the book. Eleanor ends her journey by crashing her car to a tree because she will not leave Hill House. They cannot have it. She belongs to the Hill House and it belongs to her.
