A haunted house analysis (Virginia Woolf)

Short Story AnalysisA Haunted House

A Haunted HouseShort story analysisBy Virginia WoolfPrepared ByAn IllustrationIntroductionIntrinsic ElementsCharacterConflictPoint of ViewThemeLiteracy DivicesPlotDiscussionApproach

By Virginia Woolf (1882-1941)


Prepared by:Fera Komala Sari (E1D 010 002)Efri Lestari (E1D 010 025)


A Haunted House illustration

interesting a haunted house.FLV


IntroductionTwo ghosts, a male and a female, a couple, go around their former house searching for some buried treasure. In the end, they realize that the real treasure is actually "the light in the heart," the love of a certain partner for the other partner.This short story is haunting, yet beautiful. The beginning starts off with a "ghostly couple" that is looking for something. They wander around the house as quiet as they can so they won't wake the inhabitants. The narrator--who lives in the house--isn't awoken by them. However, the searching and confusion does pass onto her. The drawing room is described next. When the couple is in there, there are green leaves, roses, and apples reflected in the window. Anyone else just sees the room how it is, though. The house's heart beats "safe" over and over; ensuring that the treasure the couple is looking for is indeed there and belongs to them. Next, the couple when they weren't ghosts is described. The wife died hundreds of years back, which sent the husband traveling. He eventually came back to the house, though. The story pulls back to the present, where the couple begins to recall old memories. They stop in the narrator's doorway and look upon her and her lover. The narrator then wakes and guesses that the hidden treasure is actually the "light in the heart".


Intrinsic elements

• Settinga)place – in a house formerly

owned by a ghost couple b)time- a long time agoc) weather conditions- fined) social conditions- the ghosts led

a comfortable life when they were still alive

e) mood or atmosphere- light


Character

1. the male and the female ghosts: both protagonists, both flat and static.

2.The narrator: protagonist3. The narrator husband:

figurant


Conflict

The conflict here is Internal, that of Man (or ghost, to that matter)vs. Himself, as each of the ghosts here is frantically searching for the said treasure around their former house, afraid that the new occupants have found it.


Point of view

The Point of View used in this short story is the Omniscient Limited - The author tells the story in third person (using pronouns they, she, he, it, etc). We know only what the character knows and what the author allows him/her to tell us. We can see the thoughts and feelings of characters if the author chooses to reveal them to us.


Theme

the theme Things are not always as they appear to be is applicable to this story which major theme is love story.


Literary devices

In my opinion, the literary devices used in this story are Symbolism and Irony. The treasure mentioned by the ghosts here is not tangible, it is just a symbol. Irony because the title sounds scary, but the actual story is not.


PLOT

• a) Introduction

This short story takes place in a house where two ghosts, a couple, used to live.

b) Rising Action

The couple-ghosts think that the present living occupants of their former house have already found the buried treasure that they are looking for.

c) Climax

The ghosts are still searching for their treasure and they are wondering whether it is in the garden.

d) Falling action

realizing that the treasure was not found by the house’s present occupants, the ghosts are relieved that it is safe, and such treasure is really theirs.e) Denouement:

Finally, the ghosts know that the treasure is really safe, and theirs, and such treasure is not tangible things, but intangible, found in the light in the heart.


Section 3Discussion (Analyze by approach)

1. What approach which is used? is it interesting? Why?

2. What is the meaning behind “Here” and “It” in the short story?

-----> the buried treasure that is the treasure of life

3. The short story are using imagery, irony and full of symbols. What are the interesting about it?


Approach

The technique of "close reading" was created by critics such as F.R. Leavis and Cleanth Brooks, and it's not a coincidence that it came to the fore in the wake of High Modernism. If one didn't engage in "close reading" of authors such as James Joyce, Virginia Woolf, or William Faulkner, one couldn't read them at all. Old techniques such as reading for the plot result in one getting to the bottom of the first page of one of these writers' works and saying, "Huh?"

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/F.R._Leavis

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/F.R._Leavis

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cleanth_Brooks

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cleanth_Brooks

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Modernism

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Joyce

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Virginia_Woolf

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Faulkner


Here and It are the buried treasure?

the author reveals that the buried treasure is “"the light in the heart”. Throughout the story, Virginia Woolf, uses the repetition of the words “here” and “it” By using the repetition of the word “here” and “it”, Woolf emphasizes the significance of both of the words. The couple says “it” could be “here” in the book room, the drawing room and the upstairs. They also say if “it’s” upstairs or if they left “it” in the drawing room. This makes the reader start to question what exactly are the ghosts looking for and where did they leave it? The author also makes the reader wonder if “it” is “here” and if not “here” then where is “it”? When Woolf finally explains that “it” is “treasure”, the reader is led to imagine what kind of treasure are the ghosts looking for? In the last sentence when the author reveals that the ghosts were looking for “the light in the heart” and by this she was referring to a love that a partner can have for another partner.


Imagery, irony and full of symbols

Woolf reveals clues throughout the story by showing the reader the happy thoughts and love that the ghosts shared with each other. For example, “we slept here” and “kisses without number”. The story has a symbolic meaning to it because the treasure is not an actually tangible item, rather a symbol of love. Imagery is used in the story very often and is used for great effect by giving the reader a mental picture of what is being described and giving the reader the perception that Woolf desires for the reader. Examples of imagery in the story are abundant but a specific example is in the simile, “The doors go shutting in the distance, gently knocking like the pulse of a heart.” This puts the reader right in the story and allows them to see the doors shutting and the ghosts moving through the house. Just by the title, A Haunted House, the story makes the perception of the house seem that of an evil place. This shows the irony because both of the ghosts are the protagonists and throughout the story it shows the reader the memories of joy and love between the ghost couple. The irony of the story also helps in allowing the reader to understand the story’s theme, which is something is not always what it seems to be. In this story the ghosts are actually the protagonists unlike other stories where ghosts are seen as the antagonists.


Section 4Conclusion

A haunted house by Virginia Woolf is a short story which is interesting and wonders the reader to read and read again until she or he get the point. It is interesting because no one can guess the meaning before she or he use close reading and looking for of the meaning of symbols which are appear in the short story. The reader will not satisfy until she or he get the point of the story. Although the readers have found the point of the story, it is amazing that the reader always want to read more and more.


Section 5Bibliography

http://sparknotes.com/http://www.novelguide.com/index.htmlhttp://encarta.msn.com/encnet/homework/l…http://www.cliffsnotes.com/WileyCDA/http://www.reviewsofbooks.comhttp://www.bartleby.com/http://www.shvoong.com/http://www.gradesaver.com/http://www.homeworkspot.com/


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A haunted house analysis (Virginia Woolf)

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