It would be impossible for an author to write in a way that doesn't pull from their own experiences, to do so would be to put blinders on and run full force towards what you think is an exit. It might work, but you are probably going to hit a wall. That being said, Jackson does a marvelous job of pulling from her life and picking out the fear and anxiety that everyone feels to create horror, riddled with humor and wit.
Thesis:
Shirley Jackson's novels and short stories resonate with many. Her ability to twist reality into suspenseful, paranormal, horrific tales, while using enthralling language creates supernatural worlds, that still maintain a sense of actuality, This allows the questions to arise about what is genuine, what is fabricated by the mind and what is truly paranormal phenomenon. The answers to these questions, depend on the context that the stories are read in, and the answers to the questions greatly effects the meanings of these stories. I argue that Shirley Jackson's elements of paranormal are not actual manifestations, but the mental illnesses and even mental deterioration of her female characters. She is using her characters to help bring awareness to these issues subtly. The reason she does this is because she faces many of the same trials and tribulations as her female characters; she's projecting her reality onto them. To demonstrate this I will examine the circumstances surrounding her female characters in her novels We Have Always Lived In The Castle and The Haunting of Hill House as well as her life as described her autobiography Life Among the Savages and her biographies, in particular I will be looking at Agoraphobia, delusions and their interactions with their mothers.
Thesis:
Shirley Jackson's novels and short stories resonate with many. Her ability to twist reality into suspenseful, paranormal, horrific tales, while using enthralling language creates supernatural worlds, that still maintain a sense of actuality, This allows the questions to arise about what is genuine, what is fabricated by the mind and what is truly paranormal phenomenon. The answers to these questions, depend on the context that the stories are read in, and the answers to the questions greatly effects the meanings of these stories. I argue that Shirley Jackson's elements of paranormal are not actual manifestations, but the mental illnesses and even mental deterioration of her female characters. She is using her characters to help bring awareness to these issues subtly. The reason she does this is because she faces many of the same trials and tribulations as her female characters; she's projecting her reality onto them. To demonstrate this I will examine the circumstances surrounding her female characters in her novels We Have Always Lived In The Castle and The Haunting of Hill House as well as her life as described her autobiography Life Among the Savages and her biographies, in particular I will be looking at Agoraphobia, delusions and their interactions with their mothers.