Evil In

“The Woman In Black” Essay, Research Paper

In the novel, .The Woman in Black. evil is an important theme. We see how

evil is portrayed through setting, characters, plot and descriptive

language.

Evil is depicted through the setting, place names and weather conditions.

The scene is set in the first chapter with the description of the happy,

festive meal which had taken place on Christmas Eve at Monk`s Piece. The

fact too that the weather had changed (the writer said) from chilling rain

and a low mist over the countryside which had lasted all the previous week.

The writer shows through descriptive language that there could be no outdoor

pursuits while the weather was so bad.Inside the house we have the same

dejected melancholy feeling because lamps had to be lit throughout the day,

the smell of damp in the rooms, the fires burning low smoking and

sputtering. Esme (Arthur`s wife) reacts differently to the weather, she

launches into Christmas preparations with a determined cheerful attitude.

In the opening, Kipps gives an idea that all is not right in his life and

his illnesses are a result of past experiences, which will be told as the

story progresses.

Fear intermingles with the festivities. Kipps was fearful of his memories,

.I was trying to suppress my mounting unease, to hold back the rising flood

of memory.. He describes how he would lie awake unable to sleep, sweating

and going over and over the events that had taken place. He tells how he

has been haunted and how he has suffered for years. He wonders if by

writing it all down as a ghost story that perhaps then he can be free of the

memory. But he then comes to the conclusion that he should keep it to

himself and prays for strength, peace of mind and a blessing upon his

family. He realises that for the moment he is in control of his emotions

but that it won`t last .for, although I was in control of my emotions now, I

dreaded the hours of darkness that lay ahead..(p.23). Kipps tells how

prayer helps him to come to terms with what has happened to him, .As I

recited them aloud, a great peace came upon me..

The scene is now set and the anxiety and foreboding has begun, something

sinister has happened to Kipps and we know that in chapter 2 .A London

Particular., the story of what happened to Kipps is about to unfold. He

relates being called to attend an interview with Mr Bentley and although it

was many years ago he can remember the smallest details of that day

travelling up to London.

Names of people and places now begin to create an atmosphere of evil .Alice

Drablow. the house where she lived, .Eel Marsh House..

The fog surrounding London all help to create a sinister picture now he is

leaving the fog of London for the North of England, called Crythin Gifford

(a market town). Kipps felt cheerful that first night at the Crythin

Gifford Inn.

.On the whole, that night with my stomach full of home-cooked food, a

pleasing drowsiness induced by good wine, and the sight of the low fire and

inviting, turned back carers of the deep soft bed, I was inclined to let

myself enjoy the whole business..

The following morning he met Mr Jerome, the property agent who accompanied

him to Mrs Drablow`s funeral.

It was at the church where Kipp`s first saw the woman in black and when he

describes her to Mr Jerome, Mr Jerome showed great fear. He was on the

point of collapse, agitated and anxious to get away from the church and its

surroundings. When Kipps then mentioned that Mr Jerome was to accompany him

to Eel Marsh House, he refused point blank and said Keckwick would accompany

him. When Kipps suggested he remain at Eel Marsh House, rather than trouble

Keckwick to return him to Crythin Gifford, Mr Jerome advised not to remain

at Eel Marsh House but to return to the Inn.

In the first chapter, .Christmas Eve., we read of contrasts in the weather

(depicting good and evil). Arthur Kipps the narrator describes the

different kinds of seasonal weather

.sweetly scented and balmy with the flowers of midsummer, pungent with the

bonfires and leaf mould of autumn, crackling cold from frost and snow..

Then he goes on to describe the weather of the previous week .rain ,

chilling rain and a mist that lay low.. Visibility was too poor, lamps were

lit throughout the day, fires burned dismally low. This description helps

create a sombre atmosphere, one of melancholy and prepares us in some way

uncertainly which is to come.

Kipps goes on to describe how the weather has affected him,

.my spirits have for many years now been excessively affected by the ways of

the weather.. (pathetic fallacy).

This contrasts with his wife Esme.s cheerful preparations for Christmas when

Esme is determined to make it a happy occasion. Despite the weather, the

house is full of hussle and bustle wi

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