Elusive Allusions: Shirley Jackson's Gothic Intertextuality

Abstract:

This article analyzes Shirley Jackson’s use of allusions in The Haunting of Hill House and Hangsaman. Drawing from Nicholas Royle’s work on the Freudian uncanny in relation to literature and pedagogy, it argues that, in both novels, allusions draw readers with literary knowledge into the protagonist’s psychological experience and ultimately comment on literary studies as an inherently gothic practice. In Hill House, a connected web of allusions to Charles Perrault’s “Bluebeard,” Oscar Wilde’s “The Canterville Ghost,” and Samuel Richardson’s Pamela works to convey the house’s telepathic power while simultaneously inviting us to feel, along with Eleanor, a proud possessiveness if we are (or think we are) able to discern the allusions’ significance for the novel. In this way, Jackson puts her well-read readers in the place of gothic protagonist; we believe we have a special ability to unearth the novel’s secrets but must ultimately wonder whether we, like Eleanor, are the ones who have been consumed. In Hangsaman, allusions to Pamela, Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, Through the Looking-Glass, the 1908 pornographic novel The Way of a Man with a Maid, and "The Waste Land," as well as the Tarot and Tony Sarg’s marionettes, lead readers through a disorienting maze of clues and connections that replicates its protagonist’s disconnection from reality during her first year of college. In both novels, Jackson cultivates an uncanny reading experience through uncertain recollections, telepathic communications, and surprising correspondences. She illuminates both the allure and danger of literature’s enchanting power, revealing the intrinsically gothic nature of our engagements with the literary tradition.