The Woman in Black

Fiction | Novel | Adult | Published in 1983

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Summary

Background

Chapter Summaries & Analyses

Chapters 1-3

Chapters 4-6

Chapters 7-9

Chapters 10-12

Character Analysis

Themes

Symbols & Motifs

Important Quotes

Essay Topics

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Character Analysis

Arthur Kipps

As a young man, Arthur Kipps is eager to advance his career and preparing to marry Stella. He jumps at the opportunity to take on more responsibility from Mr. Bentley, so his character at the beginning of his narrative illustrates innocence and optimism. He is eager and unapprehensive despite all the foreboding signs, from the fog to the avoidant villagers.

However, he remains incredibly observant of the environment around him. Even as a young man, Kipps pays close attention to the appearances of others, their place in the community, and he embodies a pragmatic, rational mindset, especially at the beginning of his narrative. Not only does Kipps’s internal self evolve over the course of the novel, but he also develops a better understanding of other people. When he first arrives to Crythin Gifford, he acknowledges his own pretentious attitude:

For I must confess I had the Londoner’s sense of superiority in those days, the half-formed belief that countrymen […] were more suspicious, more gullible, more slow-witted, unsophisticated and primitive, than we cosmopolitans (38).

He belittles the villagers for their beliefs in superstitions, which creates a disconnect between himself and most of the other characters in the novel. This moment also illustrates the reflective tone of Kipps’s narrative voice as his character development unfolds. Initially, he prides himself in being “like most sensible young men” (65) and dismisses the possibility of the supernatural. However, as he continues to encounter the woman in black, he begins to acknowledge that his perception of what is real or not must evolve.

As the protagonist of the novel, Kipps undergoes a character arc from a state of innocence to experience due to the haunting of the woman in black. By beginning the novel in his old age, Kipps appears to be reflective and mindful of his surroundings, of the immediate environment and people around him. Since this version of Kipps has already experienced the haunting, his character holds a wisdom that his younger self did not have. For example, he reflects on his experience: “I had always known in my heart that the experience would never leave me, that it was now woven into my very fibers” (17). He already begins the novel as a dynamic character that has undergone an immense transformation, which aids his ability to recount his relationship with the woman in black.

Hill’s decision to introduce Kipps in his old age allows for his perspective to be two-fold: a first-time witness of the woman in black haunting and a reflective, narrative voice. By doing so, Kipps’s point of view adds complexity to a traditional ghost story, while adhering to gothic tropes and elements.

Mr. Daily

As the first local of Crythin Gifford that Kipps meets, Mr. Daily acts as a gateway between Kipps’s past and future. He also serves to aid Kipps during this transition, playing an important role during Kipps’s supernatural experience and his character development.

Although Mr. Daily does not undergo his own development, his stance as a round character proves to be pivotal for the plot. His unwillingness to buy Eel Marsh House, despite being a prominent landowner in town, indicates he has a level of sensibility that Kipps simply writes off as superstition. However, even Kipps recognizes Mr. Daily as a “sturdy [man] of good common-sense” (38). Hill categorizes Mr. Daily as such to explore the complexity of Crythin Gifford and its residents. Since the novel does not explore other viewpoints, the characterization of Mr. Daily relies on not only Kipps’s observation of him but also Mr. Daily’s own actions.

Initially, Mr. Daily’s description coincides with the image of a typical man from a local village. Kipps views him as a “big man, with a beefy face and huge raw-looking hands, well enough spoken but with an odd accent” (31-32). Right away, Kipps downplays the significance Mr. Daily will have during his stay at Eel Marsh House. Due to being regarded as outsiders by the rest of the village, Mr. Daily and Kipps connect on a common ground. Just as Kipps is an outsider visiting a feared estate, Mr. Daily’s reputation for buying multiple properties around Crythin Gifford isolates him from others. However, Mr. Daily does have the same fear for the woman in black, making him a bridge between Kipps and the rest of Crythin Gifford. Mr. Daily has this unique ability to exist between the two groups because of his financial status and superstitious beliefs.

Although he does not evolve throughout the novel, his character does advance in complexity. Hill writes Mr. Daily with an already-developed understanding of the woman in black’s haunting, but he chooses not to tell Kipps of Jennet Humfrye or the danger surrounding her until the novel’s close. His ability to help Kipps, by giving him Spider and checking on him at Eel Marsh House, indicates that he recognizes Kipps’s need to discover these truths for himself. By doing so, Mr. Daily fulfills the role of a mentor for the protagonist, just as Mr. Bentley does for his career. His mentorship helps Kipps adjust to his new perspective of reality.

Jennet Humfrye

Jennet Humfrye, or the woman in black, fulfills the role of the archetypal female ghost that has a desire for revenge in the afterlife. Hill utilizes Jennet Humfrye to perpetuate the gothic tropes found in her story, as well as embodying the anguish around losing a child. Having unwillingly lost her son to an adoption and then a drowning accident, Jennet’s appearance as a ghost physically embodies the despair she feels: “Her appearance, even in the limpid sunshine and comparative warmth and brightness outdoors, was so pathetically wasted, so pale and gaunt with disease” (45). Even without knowing her past, the description of Jennet, as a ghost, implies she has lost herself in the depths of mourning. Kipps’s observation also implies Jennet is unable to move on from the past, causing her to exist within a suspended time immersed in her anger and sadness.

Jennet’s physical appearance as the woman in black also reflects her ability to create a malevolent environment. As the antagonist of the novel, Jennet’s role is to build suspense and fear for Kipps and create narrative tension. Being described as “mad with grief” (152), Jennet antagonizes Crythin Gifford because she was unable to achieve her own happiness. Jennet symbolizes the inability to move on from the past and physically embodies all the pain she endured, reflecting The Consequences of Holding Onto Pain and the Past.

Apart from her gothic appearance and behavior, Jennet also haunts the other characters even when they are not at Eel Marsh House, or even Crythin Gifford. On the one hand, she has the ability to follow people around, such as going to London. However, on the other hand, the reputation as the woman in black precedes her appearance, implying a fear in the knowledge of her. She serves to incite fear and suspense without even fully coming onto the page. Jennet, as the woman in black, not only exists in that form but also in the sounds coming from the estate and the marsh.

The rest of what is known about Jennet comes from the letters she wrote to Mrs. Drablow, which illustrate her anger and need for vengeance. The limited presence of Jennet effectively perpetuates the suspense around her appearance while also maintaining a mysterious presence even after her story is revealed.

Mrs. Drablow

Although the novel does not introduce Mrs. Drablow in a physical form, she plays the role of a flat character that serves as the catalyst for Kipps’s entire story. The initial description of Mrs. Drablow does not create a lot of concern, especially for Kipps. According to Mr. Bentley, Mrs. Drablow was widowed young and did not have any children, so her character is initially perceived as a woman who died alone in her old age. However, the lack of information in itself creates an air of mystery, which is furthered when Kipps discovers she lived alone on an island. Hill utilizes Mrs. Drablow as not only a plot point but also as a means to establish the gothic trope of a decaying, abandoned estate owned by a mysterious figure.

Mrs. Drablow’s character is only depicted through the lens of others, whether that be stories shared by others, such as Mr. Jerome and Mr. Daily, or through Jennet’s letters to Mrs. Drablow. By employing this technique, Hill adds some complexity to Mrs. Drablow’s otherwise flat existence. Up until Kipps finds the letters, the narrative only paints Mrs. Drablow as an old, wealthy woman. However, the tone of Jennet’s letters is accusatory toward Mrs. Drablow, implying Mrs. Drablow caused her sister great pain: “But he is mine, mine, he can never be yours” (115). Despite depicting very little about Mrs. Drablow’s appearance and demeanor, Hill utilizes Mrs. Drablow and Jennet Humfrye’s relationship to generate depth in Mrs. Drablow’s characterization.