The September House

This section of the novel heightens the suspense and follows the conventions of the psychological thriller by selectively delivering key pieces of information missing from the previous chapters. These new details clarify the author’s previous use of foreshadowing, particularly when Katherine pries open various drawers and cabinets in Hal’s office and finds a trove of liquor bottles, both empty and full. Amidst this dramatic tableau, the author finally reveals that Hal has had a lifelong struggle with alcohol addiction. Significantly, this is the novel’s first moment of “reality,” when the narrative begins to deviate from its focus on the house’s supernatural troubles and provides the first hints that the family’s true issues revolve around The Cycle of Domestic Abuse. From this point onward, it is apparent that the house and the other horror elements are part of a broader conversation about the darkest aspects of addiction and its effects upon familial relationships. Only now does Margaret become a bit more forthcoming with details about her marriage, and this sudden shift draws attention to her status as an essentially unreliable narrator. In this moment of greater truth, she finally admits, “Living with Hal for so long, I knew what whiskey smelled like behind a closed door” (105). This dry and succinct comment is designed to emphasize Hal’s longtime habit of drinking secretly. When he did so, there were always clues, and she knew to avoid him. Her thoughts also reveal her experiences with Gaining Resilience through Survival, for her previous assertion that everything is survivable now takes on a far more complex set of meanings. Although she has taken steps to “survive” the house’s various acts of haunting and aggression, these actions can also be read as a metaphor for the tactics and defense mechanisms that she has deployed in order to survive her abusive marriage.

These chapters also indicate that addiction is not the only issue at the core of Margaret and Hal’s marriage, and when Margaret reveals that Hal had been physically abusive, her memories place particular emphasis on the novel’s examination of The Cycle of Domestic Abuse. Notably, Hal’s descent into physical abuse parallels the trajectory of many abusers, and at this point in the narrative, the author’s narrative reveals her expertise as a clinical psychologist who specializes in family issues. When Margaret reflects, “Of course Hal didn’t start putting hands on me right away. I wouldn’t have stayed” (142), this comment indicates that Hal’s abuse began—as domestic abuse often does—with insults, slurs, control tactics, and manipulation. It was only after a period of time that these issues began to escalate and Hal started to resort to physical violence. While many details of the marriage remain unspoken, these chapters nonetheless reveal that Margaret, while resilient, has experienced deep trauma due to her abusive marriage.

At this point in the novel, the supernatural events blend with evidence of real-life abuses and mental health crises, particularly when Katherine’s observation of Margaret’s scars prompts her to ask if Hal is responsible. Margaret describes these scars as the “bite marks” of one of the house’s child-ghosts (Elias), but she is also forced to admit to herself that Katherine is right to suspect Hal, for he has a history of hurting her physically. The real truth about these “bite marks” will be revealed only later in the novel, when Orlando explains that Margaret has been engaging in acts of self-harm as a coping mechanism. Although this point of clarification will come much later in the novel, the current narrative nonetheless uses this detail to blend the supernatural explanations with the mundane, thereby imbuing the novel with a distinct element of ambiguity.

As part of their search for Hal, Margaret and Katherine visit a series of bars and a motel where Hal stayed before leaving town, and the distinct unreality of these scenes emphasize the author’s use of horror as a metafictional lens to analyze trauma. At several points during their search, Margaret is sure that the house’s prankster ghosts have placed messages for her: the limerick about Master Vale, and the fact that several hotel employees tell her “He’s down there!” (169), just as the prankster-ghosts have done. While these supernatural elements contribute to the novel’s eerie horror landscape, they also call Margaret’s mental health into question. The limerick and the phrase “He’s down there!” both refer to Master Vale, who will eventually be revealed as a shadow figure for Hal himself. Additionally, because Margaret thinks that these mentions of Master Vale are a supernatural message for her, the scenes obliquely hint at the reality of her murder of her own husband. At this point in the story, she has suppressed the actual memory of his death, highlighting The Impact of Repressed Trauma, and the truth of his disappearance will only be revealed much later in the novel. Orlando’s depiction of Margaret’s slow unraveling stands as another key element of psychological horror, and the ambiguity of these scenes builds suspense.

Adding to the atmosphere of suspense and anxiety, the ghosts in the house become more prominent and insistent, raising Margaret’s anxiety to new heights. As Margaret desperately begins drugging Katherine with sleeping pills in order to keep the house’s supernatural issues a secret, Orlando uses these details to paint a picture of a woman in acute psychological distress, implying that the house’s ghosts are more active because Margaret’s mind is working in overdrive. Given that Katherine is determined to solve the mystery of her father’s disappearance, Margaret is frantically hoping that her own crime will not be discovered. However, because she has not yet admitted to herself that she killed Hal, her worries are diverted into the presence of ghosts, blood, and eerie wailing.