I'M the King of the Castle
I am the King of the Castle
The novel begins on a deathly note. Three months before the main events of the story, the grandmother of the Hooper household dies. Her son Joseph then refuses to live at Warings, the family home, until he owns it, i.e. until his father dies and he inherits it. This tells the reader knows immediately that the relationship between Joseph and his father is poor. Soon afterwards it b ecomes clear that the relationship he has with his own son is no better. Communication between Joseph and Edmund Hooper is limited and a cause of some concern to Joseph.
Edmund's mother died six years previously. This has not made him sensitive to death, and on seeing his dying grandfather he remarks coldly, 'All he looks like is one of those dead old moths'. The lack of feminine influence, coupled with their move to a house in the country (not to mention Joseph's own loneliness) has prompted his father to advertise for an 'informal' housekeeper.
Joseph has high hopes that living at Warings will improve his standing in society and make him feel like a more effective and successful person. The house is in the country and is large and imposing. The exterior is somewhat wild and intimidating with its large rhododendron bushes and yew trees. Inside it is dark and gloomy. The overall impression of the house is that it is a relic of the past, a cold and unlived-in place, which lacks any homely qualities. At the back of the house is the Red Room, which houses a collection of moths amassed by the newly departed grandfather. Edmund is fascinated by them and the chapter ends with him making a secret night time visit to the Red Room. He opens the case which houses the biggest one, the Death's Head Hawk Moth, but as soon as he touches it, it disintegrates leaving nothing but dry dust.
Chapter Two
The Kingshaws arrive at Warings. Helena Kingshaw has been appointed as housekeeper and she and her ten-year-old son, Charles, are to live with the Hoopers. Joseph Hooper
The novel begins on a deathly note. Three months before the main events of the story, the grandmother of the Hooper household dies. Her son Joseph then refuses to live at Warings, the family home, until he owns it, i.e. until his father dies and he inherits it. This tells the reader knows immediately that the relationship between Joseph and his father is poor. Soon afterwards it b ecomes clear that the relationship he has with his own son is no better. Communication between Joseph and Edmund Hooper is limited and a cause of some concern to Joseph.
Edmund's mother died six years previously. This has not made him sensitive to death, and on seeing his dying grandfather he remarks coldly, 'All he looks like is one of those dead old moths'. The lack of feminine influence, coupled with their move to a house in the country (not to mention Joseph's own loneliness) has prompted his father to advertise for an 'informal' housekeeper.
Joseph has high hopes that living at Warings will improve his standing in society and make him feel like a more effective and successful person. The house is in the country and is large and imposing. The exterior is somewhat wild and intimidating with its large rhododendron bushes and yew trees. Inside it is dark and gloomy. The overall impression of the house is that it is a relic of the past, a cold and unlived-in place, which lacks any homely qualities. At the back of the house is the Red Room, which houses a collection of moths amassed by the newly departed grandfather. Edmund is fascinated by them and the chapter ends with him making a secret night time visit to the Red Room. He opens the case which houses the biggest one, the Death's Head Hawk Moth, but as soon as he touches it, it disintegrates leaving nothing but dry dust.
Chapter Two
The Kingshaws arrive at Warings. Helena Kingshaw has been appointed as housekeeper and she and her ten-year-old son, Charles, are to live with the Hoopers. Joseph Hooper