Hangsaman by Shirley Jackson
originally published in 1951
“Natalie laughed. ‘If I were inventing this world,’ she said, ‘–and I may have, at that–I would gauge my opponents more accurately. That is, suppose I wanted to destroy the people who saw it clearly, and refused to join up with all my dull ordinary folk, the ones who plod blindly along. What I would do is not set them against numbers of dull people, but I would invent for each one a single antagonist, who was calculated to be strong in exactly the right points.'”
I found Hangsaman to be incredibly haunting and, at times, scary. The synopsis on the back of the book doesn’t really capture what the story is about. Natalie, who is 17, meets with her father to discuss her writing. Since he is an author, he gives he honest feedback with little concern for her feelings and great attention to her skills that he knows she possesses. He admits that she will experience things to which he will not relate. These is a sense of abandonment in his tone. He believes he and Natalie will naturally grow to hate each other. The mother is an ordinary mother, except when she drinks too much at a party she begins warning Natalie of problems with the domestic life. Natalie’s brother is a very normal boy.
Natalie is sent to an all-girls college that her father has selected for her. The school is relatively new, so the curriculum is unusual and changes over the years. The girls all live in large houses and have their own rooms. Natalie is the odd girl because she doesn’t like to talk with people and has unusual thoughts. For example, when someone knocks on Natalie’s door, she thinks about the fact that she is looking at the door, and on the other side of the door is someone who is also looking at the same door, in the same spot. They are only divided by a piece of wood that is a door. It’s strange thoughts like these that course through the novel and make the setting creepy.
Oh yeah, and she imagines turning into a giant and killing everyone at school. And peeling the other students like apples. And neutering her professor’s wife–not an emotional neutering, either.
Highly recommended!
Grab the Lapels 
This book sounds absolutely terrifying…Peeling students like apples? *Shivers* Completely unrelated- but doesn’t the second cover look like George from Nancy Drew?
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I think a lot of them remind me of Nancy Drew, mainly because she’s blonde and it’s a dark setting. I like the newest one least, though in general I’m not partial to photographic covers on books.
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Interesting. I found The Lottery, and just finished it. It is really quite chilling and reminded me somewhat of The Scarlet Letter. A very scary commentary on blind faith.
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That’s her most famous short story. Many people then read her novel House on Haunted Hill.
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I just checked that out 2 minutes ago! Our library does not have Hangsaman, but I requested it and they are ordering it!
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Awesome! Can’t wait for the review!
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Done! https://napoleonsplit.wordpress.com/2016/04/03/book-21-the-haunting-of-hill-house/
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I saw that pop up in my WordPress reader feed a few days ago! I always read posts in order from oldest to newest, but I’m behind! I’ll get there–promise!!
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🙂 I am so excited! I think I am going to end up studying one of her works for my extended essay (research paper)! Thanks for introducing her to me!
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You’re welcome. If you need primary sources for your paper, try Let Me Tell You: New Stories, Essays, and Other Writings by Shirley Jackson
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Thank you!
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[…] Classics Page Count: 182 Genre: Horror Why: A review of another Jackson book (Hangsaman)  by Grab the Lapels left me very curious. Quote: 1) “Fear is the relinquishment of logic, the willing […]
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!!!!!!!! I haven’t read this one, but I *love* Shirley Jackson. *Adds to reading wish list* The Haunting of Hill House and We Have Always Lived in the Castle are two of my favourite creepy reads. Strange coincidence, Napoleon Split just sent me this essay by Joan Schenkar about her encounters with Shirley Jackson and Stanley Edgar during her student days at Bennington: http://blogs.wsj.com/speakeasy/2010/03/22/the-strange-world-of-stanley-edgar-hyman-and-shirley-jackson-essay/
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Ha, yes, NP and I have been e-mailing back and forth about Jackson. She recommended The Haunting, a 1960s film version of The Haunting of Hill House. I highly recommend it. Hangsaman was great; I’ve also read The Road Through the Wall, which was not my favorite. There are these strange stand-out moments, but as a whole it does not jive like her stronger works.
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