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Zach Neufeld

Professor Ian Krouse


Post-Tonal Analysis
Spring 2012
Final Analysis Paper - The Turn of the Screw
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At the beginning of the 1898 novella The Turn of the Screw, by Henry James, the

storyteller Douglas, after tantalizing his listeners with the provocative premise of his
ghost story, says, The story wont tell, not in any literal vulgar way.1 This vague
statement, as it turns out, is a foreshadowing of the effect of both the novella and
Brittens operatic adaptation: the duality of interpretations and the moral ambiguity of the
characters. The story will not tell because it is built and designed to leave its audience
with unanswered questions and personal interpretations. The enduring ability of both
the novella and the opera to entrap their audience in a web of ambiguity and questions
is their greatest quality. These unanswered questions are: are the ghosts real? and if
they are, are they the actual villains of the story, or are they the victims and the
Governess is the real cause of the tragic end? This is essay will not pose answers or a
rereading of these questions, rather the beautiful way the Britten mirrors and revels in
the ambiguities with his music, and his genius way of musically representing the drama
and singular idea of the novella at every structural level, and most specifically in the allencompassing power of the Screw theme.
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The overall formal structure of the opera is simple and deceptively schematic: a

prologue sung by an unnamed narrator, a theme, and sixteen scenes, each one
preceded by a variation on the theme. Britten wrote that ...really the story could be

James 3

fancifully described as a theme with variations.2 Each variation musically prepares for
the following scene and sets the mood, resulting in variation + scene pairs. This
structure provides a unifying element to the entire opera and, as we shall see, is a
perfect vehicle for the dramatic progression of the story and the singularity and
claustrophobic quality of the subject matter, both musical and dramatic. Another function
of the almost entirely instrumental variation-interludes, according to Seymour, is that
they articulate the passing of time which is conveyed in the novella by gaps in the
narrative.3 The actual amount of time passed is never certain in the novella or the
opera, but the texture and tempo of certain scenes gives the impression of either a long
or short period. For instance, the long, beautiful, shimmering variation 3 gives the
impression of the passage of a significant amount of time, possibly even a few weeks,
whereas the short, quick variation 10 is simply the amount of time it takes the
Governess to get from the church to the house.
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This theme and variations structure also allows Britten to establish what Stein

calls the idiom of the piece: the omnipresent, pervasive theme (commonly referred to
as the Screw theme), which, without much theoretical stretching, is the source for all the
musical material of the opera.
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The screw theme haunts every structural level of the opera: background, middle

ground, and foreground, and it is the ultimate source for the operas melodic material
and harmonic construction. Its design is a true stroke of genius, because, like a good
fugue subject, it allows for a multiplicity of permutations, incarnations, and meanings. It

Palmer 1984, The Britten Companion

Seymour 185

is a twelve-tone row starting on the pitch A, and it follows a sequence of rising fourths
and falling thirds (diagram). Most obviously, being a twelve-tone row, it symbolizes the
inevitability of the turning of the screw; namely, that the screw must eventually turn all
the way in, and stop when it can not turn any longer. This mirrors the dramatic turning of
the screw in the novella, where each turn is a plot twist or event that takes us closer to
the tragic result at the end.
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Another stroke of genius is that when the Screw theme is placed in its simplest

sequence form, it outlines the shape of a screw on the page. Because it is a sequence
of rising fourths and falling thirds, Britten is able to use it in a local way (in fragments) in
a tonal, diatonic manner. When arranged in a scalar fashion and split into its two
hexachords (diagram), one can see that the first hexachord is in A major, the second in
A-flat major.
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These two key areas come to represent the two opposing forces in the opera:

innocence and corruption, and, somewhat ambiguously, the Governess and Quint. To
say that they represent good and evil would be an oversimplification and would negate
the moral questions posed by James and the character identity ambiguity designed by
Britten. Thus, the theme is not only a tightening of the dramatic screw, but it is also a
progression from innocence to corruption, naivety to knowledge, the real world to the
world of the ghosts.
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The overall harmonic plan of the opera is also informed by the Screw theme. The

theme begins in A, and each successive variation/scene in the first act has a tonal
center one step higher. Thus variation 1/scene 2 are in B, variation 2/scene 3 are in C,
and so forth, up an A-minor scale. However, the first act ends with variation 7/scene 8 in

A-flat, not the expected A. This coincides with the first explicit haunting of the children
by the ghosts, and it is also the first time we hear the ghosts sing. The journey from A to
A-flat in the first act is reversed in the second act, which inverts the process, moving
from A-flat back down to A in each successive variation/scene. The screw theme also
serves to frame each act. Powerful and fully audible statements occur a the first
statement of the theme, the last scene of the first act (At Night, reh. 87), the first scene
of the second act (Colloquy and Soliloquy, reh. 20) and in scene eight of the second act
(Miles, reh. 131).
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Another characteristic of the Screw theme is that in its omnipresence, it

dominates autonomously, without forging direct links to those onstage, live or ghostly.4
It is a controlling force in virtually every bar of the opera, and it asserts its influence over
the orchestra music in the variations and the characters melodies, but it is not
connected or identified with any specific character.
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From the Screw theme come several other important themes with independent

identities, yet remain inextricably linked to the Screw theme. The most important of
these is what Rupperecht calls the Thread theme, because the inversion of the Screw
theme is threaded into a stepwise melody (diagram). The Thread theme first appears
hidden as an inner voice at the beginning of the first scene (The Journey). Like the
Screw theme, the Thread theme is a gesture of evasion and displacement.5 (diagram)
Part of its eerie, ominous quality comes from the shift from major to minor by the
lowering of the third (or seventh, depending on context) from sharp to flat, corrupting the

Rupperecht 171

Rupperecht 148

melody and giving it an uneasy quality. The first time we hear the Thread theme sung, it
is by the Governess right before her arrival at Bly (one bar before reh. 4), at it seems to
symbolize her uncertainty about the entire situation. Unlike the Screw theme, the
Thread theme only appears as a foreground melodic element, but this is complicated by
the fact that it is strongly identified with both the Governess and Quint. After the
Governess first sings it right before reh. 4, the next time we hear it, it accompanies her
as she greets Mrs. Grose and the children for the first time (reh. 9), along with a change
of mode from major to minor. Here, the Thread theme is an outside element that leads
her vocal line, thereby confusing the audience as to whether it really is her theme, and
what her relationship to it really is (diagram of leading). This is also apparent at reh. 15
in the high, strained viola, as the Governess discovers that Miles has been dismissed
his school. The confusion regarding the true meaning of the Thread theme is
compounded when it becomes strongly identified with Quint and his seduction of Miles
later in the opera.
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The other important thematic progeny of the Screw theme are Quints trichord

and the closely related Malo song of Miles. Quints original form trichord (B-flat D-flat Eflat) is the inversion of the first three notes of the Screw theme, and it is part of the
corrupted A-flat hexachord of the Screw theme. Its first appearance is in the Celeste
(another clue for Quint) at the moment that the Governess finds out about Miles
dismissal. Its connection with Quint only becomes apparent in scene 5, when the
Governess first sees Quint on the tower. Here, the trichord appears in its original form
and in its mirror-inversion (D, E, G). Rupperecht writes that it is as if the scene were
physically strewn with shards of mirror-fragments. This is further evidence of the

possibility that the Governess and Quint are doubles, or at least share some quality or
knowledge, especially because the inversion of Quints trichord supplies the pitches for
the Governess Ha! Tis he!6
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The text of Miles Malo song (reh. 51) is a mnemonic device designed to aid in

remembering the different meanings of the Latin word Malo. It is a sad, unsettling, but
beautiful tune, and it gives us yet another clue that there is something sinister at work,
something oppressing him. It becomes a marker for Miles in the remainder of the opera,
and also creates a musical link between Miles and Quint with its thirds and fourths, and
by the fact that in their original forms, they share the first three notes (Eflat, Bflat, Dflat).
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Now that we have a general overview of the structure, elements, and themes of

the opera, let us proceed chronologically through each scene/variation in succession,


thereby allowing us to place these themes and elements into context and gain an
understanding of how Britten uses them to dramatic effect.
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The Prologue is a slow recitative for tenor and piano sung by an unnamed

character (The Prologue in the score) whose identity perhaps parallels that of the
storyteller Douglas in the novella. He sets up some of the backstory and overall gives
the impression that there is much mystery to be uncovered in the remainder of the story.
The melodic construction of the recitative strongly foreshadows the Screw theme, and
the outer voices of the piano flourishes outline the fourths and fifths of the theme. The
tonal progression foreshadows the two opposing key areas (A and Aflat), beginning on
the sharp-side but shifting to Aflat on the text but she had gone. After coming to rest on
a G# in the bass, the Screw theme is hinted at on the words she was to do everything,

Rupperecht 178

be responsible for everything, which immediately gives an ominous quality to the Screw
themes character.
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The Theme is then introduced in its main form by the piano, and each new note

in the theme is sustained by an instrument in the orchestra, eventually forming a


chromatic chord of all twelve pitches over a bass note E (V of A, the key of the Theme
and first scene). The Thread theme is then introduced in an inner voice at reh. 1, where
the ostinato for the following scene is set up.
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Scene 1 begins with the continuation of the tympani ostinato made up of fourths

surrounding the pitch A, which represents both the bouncing carriage ride and the
Governess nervous heartbeat, as she questions her decision to take the job. An
important harmonic shift, which Britten uses several times in the opera, happens two
bars before reh. 4. The orchestra plays C major chords as the Governess fights them
with her high G#. Then as she gives in to the C major on her G-natural, the orchestra
shifts to a C# minor triad, and she sings the Thread theme in a clashing C major/minor
realm, at the hight of her questioning of her decision. The mode shift from major to
minor becomes an important dramatic marker later on in the opera.
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In Variation 1 Britten gives the theme to lyrical strings, which quickly give way to

the rhythmic excitement of the children, who anticipate the Governess arrival in Bly. The
childrens melodies at the beginning of scene 2 show a striking resemblance to Miles
Malo song, and thus the Screw theme by association. Another significant mode change
happens upon the Governess arrival at reh. 9. We move from B major to B minor, with
the Thread theme high in the viola, cluing us in to the Governess state of mind and her
still present fears. Her upbeat language (Im so happy to see you, so happy to be

here) is not reflected in the music, rather the music betrays at least her uncertainty, and
perhaps something even more sinister. The duet and quartet that follows highlights
another main idea of the story: that of isolation. Although the characters are speaking
with one another, nobody is listening or responding. Britten reflects this in the music as
well by giving highly contrasting melodies and tempos to the characters in the so-called
conversation.
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We find the theme in the bass voice in Variation 2 in C. Here Britten becomes a

bit more free with his use of the theme, sometimes presenting the pitches out of order or
in inversion (reh. 14). The upper voices recall the childrens Come along! music.
Scene 3 (The Letter) is where we first see Quints trichord (reh. 15), along with the
Thread theme, again in the high viola, which not coincidentally also marks a mode shift
from C major to C minor. This coincides with the discovery that Miles has been expelled
from school. A sublime moment happens at reh. 17 when the children sing the
traditional English nursery song Lavenders Blue. The beautiful, innocent G major of
the children is subtly oppressed by the dissonant chromatic music of the Governess and
Mrs. Grose. In perhaps one of the only moments in the entire opera where good
overcomes evil, the Governess and Mrs. Grose finally end up in G along with the
children, right before reh. 20.
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Variation 3 is in an English pastoral mood, with consonant string pads under

lyrical and flourishing fragments of the Screw theme in the oboe and flute. Britten
reveals each note of the theme gradually here, ending up with pitch 12 in the bassoon,
four bars before Scene 4 (The Tower), where the pastoral texture continues as the
Governess takes an evening stroll. Quint and his mirrored trichords in the celeste

appear at reh. 26. Quints trichord supplies the pitches for the nervous woodwind music
at reh. 27, when the Governess reacts to seeing Quint on the tower.
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We find the theme again in the bass voice of Variation 4, which prepares the

march-like accompaniment to the childrens playful song, Tom, Tom, the Pipers Son,
another traditional English tune. After the Governess sees Quint in the window at reh.
35, she finally discovers his identity by describing him to Mrs. Grose, who reacts with
her highly dramatic melody at reh. 39. This melody is an amalgamation of both the
Screw theme and the Thread theme, as it includes both the third and fourth based
shapes of the Screw and the chromatic shifting/evasion of the Thread. At four after 39,
the Governess sings Quints trichord exactly on the text Peter Quint...Who is that?
After a long recitative section of conversation between the Governess and Mrs. Gross,
the Governess sings a heroic version of the Thread theme, vowing to protect the
children from the newly discovered danger of the ghosts (8 before Variation 5).
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Variation 5 in F is a fugue. The subject is derived from Tom, Tom, the Pipers

Son which the children sang earlier in scene 5. The Screw theme is hidden in the first
note of each successive entrance of the subject and counter-subject (F in the bassoon,
B-flat in the viola, G in the oboe, etc...). Cleverly, Britten decided to preface The
Lesson scene with the academic form of the fugue. The playful, happy sounding Latin
lesson sung to a variation of the fugue subject gives way to a dramatic turn of the
screw and another mode change, to F minor, at reh. 51, where Miles sings his Malo
song (derived from Quints trichord), which he states that he found. This is one of the
moments where the audience begins to sense the gravity of the situation.

Variation 6 hides the theme within florid, triadic lines in the flute and clarinet and

within the pizzicato ostinati of the strings. Other voices interject with fragments of the
Malo song, and on the whole the impression is given of the sparkling, rippling lake of the
next scene. The agitated music of reh. 27 reappears after the Governess sees Miss
Jessel in Scene 7, and Quints trichord is ubiquitous.
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Variation 7 juxtaposes Quints trichords in the celeste with a full statement of the

Screw theme in the horn, and fragments of the Thread theme in the celeste as well.
Characteristically, the texture and mood carries over into the following scene. Scene 8,
At Night, is the first time we hear Quint. We are now solidly in his tonal area of A-flat,
and Quint sings his seductive, florid version of the Thread theme to Miles. Miss Jessel
appears to Flora, and the most explicit haunting of the children we have thus far seen
begins. The duet between the ghosts which begins at reh. 83 recalls the nervous music
from reh. 27. Act 1 concludes with the Governess discovering Miles outside, at which
point we hear a terrifying version of the Screw theme in diminution (4 before reh. 89).
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Act 2 begins with a series of alternating fully scored chords and cadenzas for one

or two instruments, each cadenza contributing the next note of the Screw theme (the
chords are awesome but I just havent had time to do a full analysis of them yet...Ill let
you know if I find anything cool). Scene 1 is a conversation between Quint and Miss
Jessel, in which they expose their aims. At reh. 17, Quint sings a line from a poem by
Yeats, The ceremony of innocence is drowned to the Thread theme. The
accompaniment figure for Miss Jessels song that follows is derived from Floras lullaby
from scene 7. After Miss Jessel too sings the Yeats quote and the Thread theme, both
ghosts sing the Screw theme octaves, and the Thread theme together as well. When

the Governess appears at reh. 22, we see another characteristic mode change from Aflat major to G# minor.
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In Variation 9, the theme is given to the bells in order to set the mood for the

following scene in the churchyard. Flora and Miles sing a Benedicite, a canticle in the
liturgical tradition. A striking harmonic motion occurs at reh. 55 with an early move to the
key of the next variation, F. This provides great weight to the Governess realization that
she is alone. This is accompanied by a driving tympani ostinato and melodies derived
from the inversion of the Thread theme.
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Variation 10 is a continuation of the texture of scene 2 with the theme in the bass.

Miss Jessels aria coincides with another mode change from major to minor. In an
arrestingly beautiful aria by the Governess, she writes a letter to the Guardian asking to
see him. This aria is somewhat out of character with its series of major chords.
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Variation 11 puts the Screw theme in canon between the alto flute and bass

clarinet, a texture that is several times interrupted by Quints florid trichords. In the
following scene, the Governess is accompanied by the quasi-canonic Screw theme, and
Miles is accompanied by Quints trichords in the harp. The english horn plays fragments
of Malo. Quint appears calling to Miles, which results in a shriek by Miles and the candle
going out.
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Variation 12 begins with agitated fragments of Malo in diminution. Quint then

prompts Miles to take the letter, which he does, accompanied by a flourish of Malo
fragments in string tremolo. The scene ends with another Malo melody in the english
horn.

Variation 13 is a trope of a classical period piano piece, complete with alberti

bass, into which the theme is incorporated. Miles is playing the piano, as we discover in
Scene 6. Miles spectacular playing distracts the Governess and Mrs. Gross while Flora
escapes outside, and they assume she has gone out to find Mrs. Jessel.
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Miles continues playing into Variation 14, where he plays a version of the ghosts

music from scene 8 of Act 1. The Screw theme is again in the bass voice. In reaction to
Floras rejection of her, the Governess sings a defeated version of the Thread theme at
reh. 113.
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Britten brings the Screw theme into closest condensation in variation 15 with all

twelve notes sounding at once in swelling chords.7 A recitative sung by Mrs. Gross
opens the final scene, accompanied by her dramatic theme from the first act. The true
finale of the opera begins at reh. 121 with a passacaglia on the Screw theme. As with
the Screw theme in the previous variation, the two opposing key areas are brought into
closest proximity in this scene, sounding at times simultaneously. For example, at reh.
131 the Governess and the Screw theme in the bass are firmly in A, while Quint and his
E-flat, D-flat, B-flat trichord are opposing it in A-flat. These two keys (and the Governess
and Quint) struggle for domination until reh. 134, where Miles perishes as a result of the
battle for his soul. A shriek of the orchestra indicates his death, and for a few bars Quint
and the Governess sing in unison in the A-flat key area, albeit with opposite text (You
and saved vs. We have failed). At reh. 135, as Quint fades away into nothingness, he
sings his version of the Thread theme, but this time in E major, in preparation for the
return to A. The opera ends with the Governess lamenting Malo-based melodies in A,

Stein

thwarted only at the last note by a G-natural. As the opera began with the Governess
nervous heartbeat in the tympani, so it ends with Miles heartbeat dying away in the
tympani and strings, and the Governess is left with her question: What have we done
between us?
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