What do you consider to be the key themes of this short story? Does the story have one or more messages for the reader? If so what might these be?

The story of the Bloody Chamber follows the narrative of a young girl who marries a mysterious Marquis who attempts to murder her; however she is rescued by her mother who shoots the Marquis thus saving her daughter.

One of the main themes of this short story I believe to be the negative impacts of capitalism and the upper classes. In example, the narrator is shown to be marrying the Marquis for the financial security rather than her feelings which is seen in the quote ‘I’m sure I want to marry him’ when she is questioned if she loves him or not. This presents the upper classes in a negative light as they transform a ceremony such as marriage (which is traditionally associated  with feelings of love) into a financial deal rather than the traditional meaning. This links into the Gothic theme of entrapment, as the narrator is entrapped within the relationship for financial reasons, rather than her own choice. Furthermore, the fact that the upper class male (the Marquis) is the one that is seen to be ‘saving’ the narrator from poverty he is seen to be the more powerful character in the story due to his financial situation. Also, the narrator is taken from a world that is not said to be negative, into the upper class world that almost leaves her dead. This questions the reader’s ideas surrounding wealth and the quality of life that the members of each social class receive as they automatically presume that due to her lower status she is existing within a ‘worse’ environment but it is revealed in the story that she lives a superior life when she does not have wealth.
Aspects of Marxism are also evident within this text, especially references to Karl Marx’s theory of false consciousness, the idea being first conceived but then named and developed by Engels. This can be seen when the narrator ‘faints’ and reawakens in a far more alert and ‘awakened’ sense. This could be a reference to the narrator breaking through the false consciousness and become aware to the class oppression that she is suffering at the hands of the Marque, this is also when she becomes aware of the actions that she must take in order to try and remain alive. This also provides a link to the Gothic theme of entrapment, however within this part of the text the narrator becomes aware of this entrapment and then begins to try and escape it.

Violence and sex are two themes that intertwine themselves within the bloody chamber, these can most clearly be seen in the quote from the Marquis ‘"There is a striking resemblance between the act of love and he ministrations of a torturer" these shows that the Marquis sees the act of sex and murder as the same or a similar thing. The Marquis is seen to be in a routine of marrying a girl, having sex with her and then killing her, he sees all these actions as a single thing. Thus, this could be interpreted to show the connection between sex and violence within this short story. This links to the gothic theme of transgression as it links together two themes that would not normally be put together, but instead blends them together (this theme can also be seen in different stories within the collection of The Bloody Chamber).

Female objectification is also a key theme within The Bloody Chamber (and throughout all the different stories) mirrors are a key contributor to this objectification of women. For example, the first time that mirrors are seen in The Bloody Chamber is within the bedroom seen in the quote ‘surrounded by so many mirrors’. These mirrors then reflect her simply as a pornographic image, thus objectifying her as a simple sexual image. The fact there are multiple mirrors that provide the same reflection shows how changeable she is and she is simply ‘another’ image rather than seen as an individual thus furthering her objectification.
Furthermore, objectification is seen in the planes that the Marquis has for the narrator. He plans to turn her into a literal object for his own personal display within his ‘bloody chamber’ this is reflective of the patriarchal society, as he does not just kill and take control of the females within his life he also intends to construct his elaborate displays of these dead bodies, thus showing that he craves not only power over the women when they are alive, but also when they are dead.

In conclusion, the Bloody Chamber has many different themes which are highlighted throughout the text. Many of the other short stories that exist within the collection also focus on these themes; however the Bloody Chamber seems to contain the most of these themes.