Essay Questions

What is the significance of the novel's title?

The title of the novel relates to the character of Edmund, and his perceived victory at the end. When Edmund learns that Charles is going to live at Warings, he is angry and immediately dislikes Charles even before he meets him, because he feels that Warings is his home - his castle - and that he does not want to share it with another child. He also feels that Charles should not just waltz in and have the same rights in the house that he has, because he has been there longer. In Edmund's eyes, Warings is his home, and Charles is living in his home; it is not Charles' home.

At the end of the novel, when Charles has committed suicide, Edmund feels that he has won. He is the king of the castle because he has seen off the interloper, and is now free to be the only child in the house, effectively running things again from his own perspective.

Why does Charles commit suicide?

Although Charles manages to get the better of Edmund at the start of the book, and their toxic relationship with each other, He manages to get under Edmund's skin and cause the accident that sees Edmund badly injured, and out of commission long enough to enable Charles to really enjoy a life of his own. He makes a friend, spends time away from Warings and his "family", and has fun. When he learns that he and Edmund are to be effectively step-brothers, he knows that he will be bullied for the rest of his childhood and does not feel that he can endure this fate. He would rather be dead than go to school alongside Edmund, and commits suicide so that he does not have to.