Welcome to Dead House

Amanda is the protagonist and point-of-view character of Welcome to Dead House. Amanda’s character struggles with her identity and sense of self. In Chapter 7, after her family has a rocky conversation at breakfast, Amanda volunteers to wash dishes because she finds it soothing, concluding, “I guess maybe I’m weird. I like washing dishes” (51). Amanda thinks of herself and her interests as strange, which means that she shies away from accepting who she is and what she likes. As a result, she talks herself out of what she believes and observes. This is especially prominent when she is questioned by her parents. Throughout the novel, Amanda sees strange things and people in Dead House, but whenever she mentions them to her parents, they dismiss her concerns as an overactive imagination or stress getting the better of her. This causes Amanda to question herself even more because she does not receive validation from the adults she trusts most. By the end of the book, Amanda realizes that all the strange things she’s seen and experienced are real. This gives her the confidence she needs to form a plan to rescue her parents.