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At last, we have a headquarters for our secret organization. I feel fierce and formidable. Let's build a house on the edge of a cliff, and let's...let's use commas and semicolons with reckless abandon.
 

Josephine Anwhistle was Violet, Klaus, and Sunny Baudelaire's second cousin's sister-in-law - namely the sister of the spouse of the Baudelaires' second cousin - and becomes their guardian in The Wide Window. In spite of this familial relationship, they refer to her as their Aunt Josephine. She was also the wife of Ike Anwhistle and sister-in-law of Gregor Anwhistle.[3]

Biography[]

Early Life[]

Josephine had grown up along the shores of Lake Lachrymose. During the days of her youth, Josephine was a brave and adventurous. One of her favorite pastimes included swimming in the lake itself and engaging in high risk activities even during her marriage to Ike. [3] At some point, she was recruited into V.F.D. as a volunteer on the Fire-Fighting Side.[4] She was often described by her fellow volunteers as “fierce and formidable”.

Captain Widdershins once mentioned to the Baudelaire children that he was friends with Josephine and that they had patrolled the waters of Lake Lachrymose for years.[5]

Shouldn't You Be in School?[]

Helicopter

Josephine flying away in a helicopter.

When Josephine was young and still training in VFD, she went to Handkerchief Heights to meet up with Lemony Snicket, who was having dinner with his associates. When she finally gets him to leave, to walk her to her helicopter, she tells him that his sister, Kit, was arrested and is to be put on trial for breaking into the Museum of Items. She shows him a photo of Gifford and Ghede, saying they're some of the worst volunteers she has seen. Josephine accuses Lemony of letting Ellington Feint become too close to him, warning him she is dangerous, before flying away over the Clusterous Forest.

It is later stated that she delivered a message to Monty Montgomery.[6]

Later Life[]

JosephineIkeParty

Ike and Josephine.

At some point, she met Ike Anwhistle, fell deeply in love with him, and they eventually wed as husband and wife. The couple were both members of V.F.D. and she was close to Beatrice and Bertrand Baudelaire.

She and Ike built a house on the edge of a cliff as a testament of their bravery. They enjoyed a loving marriage until one day while exploring the lake, Ike was tragically eaten by the Lachrymose Leeches when he failed to wait an hour after eating before going for a swim, instead of waiting only forty-five minutes.

Josephine was traumatized by Ike's death and fell into grief. Ever since his death, Josephine has been immensely terrified of Lake Lachrymose. It felt like she had lost a friend when the lake took away her husband. No longer did she swim in it every day, no longer did she visit its beaches and caves and islands surrounding the lake which she once knew so well. She also developed a myriad of fears and irrational phobias.

The Wide Window[]

Later, she became the guardian of the Baudelaire orphans. They refer to her as Aunt Josephine simply because Josephine herself had told them to, as it's much easier than saying second cousin's sister-in-law. After the children's Uncle Monty died, Aunt Josephine decided to take care of them because she did not want them to be as lonely as she was when she lost Ike.

JosephinesHouseTV

Aunt Josephine's house.

In her house, she prepared a bedroom for them that was neat and clean, and even gave them gifts, though they were gifts the Baudelaires did not like. Violet received a doll named Pretty Penny, Klaus received an electric train and Sunny got a rattle that was, to her dismay, not worth biting. Violet gave the doll to Sunny to bite on, Klaus gave the electric train to Violet to tinker with, which unfortunately left Klaus with a rattle, She also gave them chilled cucumber soup because she was too afraid to use the stove, as she was afraid it could explode, set the house on fire and kill them.

As she gave her new charges a tour of her home, she explained why each and everything is terribly dangerous. Klaus asked why there are cans in every room, and Josephine replied that they are for burglars. If burglars tripped over the can it would create sound to wake everyone up. She explained that doorknobs can shatter into a million pieces and hit one's eye, doormats can cause one to trip and break one's neck, the stove can burst into flames, and the telephone can electrocute someone. Her fears ranged from burglary to realtors. Understandably, the Baudelaire orphans were surprised to find out that a woman so afraid of everything in sight could bear to live in a house that is literally clinging to the side of a cliff, hanging over Lake Lachrymose, even including a large window that looked out onto the lake where her beloved husband died.

When Hurricane Herman was on the way, the children took here about the approaching hurricane and she took the children out for supplies and met Captain Sham, who was really Count Olaf in disguise. He charmed and flattered her so she wouldn't listen to the Baudelaires warnings and later, Aunt Josephine received a telephone call, but as she was afraid of the phone, Violet offered to answer it. Realizing the caller is none other than Captain Sham, Violet quickly pretended that it's a wrong number from the Hopalong Dancing School. When Captain Sham called again, Violet offered to answer the phone again, but her aunt was impressed by Violet's bravery and picked it up instead. Delighted to speak with someone she believed to be so charming, she told the children to go upstairs so they couldn't eavesdrop on the surprise he had planned for them. Though they attempt to refuse, their guardian insisted and they uneasily headed to their bedroom.

Netflix Aunt Jo's library (suicide)

Josephine's apparent suicide.

They immediately knew it was a bad decision when they heard breaking glass and rush downstairs. The children found a note pinned to the door of Josephine's grammatical library, explaining how she found life hopeless and left them to the care of Captain Sham. The Baudelaires entered the library to find that their aunt had thrown herself out the wide window overlooking the lake.

The letter read as such:

Violet, Klaus, and Sunny-
By the time you read this note, my life will be at it's end. My heart is as cold as Ike (c), and I find life inbearable (u). I know your (r) children may not understand the sad life of a dowadger (d), or what would have leadled (led) me to this desperate akt (c), but please know that I am much happier this way. As my last will and testament, I leave you in the care of Captain Sham, a kind and honorable men (a). Please think of me kindly even though I'd (ve) done this terrible thing.
-Your Aunt Josephine

Violet called Mr. Poe to tell him about the tragic event and waited with her siblings for him to arrive. They considered writing a forgery of the note to avoid being placed into Captain Sham's care and realized that that must be exactly what Sham did: throw their Aunt out the window and forged her note. When Mr. Poe arrived, he studied the note and decided it is not a forgery. He contacted Captain Sham to explain what happened and set up a meeting at The Anxious Clown restaurant to discuss the children's future.

The orphans were allowed to return to Aunt Josephine's house and Klaus studied her note, which was filled with grammatical errors. Those errors spelled out "Curdled Cave", meaning that Aunt Josephine faked her death and was hiding inside Curdled Cave. Hurricane Herman picked up force and managed to shake the house so badly it broke off the cliff and fell into the lake.

The Baudelaires then stole a sailboat and headed for Curdled Cave. When they reached it, they were happy to discover that Aunt Josephine was still alive. They learned that Aunt Josephine was planning on living with them in the cave for the rest of their lives. Josephine also explained she was forced to write the suicide note by Captain Sham or else he would drown her. She threw a stool out the wide window to fake a suicide scene, wrote the note so the Baudelaires would uncover her true location, and left the house, somehow inexplicably finding a way to Curdled Cave.

After mentioning Curdled Cave as for sale and that meant realtors would come, the children persuaded her to come back to the mainland and explain to Mr. Poe who Captain Sham really was after Klaus explained that the cave is for sale and realtors will visit it. Unfortunately, not thinking of making another journey across the lake, Aunt Josephine had eaten a banana less than an hour before, and the smell attracted the Lachrymose Leeches. The leeches violently attacked their little boat and Violet hurriedly invented a signal in the hope of attracting attention to their situation. Just as the sailboat was quickly sinking, they were rescued by another boat. Unfortunately, Captain Sham was the one who came to the rescue.

JosephinePushed

Count Olaf pushes Aunt Josephine.

He was angered with Aunt Josephine for being alive when she should've been at the bottom of the lake. Aunt Josephine begged and pleads with him to spare her, saying she'll move away, dye her hair, change her name(Even giving up the Baudelaires in exchange for her own safety), nobody would ever hear from her again. It is thought that Captain Sham may have let her live if she had not corrected his grammar at the wrong time, and irritated him - but since she did, he pushed her over the side and into the waiting mouths of the leeches. Later, two fishermen found two life jackets in tatters.

It is never truly confirmed whether Josephine lost her life to the leeches. The life jackets are assumed to belong to her, but her remains are never found, meaning that she could have survived the attack and cast off her life jackets, possibly in an attempt to cause the assumption that she had perished; however, the truth is unknown, and it is more likely that she did indeed suffer her death at the hands of the leeches.

Personality[]

Grammar

Aunt Josephine on grammar.

Grammar is the greatest joy in life, don't you find?
 
— Aunt Josephine

Josephine is an enthusiast of the English language and was very fond of grammar. Her personal library contained only a wide variety of all types of grammar books. It is possible her great love of grammar spawned because it was the one thing she could not possibly be afraid of.

Unfortunately, she valued how people say things more than what they say. She often corrected others' grammar immediately after they spoke incorrectly, whether or not this was appropriate to the situation. This occurred when Klaus told her about his fear of Olaf's ankle tattoo or when Violet asked for an explanation on why Josephine abandoned them, and even when Violet tried to save "each of their lives". Josephine correcting Count Olaf's grammar led to her demise. She also corrected Sunny's infantile sounds, forgetting that as a baby, Sunny was incapable of proper speech or grammar.

Aunt Josephine was eccentric and awkward in the presence of others. It is possible that her excessive phobias caused her to become reclusive and her social skills to atrophy.

Despite this, Josephine was kindhearted. She provided a home to three orphans because she didn't want them to feel alone. She gave them gifts in an attempt for them to feel welcome, and when Violet and Klaus offered to cook pasta she told them that it is the guardian's responsibility to prepare meals so they wouldn't have to face the dangers of the stove. She tried to warn them of the dangers in everyday objects to keep them all safe and tried to share the joys of grammar with them. It also seems that the orphans were a good influence on her. After seeing Violet answer the phone (which Josephine feared to do) she answered it herself the next time it rang.

Phobias[]

After Ike's death, Josephine apparently lost a lot of her sanity and her mental health began to deteriorate, and she became ridden with grief and fear of nearly the entire world.

Josephine was afraid of nearly everything from the Lachrymose Leeches to having hair in her face. Lemony Snicket explains how her fears made her a bad guardian,

They didn't dare do anything but hope. Their feelings for Aunt Josephine were all a tumble in their minds. The Baudelaires had not really enjoyed most of their time with her not because she cooked horrible cold meals, or chose presents for them that they didn't like, or always corrected the children's grammar, but because she was so afraid of everything that she made it impossible to really enjoy anything at all. And the worst of it was, Aunt Josephine's fear had made her a bad guardian. A guardian is supposed to stay with children and keep them safe, but Aunt Josephine had run away at the first sign of danger. A guardian is supposed to help children in times of trouble, but Aunt Josephine practically had to be dragged out of the Curdled Cave when they needed her. And a guardian is supposed to protect children from danger, but Aunt Josephine had offered the orphans to Captain Sham in exchange for her own safety. But despite all of Aunt Josephine's faults, the orphans still cared about her. She had taught them many things, even if most of them were boring. She had provided a home, even if it was cold and unable to withstand hurricanes. And the children knew that Aunt Josephine, like the Baudelaires themselves, had experienced some terrible things in her life. So as their guardian faded from view and the lights of Damocles Dock approached closer and closer, Violet, Klaus, and Sunny did not think "Josephine, schmosephine." They thought "We hope Aunt Josephine is safe.
 
— Lemony Snicket, The Wide Window

It is implied in The Wide Window and explicitly shown in the movie and TV series adaptations, that Josephine was far more courageous before Ike's death. Among other things, she is noted in the movie to have tamed lions. "I was quite adventurous... when Ike was alive" she explains. She mentioned that she used to explore Lake Lachrymose and knew it well. She also swam in it every day, despite the risks posed by the leeches.

She likes to close her eyes when she's afraid in order to "block out the fear". Under her bed are all sorts of objects she wants to "block out", such as pots and pans (reminders of the stove), horribly ugly socks no human eyes should ever see, a framed photograph of her husband (too much of a heartache), and a stack of books on Lake Lachrymose.

Josephine is afraid of, among other things (listed in alphabetical order, as Aunt Josephine would have liked it that way):

  • Automobiles (the doors may get stuck and she might be trapped inside)
  • Avocados (the pit (seed) could become lodged in one's throat)
  • Being thrown overboard
  • Black Plague
  • Burglars (she places tin cans in the corner of every room so she'll hear when a burglar comes in and trips on them)
  • Captain Sham/Count Olaf
  • Carts (could become loose and hit you)
  • Chandeliers (could fall and impale you)
  • Damocles Dock
  • Doorknobs (may shatter into a million tiny pieces and one may hit her eye)
  • Doormats (could cause someone to trip and break their neck or decapitate their head)
  • Drowning
  • Having children (she mentions that she and Ike were "afraid" to have children, but their reason for this fear is never given. One possible theory is because Josephine mentions her mother-in-law (Ike's mother) has only one eyebrow and one ear. Although Ike had two ears, it's possible she didn't want her and Ike's child to have genetic deformities because Ike may have a recessive gene.)
  • Having hair in her face
  • Knocking on doors (could get splinters)
  • Lachrymose Leeches
  • Lake Lachrymose
  • Radiators (may explode)
  • Realtors(No given reason)
  • Refrigerators (could also fall over at any time and crush you flat)
  • Rugs (you may trip and break your neck)
  • Sofas (could fall over at any time and crush them flat)
  • Stoves (they may burst into flames)
  • Telephones (risk of electrocution)

As her long list of fears shows, Josephine could be irrational in her fears (something which Lemony Snicket himself mentions in his narration). While some of her fears had some justification, such as fearing Lake Lachrymose because of Ike's death or fearing the stove catching fire, her fear of realtors is never explained. Why she chose to live on a house literally hanging over the edge of the lake is unknown, but as it was the house she lived in with her husband, she may not have been able to let go, or because of her aforementioned fear of realtors. She demonstrated her tendency to irrational behavior again when she fled her house after faking her death and leaving a cryptic note for the children to follow and find her in Curdled Cave when it would have made more sense to take the children with her into hiding, or inform them of what had happened, or at least leave them a sensible note. She also showed a lack of forethought when she told the children that she intended to live in the cave indefinitely despite lacking in provisions or supplies. It should also be mentioned that in spite of her fear of the Lachrymose Leeches she forgot to warn the children that she had eaten a banana while waiting for them in the cave, and thus risked all of their lives as they tried to escape.

Behind the scenes[]

Etymology[]

Josephine is the English form of the French "Joséphine", a feminine form of Joseph, which is derived from the Hebrew "Yōsēf" which means "God/Jehovah will add/increase". Josephine's name may be derived from many hurricanes named Josephine, as a hurricane is a major part of the story and she prepares for it.

Anwhistle was likely chosen simply because her husband's name is "Ike Anwhistle" which phonetically sounds like "I can whistle". This may be a dark humor reference, as whistling requires oxygen, and Josephine was last seen drowning.

Quotes[]

Books[]

  • "I will thank you not to be impertinent. It is very annoying. You will have to accept, once and for all, that Captain Sham is not Count Olaf. Look at his card. Does it say Count Olaf? No. It says Captain Sham. The card does have a serious grammatical error on it, but it is nevertheless proof that Captain Sham is who he says he is."
  • Josephine: "That's right. Close your eyes. That's what I do when I'm afraid, and it always makes me feel better to block out the fear."
    Klaus: "She's not blocking out anything. She's concentrating."
  • Violet: "I don't have time to argue with you! I'm trying to save each of our lives! Give me your hairnet right now!"
    Josephine: "The expression is saving all of our lives, not each of our lives."

Movie[]

  • "I don't like the way I look in that picture!" (grabbing album from Klaus)
  • "Oh, God, I hate it here..."
  • Violet: "Allow Klaus and I to introduce [Captain Sham]."
    Josephine: "Klaus and ME."
  • Klaus: "But-"
    Josephine: "But is not a sentence, Klaus!" (literally only giving Klaus half a second to continue)
  • Josephine: "Captain Sham... would you... like to come over to my house this evening?"
    Violet and Klaus: "NO!"
  • "Children, there are good people and bad people in the world. The ones who start the fires and the ones who put them out."
  • "IT'S THE LEECHES!"

Netflix[]

  • "There are many, many things to be afraid of in this world. The safest strategy is... to be afraid of them all!"
  • "It's a curious thing, the death of a loved one. It's like climbing the stairs to your room in the dark, thinking that there's one more step than there is. And your foot falls through the air, and there is a sickly feeling of dark surprise."
  • "You made a serious grammatical ERROR!" (to Captain Sham)
  • "I feel fierce and formidable! Let's build a house on the edge of a cliff! Let's use commas and semicolons with reckless abandon!" (to Ike in a flashback)

Trivia[]

  • It can be speculated that Josephine only cares about grammar because correcting other people makes her feel high-and-mighty and she relishes in a superiority complex, being more knowledgeable than other people. Lemony mentions that Josephine is "annoyed" when others point out she is wrong about something.
  • In the movie, there is a deleted scene in which Josephine is seen sinking into the lake.[1] It was likely removed because it was too disturbing and may have elevated it to a PG-13 rating. The final version cuts to Lemony on his typewriter saying, “you get the picture" and a banana peel floats up.
  • In the TV series, Josephine actually stands up to Count Olaf and tells him off before correcting his grammar, unlike her book and film versions. This is possibly due to Olaf mentioning how he would make her husband, Ike, the shredded beef tamale sandwiches he liked, which is what Ike ate when he died (at least in the TV series) and so she possibly blames Olaf for her husband's death and his grammatical error only angered her more. It is her criticizing Olaf's acting by calling him a "vastly untalented actor" that enrages him and causes him to throw her overboard instead of her correcting his grammar.
  • In the TV series, The Daily Punctilio tries to push the narrative that the Baudelaires murdered their parents, Montgomery Montgomery and Josephine Anwhistle because they want their fortune all to themselves. It also has the opinion: "Perishing in a fire would have been much better compared to being eaten alive by deadly leeches".[7]
  • Although there is no official statement on her change of ethnicity (along with Mr. Poe and Uncle Monty) in the TV series (the book version of The Wide Window says Josephine has pale skin), Daniel Handler said he advocated for a more diverse cast.[8]
  • Her TV series actress, Alfre Woodard, played a similar character named Bernadette in the film adaptation of the novel So B. It. Bernadette also suffers from irrational fear and anxiety, as she has agoraphobia. She also helps raise a child (Heidi) despite not having a direct biological connection. One of the plot points is Heidi trying to help cure Bernadette's agoraphobia, much like how the Baudelaires try to help Josephine overcome her fears.

Family[]

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Unknown
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Unknown
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Unknown if adoptive or biological
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Unnamed Mother
 
 
Unknown
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Parents
 
Unnamed Guardians
 
 
Biological Parents
 
 
Unknown
 
 
 
 
Unknown
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Gregor Anwhistle
 
Ike Anwhistle
 
 
Josephine Anwhistle
 
 
 
Beatrice Baudelaire
 
 
 
Bertrand Baudelaire
 
 
 
 
Bertrand's Cousin
 
Monty Montgomery's sister
 
 
 
 
Monty Montgomery
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Violet Baudelaire
 
Klaus Baudelaire
 
Sunny Baudelaire
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Beatrice Baudelaire II
 
 
 


Appearances[]



Gallery[]

Books[]

Movie[]

Video game[]

Netflix[]

Sources[]

  1. In the reprise of That's Not How The Story Goes in The Penultimate Peril: Part 2, a copy of the Daily Punctilio on the accident at Lucky Smells Lumbermill is labelled as "LOCAL CITY NEWS AUGUST 23 ACCIDENT AT LUCKY SMELL" with the rest of the words cut off, implying it is the newspaper report of her death from the following morning. Josephine died a few days before Georgina Orwell did, setting her death around August 20th.
  2. In a deleted scene from the film, Aunt Josephine is shown drowning with the sinking ship.
  3. 3.0 3.1 3.2 PROSE: The Wide Window
  4. PROSE: Shouldn't You Be in School?
  5. PROSE: The Grim Grotto
  6. PROSE: Why Is This Night Different from All Other Nights?
  7. The Hilarious Made-Up Tabloid in A Series of Unfortunate Events Is Fake News That's Worth Reading, Slate
  8. (9:00)
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