A Hazard of New Fortunes · Chapter
VI explained
The Marches prepare to move to New York, with Mrs.
What happens
The Marches prepare to move to New York, with Mrs. March taking charge of the practical arrangements while Mr. March struggles with anxiety and homesickness. They travel by train, and their mood improves during dinner in the dining-car, where they reflect on their journey and the changes in travel.
Themes in this chapter
Urban vs. Rural Life
The Marches' move from Boston to New York highlights the contrast between settled suburban life and the uncertainties of urban living.
Family and Generational Conflict
The Marches' anxiety about leaving their children and their differing emotional responses to the move illustrate family dynamics and generational tension.
Characters to notice
- Basil March
Experiences deep anxiety and homesickness about leaving Boston; his spirits rise after the train departs.
- Mrs. March
Remains dauntless and practical during the move, but becomes gloomy on the train; she insists on finding a flat with a light kitchen and sunny bedroom for Margaret.
- Fulkerson
Referenced as the person whose pocket March's literary ideas would fill.
Key passages
“He got consolation out of the notion of letting the house furnished for the winter; that implied their return to it, but it cost him pangs of the keenest misery to advertise it; and, when a tenant was actually found, it was all he could do to give him the lease.”
March comforted himself by thinking they could rent the house furnished for the winter, which suggested they might return, but advertising it caused him great pain, and when a tenant appeared, he could barely bring himself to sign the lease.
Illustrates March's deep attachment to his home and his reluctance to leave.
“He said he did not believe there was another station in the world where mahogany rocking-chairs were provided; that the dull-red warmth of the walls was as cozy as an evening lamp, and that he always hoped to see a fire kindled on that vast hearth and under that aesthetic mantel, but he supposed now he never should.”
March praised the ladies' waiting-room for its mahogany rocking-chairs and cozy red walls, expressing regret that he would never see a fire lit on the large hearth.
Shows March's sentimental and aesthetic appreciation for Boston's depot.
“I suppose that’s one of the chief uses of marriage; people supplement one another, and form a pretty fair sort of human being together. The only drawback to the theory is that unmarried people seem each as complete and whole as a married pair.”
March suggests that marriage allows partners to complement each other's flaws, but notes that single people also appear fully complete.
Reflects March's philosophical view on marriage and individual completeness.