A Hazard of New Fortunes · Chapter
V explained
Beaton visits the Leightons and is met with a cool, mocking reception from Alma, who pretends to forget details about his life and art.
What happens
Beaton visits the Leightons and is met with a cool, mocking reception from Alma, who pretends to forget details about his life and art. She maintains a bright, impenetrable facade that leaves Beaton confused and hurt. After he leaves, Alma admits to her mother that she was deliberately keeping him at a distance to avoid appearing dependent on his favor.
Themes in this chapter
Art and Commerce
Alma's training as an artist under Wetmore and Beaton's role as an art connoisseur highlight the tension between artistic integrity and social maneuvering.
Love and Marriage
Beaton's unrequited interest in Alma and her deliberate emotional distance explore the complexities of romantic pursuit and rejection.
Characters to notice
- Angus Beaton
Visits the Leightons and is disconcerted by Alma's cool, mocking demeanor; feels manipulated and leaves in gloomy resentment.
- Alma Leighton
Deliberately acts distant and forgetful toward Beaton to assert her independence and avoid appearing dependent on his friendship.
- Mrs. Leighton
Observes the interaction between Beaton and Alma with bewilderment; later expresses concern that Beaton may not return.
- Miss Woodburn
Mentioned as a Southern boarder in the Leightons' house; Alma praises her coloring and eighteenth-century beauty.
- Colonel Woodburn
Mentioned as a Southern author who likes to write in the Leightons' glazed veranda.
Key passages
“I didn’t believe I could ever endure Southerners, but we’re like one family with the Woodburns.”
Alma admits she thought she would dislike Southerners, but she and her mother have become very close to the Woodburns.
Alma expresses surprise at her own acceptance of the Southern boarders, reflecting the chapter's theme of regional reconciliation.
“Did you think I was going to let him suppose we were piqued at his not coming? Did you suppose I was going to let him patronize us, or think that we were in the least dependent on his favor or friendship?”
Alma explains to her mother that she acted coldly to Beaton to avoid appearing hurt by his absence or dependent on his attention.
Alma's assertion of independence reveals her pride and the power dynamics in her relationship with Beaton.