The Other Side of the Wall explained

What happens

Themes in this chapter

• Imagination and Storytelling

  Sara uses her imagination to adopt the Indian gentleman as a friend and to comfort herself by sending kind thoughts through walls.

• Kindness and Empathy

  Sara's deep sympathy for the Indian gentleman's suffering drives her to wish him well, even though they have never spoken.

• Wealth and Poverty

  The stark contrast between Mr. Carrisford's wealth and Sara's destitution is highlighted, as he lies on down pillows while she sleeps on a hard bed in a cold attic.

Characters to notice

• Sara Crewe

  Sara imagines the lives of her neighbors, sympathizes with the Indian gentleman, and struggles to maintain her princess-like composure in the cold attic.

• Ermengarde St. John

  Ermengarde discusses her relatives with Sara, expressing dislike for their constant questions.

• Mr. Carrisford

  The Indian gentleman is revealed to be Mr. Carrisford, an Englishman who suffered a brain fever after nearly losing his fortune in diamond mines. He is haunted by the memory of Captain Crewe and the search for his daughter.

• Mr. Carmichael

  Mr. Carmichael visits Mr. Carrisford and discusses the search for Captain Crewe's daughter, offering to go to Moscow to find her.

• Ram Dass

  Ram Dass describes the desolate attic next door to Mr. Carrisford, providing a clear picture of Sara's living conditions.

• Melchisedec

  Sara talks to Melchisedec in her attic, sharing her struggles and longing for her father.

Key passages

• “I am growing quite fond of him. I have adopted him for a friend. You can do that with people you never speak to at all. You can just watch them, and think about them and be sorry for them, until they seem almost like relations.”

  Sara explains to Ermengarde that she has mentally adopted the Indian gentleman as a friend, even though they have never spoken, by observing and sympathizing with him.

  This illustrates Sara's imaginative and empathetic nature.

• “Perhaps kind thoughts reach people somehow, even through windows and doors and walls. Perhaps you feel a little warm and comforted, and don't know why, when I am standing here in the cold and hoping you will get well and happy again.”

  Sara whispers to the Indian gentleman, hoping that her kind thoughts might comfort him even though he cannot hear her.

  Shows Sara's belief in the power of empathy and connection beyond physical barriers.

• “He always says, 'Tom, old man—Tom—where is the Little Missus?'”

  Mr. Carrisford reveals that in his dreams, Captain Crewe repeatedly asks him where his daughter is.

  Highlights Carrisford's guilt and obsession with finding Captain Crewe's child.