Aurora Floyd · Chapter
XXVII: “My Wife! My Wife! What Wife? I Have No Wife.” explained
John Mellish is summoned back to the Golden Lion inn, where the coroner Mr.
What happens
John Mellish is summoned back to the Golden Lion inn, where the coroner Mr. Hayward and the clergyman Mr. Lofthouse reveal that a bloodstained marriage certificate was found concealed in James Conyers's waistcoat. The certificate proves that Aurora Floyd married Conyers in 1856, before her marriage to John. Overwhelmed by this revelation, John retreats to a desolate common-land, reflecting on the transformation of his identity and the collapse of his happy past.
Themes in this chapter
Secrecy and Scandal
The concealed marriage certificate reveals a hidden past, shattering John's trust and exposing a scandal that threatens his marriage.
Jealousy and Betrayal
John's discovery of Aurora's prior marriage to Conyers evokes feelings of betrayal and the collapse of his idealized view of their relationship.
Fate and Agency
John grapples with the irreversible change in his identity and circumstances, questioning whether he is the same person who once lived happily.
Characters to notice
- John Mellish
Summoned back to the inn, he learns of the marriage certificate and is devastated by the revelation.
- James Conyers
Deceased; his concealed marriage certificate is discovered and becomes the central piece of evidence.
- Aurora Floyd
Named in the marriage certificate as having married James Conyers in 1856, before her marriage to John.
- Mr. Hayward
The coroner who examines the bloodstained paper and reveals its contents to John.
- Mr. Lofthouse
The clergyman who advises the coroner and gently informs John of the document's significance.
- William Dork
The constable who discovered the paper but forgot to produce it at the inquest.
Key passages
“The document is of some importance, then?”
John asks if the paper is significant.
John's anxious inquiry about the bloodstained certificate.
“It was a certificate of marriage. The certificate of a marriage which had been solemnized at the parish church of Dover, upon the 2nd of July, 1856, between James Conyers, bachelor, roughrider, of London, ... and Aurora Floyd, spinster, daughter of Archibald Floyd, banker, of Felden Woods, Kent.”
The paper is a marriage certificate proving Aurora Floyd married James Conyers in 1856.
The crucial revelation that Aurora was already married to Conyers.
“Was it I who leapt that dike a month ago to gather forget-me-nots for my wife?”
John wonders if he is the same person who once performed loving acts for his wife.
John's reflection on his changed identity after the discovery.