Clarissa · Chapter
Letter 264: Mr. Lovelace, to John Belford, Esq. explained
Lovelace writes in the early morning, tormented by remorse after Clarissa's failed escape attempt.
What happens
Lovelace writes in the early morning, tormented by remorse after Clarissa's failed escape attempt. He describes watching her sleep, her attempt to flee the brothel, and his interception of her. He reflects on her invincibility and his own conflicted feelings, considering both love and terror as means to control her.
Themes in this chapter
Power and Manipulation
Lovelace orchestrates the interception of Clarissa's escape and instructs Dorcas to feign compassion, demonstrating his manipulative control over the situation.
Deception and Appearance vs. Reality
Clarissa's attempt to deceive Lovelace by requesting a conversation to facilitate her escape contrasts with Lovelace's own deceptions, highlighting the theme of appearance versus reality.
Suffering and Redemption
Lovelace experiences intense remorse and sleeplessness, reflecting his internal suffering and the potential for redemption through his guilt.
Characters to notice
- Robert Lovelace
Lovelace is the narrator, expressing deep remorse and frustration over Clarissa's resistance and his own inability to sleep or find peace.
- Clarissa Harlowe
Clarissa attempts to escape the brothel, is intercepted by Sally Martin and others, and is forcibly returned to her room by Lovelace.
- John Belford
Belford is the recipient of Lovelace's letter, addressed as 'Jack' throughout.
- Dorcas Wykes
Dorcas reports Clarissa's movements, weeps for her, and is instructed by Lovelace to feign compassion to gain Clarissa's trust.
- Sally Martin
Sally intercepts Clarissa at the door and calls for help to prevent her escape.
- Mrs. Sinclair
Mrs. Sinclair is involved in the interception and later expresses regret for having the 'skittish lady' in her house.
Key passages
“The halcyon sleep will never build his nest / In any stormy breast.”
Peaceful sleep cannot come to a troubled mind.
Lovelace quotes Horace (translated by Cowley) to express his inability to sleep due to his remorse.
“If anything were to tempt me to doubt of future punishment, it would be, that there can hardly be a greater than that in which I at this instant experience in my own remorse.”
The punishment I feel from my own remorse is so severe that it makes me question whether any future punishment could be worse.
Lovelace reflects on the intensity of his guilt as a form of self-punishment.
“She is invincible!— Against all my motions, against all my conceptions, (thinking of her as a woman, and in the very bloom of her charms), she is absolutely invincible.”
She cannot be overcome, despite my efforts and expectations given her youth and beauty.
Lovelace acknowledges Clarissa's unyielding resistance to his advances.