Emily of New Moon · Chapters
Chapters explained
Chapter companions for Emily of New Moon by L. M. Montgomery.
Chapter 1
The House in the Hollow
Emily Starr lives with her father Douglas in a secluded house in a hollow, finding companionship in nature, her cat Mike, and her imagination. After a dull, cold day, she ventures out for a walk in the spruce barrens, where she experiences 'the flash'—a moment of transcendent beauty and wonder. Upon returning home, Ellen Greene delivers the devastating news that her father has only a short time to live.
Chapter 2
A Watch in the Night
Douglas Starr reveals to Emily that he is dying, shares the story of her mother Juliet and the Murray family's pride, and comforts her with a vision of death as a door to reunion. He speaks of his love for Juliet, the Murray's rejection of their marriage, and his decision to keep Emily with him until the end.
Chapter 3
A Hop Out of Kin
Following the death of her father Douglas Starr, Emily faces the arrival of her Murray relatives who must decide her future. She struggles with grief, defiance, and the fear of being placed with an unloving guardian, while asserting her independence and loyalty to her father's memory.
Chapter 4
IV: A Family Conclave
After her father's funeral, Emily eavesdrops on the Murray family conclave to learn her fate. She writes in her journal to cope with her grief and humiliation, and receives a kind gesture from Cousin Jimmy.
Chapter 5
Diamond Cut Diamond
The Murray family decides Emily's fate by drawing lots, and Aunt Elizabeth's name is drawn, making her Emily's guardian. Emily burns her precious account book to prevent Aunt Elizabeth from reading it, then leaves her old home with Aunt Laura, Aunt Elizabeth, and Cousin Jimmy to begin a new life at New Moon.
Chapter 6
VI: New Moon
Emily arrives at New Moon and struggles with homesickness and the sternness of Aunt Elizabeth. She finds small comforts in Cousin Jimmy's kindness, the beauty of the landscape, and the mysterious charm of the old house, while beginning to navigate her new life and the expectations placed upon her.
Chapter 7
The Book of Yesterday
Emily spends her first Saturday and Sunday at New Moon, exploring the house and grounds with Cousin Jimmy. He takes her to the family graveyard and tells her the stories of the Murrays, including how old Hugh Murray's wife insisted on staying on Prince Edward Island, and the epitaph 'Here I stay' that Hugh put on her grave. Emily learns about family traditions, the Murray pride, and the history of the burying-ground.
Chapter 8
Trial by Fire
Emily's first day at Blair Water School is a harsh introduction to social cruelty. Forced to wear a humiliating gingham apron and sunbonnet by Aunt Elizabeth, she faces a hostile classroom and playground. Taunted for her Murray pride, her strange clothes, and her family, Emily endures a gauntlet of mockery. She defends herself with dignity, claims she can write poetry, and experiences a transcendent 'flash' of inspiration. She makes a tentative friend in Rhoda Stuart, who flatters her, but also encounters the wild, outcast Ilse Burnley. The day ends with Emily's request for a fashionable 'bang' flatly denied by Aunt Elizabeth.
Chapter 9
A Special Providence
Emily begins to enjoy school despite her initial dread, but a humiliating incident with Miss Brownell over her rapturous response to a poem leaves her deeply wounded. Later, she discovers a stash of old letter-bills at New Moon, which she repurposes as writing paper, allowing her to resume her beloved scribblings and write a long letter to her deceased father.
Chapter 10
X: Growing Pains
Emily faces social rejection when she is not invited to Rhoda Stuart's birthday party, and later confronts Aunt Elizabeth's attempt to cut her hair, asserting her will with a startling resemblance to her grandfather.
Chapter 11
XI: Ilse
Emily is punished by Aunt Elizabeth and locked in the spare-room, where her fear of the dark and the eerie surroundings overwhelms her. She escapes through a window and meets Ilse Burnley, with whom she forms a close friendship. They play together during a thunderstorm, discuss God and belief, and share their ambitions. Emily returns home to find Aunt Laura lenient, and reflects on her new friendship with Ilse.
Chapter 12
The Tansy Patch
Emily and Ilse have a terrible fight over whether to have a parlour in their playhouse, but reconcile the next day as if nothing happened. They become friends with Teddy Kent and visit the Tansy Patch often, where they enjoy playing, drawing, and twilight hours. Emily writes to her father about Aunt Elizabeth's disapproval of Teddy and the mysterious Mrs. Kent.
Chapter 13
XIII: Daughter of Eve
Emily, left alone at New Moon, yields to temptation and eats a poisoned apple from Lofty John's workshop, believing she is doomed to die. She writes a farewell letter to Ilse and prepares for death with Murray dignity, only to be discovered by her aunts upon their return.
Chapter 14
Fancy Fed
In October, Emily joins Cousin Jimmy in the nightly ritual of boiling pigs' potatoes in a giant iron pot under the spruces, where he recites his poetry. Their evenings are shared with Ilse and Teddy, who come when Teddy whistles his special call. Emily recalls how she acquired her kitten Mike II from Old Kelly the pedlar, and how she defied Aunt Elizabeth to save the kitten from being drowned, winning a second victory by summoning the Murray look.
Chapter 15
XV: Various Tragedies
Emily, curious about a haunted well in Mr. James Lee's pasture, ventures there alone and is confronted by a bull. She is rescued by a ragged, confident boy named Perry Miller, who later becomes the chore boy at New Moon. Emily helps Perry with his lessons and reflects on her friendships with Teddy, Ilse, and the new arrival.
Chapter 16
Check for Miss Brownell
Emily and Ilse write poetry during arithmetic time, and Miss Brownell catches them. She reads Emily's poem aloud, humiliating her. Emily is brought before Aunt Elizabeth and Miss Brownell for punishment, but Cousin Jimmy's intervention and Perry's antics shift the outcome. Emily is sentenced to bread and milk in the pantry but finds solace in composing an epic poem.
Chapter 17
Living Epistles
Emily writes to her father about her adventure staying overnight at Ilse's house, her birthday gifts, and her daily life at New Moon. She recounts her daring night alone in the garret, her growing friendships with Ilse, Teddy, and Perry, and her ongoing struggles with Miss Brownell and Aunt Elizabeth.
Chapter 18
Father Cassidy
Emily and the Murrays are in turmoil because Lofty John Sullivan, offended by Aunt Elizabeth's sharp tongue, has threatened to cut down the protective bush north of New Moon. Emily feels responsible and heartbroken at the prospect of losing the beloved grove, Cousin Jimmy's garden, and the beauty of New Moon. Teddy suggests asking Father Cassidy to intervene, but Emily doubts Aunt Elizabeth would stoop to that. Desperate, Emily decides to visit Father Cassidy herself, ostensibly to ask about a plot point in her poem, but secretly hoping to enlist his help to stop Lofty John. Father Cassidy sees through her ruse, listens to her story, and agrees to speak to Lofty John, ultimately saving the bush.
Chapter 19
Friends Again
Emily learns that Lofty John has relented and will not cut down the bush, thanks to her visit to Father Cassidy. Lofty John makes a bargain with Emily: she must ask him politely to spare the trees and continue visiting him. Emily complies, and the bush is saved. She also receives a letter from Father Cassidy, which Aunt Elizabeth opens and questions. The chapter ends with a later meeting in Shrewsbury where Emily and Father Cassidy share a secret understanding.
Chapter 20
By Aerial Post
Emily writes letters to her deceased father, sharing her daily life, thoughts, and observations. She describes her plans to write stories, her friendship with Ilse, school events, the Christmas gathering with the Murray relatives, and her reflections on family, secrets, and the flash of beauty she experiences.
Chapter 21
Romantic but Not Comfortable
Emily faces Aunt Elizabeth's disapproval over reading a novel and a medical book, and endures teasing about her self-cut bang. She receives a letter from Great-Aunt Nancy requesting a photograph, leading to a trip to Shrewsbury. Meanwhile, a compliment from Teddy Kent to Ilse Burnley sparks Emily's desire for a bang, which she cuts herself. Later, Perry Miller's eccentric Aunt Tom proposes that Emily marry Perry in exchange for funding his education, causing embarrassment and a confrontation.
Chapter 22
Wyther Grange
Emily receives an invitation from Great-Aunt Nancy Priest to visit Wyther Grange. After overhearing her aunts discuss the visit, she learns she will go. She is torn between leaving her friends and their playacting in Lofty John's bush and her curiosity about Wyther Grange. Ilse is jealous and warns Emily about the ghost and the witch-like Caroline Priest. Emily travels with Old Kelly, who gives her a hairbrush with a mirror and warns her about the Priests and Caroline.
Chapter 23
XXIII: Deals with Ghosts
Emily's first night at Wyther Grange is terrifying as she hears mysterious rustles, moans, and cries in her room, believing it haunted. She demands to leave the next morning, but Great-Aunt Nancy reveals the sounds come from swallows nesting in the unused chimney. Reassured, Emily stays and begins to enjoy her visit.
Chapter 24
A Different Kind of Happiness
Emily writes to her father from Wyther Grange, describing her fortnight with Great-Aunt Nancy and Caroline. She enjoys the freedom but breaks a precious Jakobite glass, hides the pieces, and eventually confesses to Aunt Nancy, who forgives her and gives her the gazing-ball.
Chapter 25
XXV: "She Couldn't Have Done It"
Emily, staying at Wyther Grange, overhears Great-Aunt Nancy and Caroline Priest recount the scandalous story of Ilse's mother, Beatrice Burnley, who allegedly eloped with her cousin Leo Mitchell and abandoned her infant daughter. Emily is horrified and refuses to believe the tale, insisting that Ilse's mother could not have done such a thing. The revelation deeply disturbs her, casting a shadow over her usual joys and leaving her with a painful, haunting secret she must hide from Ilse.
Chapter 26
On the Bay Shore
Emily wanders far along the bay shore and nearly falls to her death when the mossy bank gives way, leaving her clinging to a narrow ledge. She prays desperately and is rescued by Dean Priest, who happens upon her. Afterward, they talk on the shore, discussing poetry, writing, and family, and Dean claims her life as his own for saving it. Emily feels a strange sense of bondage but also a growing friendship.
Chapter 27
The Vow of Emily
Emily returns to New Moon and is given her mother's old room, the 'lookout,' which she immediately loves and feels a deep connection to. She writes to her father and mother, sharing her joy and news of a new teacher, Mr. Carpenter. The chapter also explores her deepening friendship with Dean Priest, who understands her imaginative nature and shares stories of history and beauty.
Chapter 28
A Weaver of Dreams
Emily submits her poem 'Evening Dreams' to the Enterprise, but it is rejected, leading to bitter disappointment. She gradually recovers by writing a story that vilifies the editor. Meanwhile, she grows accustomed to Mr. Carpenter, the new teacher, who is a brilliant but fallen man with a temper and a drinking problem. Emily also faces family pressure about her future, with Uncle Wallace suggesting she train as a teacher, but Aunt Elizabeth refuses, insisting she will not become a 'slave to the public.'
Chapter 29
XXIX: Sacrilege
Aunt Elizabeth discovers Emily's letters to her deceased father, Douglas Starr, in which Emily had expressed her true feelings about Aunt Elizabeth. A fierce confrontation ensues, with Emily defending her privacy and the sanctity of her letters. Though Emily wins the battle, she is left with a deep sense of guilt and sorrow over having hurt Aunt Elizabeth.
Chapter 30
When the Curtain Lifted
After a reconciliation with Aunt Elizabeth, Emily continues to navigate their differences but now feels a genuine affection from her aunt. Emily grows rapidly, burning old manuscripts and writing new ones in her lookout. She falls ill with a fever and, in a delirious state, reveals a vision of Ilse's mother falling into the old Lee well. Aunt Elizabeth, keeping her promise to Emily, orders the well searched, leading to the discovery of Beatrice Burnley's remains. The truth clears Beatrice's name, and Dr. Burnley reconciles with Ilse, showering her with long-withheld love.
Chapter 31
XXXI: Emily’s Great Moment
Emily slowly recovers from her illness, finding solace in walks with Dean Priest. When Mr. Carpenter finally reviews her writing, he offers a harsh but ultimately encouraging critique, affirming her talent and urging her to climb. Overjoyed, Emily begins a diary to record her thoughts.
