He Knew He Was Right · Chapter
Trevelyan Back in England explained
Nora meets Hugh and the Trevelyans at the railway station as they return from Italy.
What happens
Nora meets Hugh and the Trevelyans at the railway station as they return from Italy. Trevelyan is extremely weak and mentally unstable. Emily has confessed fault to soothe him, but his jealousy and suspicion persist. Nora struggles with the situation and discusses it with Hugh, while the doctor advises not contradicting Trevelyan. Nora plans to leave for Monkhams to escape the painful atmosphere.
Themes in this chapter
Marital Jealousy and Possessiveness
Trevelyan's jealousy persists even in his weakened state; Emily's confession is a desperate attempt to appease him.
Madness and Obsession
Trevelyan's monomaniacal focus on suspicion; the doctor debates whether his jealousy constitutes legal madness.
Forgiveness and Reconciliation
Emily and Trevelyan are reunited under one roof, but the reconciliation is fragile and overshadowed by his lingering distrust.
Characters to notice
- Nora Rowley
Arranges transport and meets the party from Dover; supports Emily but finds Trevelyan's insinuations unbearable.
- Hugh Stanbury
Travels with Trevelyan from Dover; discusses Trevelyan's condition with Nora and the doctor.
- Emily Trevelyan
Returns to England with her husband; has confessed fault to calm him, though she struggles with the degradation.
- Louis Trevelyan
Very weak physically and mentally; shows signs of suspicion and monomania; barely speaks.
- Lady Milborough
Provides her carriage and footman for the journey; advises Nora not to stay at the cottage initially.
Key passages
“I have had to learn that torturing has not gone out of the world;—that is all.”
Emily compares her emotional suffering to physical torture, implying that her confession was extracted under duress.
Emily explains to Nora why she confessed fault, likening it to Inquisition torture.
“If he recovers altogether he will suspect nothing. I must take my chance of that.”
Emily hopes that if Trevelyan fully recovers, he will not remember or believe her confession.
Emily rationalizes her confession as a gamble for peace.
“He should be contradicted in nothing. If he chose to say that the moon was made of green cheese, let it be conceded to him that the moon was made of green cheese.”
The doctor advises that Trevelyan must be humored in all his statements, no matter how absurd.
The doctor's recommendation to avoid contradicting Trevelyan due to his fragile state.