# About Fishing, and Navigation, and Headdresses explained — He Knew He Was Right

> Chapter companion for He Knew He Was Right by Anthony Trollope.

## What happens

The feud between Miss Stanbury and Mr. Gibson intensifies in Exeter after Dorothy's refusal of his proposal. Miss Stanbury is furious that a rumor spreads claiming Mr. Gibson declined her niece, rather than the truth that Dorothy refused him. Meanwhile, Mr. Gibson, feeling battered by his treatment in the Close, increasingly visits the French household at Heavitree, where he faces pressure to choose between Arabella and Camilla. During a tête-à-tête with Arabella, he is repelled by her appearance and the prospect of marrying her.

## Themes in this chapter

### Social Reputation and Gossip

The chapter revolves around the rumor that Mr. Gibson rejected Dorothy, which Miss Stanbury fiercely denies, and the social maneuvering in Exeter over who is to blame.

### Gender Roles and Power in Marriage

Mr. Gibson feels trapped by the expectations of the French women and the loss of his choice in marriage, while Arabella and Camilla treat him as a prize to be won.

## Character check-ins

### Miss Jemima Stanbury

Furious about the rumor that Mr. Gibson rejected Dorothy; she struggles to keep the truth secret and threatens to publish it.

### Mr. Gibson

Feels ill-used by Miss Stanbury and is now spending much time at Heavitree, dreading his inevitable marriage to one of the French sisters.

### Dorothy Stanbury

Refused Mr. Gibson's proposal; she asks her aunt not to publicize the truth and shows unexpected spirit.

### Arabella French

Alone with Mr. Gibson, she speaks of melancholy and hints at her expectations, but her appearance repels him.

### Camilla French

Spreads the rumor that Mr. Gibson never proposed to Dorothy; she speaks of him as though he belongs to Arabella.

## Key lines

> The feud between Miss Stanbury and Mr. Gibson raged violently in Exeter, and produced many complications which were very difficult indeed of management.

The conflict between Miss Stanbury and Mr. Gibson caused serious social complications in Exeter.

_Establishes the central conflict of the chapter._

> A base rumour was spread about the city that Dorothy Stanbury had been offered to Mr. Gibson, that Mr. Gibson had civilly declined the offer—and that hence had arisen the wrath of the Juno of the Close.

A false rumor circulated that Mr. Gibson had politely refused Dorothy, which explained Miss Stanbury's anger.

_Highlights the damaging gossip that drives Miss Stanbury's fury._

> The Charybdis in the Close drove him helpless into the whirlpool of the Heavitree Scylla.

Miss Stanbury's hostility forced Mr. Gibson into the equally perilous situation with the French family.

_Metaphor for Mr. Gibson's predicament between two undesirable options._

> He thought that he never in his life had seen anything so unshapely as that huge wen at the back of her head. 'Monstrum horrendum, informe, ingens!'

He found Arabella's large chignon grotesque, comparing it to a monstrous deformity.

_Illustrates Mr. Gibson's repulsion and his classical allusion._

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