III explained

What happens

Themes in this chapter

• Age and Youth

  Colville, at forty-one, contrasts his own age and appearance with the youthful beauty of Imogene Graham and reflects on his past.

• Social Convention and Propriety

  Colville's careful attention to his evening dress and the formalities of Mrs. Bowen's reception highlight the social codes of expatriate life in Florence.

• Disillusionment and Regret

  Colville indulges in vain regrets about his past rejection and wonders if Mrs. Bowen still sees him as a pathetic figure.

Characters to notice

• Mrs. Bowen

  Hosts a reception at Palazzo Pinti; formerly Lina Ridgely, friend of the woman who jilted Colville.

• Mr. Colville

  Attends Mrs. Bowen's reception, reflecting on his past and his present appearance at age forty-one.

• Effie Bowen

  Mrs. Bowen's daughter, who serves Colville tea and is noted for her resemblance to her mother.

• Imogene Graham

  A statuesque young woman staying with Mrs. Bowen for the winter; Colville is struck by her beauty.

Key passages

• “He then remembered that Lina Ridgely in many fine little ways had shown a kindness, almost a compassion, for him, as for one whose unconsciousness a hopeless doom impended over.”

  He recalled that Lina Ridgely had often treated him with gentle pity, as if sensing a tragic fate awaiting him.

  Colville reflects on Mrs. Bowen's past kindness toward him.

• “He was sensible of a better personal effect than the men in frock-coats and cutaways were making, and he perceived with self-satisfaction that his evening dress was of better style than that of the others who wore it; at least no one else carried a crush hat.”

  He felt his evening attire outshone the other men's frock coats and cutaways, and he took pride in being the only one with a crush hat.

  Colville's vanity about his appearance at the reception.