Jenny · Chapter
IX explained
Jenny reflects on her loneliness and past choices, deciding to be more open and less reserved.
What happens
Jenny reflects on her loneliness and past choices, deciding to be more open and less reserved. She spends the day with Helge Gram, who visits her in the morning for tea. They go to the Campagna for lunch, where Helge discusses names, his past engagement, and his views on marriage and women. Jenny feels a growing friendship and perhaps more with Helge, while also working on a portrait of Cesca.
Themes in this chapter
Loneliness and Isolation
Jenny reflects on her loneliness and the choices that led to it, acknowledging her pride and reserve.
Love and Self-Deception
Jenny questions her own notions of passion and love, realizing she may have deceived herself about her desires.
Family Dynamics and Maternal Control
Helge discusses his mother's disapproval of his past engagement and the cynical view of marriage held by married women.
Characters to notice
- Jenny Winge
Reflects on her loneliness and past pride, decides to be more open, and enjoys a day with Helge.
- Helge Gram
Visits Jenny for tea, shares his past engagement and views on marriage, and shows tenderness towards her.
- Cesca Jahrman
Mentioned as Jenny's friend and housemate; her portrait is being worked on by Jenny.
- Gunnar Heggen
Mentioned as a friend of Jenny, with whom she has a comfortable friendship.
Key passages
“I sometimes think women who have been married some time become more cynical than we men ever are. They don’t give themselves away, but you notice it all the same. Marriage to them means merely business.”
Helge suggests that married women become more cynical than men, viewing marriage as a business transaction.
Helge shares his cynical view on marriage and women.
“She laughed at herself for having been so solemn the night before. Heaven knows, she had had difficulties and been lonely, but so had most of the young people she knew.”
Jenny laughs at her previous seriousness, realizing that her difficulties and loneliness are shared by many others.
Jenny's reflection on her own situation.
“It was only because she would not admit to herself that she was dull sometimes and wished to make a conquest and flirt a little just like other girls—a pastime which in reality she did not approve of—that she preferred to imagine she was consumed by a thirst for life and clamouring senses.”
Jenny realizes that her imagined passion was actually a cover for her desire to flirt and be noticed, something she disapproves of.
Jenny's self-awareness about her own motivations.