Lavengro · Chapter
The Unpardonable Sin explained
Peter Williams narrates his childhood in North Wales, where at age seven he overhears a conversation about the sin against the Holy Ghost.
What happens
Peter Williams narrates his childhood in North Wales, where at age seven he overhears a conversation about the sin against the Holy Ghost. Tormented by temptation, he eventually commits the sin one night on a wooden gallery under the stars. Thereafter he feels isolated and doomed, though he excels at school and sports. When his dying father speaks of meeting in heaven, Peter is filled with horror, knowing he is lost forever.
Themes in this chapter
Religion and Priestcraft
Peter's entire narrative revolves around religious doctrine, the fear of damnation, and the psychological torment caused by the belief in an unforgivable sin.
Characters to notice
- Peter Williams
Narrates his childhood story of committing the sin against the Holy Ghost and the lasting despair it caused.
- Winifred
Present during Peter's narration, sobbing violently at his account.
- Lavengro
Listens to Peter's story and briefly leaves the room when Peter becomes distressed.
Key passages
“I was born in the heart of North Wales, the son of a respectable farmer, and am the youngest of seven brothers.”
Peter introduces himself as the youngest of seven sons of a Welsh farmer.
Opening of Peter's autobiographical account.
“I lay awake the greater part of the night musing upon what I had heard. I kept wondering to myself what must be the state of a person who had committed the sin against the Holy Ghost, and how he must feel.”
After overhearing the conversation, Peter spends the night obsessing over the nature of the unpardonable sin.
Shows the beginning of Peter's psychological torment.
“Arising from my bed, I went out upon the wooden gallery, and having stood for a few moments looking at the stars, with which the heavens were thickly strewn, I laid myself down, and supporting my face with my hand, I murmured out words of horror—words not to be repeated—and in this manner I committed the sin against the Holy Ghost.”
Peter gets up in the night, goes to the open gallery, and deliberately utters the forbidden words, thereby committing the sin.
Climactic moment of Peter's confession.
“I opened the book at random, and began to read; the first passage on which my eyes lighted was the following— 'He who committeth the sin against the Holy Ghost shall not be forgiven, either in this world or the next.'”
When Peter opens the Bible hoping for comfort, he reads a verse confirming that his sin is unforgivable.
Irony and despair: the scripture confirms his damnation.