Miss Marjoribanks · Chapter
XXXIX explained
Lucilla resolves to support Mr.
What happens
Lucilla resolves to support Mr. Ashburton after critically evaluating Mr. Cavendish's sentimental address. She visits Mrs. Chiley, who is eager for news of Mr. Cavendish's return, but Lucilla pleads ignorance. Later, she encounters Mrs. Woodburn, who is anxious about her brother's election campaign and hints at Lucilla's potential marriage. Lucilla returns home to care for Aunt Jemima, discussing Tom, while her advocacy for Mr. Ashburton gains traction in Grange Lane.
Themes in this chapter
Social Ambition and Control
Lucilla strategically advocates for Mr. Ashburton, using her social influence to sway opinion in Grange Lane, demonstrating her ambition to control the election outcome.
Performance and Appearance
Lucilla maintains a cheerful and composed exterior despite the political maneuvering, while Mrs. Woodburn hides her domestic anxieties behind a facade of social engagement.
Practicality vs. Romance
Lucilla dismisses Mr. Cavendish's sentimental appeal as 'humbug,' prioritizing practical considerations over emotional rhetoric in her political support.
Characters to notice
- Lucilla Marjoribanks
Resolves to support Mr. Ashburton after dismissing Mr. Cavendish's sentimental appeal; visits Mrs. Chiley and Mrs. Woodburn; returns home to care for Aunt Jemima.
- Mrs. Chiley
Now very old and feeble, reclines on a sofa by the fire; eagerly awaits news of Mr. Cavendish's return but is disappointed by Lucilla's lack of information.
- Colonel Chiley
Present with Mrs. Chiley; gives a humph in protest at her sentiment about the poor; later echoes Lucilla's opinion on Mr. Ashburton.
- Mrs. Woodburn
Encountered by Lucilla in the snow; anxious about her brother's election and hints at Lucilla's marriage; reflects wistfully on Lucilla's independence.
- Aunt Jemima
An invalid who breakfasts in her room; Lucilla cares for her and listens to her talk about Tom.
- Mr. Ashburton
Lucilla's chosen candidate; she advocates for him as 'the man for Carlingford'.
Key passages
“He might have been living here all the time; he might have had much stronger claims upon our affections; if he had wanted, he might have come back ages ago, and not let people struggle on alone.”
Lucilla reasons that Mr. Cavendish could have returned to Carlingford at any time, so his sentimental appeal about rushing back is insincere.
Lucilla rationalizes her support for Mr. Ashburton by dismissing Mr. Cavendish's pathos.
“I felt sure you would come and tell us everything. I said it would not be like Lucilla if she didn't.”
Mrs. Chiley expects Lucilla to share all the news about Mr. Cavendish's return.
Highlights Mrs. Chiley's reliance on Lucilla as a source of information and gossip.
“Ah, if Harry had only not been such a fool ten years ago!”
Mrs. Woodburn regrets that her brother Harry did not marry Lucilla a decade earlier.
Reveals Mrs. Woodburn's wistful reflection on missed opportunities for Lucilla's marriage.