# LXXXIX explained — Of Human Bondage

> Chapter companion for Of Human Bondage by W. Somerset Maugham.

## What happens

Philip visits the Athelny family and is warmly welcomed into their home. He spends time with the children, shares tea with the family, and learns about Mrs. Athelny's Kentish background. Philip becomes a regular Sunday visitor, forming a close bond with the children and learning about Athelny's varied and unsuccessful career.

## Themes in this chapter

### Isolation and Belonging

Philip, who has led a lonely life, finds a sense of belonging and warmth in the Athelny family circle.

### Class and Social Mobility

Athelny's varied and unsuccessful occupations and his current job as a press-representative highlight the precariousness of social mobility.

## Character check-ins

### Philip Carey

Philip visits the Athelnys, enjoys their family circle, and becomes a regular Sunday guest.

### Thorpe Athelny

Athelny entertains his children with stories, chaffs Sally, and shares his life story with Philip.

### Sally Athelny

Sally helps with tea, is teased by her father about suitors, and shows a self-possessed demeanor.

### Mrs. Athelny

Mrs. Athelny prepares tea, treats her husband like a child, and discovers a connection to Philip's uncle in Blackstable.

### Jane

Jane sits on Philip's knee during the story and later joins the family for tea.

## Key lines

> It was the first time that Philip in his lonely life had been present in a family circle: his eyes smiled as they rested on the fair children engrossed in the fairy tale.

Philip, who had always been isolated, experienced a family gathering for the first time and felt genuine happiness watching the children listen to a story.

_Highlights Philip's emotional response to the warmth of family life._

> A breath of the countryside seemed to be wafted into that panelled room in the middle of London.

The conversation about Kent brought a nostalgic sense of rural life into the London home.

_Evokes the contrast between urban and rural settings and Philip's own memories._

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/of_human_bondage_se/chapters/lxxxix
- Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/of_human_bondage_se
- All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/of_human_bondage_se/chapters