IV: Cheyne Walk explained

What happens

Themes in this chapter

• The Passage of Time and Memory

  Michael's return to Carlington Road triggers a flood of childhood memories and a sense of how much his perspective has changed since moving to Cheyne Walk and Oxford.

• Childhood and Formation

  The chapter contrasts Michael's past in Carlington Road with his present in Chelsea, highlighting his growth and the lingering influence of early experiences.

• Love and Obsession

  Michael's revisitation of Lily Haden's street reveals unresolved feelings and the haunting quality of his former infatuation.

Characters to notice

• Michael Fane

  Michael is the central perspective; he helps choose the new house, meets Mr. Prescott, enjoys the studio, and revisits Carlington Road.

• Stella Cunningham

  Stella supports Michael in choosing the house, plays piano in the studio, and is described as clever and intimidating to Prescott.

• Mrs. Fane

  Mrs. Fane is late for appointments, prefers to avoid house-hunting, and is noted for her charitable tendencies.

• Mr. Prescott

  Mr. Prescott is Michael's father's friend, a former Welsh Guards officer, and acts as an informal guardian; he visits the new house and invites Michael to dinner.

• Lily Haden

  Lily is the object of Michael's revisitation; he recalls his betrayal of illusions about her and murmurs lines from 'Ulalume' at the corner of Trelawney Road.

• Alan Merivale

  Alan visits the studio to listen to Stella play, and Michael muses about a possible union between Alan and Stella.

Key passages

• “Certainly 173 Cheyne Walk was better than 64 Carlington Road, thought Michael as, leaning back against the parapet of the Embankment, he surveyed the mellow exterior in the unreal sunlight of the January noon.”

  Michael reflects that the new Chelsea house is a clear improvement over the old one, admiring its warm facade in the pale winter sunlight.

  This establishes the central contrast between the two homes and Michael's satisfaction with the move.

• “He saw Prescott in his mind as he had seen him years ago, an intruder upon the time-shrouded woes of childhood, whose only definite impression had been made by the gold piece he had pressed into Michael's palm.”

  Michael remembers Prescott as a distant figure from childhood, associated with a gift of money rather than emotional connection.

  This highlights Michael's evolving relationship with his father's friend and the theme of memory.

• “It was with a start of self-rebuke that he confessed to himself that here was the ultimate object of his revisitation.”

  Michael realizes with a pang of guilt that his walk through the old neighborhood was unconsciously aimed at seeing Lily Haden's house.

  This reveals Michael's lingering attachment to Lily and his self-awareness about it.