Mrs. Purkapile explained

What happens

Themes in this chapter

• Love and Betrayal

  Mr. Purkapile's infidelity and abandonment betray the marital vow, while Mrs. Purkapile's refusal to divorce underscores the tension between love and duty.

• Gender and Social Roles

  Mrs. Purkapile's decision to stay married reflects the societal pressure on women to uphold the institution of marriage despite personal betrayal.

Characters to notice

• Homer Clapp

  Mrs. Purkapile is Homer Clapp's mother, referenced through her married name.

Key passages

• “He ran away and was gone for a year. When he came home he told me the silly story Of being kidnapped by pirates on Lake Michigan And kept in chains so he could not write me.”

  He left for a year and returned with an absurd tale of being captured by pirates on Lake Michigan and held in chains, unable to contact me.

  Mr. Purkapile's fabricated excuse for his absence.

• “I pretended to believe it, though I knew very well What he was doing, and that he met The milliner, Mrs. Williams, now and then When she went to the city to buy goods, as she said.”

  I acted as if I believed his story, even though I was fully aware he was seeing the milliner, Mrs. Williams, whenever she claimed to be in the city for business.

  Mrs. Purkapile's awareness of her husband's affair.

• “But a promise is a promise And marriage is marriage, And out of respect for my own character I refused to be drawn into a divorce By the scheme of a husband who had merely grown tired Of his marital vow and duty.”

  But a vow is a vow, and marriage is sacred, so to preserve my own integrity, I would not let my husband's scheme—born of his weariness with marital obligations—force me into a divorce.

  Mrs. Purkapile's rationale for refusing divorce.