The Black Tulip · Chapter
Haarlem explained
The chapter describes the grand celebration in Haarlem on May 15, 1673, for the exhibition of the black tulip.
What happens
The chapter describes the grand celebration in Haarlem on May 15, 1673, for the exhibition of the black tulip. The procession includes the Horticultural Committee led by President van Systens, the learned societies, magistrates, and the people. Isaac Boxtel, posing as the grower, walks in triumph with the tulip and the prize money, while anxiously scanning the crowd for Rosa. The festival highlights Haarlem's devotion to horticulture and the public's adoration of the flower.
Themes in this chapter
Class and Social Hierarchy
The procession is strictly ordered, with the Horticultural Committee, learned societies, magistrates, military, nobles, and boors marching in sequence, while the people merely line the streets.
Injustice and Persecution
Boxtel, who stole the tulip and caused Cornelius's imprisonment, is celebrated as the hero, highlighting the injustice of the situation.
Obsession and Ambition
Boxtel's obsessive desire for glory and wealth drives him to steal the tulip and claim false credit, constantly eyeing the prize money.
Characters to notice
- President van Systens
Leads the Horticultural Committee in the procession, dressed in dark crimson velvet, purple silk, and black cloth, carrying an enormous nosegay.
- Isaac Boxtel
The false hero of the festival, dressed in scarlet, walking in the procession with the black tulip and the prize purse, fearful of seeing Rosa.
- Rosa Gryphus
Not present in the crowd, but Boxtel dreads her appearance, which would spoil his triumph.
- William of Orange
The Prince Stadtholder is expected to arrive and present the prize of a hundred thousand guilders.
Key passages
“bloom for one day, and to serve during that day to divert the ladies, the learned, and the curious.”
The tulip is meant to bloom for only a single day, providing entertainment for women, scholars, and the curious.
Highlights the ephemeral nature of the flower and its role as a spectacle.
“He borrowed a little importance from everybody to make a kind of false importance for himself, as he had stolen Rosa's tulip to effect his own glory, and thereby make his fortune.”
Boxtel took a bit of significance from each person to create a fake sense of his own importance, just as he had stolen Rosa's tulip to achieve fame and wealth.
Emphasizes Boxtel's fraudulent nature and his theft of both the tulip and Rosa's rightful glory.