# XXIX: The Casket of Silver and Oak Is Given to Señor Gulvarez explained — The Charwoman’s Shadow

> Chapter companion for The Charwoman’s Shadow by Lord Dunsany.

## What happens

On the seventh day of the Duke's illness, Gonsalvo visits his beloved fields and encounters Gulvarez, who also admires them. Gulvarez grows impatient waiting for Mirandola, who is attending the Duke. The Duke recovers and prepares to leave. Gonsalvo dictates a letter to Father Joseph, then walks his fields at evening. The Duke, escorting Mirandola, confesses his sorrow at leaving and proposes marriage. Mirandola reveals her engagement to Gulvarez; the Duke threatens to hang him but relents at her plea. She accepts the Duke's proposal. Gonsalvo and Gulvarez emerge from hiding, Gonsalvo relieved, Gulvarez brooding.

## Themes in this chapter

### Social Class and Prejudice

Gonsalvo's letter emphasizes the Duke's ancient lineage and the impropriety of marrying into a house not established before the Moors, reflecting class-based concerns.

### Love and Transformation

The Duke's proposal to Mirandola and his emotional vulnerability mark a transformative moment, as he struggles to express his feelings across a perceived gulf.

### Illusion vs. Reality

Gonsalvo's fields appear enchanted and fair, yet they are ordinary; the Duke's anger and the seeming brightness of the morning contrast with underlying tensions.

## Character check-ins

### Gonsalvo

Gonsalvo visits his three beloved fields, dictating a letter to Father Joseph, and later walks them at evening, feeling a deep connection to the land.

### Gulvarez

Gulvarez inspects the fields with Gonsalvo, grows impatient for Mirandola, and later broods after learning of the Duke's proposal.

### Father Joseph

Father Joseph assists Gonsalvo in dictating a letter and later sits in contemplation.

### Mirandola

Mirandola attends the Duke, reveals her engagement to Gulvarez, and accepts the Duke's marriage proposal after securing Gulvarez's safety.

### The Duke

The Duke recovers from illness, proposes to Mirandola, and threatens to hang Gulvarez before relenting.

## Key lines

> He had gone wondering if they could be really so fair as they seemed to be in the picture his memory had of them. Alas! They were.

Gonsalvo went to see if his fields were as beautiful as he remembered, and sadly, they were.

_Gonsalvo's attachment to his fields is confirmed, deepening his sorrow at the prospect of losing them._

> He was free of that house at last and unhappy to be free.

The Duke finally left the house but felt miserable about his newfound freedom.

_The Duke's conflicted emotions reveal his growing attachment to Mirandola and the household._

> Gulvarez shall hang.

The Duke declared that Gulvarez would be executed.

_The Duke's immediate threat shows his jealousy and the intensity of his feelings for Mirandola._

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_charwoman_s_shadow_se/chapters/xxix-the-casket-of-silver-and-oak-is-given-to-se-or-gulvarez
- Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_charwoman_s_shadow_se
- All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_charwoman_s_shadow_se/chapters