The Cords of Vanity · Chapter
He Allows the Merits of Imperfection explained
The narrator reflects on Stella's birthday, visiting her grave with daffodils and contemplating how she has been forgotten and replaced by a sanitized, idealized memory.
What happens
The narrator reflects on Stella's birthday, visiting her grave with daffodils and contemplating how she has been forgotten and replaced by a sanitized, idealized memory. He then visits John Charteris, who speaks of death and his own literary legacy, leading to a discussion about affection being rooted in perceived superiority and the acceptance of imperfection.
Themes in this chapter
Vanity and Self-Deception
Stella's vanity is highlighted, and the narrator critiques how others have created a false, idealized memory of her, deceiving themselves.
Time, Memory, and Regret
The narrator reflects on the passage of time since Stella's death, the fading of her memory, and his own regret and tender recollections.
Artistic Identity and Escapism
Charteris discusses his literary legacy and the fear of being forgotten, while the narrator contemplates his own writing and future under Bettie's guidance.
Characters to notice
- Unknown Narrator
Visits Stella's grave, reflects on her memory and the idealized version others have created, then visits Charteris.
- Stella Musgrave
Deceased; the narrator brings daffodils to her grave on her birthday and remembers her vanity, childishness, and love for Peter.
- Bettie Hamlyn
The narrator's capable fiancée; she understands the significance of Stella's birthday and allows him a holiday.
- John Charteris
Found mending a teacup; speaks of drawing up his will, his fear of death, his literary work, and his wife Anne.
- Peter Blagden
Stella's widower; now remarried, wealthy, and known for his sprees; the narrator reflects on how Stella loved him.
Key passages
“I was quite contented now and assured as to the future. I foreknew the future would be tranquil and lacking in any particular excitement, and I had already ceded, in anticipation, the last tittle of mastery over my own actions; but Bettie would keep me to the mark, would wring—not painlessly perhaps—from Robert Townsend the very best there was in him; and it would be this best which, unalloyed, would endure, in what I wrote.”
The narrator is at peace with his future, expecting a calm life where he has surrendered control, trusting Bettie to push Robert Townsend to produce his finest work, which will be the lasting substance of his writing.
The narrator accepts his role and Bettie's influence on his literary output.
“I believe now that it was something more. I believe—ah, well, my credo is of little consequence. But whatever this woman may have been, I did not know her. And she cared nothing for me.”
The narrator now thinks Stella was more than a plaything, but admits he never truly knew her and she had no feelings for him.
Reflection on the gap between his earlier perception and his current understanding of Stella.
“I honestly believe that the cornerstone of affection is the agreeable perception of our superiority in some one point, at least, to the beloved. And that is why so many people are fond of you, I think.”
The narrator suggests that love is based on feeling superior to the beloved in some way, which explains why many are fond of Charteris.
Philosophical discussion on the nature of affection and its roots in perceived superiority.