The Second Wedding explained

What happens

Themes in this chapter

• Love vs. Duty

  Mary and Tregear's marriage represents the triumph of personal love over the Duke's initial objections based on social standing.

• Parental Authority and Rebellion

  The Duke ultimately accepts and blesses Mary's choice, showing a softening of his earlier resistance to Tregear.

• Grief and Loneliness

  The Duke's hilarity masks his inner suffering as he recalls past sorrows while witnessing his children's happiness.

Characters to notice

• The Duke of Omnium

  Shows unexpected hilarity at the wedding, reflecting on his past suffering while giving his daughter away.

• Lady Mary Palliser

  Marries Frank Tregear in a modest ceremony at Matching, determined to avoid the grandeur of her brother's wedding.

• Frank Tregear

  Marries Lady Mary; receives a signet ring from Lady Mabel Grex on his wedding morning.

• Lord Silverbridge

  Returns from America with Isabel to attend Mary's wedding; speaks with the Duke about Tregear's character.

• Isabel Boncassen

  Now married to Silverbridge, she enjoys showing her English husband to American friends during their three-month stay in the States.

• Mrs. Finn

  Attends the wedding with her husband Phineas; reflects on Tregear's success in winning Mary.

Key passages

• “I think he is a manly young man.”

  Silverbridge praises Tregear's character to the Duke, calling him manly.

  The Duke agrees, now viewing Tregear's earlier ambition as courage rather than arrogance.

• “I pray that you may be happy. This was to have been given to you long ago, but I kept it back because of that decision.”

  Lady Mabel sends Tregear a signet ring with a note wishing him happiness, explaining she withheld it earlier due to a past decision.

  The ring and note are shown only to Mary; the scrap of paper remains private to Tregear.