The Forsyte Saga · Chapter
Encounter explained
Soames Forsyte, now 65, walks through post-War London to a gallery exhibition, reflecting on his anxieties about taxes, his daughter Fleur, and the decline of the old order.
What happens
Soames Forsyte, now 65, walks through post-War London to a gallery exhibition, reflecting on his anxieties about taxes, his daughter Fleur, and the decline of the old order. He meets his cousin George Forsyte at the Iseeum Club, who jokes about their aged uncle Timothy and the financial pressures of the era. At the gallery, Soames encounters a young man named Michael Mont, who returns his handkerchief and accepts an invitation to view Soames's picture collection.
Themes in this chapter
Social Class and Change
Soames reflects on the loss of rank, polish, and the old order in democratic, post-War England, worrying about the future for his daughter.
Aging and Mortality
Soames at 65 contemplates his age, the frailty of his cousin Jolyon, and the extreme old age of Uncle Timothy, who is nearly 100.
Possessiveness and the Sense of Property
Soames's anxiety about taxes and confiscation reflects his deep attachment to his fortune and pictures, which he intends for Fleur.
Characters to notice
- Soames Forsyte
Walking through London, anxious about taxes and the future, reflecting on his daughter Fleur and his second marriage.
- George Forsyte
Seen at the Iseeum Club, sardonic and concerned about income tax and the decline of inherited income.
- Fleur Forsyte
Soames's daughter, described as restless and wilful; he dotes on her and worries about her future.
- Annette Forsyte
Soames's second wife, mentioned as attractive but cooler toward him since he prevented her from nursing in France during the War.
- Michael Mont
A young man at the gallery who returns Soames's handkerchief and accepts an invitation to see his pictures.
- Timothy Forsyte
Aged uncle, nearly 100, still taking an interest in food; George suggests someone should visit him.
- Irene Forsyte
Soames's first wife, remembered as his one real passion; now living with his cousin Jolyon.
- Young Jolyon Forsyte
Soames's cousin, who went off with Irene; said to be looking shaky at seventy-two.
Key passages
“Soames Forsyte emerged from the Knightsbridge Hotel, where he was staying, in the afternoon of the 12th of May, 1920, with the intention of visiting a collection of pictures in a Gallery off Cork Street, and looking into the Future.”
On May 12, 1920, Soames Forsyte left his hotel to visit an art gallery and contemplate what lies ahead.
Sets the date and purpose of Soames's walk.
“He had, mentally, so frequently experienced ruin, that he had ceased to believe in its material probability.”
Soames had imagined financial disaster so often that he no longer thought it would actually happen.
Reflects Soames's psychological state after the War and Peace.
“To be in danger of being entirely dispersed inclined one to be less apprehensive of the more partial dispersions involved in levies and taxation.”
Having faced the threat of total destruction from air raids made him less worried about losing only part of his wealth to taxes.
Soames's wartime experience has hardened his attitude toward financial risks.
“He had known but one real passion in his life—for that first wife of his—Irene.”
The only true love Soames ever felt was for his first wife, Irene.
Soames's brief reminiscence of his past marriage.
“A democratic England—dishevelled, hurried, noisy, and seemingly without an apex.”
England had become a chaotic, rushed, and loud democracy with no clear top tier of society.
Soames's critical view of post-War social changes.
