Chapter II explained

What happens

Themes in this chapter

• Deception and Betrayal

  The chapter explores the betrayal of trust within the Ashburnham household, as Leonora's hidden jealousy and Edward's secret passion create a facade of normalcy while underlying tensions fester.

• Suffering and Sacrifice

  Leonora's physical and emotional suffering, Nancy's offer of her virtue and reason, and Edward's internal agony all exemplify the theme of sacrifice and enduring pain.

• Love and Marriage

  The chapter examines the complexities of love and marriage through Leonora's jealousy, Edward's final passion for Nancy, and the strained dynamics between the couples.

Characters to notice

• Leonora Ashburnham

  Suffers from severe headaches and emotional breakdown after returning from Nauheim; torn between maternal love for Nancy and jealousy of Edward's passion; struggles with her own desires and religious restraints.

• Edward Ashburnham

  Wavers between dejection and forced cheerfulness; refuses Nancy's offer of herself to save his reason; gives away a horse to young Selmes, causing tension with Leonora.

• Nancy Rufford

  Devoted to Leonora; offers her virtue to Edward in a desperate attempt to save his sanity; gradually becomes aware of the profound differences between Edward and Leonora.

• John Dowell

  Narrates the chapter as a passive observer; trusts the tranquility of the household; is unaware of the emotional turmoil and the true nature of the relationships around him.

• Rodney Bayham

  Follows Leonora with his eyes, providing her with a spark of consolation and reassurance that she is still attractive.

Key passages

• “She was divided between an intense disgust for Edward’s weakness in conceiving this passion, an intense pity for the miseries that he was enduring, and a feeling equally intense, but one that she hid from herself—a feeling of respect for Edward’s determination to keep himself, in this particular affair, unspotted.”

  Leonora felt both disgust at Edward's weakness in falling in love with Nancy and pity for his suffering, while secretly respecting his resolve to remain faithful.

  Highlights Leonora's conflicting emotions and hidden respect for Edward's moral struggle.

• “You have to imagine my beautiful Nancy appearing suddenly to Edward, rising up at the foot of his bed, with her long hair falling, like a split cone of shadow, in the glimmer of a night-light that burned beside him. You have to imagine her, a silent, a no doubt agonized figure, like a spectre, suddenly offering herself to him—to save his reason!”

  Dowell imagines Nancy appearing like a ghost at Edward's bedside, offering herself to him in a desperate attempt to preserve his sanity.

  Illustrates Nancy's sacrificial act and the dramatic, almost spectral nature of the encounter.

• “And that evening Edward spoke to me. What in the interval had happened had been this: Upon her return from Nauheim Leonora had completely broken down—because she knew she could trust Edward.”

  Edward confides in Dowell that Leonora's breakdown occurred after returning from Nauheim, triggered by her realization that Edward could be trusted with Nancy.

  Reveals the irony that Leonora's trust in Edward leads to her own emotional collapse.