The Little Nugget · Chapter
XVI explained
Peter Burns and Audrey Blake confront their love and moral obligations.
What happens
Peter Burns and Audrey Blake confront their love and moral obligations. Audrey confesses she tried to steal Peter from Cynthia, but now insists he must honor his engagement. Peter refuses to give her up, but their emotional climax is interrupted by the arrival of Mrs. Drassilis. Peter then wanders through the night, tormented by conscience, and after two days in London returns to Sanstead to say goodbye, reaffirming his love for Audrey while accepting the consequences of his past.
Themes in this chapter
Love and Selfishness
Audrey confesses her selfish attempts to steal Peter from Cynthia, while Peter's own desire clashes with his sense of duty.
Deception and Identity
Audrey reveals she calculated her words and actions to manipulate Peter's feelings, highlighting the theme of emotional deception.
Parenthood and Neglect
Though not central, the arrival of Mrs. Drassilis—Cynthia's mother—underscores the familial pressures and neglected responsibilities in the characters' lives.
Characters to notice
- Peter Burns
Struggles with his love for Audrey and his duty to Cynthia; decides to say goodbye after a period of reflection in London.
- Audrey Blake
Confesses her manipulative attempts to win Peter from Cynthia; insists he must marry Cynthia out of honor.
- Cynthia Drassilis
Referenced through Peter's memory of her letter; her engagement to Peter is a central moral obstacle.
- Mrs. Drassilis
Arrives in a red car with an unknown dark-haired woman, interrupting Peter and Audrey's final moment.
Key passages
“I have tried every little miserable trick I could think of to steal you from the girl you had promised to marry.”
Audrey admits she deliberately used every small, shameful tactic to win Peter away from his fiancée.
Audrey's confession of emotional manipulation underscores the theme of deception.
“I came back to say goodbye, but I shall always love you. It is my punishment for being the sort of man I was five years ago.”
Peter returns to end things, but declares his enduring love, seeing it as a consequence of his past failings.
Peter accepts his love as a form of penance for his earlier character flaws.