Mr. Tulliver Further Entangles the Skein of Life explained

What happens

Themes in this chapter

• Pride and Fall

  Mr. Tulliver's pride drives him to repay Mrs. Glegg's loan, leading to further entanglement with his enemy Wakem.

• Family Obligation and Conflict

  The family rift between the Tullivers and the Dodsons deepens despite mediation efforts, highlighting conflicting obligations and pride.

Characters to notice

• Mrs. Glegg

  Receives Mr. Tulliver's letter demanding repayment of her loan; maintains her principles regarding her will and family honor.

• Mrs. Pullet

  Attempts to mediate between Mrs. Glegg and the Tullivers, but her efforts are undermined by Mr. Tulliver's pride.

• Mr. Tulliver

  Writes a letter to Mrs. Glegg repaying her loan, driven by pride; later forced to borrow from a client of Wakem.

• Mrs. Tulliver

  Hopeful that mediation will resolve the family quarrel, but her mention of it provokes Mr. Tulliver's pride.

• Tom Tulliver

  Teases Maggie about aunt Glegg's visit; prepares to go to school.

• Maggie Tulliver

  Grieves at Tom's impending departure for school.

Key passages

• “Mr. Tulliver had a destiny as well as Oedipus, and in this case he might plead, like Oedipus, that his deed was inflicted on him rather than committed by him.”

  Mr. Tulliver's fate, like that of Oedipus, seems to force him into actions he would not have chosen freely.

  The narrator compares Mr. Tulliver's predicament to the Greek tragedy of Oedipus, emphasizing the theme of unavoidable destiny.

• “Mrs. Glegg did not alter her will in consequence of this letter, and cut off the Tulliver children from their sixth and seventh share in her thousand pounds; for she had her principles.”

  Despite her anger, Mrs. Glegg did not change her will to disinherit the Tulliver children, because she adhered to her principles of fairness among kin.

  Highlights the Dodson family's rigid sense of honor and the importance of blood relations in inheritance.