The Mysteries of Udolpho · Chapter
Chapter XXII explained
Montoni threatens to imprison Madame Montoni in the east turret unless she signs over her settlements.
What happens
Montoni threatens to imprison Madame Montoni in the east turret unless she signs over her settlements. Emily intercedes on her aunt's behalf, but Montoni is unmoved. Madame Montoni suffers convulsions after a confrontation, and Emily tends to her, sustaining a forehead wound in the process. Montoni plans a watch with savage-looking men on the ramparts. Emily reflects on her love for Valancourt and her terror of her present life.
Themes in this chapter
Oppression and Imprisonment
Montoni threatens to imprison Madame Montoni in the east turret, and Emily is trapped in a life of terror and confinement.
Grief and Melancholy
Emily's spirits are exhausted by the scenes of contention; she longs for the peace of Languedoc and mourns her lost happiness.
Love and Separation
Emily's thoughts remain faithful to Valancourt, and she clings to his letters as her only hope amid her suffering.
Characters to notice
- Emily St. Aubert
Intercedes for her aunt, sustains a forehead wound, and tends to Madame Montoni during her convulsions.
- Montoni
Threatens to imprison Madame Montoni, shows indifference to her suffering, and plans a watch with fierce men on the ramparts.
- Madame Montoni
Suffers convulsions after a confrontation with Montoni, is confined to her apartment, and faces the choice of signing her settlements or being imprisoned.
- Annette
Assists Emily in tending to Madame Montoni, expresses fear and curiosity about the castle's events.
- Old Carlo
Helps hold Madame Montoni during her convulsions and expresses concern for Emily's wound.
- Valancourt
Emily's thoughts remain faithful to him; she rereads his letters and trusts in his truth.
Key passages
“You shall be removed, this night, to the east turret: there, perhaps, you may understand the danger of offending a man, who has an unlimited power over you.”
Montoni threatens to send Madame Montoni to the east turret that night to teach her the consequences of defying him.
Montoni's threat to imprison his wife in the turret.
“Her present life appeared like the dream of a distempered imagination, or like one of those frightful fictions, in which the wild genius of the poets sometimes delighted.”
Emily felt her life was as unreal and terrifying as a nightmare or a Gothic tale.
Emily's perception of her life at Udolpho as a dreadful fiction.
“How often did she wish to 'steal the lark's wing, and mount the swiftest gale,' that Languedoc and repose might once more be hers!”
Emily longed to fly away like a lark to return to the peace of Languedoc.
Emily's desire to escape Udolpho and return home.