The Nebuly Coat · Chapter
Chapter II explained
Westray settles into Bellevue Lodge, where Miss Euphemia Joliffe and her niece Anastasia care for him.
What happens
Westray settles into Bellevue Lodge, where Miss Euphemia Joliffe and her niece Anastasia care for him. Over dinner, the organist Mr. Sharnall reveals the tragic story of Martin Joliffe, who believed he was the rightful Lord Blandamer due to the nebuly coat, and wasted his life and his sister's savings in pursuit of this delusion.
Themes in this chapter
Obsession and Madness
Martin Joliffe's lifelong quest to prove his Blandamer ancestry, which consumed his fortune and sanity, is a central focus of Sharnall's narrative.
Secrecy and Identity
Martin's hidden parentage and the mystery of the nebuly coat drive the plot, with Sharnall hinting at secrets he cannot fully reveal.
Social Class and Ambition
Martin's ambition to claim the Blandamer title and estate, and the social shame of his failure, highlight class anxieties.
Characters to notice
- Mr. Westray
The architect, newly arrived, is conscientious about paying a fair rent and does not smoke.
- Mr. Sharnall
The organist, a heavy drinker, tells Westray the story of Martin Joliffe and the nebuly coat over brandy.
- Miss Euphemia Joliffe
The landlady, a self-denying woman of sixty, who unpacks Westray's portmanteau and mends his clothes.
- Miss Anastasia Joliffe
Euphemia's niece, a young woman with a delicate bloom but a troubled look, dressed in black with a coral necklace.
- Martin Joliffe
Deceased half-brother of Euphemia, who spent his life trying to prove he was a Blandamer and died penniless.
Key passages
“It was a forty-years’ wandering in the wilderness; he found this clue and that, and thought at last he had climbed Pisgah and could see the promised land. But he had to be content with the sight, or mirage I suppose it was, and died before he tasted the milk and honey.”
Martin spent forty years searching for proof of his Blandamer ancestry, only to die before achieving his goal.
Sharnall describes Martin's futile quest using biblical imagery.
“He would have it he wasn’t a Joliffe at all, but a Blandamer, and rightful heir to Fording.”
Martin insisted he was actually a Blandamer and the true heir to the Fording estate.
Sharnall explains Martin's core delusion to Westray.
“I’ve had a precious hard life, but Miss Joliffe’s had a harder; and I’ve got myself to thank for my bad luck, while hers is due to other people.”
Sharnall admits his own hardships are self-inflicted, but Miss Joliffe's suffering was caused by others.
Sharnall reflects on the unfairness of Miss Joliffe's life.