The Painted Veil · Chapter
VI explained
Kitty reflects on her failed marriage, blaming her mother Mrs.
What happens
Kitty reflects on her failed marriage, blaming her mother Mrs. Garstin for pushing her into it. She examines photographs of her parents, noting her mother's manipulative and ambitious nature.
Themes in this chapter
Marriage and Social Expectation
Kitty's marriage is revealed as a mistake driven by her mother's social ambitions, highlighting the pressure to conform to societal norms.
Self-Deception and Truth
Kitty acknowledges the truth of her failed marriage, yet her mother's photograph symbolizes the deceptive facade of social success.
Characters to notice
- Kitty Fane
Reflects on her marriage mistake and her mother's role.
- Mrs. Garstin
Photograph shows her as ambitious and controlling; blamed for Kitty's marriage.
- Bernard Garstin
Photograph shows him as unassuming and mild; chosen by Mrs. Garstin to appear judicial.
Key passages
“Within three months of her marriage she knew that she had made a mistake; but it had been her mother’s fault even more than hers.”
Kitty realized her marriage was a mistake soon after the wedding, but she blamed her mother more than herself.
Establishes Kitty's early regret and her resentment toward her mother's influence.
“She was a woman of fifty, thin and flat-chested, with prominent cheekbones and a large, well-shaped nose.”
Mrs. Garstin is described as a thin, sharp-featured woman of fifty.
Physical description of Mrs. Garstin, emphasizing her stern and calculating appearance.