The Painted Veil · Chapter
XX explained
Kitty meets Charlie Townsend in a secret rendezvous to discuss Walter's discovery of their affair.
What happens
Kitty meets Charlie Townsend in a secret rendezvous to discuss Walter's discovery of their affair. Charlie reassures her that Walter will likely stay silent to avoid scandal and protect his career, while Kitty reflects on her love for Charlie and her contempt for Walter's slavish devotion.
Themes in this chapter
Self-Deception and Truth
Kitty and Charlie deceive themselves about Walter's likely response, believing he will ignore the affair to avoid scandal, while Kitty also deludes herself about the depth of Charlie's love.
Love and Illusion
Kitty clings to the illusion of Charlie's passionate love, even as he reveals his self-serving pragmatism; her love is described as 'almost torture.'
Marriage and Social Expectation
The affair and its potential exposure threaten the social order; both characters weigh the costs of scandal against the preservation of their marriage and public standing.
Characters to notice
- Kitty Fane
Anxious and seeking reassurance from Charlie after Walter's suspicious behavior; she feels love and triumph but also a faint contempt for Walter.
- Charles Townsend
Confident and manipulative, he downplays the danger, believing Walter will stay silent to avoid scandal and protect his career; he comforts Kitty with physical affection.
- Walter Fane
Mentioned as having discovered the affair; his silent, polite demeanor and refusal to kiss Kitty goodnight signal his knowledge and hurt.
Key passages
“when you come down to brass tacks a bacteriologist is no great shakes. The chances are that I shall be Colonial Secretary when Simmons goes home, and it’s to Walter’s interest to keep on the right side of me.”
Charlie dismisses Walter's profession and suggests that Walter will stay quiet to avoid harming his own career prospects, since Charlie might become Colonial Secretary.
Charlie's pragmatic and self-serving reasoning reveals his belief that social and professional considerations will override Walter's personal feelings.
“I put it to you that you haven’t been bothering much about your husband lately. Perhaps he isn’t quite so much in love with you as he was.”
Charlie suggests that Kitty's neglect of Walter may have cooled his love, implying that Walter might not be as deeply attached as she thinks.
Charlie subtly undermines Kitty's confidence in Walter's devotion, reinforcing his own narrative of control.
“I swear I’d accept anything rather than that if you were my wife.”
Charlie claims he would tolerate any humiliation to keep Kitty if she were his wife, a statement that both comforts her and reveals his hypocrisy.
This line highlights the irony of Charlie's professed devotion, given his later refusal to leave his own wife.