The Painted Veil · Chapter
XXXIV explained
Kitty spends her days alone in the bungalow while Walter works, haunted by fear of the cholera epidemic and her own trapped circumstances.
What happens
Kitty spends her days alone in the bungalow while Walter works, haunted by fear of the cholera epidemic and her own trapped circumstances. She contemplates escape but realizes she has nowhere to go—not to her mother, and not to Charlie, who rejected her. Her anger and humiliation fester as she recalls Walter's harsh words.
Themes in this chapter
Suffering and Growth
Kitty's isolation and terror in the face of the plague force her to confront her own helplessness and the consequences of her choices.
Self-Deception and Truth
Kitty's fantasies of escape and reunion with Charlie clash with the painful truth of his rejection and her own shame.
Characters to notice
- Kitty Fane
Alone and frightened, she wrestles with panic and fantasies of escape, but feels trapped by her situation and the memory of Charlie's rejection.
- Walter Fane
Distant and rarely speaking, he answers Kitty's questions about the plague with a chilling nonchalance.
- Waddington
Mentioned as a source of information about the cholera epidemic, along with the amah.
- Charles Townsend
Kitty longs to go to him but knows he does not want her; she imagines his sullen look and hardness.
- Mrs. Garstin
Kitty considers but rejects the idea of returning to her mother, who would be unwelcoming.
Key passages
“The people were dying at the rate of a hundred a day, and hardly any of those who were attacked by the disease recovered from it; the gods had been brought out from the abandoned temples and placed in the streets; offerings were laid before them and sacrifices made, but they did not stay the plague.”
The cholera was killing a hundred people daily, with almost no survivors; the locals brought out their gods and made offerings, but the plague continued unabated.
Highlights the severity of the epidemic and the futility of religious rituals in the face of disaster.
“She thought of throwing herself on the mercy of Waddington, telling him everything and beseeching him to help her to get back to Hong Kong.”
Kitty considered confessing everything to Waddington and begging him to help her escape to Hong Kong.
Shows Kitty's desperation and her impulse to seek help from an outsider.
“She wanted to go to Charlie, and he did not want her. She knew what he would say if she suddenly appeared before him. She saw the sullen look of his face and the shrewd hardness behind his charming eyes.”
Kitty longed to return to Charlie, but she knew he would reject her; she could picture his sullen expression and the calculating coldness beneath his charm.
Reveals Kitty's painful awareness of Charlie's true nature and her own self-deception.