# The Return — Chapters explained

> Chapter companions for The Return by Walter de la Mare.

- [Epigraph](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_return_se/chapters/epigraph.md): The epigraph quotes Sir Thomas Browne, warning against proximity to corruption and the danger of being tainted by evil influences.
- [The Return](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_return_se/chapters/the-return.md): Arthur Lawford returns home after his unsettling experience at Widderstone churchyard, only to find that his face has changed. He struggles to convince his wife Sheila of his identity, leading to a tense confrontation th
- [I](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_return_se/chapters/i.md): Arthur Lawford, recovering from an illness, wanders into the quiet churchyard of Widderstone. He reflects on his life, his marriage, and a growing sense of melancholy and unreality. After falling into a deep reverie, he 
- [Chapter II](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_return_se/chapters/ii.md): Lawford reveals his transformed face to his wife Sheila, who reacts with disbelief and suspicion. She locks him in his room, seeks advice from Mr. Bethany, and struggles to accept the reality of his condition. Lawford, i
- [III](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_return_se/chapters/iii.md): Mr. Bethany visits the Lawfords and attempts to understand Arthur's strange transformation after his ramble to Widderstone churchyard. Lawford recounts his memory of kneeling by a tombstone, falling asleep, and waking ch
- [IV](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_return_se/chapters/iv.md): Lawford is locked in his room by Sheila and spends the night confronting his transformed reflection in the mirror. He compares his old photograph with his new face, grapples with thoughts of suicide and insanity, and ult
- [V](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_return_se/chapters/v.md): Lawford is examined by Dr. Simon, who attributes his changed appearance and mental state to a chill and nervous shock from influenza. Mr. Bethany and Mrs. Lawford conspire to manage the situation, hiding a sealed letter 
- [VI](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_return_se/chapters/vi.md): Lawford's encounter with Miss Sinnet goes disastrously wrong when he mistakenly calls her 'Miss Bennett,' confirming his fear that his face and identity have changed. He returns home to find Sheila has taken his keys and
- [VII](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_return_se/chapters/vii.md): Lawford, recovering from influenza, is visited by Mr. Bethany who believes he is improving. Lawford resolves to return to Widderstone to reverse his transformation, but his hope is shaken by his daughter Alice's fearful 
- [Chapter VIII](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_return_se/chapters/viii.md): Lawford, increasingly restless and craving solitude, argues with Sheila about his need to go out despite her fears. He feels a growing internal conflict between his old self and a strange new consciousness. Sheila leaves
- [IX](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_return_se/chapters/ix.md): Lawford returns to the graveyard at dusk and finds a stranger sitting by Sabathier's grave. They discuss the suicide, the possibility of the dead answering back, and the nature of death. The stranger reveals himself as H
- [Chapter X](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_return_se/chapters/x.md): Mr. Bethany and Mr. Danton discuss Arthur Lawford's strange affliction, with Bethany arguing for faith and patience while Danton remains skeptical. Lawford descends and confronts Danton with bitter sarcasm, then retreats
- [XI](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_return_se/chapters/xi.md): Lawford wakes from a troubled sleep and is confronted by Sheila about his strange behavior the previous night. He struggles with his altered appearance and the fear that his mind is affected. Later, he encounters his dau
- [XII](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_return_se/chapters/xii.md): Lawford confesses his fear of insanity to Herbert, who responds with calm skepticism. Herbert reveals that Lawford's changed face resembles an engraving of Nicholas Sabathier, an 18th-century French figure. Herbert theor
- [XIII](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_return_se/chapters/xiii.md): Lawford meets Grisel, Herbert's sister, and is deeply moved by her presence. After a moment of emotional breakdown, she follows him into the night, offering companionship and understanding. They walk together, overcoming
- [XIV](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_return_se/chapters/xiv.md): Sheila confronts Lawford about his late return and his visit to Widderstone, leading to a heated argument about his changed face and their marriage. She accuses him of madness and selfishness, while Lawford admits feelin
- [XV](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_return_se/chapters/xv.md): Lawford, in a state of profound mental and emotional turmoil, experiences a terrifying descent into madness after his wife and household have fled. He is visited by Mr. Bethany, who tries to reason with him about the sup
- [XVI](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_return_se/chapters/xvi.md): Lawford, grappling with his altered identity, seeks solace in ordinary encounters—a barber, a baker's wife—and later meets Grisel in the churchyard. They discuss his transformation, fear, and courage, while he reflects o
- [Chapter XVII](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_return_se/chapters/xvii.md): Lawford visits Herbert and Grisel, where Herbert attempts to rationalize Lawford's transformation as a product of imagination and self-hypnosis, suggesting he has 'Sabathiered' himself. Lawford, weary and detached, recou
- [XVIII](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_return_se/chapters/xviii.md): Lawford spends a morning with Herbert, who expounds on genius and the nature of life, then joins Grisel for a picnic where they discuss his changed appearance and sanity. Grisel reassures him that his identity remains in
- [XIX](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_return_se/chapters/xix.md): Lawford discovers that the portrait and memoir of Sabathier have been removed from the book, realizing Sheila has taken them. He returns home to an empty, strange house, then leaves with Grisel, who offers him refuge. He
- [Chapter XX](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_return_se/chapters/xx.md): Lawford, staying with Herbert and Grisel, struggles with haunting memories and visions, particularly a mysterious connection to a place called Detcham. After a restless night and a disturbing episode on a hill, he finds 
- [Chapter XXI](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_return_se/chapters/xxi.md): Lawford bids farewell to Herbert and Grisel, confessing his transformation into Nicholas Sabathier and his inability to return to his old life. Grisel insists he must face his fate, and they part at a milestone, leaving 
- [XXII](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_return_se/chapters/xxii.md): In a tense gathering at the Lawford home, Sheila reveals to Danton, Mrs. Lovat, and Mr. Craik that her husband Arthur's changed face is identical to that of Nicholas de Sabathier, a man dead for over a century. Danton di
- [XXIII](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_return_se/chapters/xxiii.md): Lawford sits alone in the dark, reflecting on his isolation and the nature of existence, haunted by thoughts of Sabathier and the mystery of life. Miss Sinnet visits and recounts a strange encounter on Bewley Heath with 

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