The Small House at Allington · Chapter
The Last Day explained
Lily and Crosbie spend their last day together before his departure.
What happens
Lily and Crosbie spend their last day together before his departure. Crosbie, feeling trapped by his engagement, lectures Lily about financial difficulties and hints at his own doubts, while Lily remains devoted and tries to reassure him. Despite her inner turmoil, she maintains a cheerful facade for her family.
Themes in this chapter
Love and Marriage
Explores the tension between romantic devotion and practical financial concerns, highlighting Crosbie's ungenerous attitude and Lily's idealistic commitment.
Poverty and Economic Pressure
Crosbie's anxiety about his moderate income and Lily's lack of dowry drives his lectures and hints, underscoring the economic pressures on Victorian marriages.
Characters to notice
- Lilian Dale
Lily experiences emotional highs and lows, clinging to Crosbie despite his ungenerous hints about money and delays. She expresses deep devotion, comparing herself to Ruth, but is wounded by his tone.
- Adolphus Crosbie
Crosbie lectures Lily about financial struggles and his past entanglements, revealing his growing regret and ungenerous nature. He still intends to marry her but feels burdened by the engagement.
- Mrs. Dale
Mrs. Dale notices Lily's unusual brightness at dinner but later senses something is wrong when Lily claims a headache and goes to bed early.
- Isabella Dale
Bell observes Lily's changed demeanor and is present at the dinner table, but Lily avoids talking to her later that night.
Key passages
“Last days are wretched days; and so are last moments wretched moments. It is not the fact that the parting is coming which makes these days and moments so wretched, but the feeling that something special is expected from them, which something they always fail to produce.”
The narrator reflects that the anticipation of a farewell often makes the final moments disappointing because they cannot live up to expectations.
Opening reflection on the nature of last days, setting the tone for the chapter.
“If I cannot be to you at once like Ruth, and never cease from coming after you, my thoughts to you shall be like those of Ruth:—if aught but death part thee and me, may God do so to me and more also.”
Lily vows to be as devoted to Crosbie as Ruth was to Naomi in the Bible, promising that only death will separate them.
Lily's declaration of unwavering love, using biblical allusion to express her commitment.