The Triumph of the Scarlet Pimpernel · Chapter
XXVIII: In the Meanwhile explained
Marguerite Blakeney endures agonizing isolation in her prison, haunted by fear for her husband and clinging to a cryptic message from an unknown woman.
What happens
Marguerite Blakeney endures agonizing isolation in her prison, haunted by fear for her husband and clinging to a cryptic message from an unknown woman. Meanwhile, Chauvelin abstains from Committee meetings, plotting to capture the Scarlet Pimpernel and use that triumph to seize political power amid the tense, stormy atmosphere of revolutionary Paris.
Themes in this chapter
Ambition and Power
Chauvelin's unscrupulous ambition to capture the Scarlet Pimpernel and seize political dominance drives his actions, as he positions himself as the deus ex machina.
Innocence vs. Corruption
Marguerite's innocent hope and love contrast sharply with the corrupt, cruel world of her jailers and the political machinations of Chauvelin and Robespierre.
Characters to notice
- Marguerite Blakeney
Imprisoned and isolated, she receives a mysterious message about her husband and endures daily terror of Chauvelin's presence outside her door.
- Citizen Chauvelin
Absent from Committee sittings, he focuses entirely on his scheme to capture the Scarlet Pimpernel and leverage that success for supreme power.
- Robespierre
Remains silent and impenetrable, meditating a Titanic attack on his enemies, with his intimates accused of planning a dictatorship.
- Tallien
Moves like a ghostly shadow, feeling the tyrant has already decreed his doom, not daring to speak in the Convention.
- Mother Théot
Waits on Marguerite in silence with a dour mien, bringing meals but checking any attempt at conversation.
Key passages
“I have seen him. He is well and full of hope. I pray God for your deliverance and his, but help can only come by a miracle.”
The message said the writer had seen Marguerite's husband, who was well and hopeful, but that only a miracle could save them.
Marguerite receives a cryptic note from an unknown woman, offering faint hope.
“He was the mysterious and invisible deus ex machina, who anon, when it suited his purpose, would reveal himself in his full glory as the man who had tracked down and brought to the guillotine the most dangerous enemy of the revolutionary government.”
Chauvelin saw himself as a hidden force that would later emerge triumphant, having captured the Scarlet Pimpernel and gained immense popularity.
Chauvelin's grandiose self-image and plan to seize power.