The Turmoil · Chapter
XII explained
Three days after Jim's funeral, Bibbs Sheridan takes charge of the arrangements and becomes the master of the household.
What happens
Three days after Jim's funeral, Bibbs Sheridan takes charge of the arrangements and becomes the master of the household. At the cemetery, after the service, he encounters Mary Vertrees, who has been left behind by her carriage. They share a quiet, awkward ride home in the undertaker's coupé, exchanging their first words and forming an unexpected connection.
Themes in this chapter
Family and Legacy
Jim's death forces Bibbs into a leadership role, while Sheridan's grief and determination to 'make a man' of Bibbs highlight the weight of family expectations and legacy.
Mortality and Health
Bibbs reflects on his own closeness to death, contrasting his frail health with Jim's strength. The funeral setting underscores the fragility of life.
Characters to notice
- Bibbs Sheridan
Bibbs takes control of funeral arrangements, showing unexpected strength. He feels deep pity for his father and reflects on his own mortality. He shares a silent, meaningful ride with Mary Vertrees.
- James Sheridan
Sheridan is devastated by Jim's death, unable to cope. He is determined to 'make a man' of Bibbs, despite the potential harm.
- Mary Vertrees
Mary attends the funeral and is accidentally left behind. She asks Bibbs for a ride home, and they share their first conversation, during which she gains insight into his character.
- Roscoe Sheridan
Roscoe is dazed and shirks funeral responsibilities, justifying his inexperience. He follows Bibbs's directions.
- Edith Sheridan
Edith weeps at the funeral and makes truce with Sibyl, ensuring mourning garments are proper.
- Sibyl Sheridan
Sibyl makes truce with Edith during the mourning period.
Key passages
“the sickly brother had buried the strong brother, and Bibbs wondered how many million times that had happened since men first made a word to name the sons of one mother.”
Bibbs reflects on the irony that the weak brother outlived the strong one, a common tragedy throughout human history.
Bibbs's philosophical observation about mortality and family.
“So it was Bibbs, the shy outsider, who became, during this dreadful little time, the master of the house; for as strange a thing as that, sometimes, may be the result of a death.”
In the chaos of grief, the quiet and overlooked Bibbs unexpectedly takes charge of the household.
Bibbs's unexpected rise to responsibility after Jim's death.
“He had no shudder for that thought or for any other thought. The truth about Bibbs was in the poem which Edith had adopted: he had so thoroughly formed the oversensitive habit of hiding his feelings that no doubt he had forgotten—by this time—where he had put some of them, especially those which concerned himself.”
Bibbs has become so accustomed to suppressing his emotions that he no longer knows where they are, even regarding his own well-being.
Bibbs's emotional repression and detachment from his own feelings.