# Chapter XXII explained — Zuleika Dobson

> Chapter companion for Zuleika Dobson by Max Beerbohm.

## What happens

Zuleika confronts Katie, who reveals the Duke gave her the earrings and kissed her goodbye. Noaks, who had hidden instead of dying, is exposed and shamed by the women. He climbs out a window and falls to his death. Katie later finds Noaks alive and they become engaged, though Noaks remains haunted by Zuleika.

## Themes in this chapter

### Love and Obsession

Noaks is torn between his engagement to Katie and his obsessive memories of Zuleika, illustrating the conflict between genuine affection and infatuation.

### Vanity and Self-Absorption

Zuleika's vanity is evident as she dismisses Noaks and revels in her power over men, while Katie's pride in her engagement shows her own self-absorption.

### Death and Sacrifice

Noaks' fall and death, followed by his survival, underscore the theme of sacrifice and the fine line between cowardice and heroism.

### Artifice and Performance

Katie's public display of the earrings and Noaks' pretense of being dead highlight the performative nature of love and honor in this society.

## Character check-ins

### Zuleika Dobson

Confronts Katie about the Duke, taunts Noaks, and later takes full toll of the undergraduates' deaths.

### Katie

Reveals the Duke gave her earrings and kissed her; later becomes engaged to Noaks.

### Noaks

Hides instead of dying, is exposed, climbs out a window and falls to his death; later found alive by Katie and becomes engaged to her.

### Mrs. Batch

Supports Katie's accusations against Noaks and shames him.

### Clarence

Dances for joy at Noaks' exposure and volunteers to fight him.

### Duke of Dorset

Mentioned as having given Katie earrings and kissed her goodbye.

## Key lines

> Sisters? cried Katie. Your sisters are the snake and the spider, though neither of them wishes it known.

Katie rejects Zuleika's offer of sisterhood, comparing her to venomous creatures.

_Highlights the intense animosity between the two women._

> He died for love of me: d'you hear? Ah, you'd like people to think so, wouldn't you? Does a man who loves a woman give away the keepsake she gave him?

Zuleika asserts the Duke died for her, but Katie counters that he gave away her gift, proving he didn't love her.

_Reveals the central conflict over the Duke's true affections._

> Is it harder for a coward to fight with his fists than to kill himself? Or again, is it easier for him to die than to endure a prolonged crossfire of women's wrath and scorn?

The narrator questions whether cowardice makes death preferable to facing women's scorn.

_Reflects on Noaks' choice to jump rather than face humiliation._

> I shall not be in a position to marry before I am forty.

Noaks tells Katie they must wait until he is forty to marry due to his financial plans.

_Illustrates the practical, delayed approach to marriage in the era._

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/zuleika_dobson_se/chapters/xxii
- Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/zuleika_dobson_se
- All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/zuleika_dobson_se/chapters