Middlemarch, Chapter 21: riassunto

Cosa succede

1. Tantripp announces Will Ladislaw, and Dorothea welcomes the chance to turn from her distress toward sympathy for her husband’s relative.
2. Dorothea and Will discuss her difficulty enjoying paintings, his rejection of painting as a profession, and his dislike of sustained effort.
3. When Dorothea defends her husband’s diligence, Will argues that Casaubon neglects important German scholarship, making her fear his work lacks value.
4. Casaubon returns, politely invites Will to dinner the next day, and conceals his displeasure at finding him with Dorothea.
5. Dorothea apologizes for her morning harshness, but Casaubon’s restrained response leaves her need for affection unmet.
6. Dorothea begins to see her husband as a separate, vulnerable person rather than the source of wisdom she imagines.

In questo chapter

Cosa notare

The narrator connects Dorothea’s disappointment with a broader difficulty in recognizing other people’s inner lives. Her growing sympathy requires more than imagining what marriage gives her.

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