Story summary
Samenvatting van Het kwade genie
- 8 min. leestijd
- 10 parts
- Binnenkort te beluisteren
A dying captain writes a clue in blood on his cuff, and his widow starts a hunt that will wreck a distant family.
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Het kwade genie in het kort
Samenvatting: 8 min leestijd
- Leestijd
- Ongeveer 7 h 5 min5 h 35 min fast, 8 h 25 min slow
- Lengte
- 100.700 woorden
- Bibliotheekniveau
- Gemiddeld longer sentences, everyday words
- Voor het eerst verschenen
- 1886by Wilkie Collins
Reading time at 238 words a minute (fast 300, slow 200). Hoelang het duurt om de klassiekers te lezen · Bijgewerkt
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Het kwade genie in short
The Evil Genius tells of a neglected girl, a loving wife and a husband who cannot say no to his own heart. Mrs. Presty makes every room funnier and more dangerous.
What Het kwade genie is about
A jury of twelve men sits down to decide a captain's fate, and the hungry one wants his dinner while the silent one decides the verdict. Soon a dying man scrawls a message in blood on his shirt cuff, and his widow hunts for a cipher that points to hidden diamonds.
Wilkie Collins wrote The Evil Genius about marriage, divorce and the women who pay for the choices of men. It follows Sydney Westerfield, a neglected child who becomes a governess, and Catherine Linley, the gentle wife who takes her in.
Voor wie is het?. Readers who like a Victorian plot with a mystery at the start, a family drama at its heart and a comic old lady who steals every scene.
The story in 10 parts
Key idea 1 · free to read
A trial, a dying man and a cipher
The novel opens in a jury room, and Collins plays it for laughs. Twelve men consider Captain Roderick Westerfield, accused of wrecking his ship for insurance money and taking Brazilian diamonds.
The mood changes in the next chapter. The prisoner is dying of heart disease. His wife brings their two children to his bed, but she pays attention only to her little son and ignores the daughter, Sydney, who is ten.
With his last breath, the captain tells his wife to unfasten his wristband. Inside it, written in blood, are words telling her to look in the lining of his trunk. She finds a letter and a slip of paper covered with signs. The letter says the second mate confessed to stealing the diamonds, and it begs her to find someone who can read the cipher and return the stones, so that his children may know he was innocent. Mrs. Westerfield reads it as a map to money.
When a story begins with a secret message, the first thing to ask is who wants to read it and why.
- 2Begin gratis met lezen
A mother who trades her child for treasure
One year after the trial, Mrs. Westerfield throws off her mourning clothes and kicks them across the floor.
- 3Begin gratis met lezen
A kind stranger offers a girl a new life
Six years pass at Miss Wigger's school.
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A fortress, a family and a formidable mother-in-law
Mount Morven is a gray old Scottish fortress that strangers may tour, while the family lives in cosy rooms above.
- 5Begin gratis met lezen
Gratitude slowly turns into love
Kitty is the first to notice.
- 6Begin gratis met lezen
Confession, mercy and a painful goodbye
Linley resolves to tell his wife everything.
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A sick child brings the governess home
The house grows quiet after Sydney's departure.
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A mother runs, a lawyer plots and a court decides
Linley and Sydney leave Scotland together, and Mount Morven is closed.
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A false widow and a captain who loves her
At the seaside town of Sandyseal, Catherine, now called Mrs. Norman, and little Kitty make friends among the hotel guests.
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Three themes and the art of the telling
The first theme is forgiveness.
Read all 10 key ideas now
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Characters, plot and themes
Main characters
- Sydney Westerfield A neglected girl who grows up in a cruel school and wants only a home where someone is kind to her.
- Herbert Linley A warm-hearted Scottish landowner who hires the governess out of pity and cannot control what follows.
- Catherine Linley His gentle, trusting wife, who forgives easily and fights fiercely to keep her daughter.
- Mrs. Presty Catherine's mother, a talkative, scheming widow who believes she always knows best and says so constantly.
- Kitty The Linleys' spoiled but loving little daughter, who adores her governess and asks the questions adults avoid.
- Randal Linley Herbert's honest younger brother, who tries to help everyone and doubts his own first impressions.
- Mr. Sarrazin Catherine's lawyer, a lively, kind man of French descent who insists he is entirely English.
- Captain Bennydeck A devout retired naval officer who runs a Home for despairing women and longs for a family of his own.
How it ends (spoiler)
Catherine accepts Captain Bennydeck, then tells him the truth about her divorce. He forgives her but cannot marry a divorced woman, because of his reading of the Bible, and they part in sorrow. Herbert, after a quiet meeting with Catherine, lets her go. Kitty then meets her father in a garden and brings him home, and the family is reunited. Catherine and Herbert marry again. Sydney becomes the Captain's secretary at his Home.
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Vragen over Het kwade genie
What is The Evil Genius by Wilkie Collins about?
It follows a young governess, Sydney Westerfield, who is rescued from a cruel school by Herbert Linley and brought to his Scottish home. Her presence tests the Linley marriage, and the story follows divorce, a mother's fight for her child, and a search for forgiveness.
Who is the Evil Genius in the novel?
The title is used by different characters about different people. Mrs. Presty first calls Sydney the family's Evil Genius, and later others suggest it fits Mrs. Presty herself. The book lets you decide who deserves the name.
Is The Evil Genius a true story?
No, it is a work of fiction by Wilkie Collins, who died in 1889. It uses real Victorian issues, including Scottish divorce law and the rules about child custody, to give the plot its background.
Is The Evil Genius easy to read?
It is approachable, with short chapters, lively dialogue and a comic cast. Mrs. Presty's speeches and Mr. Sarrazin's asides give the story a light touch, while the plot moves from a trial to a family drama with clear steps.
What is the main message of the novel?
The book asks whether forgiveness, even when it is hard, may serve a family better than strict rules. Collins also shows how lies told to protect a child can carry costs, and how kindness and law may pull in different directions.
Verwijs naar deze uitgave
Collins, Wilkie. The Evil Genius. Library of Alexandria, 2026, libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-evil-genius.
Collins, W. (2026). The evil genius. Library of Alexandria. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-evil-genius (Original work published 1886)
Collins, Wilkie. The Evil Genius. Library of Alexandria, 2026. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-evil-genius.
@book{collins2026evil,
author = {Collins, Wilkie},
title = {The Evil Genius},
publisher = {Library of Alexandria},
year = {2026},
url = {https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-evil-genius},
note = {First published 1886}
}
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