Middlemarch

Dorothea Seeks to Prevent Will’s Visit

Dorothea opens her own letter from Will, finding it a lively continuation of his earlier remonstrance about her “fanatical sympathy” and lack of “sturdy neutral delight in things as they were”—young vivacity impossible for her to absorb in her present state. She immediately faces a decision: whether to write preventing Will’s visit, or to ask someone else to do so. She chooses to give the letter to her uncle Mr. Brooke, who is still in the house, begging him to inform Will that Mr. Casaubon has been ill and that his health would not allow the reception of visitors. Brooke readily agrees, praising Will as “a very clever young fellow” whose letter “marks his sense of things.” Dorothea trusts Brooke to handle the matter and returns to attend to her husband, assuming the danger of Will’s visit has been averted.

Mr. Brooke’s Letter to Will

Mr. Brooke sits down to write but finds his usual difficulty: he cannot write a short letter. His ideas expand across three large pages and the inward foldings. He begins simply enough, intending to inform Will that Casaubon is ill and cannot receive visitors. However, Brooke’s pen proves to be “a thinking organ” that evolves sentences—particularly of a benevolent kind—before the rest of his mind can overtake them. The pen expresses regrets and proposes remedies, seeming “felicitously worded” and “surprisingly the right thing.” By the second page, the pen has persuaded Brooke that it would be a pity for young Ladislaw not to come into the neighborhood, so they might examine Italian drawings together. Inspired by a young man “capable of putting ideas into form,” Brooke decides to invite Will to stay at Tipton Grange instead, where they could find “a great many things to do together.” Brooke dreams of the “Pioneer” newspaper, a new candidate, and documents utilized. He seals the letter elated with “dim projects” and goes away without telling Dorothea what he has added—these things being, to his mind, of no importance to her.

CHAPITRE XXXI.

The chapter opens with an epigraph likening the resonant response of a massive bell to a soft flute note to the subtle, interconnected dynamics of community life. The narrative then centers on the growing, publicly noticed flirtation between physician Tertius Lydgate and Rosamond Vincy, opening with Lydgate telling Rosamond about the deep devotion of the much older, newly married Mrs. Casaubon to her scholarly husband. Rosamond privately muses that being mistress of the wealthy Lowick Manor would not be an unpleasant prospect if her husband were to die young, and asks if Mrs. Casaubon is handsome, which Lydgate confirms. The two discuss Lydgate’s expanding medical practice, which now includes wealthy local families like the Casaubons and Chettams; Lydgate admits he prefers treating poor patients to wealthy ones, who require more fuss and deference. He teases Rosamond about the luxurious surroundings of the wealthy homes they visit, playfully lifting her handkerchief to smell its scent. The text notes their open, persistent flirtation cannot go unnoticed in the tight-knit town of Middlemarch, especially as Rosamond is left alone while her mother and brother stay at Stone Court, setting the stage for widespread gossip and social interference in their relationship.

Discussing the Casaubons

This section covers the opening conversation between Lydgate and Rosamond about the newly wed Casaubons. Lydgate emphasizes how deeply devoted the much older, scholarly Mr. Casaubon’s young wife appears to be to him. Rosamond outwardly notes that a woman’s devotion to her husband is a given, while privately thinking that inheriting Lowick Manor as a young widow would be a desirable outcome. She asks Lydgate if Mrs. Casaubon is attractive, and he confirms she is handsome, though he has not given her appearance much thought. The two also discuss Lydgate’s growing medical practice, which has expanded to include wealthy local families like the Casaubons, a development Rosamond frames as a positive sign of his rising status.