The Blithedale Romance | Chapter 22 Summary

Twenty five years ago, Moodie, then called Fauntleroy, was "a man of wealth, who married a beautiful woman who gave him a beautiful daughter.  His love for them was superficial, his greatest concern being his money, and when his fortune finally "became exhausted", he committed a heinous crime to preserve it "for...only a few breaths more".  When Fauntleroy's guilt was exposed, he fled; his wife perished of shame, and his daughter "was left worse than orphaned".

Fauntleroy, now called Moodie, started a new life in New England, "in a squalid street".  He married "a forlorn, meek-spirited, feeble young...seamstress", who also gave him a daughter.  After a few years, his second wife died, leaving him with this daughter, Priscilla, who was capable of great love.  Fauntleroy often told Priscilla tales of her beautiful, "unseen sister" Zenobia, for whom she developed an intense devotion.  Priscilla, ever ethereal, was also thought to have the gift of second sight, and a mysterious gentleman whom some believed was a wizard was seeking to establish an association with her.

Zenobia, meanwhile, had grown up to be lovely and imperious.  When the Uncle who had raised her died, she informally inherited his money, since her father could not be found.  Without revealing his relationship to Zenobia, Moodie summons her into his presence one day, and, impressed by her beauty and ability, decides to remain incognito and allow her to keep her fortune on one condition - that she be kind to his daughter Priscilla (Chapter 22).