Chapters 3 and 4 Summary and Analysis
Summary
Catherine grows up to be “healthy” yet plain.
She develops an interest in “lively” dress, about which Dr. Sloper has much
misgivings. He thinks it is bad enough that she is plain and dull, but now she
is also overdressed. Catherine buys a dress that she has long wanted, a red
silk gown with gold fringe. Although she is only twenty years old, the dress
makes her look a more matronly thirty. It is this dress that she wears to the
party given by her aunt, Mrs. Almond, in celebration of her daughter’s
engagement to Arthur Townsend.
Dr. Sloper had been living downtown, but with the increase in his income and social level, he moves up to the more fashionable district on Washington Square. Mrs. Almond lives even further up town with her nine children. Catherine grows up extremely close to her cousins, especially the male ones. She enjoys boys’ games, but eventually the boys grow up and move away or go into business. One of her girl cousins is married, and the younger one, Marian, is engaged to a young stockbroker.
At the party, Catherine stands out because of her dress, but she remains on the sidelines. Her cousin Marian brings over Arthur’s cousin, Morris, who has asked to be introduced to her. Catherine is dumbfounded by his attractiveness, and she cannot remember his name, a habit she has when introduced to new people. Morris, however, is more than able to carry the conversation. He admires all aspects of the party and its inhabitants, while Catherine can murmur only short responses. She cannot keep her eyes off him, however. He is tall and slim but also appears to be strong. He has only recently returned to New York after spending several years travelling abroad. He is endeavoring to get back into the society of his birthplace.
Eventually Marian comes to take Morris to be introduced to her mother. Marian then asks Catherine what she thinks of Morris and she replies, “Nothing particular,” which is a deliberate lie. Later Catherine notices Morris talking to her aunt, Mrs. Penniman. The latter seems to be genuinely impressed with the young man, a fact which gratifies Catherine. When Dr. Sloper arrives, he expresses surprise that his daughter appears in the form of “this magnificent person.” He comments, however, that she looks as if she had “eighty thousand a year,” meaning that she appears more wealthy than she actually is. Dr. Sloper asks Catherine if she has enjoyed the party, and she merely replies that she is tired—another lie from someone who is usually honest. Dr. Sloper asks Mrs. Penniman about the young man, and Mrs. Penniman says that Morris was asking about Catherine. He especially admired her dress, she reports, which deflates Catherine somewhat. Dr. Sloper then pretends that Morris must be in love with Catherine, which he patently does not believe possible. Dr. Sloper comments that if Morris is interested in her dress, he must think she is wealthy. When Mrs. Penniman asks Catherine what his name is, Catherine again lies and says, “I don’t know.”
Analysis
Several revelations are given concerning Catherine’s character. Her love of extravagant dress reveals much of her insecurity. She knows that she is plain and will never attract attention because of her looks, so she tries instead to be conspicuous in her manner of dress. The loud colors and garish embellishments are not appropriate for her age, but she is drawn to them merely for their obviousness. Dr. Sloper accuses her of trying to look wealthier than she is, when in reality he believes she looks simply...
(This entire section contains 1072 words.)
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cheap. He does not have a good opinion of elaborate fashion and, coupled with his low opinion of his daughter, is blinded to Catherine’s poor attempts to make herself less invisible than she feels she actually is.
The contrast between Catherine and Morris is revealed in several instances. While she is plain and “solid,” more of a masculine build, Morris is tall and slim as well as incredibly attractive. The juxtaposition of the physical features of the two main characters highlights the improbability of a strong relationship. Morris’s personality, too, is more outgoing, compared to the reserve that Catherine exhibits. She is unable to carry on a decent conversation, especially with someone so obviously attractive, yet Morris is able to bear the weight of the small talk and continues to impress Catherine as well as her aunt, Mrs. Penniman.
The attraction that Catherine and Mrs. Penniman feel for Morris is contrasted with Dr. Sloper’s cynical assessment of his attentions toward Catherine. Catherine is overdressed, appearing to be a person whose income is greater than it actually is; Morris seems to have noticed Catherine first by her dress. Thus Morris thinks Catherine is a wealthy—and available—young lady. Dr. Sloper immediately sets the stage for doubts about Morris Townsend and his pursuit of Catherine for marriage.
Throughout the evening at the party, Catherine assumes a passive role, one that she has been playing all her life. But as the narrator states, this party is the beginning of “something important.” It is in fact the starting gun for the race over Catherine’s future. The conflict between Morris Townsend and Austin Sloper over the possibility of anyone being genuinely in love with Catherine begins at this point. While the reader may be immediately drawn to Morris by the force of his outgoing personality, as Catherine is herself, Dr. Sloper sparks a note of suspicion about the young man. The contrast between the seemingly sincere pleasure that Morris feels in Catherine’s company and Dr. Sloper’s subtle contempt for his daughter makes Catherine the battlefield between the two men as they determine the course of Catherine’s life. At a time when it was considered unthinkable that a woman could choose her own future, Catherine’s fate is assumed to rest entirely in the hands of her father. His view that she is plain has already condemned her to a life of spinsterhood. This he has accepted as a provable fact, and he is always a man of facts. The possibility that he might actually be wrong does not occur to him. It is left to the course of the story to determine if Morris, Dr. Sloper, or possibly Catherine herself will be the one to direct Catherine’s life and happiness.
