The woman in white door William Wilkie Collins

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117 keer beoordeeld

Boek
Auteur
William Wilkie Collins
Taal
Engels
Vak
Eerste uitgave
1860
Pagina's
528
Oorspronkelijke taal
Engels

Boekcover The woman in white
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The woman in white door William Wilkie Collins
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About the author

The eldest son of landscape artist William Collins, Wilkie Collins (1824 – 89) was born in London. He received his education first at private school and later in Italy, whilst living there with his parents. Against his father’s will, he became a writer. Thanks to his connections with Charles Dickens, he gained popularity. At one time, people even queued up to get a copy of his new book. In 1860 he first published The Woman in White. Other works include No Name (1862), Armadale (1866) and The Moonstone (1868). Exploring the realms of mystery, suspense and crime, he is often regarded as the inventor of the detective story.
Wilkie Collins never got married, but he had an on/off relationship with Caroline Graves who had a daughter with another man. Collins also fathered three illegitimate children by Martha Rudd. He died of consequences of gout in 1889.

Summary

Walter Hartright is to leave for Limmeridge, Cumberland. He has got a new position as drawing-master in Limmeridge House – a position which he got as a returning favour for saving his friend professor Pesca’s life – which consists of instructing two young ladies and restoring some old water-colour-paintings. At the night before his departure for Cumberland and returning from his mother’s cottage, on the deserted way back to London, he meets a young woman entirely dressed in white. She seems very distressed and confused. Mr. Hartright discovers she’s from Hampshire, but she had once been to Limmeridge. She’s terrified to meet some baronet (she doesn’t want to mention his name) and on her way to a friend in London. Mr. Hartright gallantly helps her to find a cab. Only a few minutes after seeing her off, he overhears some men informing about a young women in white who had escaped from the Asylum.
At Limmeridge House, Miss Marian Halcombe – a young woman with a beautiful body, but a most ugly face, welcomes Mr. Hartright. She is the half sister of the other lady he is to instruct, Miss Laura Fairlie. Mr. Hartright tells Miss Halcombe his strange adventure with the woman in white, and her mentioning meeting the late Mrs. Fairlie. She is intrigued and promises to look for clues in her mother’s correspondence. The next day, Mr. Hartright has an interview with Mr. Fairlie, Miss Fairlie’s uncle and master of the house. The man is invalid and can’t stand the company of someone other than his valet. That evening Miss Halcombe tells him what she found out: The woman in white’s name is Anne Gatherick, she attended the school in Limmeridge when she was nine. Mrs. Fairlie quite liked her. There seemed to be an incredible likeness between little Anne and little Laura.
Three months pass, in which Mr. Hartright is teaching the two sisters to paint. Being so close to the beautiful Miss Fairlie every day, he falls in love with her. But his happy life doesn’t last long; Walter discovers she is engaged to be married to a baronet. Miss Halcombe, who considers Mr. Hartright a close friend, advises him to leave before things get out of hand. Two days before his departure, an anonymous letter addressed to Miss Fairlie arrives. The letter contains some serious - though not specific – charges against her fiancé, sir Percival Glyde. Mr. Hartright discovers the letter was written by Anne Gatherick. Unfortunately she disappears before he gets the chance to find out what she knows about the baronet. The further investigation is left to the family’s lawyer Mr. Gilmore.
The parting of the two young lovers is hard and painful, but they both agree it is for the best. Sir Percival arrives and has a perfectly good explanation for the situation: he was responsible for shutting up Anne in the Asylum and now she’s got a grudge against him. Miss Fairlie is in despair: she loves Mr. Hartright, but she promised her late father to marry sir Percival. She decides to tell him that she loves another man, without telling his name. She hopes sir Percival will break the engagement. But he doesn’t. Miss Fairlie has got no choice but to marry him. She sets one condition though: Miss Halcombe gets to live with them in Hampshire. In the meantime, Mr. Hartright is really devastated and leaves for South America with an archaeological expedition.
After their honeymoon, sir Percival and Lady Glyde (formerly known as miss Laura Fairlie) arrive at Blackwater Park, Hampshire. They are accompanied by Count and Countess Fosco (Lady Glyde’s aunt), whom they met on the Continent. Miss Halcombe arrived a few days earlier. Whilst she was there, she accidentally discovered that Mrs. Gatherick (Anne’s mother) had been to Blackwater Park to look for her daughter. Strangely, she didn’t want the baronet to know of her visit.
Miss Halcombe is very sorry to find out that the marriage of her sister is not a happy one. She tries to support Lady Glyde anyway she can. She also notices a change in sir Percival; he is no longer the courteous gentleman who used to visit Limmeridge house. Instead his true nature has surfaced: he is rude, ill tempered and very insulting towards Lady Glyde.
Count Fosco is also worth mentioning. He is a handsome, but incredibly fat Italian. He is very intelligent, art loving and courteous. But despite this appearance, Miss Halcombe feels he is not a man to mess with. It is disturbing to see which power he’s got over sir Percival.
One day, by coincidence, sir Percival gets word of Mrs. Gatherick’s visit. Count Fosco, noticing how this news has upset the baronet, requests to know what all the fuss is about. This way he finds out all about the woman in white.
A few days later, Miss Halcombe overhears a conversation between sir Percival and his Lawyer. They are planning on tricking Lady Glyde into giving her husband a great amount of money. Miss Halcombe does everything in her power to prevent this. She gets unexpected help: count Fosco. In the afterglow of this discussion, she gets a vision of Mr. Hartright, predicting his safe return.
The same day, Lady Glyde has an encounter with Anne Gatherick at the lakeside. Anne tells her she knows sir Percival’s Secret and that she will confine it to her the next morning – on the condition she is alone. But Lady Glyde gets caught by the count before she has the chance to meet miss Gatherick for the second time. Sir Percival is mad with rage, thinking his wife knows his Secret and he locks her in her room. He almost does the same to miss Halcombe, but once again the count comes to the rescue.
In the meantime, it is clear to miss Halcombe that sir Percival and count Fosco are up to something to get their hands on a large sum of money. The only way to find out their plan is to eavesdrop on them, so miss Halcombe climbs on the roof to do so. The outcome of the discussion between the two noblemen is that the money should come from the inheritage left by Lady Glyde, after her death. Unfortunately, miss Halcombe is seriously taken ill from her adventure on the roof in the poring rain and she is unable to warn her sister. The count finds her and her journals and is now informed of all her thoughts and plans. Remarkably tough, he has taken a liking for miss Halcombe and he surrounds her with the best care.
The illness of her sister upsets Lady Glyde’s composure, and she is to keep to bed herself. One day, she can’t find miss Halcombe in her room. Sir Percival tells her she has left for Cumberland to recover from her disease. Lady Glyde is determined to follow her, and spends the night in her aunt’s house. When she finds out her sister is not there, she goes into seizure and dies the next day of hear disease.
At Blackwater Park, miss Halcombe learns the sad news and sets of to Limmeridge, where her sister is buried. At home, she receives a letter to inform the family that Anne Gatherick is back in the Asylum. She’s delusional, believing she is Lady Glyde. Curious about this woman who started this mess, miss Halcombe goes to see her. She is taken aback to find out it is actually the real Lady Glyde shut up in the madhouse. She bribes a nurse to help her sister escape and together they travel back to Limmeridge. Mr. Fairlie refuses to believe his niece is alive, so the sisters set of to London. On their way, they halt at the burial ground, finding Walter Hartright weeping over what he assumed to be Lady Glyde’s grave. When he looks up, he recognises his true love and together they go into hiding in London.
Walter does everything in his power to make the family lawyer believe Laura is not dead, but the man needs evidence to legally support that statement. And the way things are now, all the evidence points in the opposite direction. Thinking it over, Walter and Marian decide that the only way to prove that Laura did not die on the 25th of July (as is stated on the death certificate), is to find evidence she arrived in London after that time. Investigations and a lot of interviews with housekeepers, cooks, servants, doctors, … turn out to be a waste of time. None of them remember any exact dates.
So there’s only one possibility left: to put the two conspirators under pressure to provide the evidence. Sir Percival is the surest way to get it: he’s got a big Secret. After an interview with Mrs. Clements, Anne Gatherick’s surrogate mother, Walter heads for Hampshire to meet Mrs. Gatherick. She refuses to tell him anything, but her facial expression and a little slip of the tongue convince Walter to go scrutinise the wedding register. In the vestry of the church he can’t find anything peculiar, but he takes his chances and goes to the nearby village to look at a copy. There he discovers sir Percival’s parents weren’t really married and that sir Percival has no right to claim his title and his estate. Unfortunately, the evidence is destroyed in a fire. It turns out sir Percival had Walter followed and when he felt threatened he went down to the vestry to rip out the falsified page. But he accidentally caused a fire, killing himself.
To distract himself of the hopelessness of their case and to cheer op Laura, Walter takes her and Marian to the coast. On this vacation, Walter and Laura join in holy matrimony.
Marian is convinced they’ve got one chance left: to dig in the past of the count. If they can find something to blackmail him with, they are saved. Walter calls for the help of his friend, professor Pesca, hoping he can identify the count’s real identity. He can’t, but when the count looks their way he suddenly seems terrified. Pesca confesses he is a member of a secret society, and although he doesn’t recognise the count, he must be too. Pesca has got the power to order the execution of Fosco, because he betrayed the principles of “the Brotherhood” (Walter and Marian believe him to be a spy.) Now Walter’s got something up his sleeve to force the count into giving him the evidence. His plan works and Fosco surrenders. He provides them of evidence of the notorious date and gives them a written account of his part in this deceit. The count escapes to Paris, but is murdered by “the Brotherhood”.
When Mr. Fairlie passes away, the little family (Walter, Laura, Marian and Walter jr.) moves to Limmeridge and this happy new is the end of the story.

Explanation of the title

The Woman in White’s name is Anne Gatherick. She’s always dressed in white because Mrs. Fairlie once told her she looks at her best in that colour. Anne is the person who changes the lives of all the main characters. She sets the train in motion in a way of speaking, she is the key factor to make the conspiracy succeed and to clear up the mystery.

Main characters

- Walter Hartright: He’s a young artist, specialised in water-colour-paintings. He is not of noble birth, but is a gentleman all the same. He is well mannered, civilised, and modest and he’s got great stamina. He falls in love, but the romance is not meant to be. Still, when the life and honour of the young lady in question are at stake, he is willing to risk anything, even his own life.
- Miss Laura Fairlie (Lady Glyde): She’s a beautiful young woman, an orphan since a couple of years. She’s got a nice figure, fair hair, blue eyes and a nervous twitch round her mouth. She’s very open, kind and friendly. She plays the piano and she likes to draw. When she’s nervous, her hands can’t keep still. She falls in love with Mr. Hartright, but sacrifices her happiness for a promise she made on her father’s deathbed: to marry sir Percival Glyde.
- Miss Marian Halcombe: She’s the half sister of miss Fairlie. She’s got a beautiful body but a very ugly face. She is dark, with full eyebrows and a dark shadow on her upper lip that is unmistakably a moustache. She’s got dark hair and a low forehead. But her strange appearance is compensated by her great mind. She’s very intelligent, witty and open. She’s not afraid to tell things as they are. She’s got the courage of a man, but social rules keep her from acting like it. She’s most devoted to her sister and loves Walter as a brother.
- Sir Percival Glyde: He’s a handsome baronet in his mid-forties. He’s a real gentleman while courting miss Fairlie, but after the wedding his true nature pops up; he’s ill tempered, inconsiderate, cruel, heartless and very explosive. He’s terrified anyone should find out his secret (his parents weren’t married so he has no right of his title or estate). He’s easily influenced by Count Fosco.
- Count Fosco: He’s extremely good-looking and extremely fat. He’s an Italian in his sixties, but he moves as if he were 30 (and if he were 60 pounds lighter). He’s a very intelligent man, art loving and utterly devoted to his pets (a parrot, 3 canaries and a family of white mice). He was able to tame his wife who used to be quite wild. Under this noble façade, there’s the heart of a killer. He’s not a man you want to mess with. He rather fancies miss Halcombe.

Secundary characters

- Frederick Fairlie, Esquire: He’s miss Farlie’s uncle. He’s in his fifties and looks very frail. He’s an invalid (or believes to be). Noises, voices, light, … everything upsets his composure. He’s self centered, selfish and insulting towards his inferiors. He collects coins and paintings.
- Anne Gatherick: She’s the woman in white. She was brought up by Mrs. Clements because her own mother couldn’t stand being in her presence. She’s somewhat retarded. On the age of nine, her mother took her away to Limmeridge. Her devotion to Mrs. Fairlie (and her family) dates back to that time, as well of her habit of always wearing white. Mrs. Fairlie told her she looked beautiful in that colour.
- Professor Pesca: He’s Walter’s best friend. He left Italy for political reasons, and teaches Italian to the noble youth of England. He has adopted the English lifestyle (a little too enthusiastically maybe) and their way of speaking and expressions. Mr. Hartright saved him from drowning, and since that day he felt obliged to return the favour.
- Mr. Gilmore: He’s the family lawyer. He’s usually very strict in obeying his clients and in acting according the law. For miss Fairlie, he makes an exception. He protests against Mr. Fairlie’s wishes, for Laura’s sake. (Didn’t help tough)
- Mrs. Michelson: She’s the housekeeper at Blackwater Park. She’s the widow of a protestant priest and very religious. She likes the new mistress and her sister. She resigns when she sees how her master treats them.

Literary genre

It’s difficult to label this book. It is a love story, it has suspense, it has drama, … Maybe the term mystery novel suits it best.
It is written in clear language that reads easily. The emphasis is not on long descriptions of places and people. We get to know people by their actions and through what they say. Conversations are very important in this novel.

Narrative techniques

The story is written in a personal perspective, meaning several persons make a contribution to the story. They do so in the first person (when it concerns themselves) or in the third person when the recount something they witnessed. The book is divided in three big parts (epochs), each divided in a number of narratives. Some narratives are diary extracts; others are letters or just written accounts of past events.

First Epoch

The story begun by Walter Hartright
The story continued by Vincent Gilmore
The story continued by Marian Halcombe

Second Epoch

The story continued by Marian Halcombe
Postscript by a sincere friend (count Fosco)
The story continued by Frederick Fairlie
The story continued by Eliza Michelson
The story continued in Several Narratives
the narrative of Hestor Pinhor, cook in the service of Count Fosco
the narrative of the doctor
the narrative of Jane Gould
the narrative of Walter Hartright

Third Epoch

The story continued by Walter Hartright
The story continued by Mrs. Gatherick
The story continued by Walter Hartright
The story continued by Isidor, Ottario, Baldassare Fosco
the count’s Narrative
The story concluded by Walter Hartright

Setting

- Time: the story takes place in the mid 1800’s (about 1849 –1851). Sometimes the story takes us back in time to 1803, 1827 and 1836 to explain certain events in the childhood of Anne, or to discover sir Percival’s secret.
- Place: the story is set mainly in three places. Walter falls in love with Laura in Limmeridge, Cumberland. The events during Laura’s marriage take place at Blackwater Park, Hampshire and the search for the truth (search for evidence) is coordinated from London, although the investigations take Walter to Hampshire and Limmeridge.

Themes

- Love: the one thing that can make life happy and miserable at the same time. Walter and Laura love each other but can’t get married because she’s ingaged to somebody else. Luckily there’s a happy end, and the two lovers can share their love with the rest of the world. Marian loves Laura from the bottom of her heart and would do anything to make her happy. Even if this means she gets her own deal of suffering. Count Fosco (a married man) feels deeply for Marian. She admires him at first, but when she catches a glimp from the real nature of the count, she dispises him. Anne Gatherick loved Mrs. Fairly deeply. This love and devotion causes a lot of trouble, but eventually leads to happiness.
- Sacrifice: Laura sacrifices a happy life together with Walter for a promise she made on her father’s deathbed.Walter would sacrifice his life if it would restore Laura’s life back to normal. Mrs. Catherick sacrificed her reputation and her wedding for money. Sir Percival Glyde sacrifices his life to keep his secret safe.
- Deceit: Sir Percival Glyde deceives the Fairlies into believing he’s an honourable man. He has also falsified a wedding register to hide he is not entitled to his father’s inheritage. Count Fosco is not the gentleman he seems to be. He’s a member of a secret society, but betrayed it to become a spy. Professor Pesca, as good and kind a man he is, is actually a member of the same secret society as count Fosco. (He was tricked into joining when he was young.) Count Fosco deceives the society into believing Lady Glyde is dead, when it was in fact Anne Gatherick who passed away.

My opinion

I was surprised. I thought it was going to be another boring novel, but it turned out to be a story that had me in a firm grip till the end. The absence of long descriptive passages, the clear language, the touching love story and the Agatha Christie-like mystery, make this novel worth reading.

REACTIES

M.

M.

oy helene !!
je werk over the woman in white is gewoonweg subliem !!
bedankt ! XXX Tim

22 jaar geleden

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