Waddington Questions for discussion What was his

Waddington

Questions for discussion: What was his occupation? What was he doing in Mei Tan-Fun? What did he look like? What kind of man was he? Think about his traits of character. What was special about his drinking habits? How did he and Kitty get along? What role did he play in Kitty’s life in China? Do you like him?

«My name is Waddington. I am the Deputy Commissioner» § «…he was a little thin man, no taller than [Kitty], with a bald head and a small, bare face» . § «His face<…> was unlined and freshcoloured; it was ugly like a monkey's, but with an ugliness that was not without charm; it was an amusing face» . § «He looked like a funny little old boy» .

Waddington’s manners § «The servant brought whisky and soda and <…>Waddington helped himself generously» . § «He spoke lightly and there was in his voice a sort of ghostly laughter so that you could not listen to him without smiling» .

Manners & Character § «He helped himself constantly to liquor <…> but if he was drunk it was without offensiveness, gaily, as a satyr might be who had stolen a wine -skin from a sleeping shepherd» . § «”Don't you think you drink too much? ” – said Kitty to him boldly. — “It's my great pleasure in life <…> Besides, it keeps the cholera out“» . §In general, he liked to drink, but he wasn’t an alcoholic. He joked a lot and put on no frills. He was also very shrewd, but even though he could judge people accurately he wasn’t snobbish. He was not pious and he was not afraid of death. He went to the convent 2 or 3 times a week to see if there was anything he could do.

Waddington & Kitty’ friendship § «She saw Waddington every day <…> and so after a week they had arrived at an intimacy which under other circumstances they could scarcely have achieved in a year» . § Kitty felt at ease with Waddington. He was easygoing and amusing, though very straight-forward. He was also shrewd, but Kitty was not embarrassed or offended by the things he said about her and Walter. They often went for a walk together. She was glad to have Waddington around and didn’t feel inferior to him.

Waddington and the Manchu girl (as seen by Sister St. Joseph) § «He lives with a <…> Manchu [woman]. A princess, it appears, and she loves him to distraction» . § «…he was stationed at Hankow during the revolution when they were massacring the Manchus and this good little Waddington saved the lives of one of their great families <…> related to the Imperial Family. The girl fell violently in love with him and — well, the rest you can imagine. And then <…> she ran away and followed him and now she follows him everywhere, and he has had to resign himself to keep her, poor fellow, and I daresay he is very fond of her» .

Waddington and the Manchu girl (as seen by Waddington) § «It's a good many years now since she threw everything to the winds to be with me. I've sent her away two or three times, but she's always come back; I've run away from her myself, but she's always followed me. And now I've given it up as a bad job; I think I've got to put up with her for the rest of my life» . § «I haven't the smallest doubt that if I really left her, definitely, she would commit suicide. Not with any ill-feeling towards me, but quite naturally, because she was unwilling to live without me. It is a curious feeling it gives one to know that. It can't help meaning something to you» . § «”She’s all the same a very great lady”. He said it in a tone of pride» . § So, perhaps, Waddington didn’t love the Manchu girl and he was not emotional in general. However, he knew sympathy and respect and he didn’t want to cause anyone harm. He did not care much about his own life and he was going to stay in China because he knew it would make the Manchu girl happy.

Waddington’s influence on Kitty § Perhaps, it was partly thanks to him that Kitty regained her spirits quite quickly. Maybe she felt that he was a shoulder to lean on, especially after she had leant about him and the Manchu girl and saw that he could be responsible. It gave her confidence, even though she herself may have not realized it. § Moreover, thanks to Waddigton Kitty managed to see Charles’ pettiness more clearly. § Besides, it was Waddington who introduced Kitty to the nuns who also influenced her views on life, and though he is contrasted to the Mother Superior in the novel, they are both altruistic and even self-sarificing in their own ways.

The Mother Superior and the nuns

Questions for discussion § What are the Mother Superior and Sister St. Joseph like? They are both nuns but they are very different. § What did Kitty feel towards the nuns? Was there a barrier between them? § Do you like the Mother Superior? Sister St. Joseph?

The Mother Superior and nuns (as seen by other people) § «The Mother Superior is a very remarkable woman <…> she belongs to one of the greatest families in France, but they won't tell me which; the Mother Superior, they say, doesn't wish it to be talked of» . § «If you knew her you'd know it was impossible to ask her an indiscreet question» . § «…the French, I think, have an attachment to their country which is almost a physical bond. They're never really at ease when they're out of it. It always seems to me very moving that these women should make just that sacrifice» .

The Mother Superior (as seen by Kitty) § «She stood for an instant on the threshold and a grave smile hovered upon her lips…» § «Kitty felt that the Superior's eyes held her in a long and unembarrassed look of appraisal. It was so frank that it was not uncivil; you felt that here was a woman whose business it was to form an opinion of others and to whom it never occurred that subterfuge was necessary. With a dignified affability she motioned to her visitors to take chairs and herself sat down» . § «Kitty, impressed she hardly knew why, observed the grave lady…» § «It was something that notwithstanding the Mother Superior's cordiality and the exquisite manners which made Kitty feel like an awkward schoolgirl, held her at a distance» . § «Though she was so simple and unaffected she had a native dignity which inspired awe, and you could not imagine that any one could treat her without respect» . § «She had the condescension of a great lady and the humility of a saint» .

Quite a detailed and accurate description of the Mother Superior She was dressed in white and the only colour on her habit was the red heart that burned on her breast. She was a woman of middle age, she might have been forty or fifty, it was impossible to say, for there were few wrinkles on her smooth, pale face, and you received the impression that she was far from young chiefly from the dignity of her bearing, her assurance, and the emaciation of her strong and beautiful hands. The face was long, with a large mouth and large, even teeth; the nose, though not small, was delicate and sensitive; but it was the eyes, under their thin black brows, which gave her face its intense and tragic character. They were very large, black, and though not exactly cold, by their calm steadiness strangely compelling. Your first thought when you looked at the Mother Superior was that as a girl she must have been beautiful, but in a moment you realized that this was a woman whose beauty, depending on character, had grown with advancing years. Her voice was deep, low, and controlled, and whether she spoke in English or in French she spoke slowly. But the most striking thing about her was the air she had of authority tempered by Christian charity; you felt in her the habit of command. To be obeyed was natural to her, but she accepted obedience with humility. You could not fail to see that she was deeply conscious of the authority of the church which upheld her. But Kitty had a surmise that notwithstanding her austere demeanour she had for human frailty a human tolerance; and it was impossible to look at her grave smile when she listened to Waddington, unabashed, talking nonsense, without being sure that she had a lively sense of the ridiculous.

The Mother Superior’s reaction to Sister St. Francis Xavier’s death § «That severe and handsome face was distorted by the grief which human nature wrung from her and by the effort to restrain the tears which her reason and her faith refused» . § However, she soon regained her former self and Kitty was astonished at the mobile temperament which could so easily pass from mood to mood.

Sister St. Joseph § «Her cheerful, easy laughter not a little astonished Kitty. She had an idea that the religious were always grave and this sweet and childlike merriment touched her» . § «…it was the nuns that had most deeply touched [Kitty]. Sister St Joseph, with her merry face and apple -red cheeks; she had been one of the little band that came out to China with the Mother Superior ten years before and she had seen one after another of her companions die of disease, privations, and homesickness; and yet she remained cheerful and happy» .

Kitty and the nuns § «[The nuns] were friendly and even cordial, but at the same time <…> she was conscious that she was nothing but a casual stranger. There was a barrier between her and them. They spoke a different language not only of the tongue but of the heart. And when the door was closed upon her she felt that they had put her out of their minds so completely <…> that for them she might never have existed» . § Over some time Kitty made friends with Sister St. Joseph, but she couldn’t help feeling as if she was still a stranger. § She also felt uneasy because the nuns practically worshipped Walter while she, being his wife, felt nothing. § Anyway, working in the convent helped Kitty to distract her mind. She also «…had a queer feeling that she was growing» .

Thank you for your attention!