Where Angels Fear to Tread

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For other uses, see Where Angels Fear to Tread (disambiguation) and Fools
rush in where angels fear to tread.

Where Angels Fear to Tread

First edition

Author E. M. Forster

Original title Monteriano

Country United Kingdom

Language English

Publisher William Blackwood and

Sons

Publication date 1905

Pages 319

Where Angels Fear to Tread (1905) is a novel by E. M. Forster. The title

comes from a line in Alexander Pope's An Essay on Criticism: "For fools rush in
where angels fear to tread".
In 1991 it was made into a film by Charles Sturridge, starring Rupert Graves,
Giovanni Guidelli, Helen Mirren, Helena Bonham Carter, and Judy Davis.[1] A
ten-part radio adaptation of the novel was broadcast on BBC Radio 4.[2] An
opera based on the novel by Mark Weiser was premiered at the Peabody
Institute of Music in 1999, and received its professional premiere at Opera San
Jose in 2015.[3]

Contents

 1Plot summary
 2Writing
 3Critical reception
 4References
 5External links

Plot summary[edit]
On a journey to Tuscany with her young friend and travelling companion
Caroline Abbott, widowed Lilia Herriton falls in love with Gino, a handsome
Italian man much younger than herself, and decides to stay. Furious, her dead
husband's family send Lilia's brother-in-law Philip to Italy to prevent a
misalliance, but he arrives too late. Lilia has already married Gino and becomes
pregnant again. She gives birth to a son, but dies in childbirth. Caroline decides
to go to Tuscany again to save the child from what she perceives will be a
difficult life. Not to be outdone, the Herritons send Philip again to Italy, this
time accompanied by his sister Harriet, to save the family's reputation. In the
public eye, they make it known that it is both their right and their duty to travel
to Italy to obtain custody of the infant so that he can be raised as an
Englishman. Secretly, though, they have no regard for the child, only public
appearances.
Philip and Harriet meet Caroline in Monteriano. Both Philip and Caroline
eventually fall under the charm of Italy, which causes them to waver in their
original purpose. They further learn that Gino is fiercely devoted to Lilia's
infant son. As they admit defeat in their mission however, Harriet kidnaps the
baby, but the baby is accidentally killed when the carriage he is in overturns.
Gino, hearing the news, attacks Phillip, but the two are reconciled after
Caroline's mediation. Gino's physical outburst toward Philip in response to the
news makes Philip realise what it is like to truly be alive. The guilt felt by
Harriet causes her to lose her mind. Finally, as Philip and Caroline return to
England, he realises that he is in love with Caroline but that he can never be
with her, because she admits, dramatically, to being in love with Gino.

Writing[edit]
With a working title of "The Rescue", Forster began the novel in late 1904,
completing ten chapters in one month.[4]

Critical reception[edit]
The reviewer for UK daily newspaper The Manchester Guardian (forerunner
of The Guardian) wrote in August 1905: "Where Angels Fear to Tread is not at
all the kind of book that its title suggests. It is not mawkish or sentimental or
commonplace. The motive of the story […] is familiar and ordinary enough, but
the setting and treatment of this motive are almost startlingly original". The
review noted "a persistent vein of cynicism which is apt to repel, but the
cynicism is not deep-seated. […] [I]t takes the form of a sordid comedy
culminating, unexpectedly and with a real dramatic force, in a grotesque
tragedy." It concluded by saying, "We wonder whether EM Forster could be a
little more charitable without losing in force and originality. An experiment
might be worth trying."[5]
Lionel Trilling wrote, "Forster's first novel appeared in 1905. The author was
26, not a remarkable age at which to have written a first novel unless the novel
be, as Forster's was, a whole and mature work dominated by a fresh and
commanding intelligence".[6]

Where Angels Fear to Tread Summary

Thanks for exploring this SuperSummary Plot Summary of “Where Angels

Fear to Tread” by E. M. Forster. A modern alternative to SparkNotes and
CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality study guides that feature
detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters,
quotes, and essay topics.

Where Angels Fear to Tread is a 1905 novel by the British writer E.M.
Forster, best known for his later novels A Room With a View (1908) and A
Passage to India  (1924). Where Angels Fear to Tread covers similar
thematic territory to those novels, concerning a young woman, Lilia
Herriton, who attempts to escape the snobbery and repression of her life
in Edwardian England through a passionate affair with an Italian man
from a lower-class background, Gino Carella. Lilia’s story ends unhappily
as she realizes that Gino has married her for her money and that she can
never be reintegrated into middle-class English life. After her death, her
Italian and English families fight for custody of her son by Gino. The
novel’s title is taken from a line in Alexander Pope’s 1711 Essay on
Criticism: “For fools rush in where angels fear to tread.”

The novel opens as a young widow, Lilia, arrives at the train station in
Sawston, England. Lilia has been living with the family of her late
husband: Mrs. Herriton and her surviving children, Philip and Harriet.
However, Mrs. Herriton, regarding Lilia as vulgar and unsophisticated,
despairs of the way Lilia is raising her daughter, Irma; worst of all, she
has discovered that Lilia is growing close to a lower-class man. Although
Mrs. Herriton is a snob, it is clear that Sawston’s “society” shares her
prejudices. Forster makes it clear that Sawston is a place where hypocrisy
and repression rule, and where people are more concerned with
maintaining appearances than anything else.

To avoid disgrace in the eyes of her neighbors, Mrs. Herriton has decided
to send Lilia to Italy. In Italy, Mrs. Herriton hopes, Lilia will not only be
separated from her would-be lover, she might also acquire some culture.
Meanwhile, the Herritons will keep Irma with them and raise her
properly in Lilia’s absence. To keep Lilia from getting into trouble, Mrs.
Herriton has appointed a chaperone, Miss Caroline Abbot, who is
younger than Lilia, but in the Herritons’ opinion trustworthy.

Lilia is more than happy to comply with this plan: she feels oppressed by
the atmosphere of Sawston and the difficulties of raising her daughter.
She feels liberated when she arrives in the Italian town of Monteriano,
"where one really does feel in the heart of things, and off the beaten
track." Lilia is entranced by the passion of the Italian villagers and their
lusty, unrestrained attitude to life. However, Forster allows us to glimpse
something that Lilia cannot see herself: the Italians’ romantic and familial
customs are also very different to those of Sawston, and Lilia may be a
little out of her depth.

Lilia falls for a local man, Gino Carella. He is extremely handsome and
charming, but the reader can see that he is also selfish and self-absorbed.

Mrs. Herriton learns from Lilia’s mother that Lilia has married “an
Italian nobleman.” Suspecting that the truth is otherwise, she dispatches
her son Philip to find out. Philip hears the full story from Caroline: Gino,
the son of a local dentist, from the Herritons’ perspective is little better
than a peasant. Appalled, Philip takes Lilia back to England. The
Herritons will have nothing further to do with the disgraced Lilia, but
they keep Irma with them since she still bears “the Herriton name” and
cannot be allowed to disgrace it.

Lilia, pregnant with Gino’s son, dies in childbirth. The Herritons and
Gino fight over custody, and Mrs. Herriton sends Philip and Harriet to
Italy to reclaim Lilia’s son. They meet up with Caroline and explain their
mission. Caroline agrees to help, but privately she is concerned, believing
(correctly) that Mrs. Herriton is concerned only about her family’s
reputation and not about the welfare of the child.

Philip and Harriet attempt to persuade Gino to part with his son. Caroline
provides ambivalent help. Finally, realizing that nothing will persuade
Gino, Harriet kidnaps the baby and makes a hasty escape by carriage—
but the carriage overturns on a steep road and the baby dies.

Furious and grief-stricken, Gino confronts Philip, who is overcome with

remorse. Having played both sides throughout, Caroline steps in to keep
the peace.

Caroline and Philip return to England. Philip has fallen in love with
Caroline, and he is planning to declare his love during the journey, but
before he can do so, Caroline admits that she has developed feelings for
Gino.

Where Angels Fear To Tread explores themes of cultural difference,

prejudice, and the tension between family and romantic ties. Forster’s
first novel, it established his reputation as a major new voice in British
fiction. In 1991, the novel was adapted into a film of the same name,
starring Rupert Graves and Helen Mirren. It has also been staged as an
opera, which received its first professional performance in 2015 at Opera
San Jose.

Chapter 1
 Lilia Herriton, a widow of several years, has been living with her in-laws,
the Herritons, since her husband Charles' death.

 At Charing Cross station, everyone is gathered to wish Lilia a bon

voyage to Italy. Snobbish Philip Herriton, his dour sister Harriet,
precocious little Irma (Lilia's daughter), disapproving Mrs. Herriton, and
meek Mrs. Theobold (Lilia's mother) accompanied by Mr. Kingcroft, are
all speaking at once, trying to give Lilia last minute advice.

 Lilia's trip to Italy had been Philip's idea—a desperate attempt by the
Herritons to put a stop to Lilia's flirtations with Mr. Kingcroft, who Mrs.
Herriton considers an unsuitable match for her daughter-in-law. He
probably wears white shoes after Labor Day, or eats his salad with his
dinner fork.

 Luckily for the Herritons, Caroline Abbott, a woman ten years younger
than Lilia but way more levelheaded, was looking for a travel buddy (it
was highly improper for young ladies to travel alone at the time, because
of rogue fainting spells or something).
 Arrangements were quickly made, and now Lilia is all packed up and
ready for an extended stay in Italy with Miss Abbott as her travel
companion (who incidentally is also expected to keep an eye on Lilia's
unpredictable behavior).

 Philip, who has traveled to Italy a bunch of times and thinks

he's the expert on the country, reminds Lilia to go off the beaten track to
really experience Italy at its best. As Lilia boards the train with Caroline,
Harriet calls out that there are handkerchiefs in the inlaid box she has lent
Lilia for the trip. Symbol alert: watch this inlaid box.

 Returning home to Sawston, the Herritons have afternoon tea and share
their relief over Lilia's departure. Philip is quite pleased with himself for
coming up with the idea of sending Lilia off to Italy. He even thinks that
the beauty and culture of Italy will cure Lilia of being a Philistine (that
means someone who is uncultured and has bad taste).

 Now for some quick character background on Lilia. The narrator now
fills us in on the details leading up to Lilia's trip to Italy:

 1) A dude named Charles fell in love with Lilia almost ten years ago.
Mrs. Herriton does everything in her power to prevent the marriage, but
being unable to come between the couple, she switches tactics to
supervising Lilia's each and every move;

 2) After Lilia gives birth to Irma, Mrs. Herriton takes charge of training
Irma to behave properly;

 3) When Charles dies (we don't know how), Lilia tries to assert herself,
but Mrs. Herriton puts constant pressure on her to perform the duties of
widowhood;

 4) Lilia forms a flirtatious friendship with Mr. Kingcroft, and as a result,

is promptly shipped off to Italy before she risks ruining the Herriton's
precious reputation.

 Recipe for unhappiness for poor Lilia? We think so, yup.

 Ok, back to the present time. The winter passes quietly and Lilia's tour of
Italy seems to be a success. Lilia is becoming quite the sophisticated
traveler, and back in Sawston, Irma's manners are improving under the
 guidance of Mrs. Herriton. She's probably picking up some handy-dandy
Edwardian skills like the ability to wear a big hat without toppling over.

 But hang onto your (big) hat because things are about to get real bumpy.
Mrs. Herriton receives a letter from Mrs. Theobold saying that Lilia is
engaged to "someone at the hotel." Clearly, this is not at all what Mrs.
Herriton had planned for. She had only just broken up Lilia and Mr.
Kingcroft, and now this. Smelling salts, please!

 Fearing the worst, Mrs. Herriton rushes off to send a telegram to

Caroline. Miss Abbott has some serious explaining to do.

 When a telegram from Caroline finally arrives, Mrs. Herriton learns to

her dismay that Lilia is engaged to "Italian nobility." Mrs. Herriton senses
that this must be a lie, and in a last ditch attempt to prevent scandal, she
insists that Philip go at once to Italy to bring Lilia home before she goes
through with the marriage.
Chapter 2
 Philip arrives in the small town of Monteriano, where Lilia and Caroline
have been staying for the past month. He is tired and worried about how
to clean up the mess Lilia has gotten herself into.

 Miss Abbott meets Philip at the station, and the two of them take a
carriage back to the hotel. Philip gets straight to the point and asks
Caroline how long Lilia has been engaged. Eleven days, to be exact
(definitely a love-at-first-sight romance).

 Miss Abbott then confesses that she was the one who brought up the idea
of marriage (maybe not the best idea, Caroline; just saying). To his
further dismay, Philip is told that Lilia's fiancé, Gino Carella, is not a
nobleman, but rather the son of a dentist in Monteriano. For a wealthy,
upper-class family like the Herritons, the social position of a dentist is
pretty low on the totem pole.

 At dinner, Philip is even more disgusted when he meets Gino. Although

Gino has his looks going for him, everything else about him (in Philip's
opinion) is crude and uncouth. Welcoming Gino as part of the family
would certainly not be an option.

 When Philip finally manages to get Lilia alone, the conversation does not
go well. Lilia tries to convince Philip that Gino's position as a dentist is
 improving and that he's climbing up the social ladder. Dismissing Lilia's
praise of Gino, Philip says that he has come to rescue Lilia from certain
disgrace. But Lilia insists that this time she will marry for love and calls
Gino into the room.

 Philip bluntly offers Gino money in exchange for breaking off the
engagement, but Gino merely laughs defiantly and drops the big news:
He and Lilia are already married! They got married as soon as they heard
Philip was coming. Oh, goodness! Where are those smelling salts?

 In the confusion that ensues, Gino gives Philip a friendly shove and then
rushes off to tell Lilia the joke. Imagining that he has been physically
assaulted, Philip immediately tells Miss Abbott that he will be returning
to Sawston the next day. Caroline pleads with him to take her back to
England with him.
Chapter 3
 Newlyweds Lilia and Gino are settling into the new home they just
bought in Monteriano—a pretty stone house surrounded by olive trees
and vineyards. We totally wouldn't mind being invited as houseguests.

 Initially, Lilia seems to be the one wearing the pants in the household.
She doesn't want Gino's family to move in with them (even though there's
plenty of space in the house), and Gino complies. When Lilia writes
home to Mrs. Herriton, a reply from Harriet states that from now on Lilia
can only contact the family through lawyers. Harriet also requests Lilia to
return the inlaid box that had been lent, not given, to her.

 Gino grows increasingly bored and idle since he no longer has to work
for a living (Lilia has enough money to support both of them).
Meanwhile, Lilia gets it into her head that she wants to host a tea party
and invite the important members of society in Monteriano. But Gino's
friends are mostly all lower-class workingmen. Gino also tells her that in
Italy, women aren't allowed to take walks alone without someone
accompanying her. Lilia starts realizing that for a woman, life in Italy
is way different than in England.

 One day, Gino runs into Spiridione Tesi, an old friend who had heard of
Gino's marriage and traveled from Chiasso to visit him. They spend a
delightful afternoon drinking vermouth, reminiscing on old times, and
 talking about Gino's new wife. Gino invites Spiridione home to meet
Lilia, and the evening passes merrily with good food and plenty of music.
Chapter 4
 It takes some time for Lilia to realize that she isn't in love her husband
and could never be happy with him, and that he had only married her for
her money. Oh, ouch.

 But back then, you couldn't fly to Reno for a quickie divorce.

 Now that the honeymoon period is over, Lilia and Gino find themselves
bickering all the time. And the topic of most of their fights is about Lilia
going out alone. Gino forbids her to leave the house unaccompanied, but
Lilia argues that in England she used to go out by herself whenever she
pleased.

 During one of these heated arguments, Lilia pulls out the money card,
saying that if Gino doesn't stop ordering her around, she'll stop supporting
him. But Lilia immediately wishes she could take back her words—
Gino's personality suddenly changes completely.

 His eyes become hard and expressionless, and he starts raising his arm, as
if to strike Lilia. Perfetta the maid happens to come into the room at just
that moment, snapping Gino back to his senses. But from then on, Lilia
never attempts to challenge Gino's authority again.

 Gosh, this marriage sucks.

 Even when she finds out that Gino has been cheating on her, she is too
scared to mention it for fear of seeing his temper flare up. Lilia becomes
more and more depressed as she realizes that she has no one to turn to.
The Herritons have practically disowned her; she will never be able to
return to English society.

 Lilia's last hope for saving her marriage is to have a child, and she knows
that Gino desperately wants a son.

 As her suffering continues, Lilia finally reaches her breaking point one
evening when Gino is out. She can't stand being stuck at home any
longer, and decides to take a walk. During her stroll, she hears a
stagecoach approaching her on the road—the driver is picking up
passengers heading to the train station and asks if Lilia wants a ride. At
 first, she declines, but as the stagecoach starts driving away, she suddenly
feels a surge of panic. Overwhelmed by her desire to escape her
miserable life, Lilia calls for the driver to stop. But it's too late… he's out
of earshot, and Lilia faints from exhaustion.

 When she wakes up, she finds herself lying on the road, covered in dust.
It's now well after dark, and she realizes with dread that Gino will be
furious with her.

 When she arrives home, the fight begins full force with Gino screaming
at her at the top of his lungs. But this time, Lilia doesn't keep quiet. She
lashes out at Gino, letting out all of her pent-up emotions and leaving
Gino completely speechless. The fight ends in a stalemate, with neither
side conceding victory.

 The days pass without any change. Once, when Lilia feels especially
distraught, she writes to Irma about her unhappiness, but the letter is
intercepted by Mrs. Herriton, and nothing comes of it.

 Lilia becomes ill, and for the entire fall season, she stays in bed (the
narrator doesn't come right out and say it, but Lilia's "illness" actually
refers to her pregnancy—we're told next to nothing about her pregnancy,
except that Gino pays more attention to her and keeps saying how much
he wants a son). One night, Lilia gives birth to a baby boy, but it all
happens very quickly (we're not given any details about her delivery) and
when Gino comes inside to meet his son, he finds out that Lilia has died
during childbirth.

 Bummer.
Chapter 5
 The Herritons receive news of Lilia's death on Philip's twenty-fourth
birthday.

 They decide, rather matter-of-factly, that it would be proper for them to

go into mourning and that they will tell Irma of her mother's death but
refrain from mentioning her marriage. Philip is concerned about what
should be done regarding Lilia's newborn son, and feels annoyed (though
he's not sure why) that both his mother and sister don't want to have
anything to do with the baby. Mrs. Herriton thinks that it would be best if
 no one in Sawston knew about the child who was, after all, no real
relation of theirs. Mrs. Herriton is an evil witch.

 When Irma is told the news of her mother, she weeps loudly but seems
content with vague answers to her questions.

 Miss Abbott is also informed of Lilia's death and takes it very hard.

 A few days later, she happens to be traveling to London at the same time
as Philip, and the conversation focuses on Lilia. Caroline still feels that
she's partly to blame for what happened: she had asked Lilia if she was
truly in love with Gino, and that if she was, she should marry him.
Caroline also feels guilty for abandoning Lilia in Italy once things went
south with Philip.

 In response to her confession, Philip does call her out for not telling the
family sooner of Lilia's marriage, and presses her to explain what made
her act that way in the first place.

 And here's when we get to the Really Deep Stuff.

 Miss Abbott explains that while in Italy, she realized how much she hated
Sawston and the hypocrisy of English society. She thought that Lilia had
led such an empty life in England, and if she had finally found her true
love, why shouldn't she marry him and be happy? But looking back, Miss
Abbott realizes now that she was wrong in thinking that Lilia had found
real happiness.

 Miss Abbott still resents the pettiness and mediocrity of Sawston, but has
learned that when you go against Society, you'll lose in the end. Philip
tries the more optimistic approach: while Society can seem invincible,
nothing can stop you from still finding beauty and truth in your own life.
Although Miss Abbott is unconvinced, the two part on friendly terms
when the train arrives at Charing Cross station.

 Skipping ahead to seven months later. Life has been chugging along with
relatively few bumps, until one afternoon, Irma receives a postcard with
the following message: "View of the superb city of Monteriano—from
your lital brother" (5.80). We didn't just misspell "little," that's how it's
written in the book.

 Guess the cat is out of bag now.

 Irma bombards her grandmother with a million and one questions about
who her little brother is and why hasn't she met him before. Mrs. Herriton
is forced to explain the situation (giving Irma as few details as possible),
and makes Irma swear herself to secrecy. The last thing Mrs. Herriton
needs is for the whole of Sawston to know about Lilia's Italian son.

 Irma manages to stay quiet for about a month, but then a second postcard
arrives in the mail from her "lital brother" (i.e. Gino, since newborn
babies can't write, as far as we know). Unable to contain her excitement a
minute longer, Irma spills the beans at school, bragging to her friends that
she has a baby brother who lives in Italy. The news spreads like wildfire
and, before long, the entire town has heard about Lilia's son and the
Herritons are fielding questions left and right.

 Several days later, Miss Abbott pays a visit to the Herritons to inquire
what their plans are for the baby. Philip and Mrs. Herriton are shocked
and outraged at what they see as Miss Abbott's impertinence. To save
face, Mrs. Herriton says that only Mrs. Theobold is in a position to offer
assistance to the baby since Lilia was her daughter, and that it would be
inappropriate for the Herritons to interfere.

 But Miss Abbott knows full well that Mrs. Theobold would never do
anything without Mrs. Herriton's stamp of approval. What's more,
Caroline now thinks that it's her duty to "help" the baby since she was
partly responsible for Lilia's failed marriage in the first place.

 After Miss Abbott leaves, Mrs. Herriton realizes that there will be no way
of keeping her away from the baby. Even worse, there's the danger that
people will start thinking the Herritons are shrinking from their
responsibilities by neglecting the child's needs.

 Time to switch tactics: Mrs. Herriton now wants to adopt the baby and
raise it in England. Philip is shocked by his mother's hypocrisy (people
spend a lot of time in this novel being shocked).

 Mrs. Herriton sends a letter to Gino, offering to adopt the baby, but Gino
writes back that he loves his son too much to part with him. When Mrs.
Herriton shows Miss Abbott the letter (hoping that she'll finally drop the
matter and stop meddling), Caroline refuses to accept the outcome and
insists on traveling to Italy herself to bring the baby back.
  Furious with Miss Abbott for interfering, Mrs. Herriton rushes home and
orders Philip and his sister to head at once to Monteriano and gain
custody of the baby at all costs. So Philip is sent on his second rescue
mission (we're calling it Operation Baby Recovery).
Chapter 6
 Philip and Harriet make the long trip by train from London to
Monteriano. On their voyage, Harriet gets "smut in her eye" (smut means
a small flake of soot or dirt) after she insists on keeping the train window
open (because she thinks the foreigners on board are "filthy"). When they
arrive in Florence, Harriet is in an even more sour mood than usual.

 Unlike Philip, who enjoys traveling and loves Italy (at least he did until
the whole Gino fiasco), Harriet is extremely suspicious of foreigners and
hates leaving the security of her own home.

 At one point, Harriet criticizes her brother for not having a solid plan on
what to do about the baby, accusing him of not caring at all about the
child's welfare. Philip ignores her, but he knows she's right—he doesn't
care a fig for the baby, but he intends to do his duty. He hopes that Gino
will accept a reasonable amount of money in exchange for the child so
that the whole situation can be resolved as quickly as possible.

 When they finally arrive at the hotel, Harriet insists that her brother go
immediately to see Gino about the baby. Philip protests, saying he wants
to have his afternoon tea, but Harriet stands her ground. At that very
moment, Miss Abbott appears—as coincidence would have it, she's
staying at the same hotel.

 To get back at Harriet for ordering him around, Philip suggests that she
and Miss Abbott should catch up with each other, knowing that Harriet
considers Caroline as the enemy now.

 Philip heads off to pay a visit to Gino, but when he arrives at the house,
Perfetta informs him that Gino is out. Just his luck! Philip leaves his card
with Perfetta and returns to the hotel, where he runs into Miss Abbott
again.

 Miss Abbot admits that she came to Monteriano as a "spy" because she
suspects that Mrs. Herriton doesn't actually want to recover the baby.
Caroline recounts to Philip that she had arrived a day before him, and
 yesterday, she ran into Gino (quite by coincidence) at the Rocca, which
has a beautiful rooftop view of the town at sunset. Her conversation with
Gino had stuck mostly to the weather, and she kept from mentioning the
baby at all.

 With nothing to do that evening, Philip proposes that they should all go to
the theater to watch Lucia di Lammermoor, an opera based on Sir Walter
Scott's novel The Bride of Lammermoor.

 Even though the Italians in the audience are loud, Philip and Miss Abbott
find them charming. Harriet, however, keeps shushing them to be quiet
and at one point gets struck in the chest by a bouquet when the actress
playing Lucia throws flowers into the audience. Philip picks up the
bouquet and gives it to a young Italian who turns out to be… Gino! Yes,
we know, this novel is full of coincidental chance meetings. Embracing
Philip as his "long-lost brother" (121), Gino happily agrees to meet with
him the next day.
Chapter 7
 Early the next morning, Miss Abbott goes to see Gino alone, afraid that
Philip might fail in his mission to secure the baby. Miss Abbott convinces
herself that only she knows how to handle Gino, who is strong-willed and
won't part easily with his son. Leaving a note for Philip explaining her
intentions, Miss Abbott readies herself to confront Gino.

 Caroline is initially thrown off when she sees the baby—this whole time,
the child had only been an object, an idea she had latched onto in an
effort to make herself feel less guilty about Lilia's death.

 But now seeing the baby in person, Miss Abbott realizes how wrong it
would be for her to control the child's fate. Pushing these troubling
thoughts out of her head, Caroline tries to get down to business with
Gino.

 As the conversation progresses, Miss Abbott learns that Gino intends to

marry a second time so that there will be someone to help him take care
of his son. Caroline expresses her disapproval, but her resolve is
weakening. She is beginning to see that Gino really does love his son.

 In the adjoining room, the baby starts fussing and Gino remembers that
it's time for his bath. Excusing himself from Miss Abbott, Gino prepares
 warm water for his son. By this point, Caroline feels all warm and fuzzy
inside as she watches Gino tendering caring for the baby. She's
completely won over by Gino's devotion to his son. She offers to help
him bathe the baby, and the experience is strangely exhilarating for her.

 When Philip arrives at the house (after getting Miss Abbott's note), he
walks in on Miss Abbott holding the baby in her arms with Gino sitting
beside them.

 Miss Abbott stands up unsteadily and hands the baby to his father. She
pulls Philip aside, saying she has failed, and runs off in tears.

 Philip doesn't understand what just happened, but he turns to Gino and
they prepare to discuss business.
Chapter 8
 When Philip returns to the hotel, Harriet is all worked up because Miss
Abbott had burst into her room in tears to say that she had changed her
mind and wouldn't let them take the baby.

 Philip admits to Harriet that Gino had indeed refused to give up the child,
but that they're meeting a second time later in the afternoon to talk about
other ways the family might help out with the baby.

 Philip goes to look for Miss Abbott, who has taken refuge at Santa
Deodata Church. He tells Caroline that he's not angry with her, and that
he's meeting Gino soon in a final attempt to give him money for the baby.

 But if that doesn't work, then he'll just head back to England. Miss Abbott
suddenly becomes angry at Gino's indifference to the situation. She
criticizes him for sitting idly by and not choosing a side to fight for.
Philip is hurt by her accusation, but also recognizes that she's right in
sensing that he doesn't care about the baby's fate. Miss Abbott's honesty
impresses Philip and his feelings for her grow stronger.

 Back at the hotel, Harriet tells Philip that they will be taking the evening
train out of Florence and that he must have the baby by half-past eight.

 But the afternoon meeting with Gino doesn't lead to anything—Gino still
refuses to give up his son, and Philip is ready to let the matter rest, feeling
that there's nothing more he can to. The two men part on good terms, and
Philip actually feels genuine affection for Gino.
  Philip and Miss Abbott prepare to leave for the station, but they can't find
Harriet anywhere in the hotel.

 Shortly before it's time for them to catch the train, Harriet sends a note to
Philip, telling him to pick her up just outside the gate to the village. He
doesn't understand what she means, but he takes the first carriage to find
her, and Miss Abbott follows him in the second carriage.

 As the carriage pulls up to the gate, Philip sees Harriet holding a bundle
in her arms. She has succeeded where Philip and Miss Abbott had failed
—she has the baby! Philip presses her with questions—how did she
manage it? How was she able to convince Gino? But Harriet tells Philip
to be quiet; the baby is sleeping. Philip assumes she had successfully
bargained with Gino, and he's willing to wait to hear the details later.

 The carriage is driving slightly too fast around the curvy road, which is
muddy from the recent rain. And as Philip and Harriet examine the baby,
who appears to be distressed and is crying silently, there is a loud shout
followed by a crash. They have collided with Miss Abbott's carriage, and
tumbled out onto the road.

 Philip's arm is in pain and appears to be broken. Harriet is screaming

uncontrollably, and Philip is horrified when her screams become
coherent: "The baby—it slipped—I stole it!" (160).

 Philip finds a bundle "lying in the mud in darkness" (160): the baby has
been killed.
Chapter 9
 After the crash, Harriet becomes mentally unstable, but the details of her
crime are never revealed.

 Philip goes alone to tell Gino of his child's death. Gino is beside himself
with anger and turns to violence, attacking Philip by twisting the arm he
broke in the crash until he passes out from the pain. Gino is close to
killing Philip when Miss Abbott arrives and comes between the two men.

 By the time Philip regains consciousness, Miss Abbott has been able to
calm Gino down and prevent the situation from resulting in even more
pain.
  In an effort to help the men forgive each other, Miss Abbott asks Gino to
bring Philip a bottle of milk that has been warmed for his dead child and
persuade Philip to drink it. Philip obeys and Miss Abbott then tells Gino
to finish the rest of the milk.
Chapter 10
 By the time the English group had recuperated enough to leave Italy, the
two men are good friends again.

 On the way back to England, Philip received another disappointment.

Because of the romantic atmosphere and their close association, he has
fallen in love with Miss Abbott.

 He almost proposes to her when they are talking about love and the
future, but she, thinking he had suspected it long before, tells him of her
passion for Gino.

 Philip for years thought that he understood the world, but he now
recognizes that he really understood nothing. Womp womp.