Anyway … the
little girl in the graveyard at the beginning of Falkner is only six and is a
friendless orphan.[1] We
learn about the sad deaths of her parents and how their landlady takes care of
the little girl, Treby—full name: Elizabeth.
A stranger
arrives in town, a man, it seems, who is bent on suicide. His name is Falkner.
He goes to the graveyard to shoot himself—and guess who stops him at the last
moment? Grateful, he resolves he will raise the little girl himself.
Some years
pass; they’re in Odessa. A remarkable
Englishwoman named Miss Jervis joins them and commences the education of
the little girl, who is excited to learn.[2]
She learns swiftly, and Falkner is tremendously impressed.
More years
pass. Now they’re in Baden, Switzerland, where Falkner sees a young Englishman
he recognizes. Neville. The young man … interests … Elizabeth, but the sight of
him for some reasons causes Falkner to flee. Soon, he sends for Elizabeth and Miss
Jervis to join him in Mainz, Germany—about 400 miles north. And then to London.
Elizabeth, charmed with Neville, hopes she’ll see him again.
And then Falkner—like
Trelawny and Byron—resolves to go join the Greek War of Independence (1821–32).
He leaves narratives behind, stories that reveal his own mysterious biography (not
to be read until he has died) and relate his discovery of Elizabeth. She goes
with him to Greece.
More years
pass. Then she gets word that Falkner has been wounded in battle, is suffering
from malaria, and is near death in a remote Greek village. She rushes to him …
No comments:
Post a Comment