In Chapter 1, the reader is introduced to May and Marcher who are the most important characters in the novella. After many years they meet at Weatherend, which is an English country house. May is now living with her great-aunt. In return for security, she renders certain services. There are other guests in Weatherend. John Marcher however remains aloof and does not mix with them. His apprehensions are seen in the later part of this chapter.
In Chapter 2, the reader learns that the great-aunt is dead. May has inherited enough from her complicated will to own a small house in London. The meetings between May and Marcher increase. However there is no deep involvement. …show more content…
With time, her health continues to deteriorate. The meetings between Marcher and May however continue. Marcher, in the meantime, continues to be haunted by the idea that he has been singled out for an extraordinary visitation. This eventually becomes a compulsive fantasy for him. Marcher’s obsessive fantasy and May’s ill health continue through Chapter 4, as May moves closer to her death. May’s house now gives the impression as though everything has been wound up. Marcher’s fantasy continues to generate the powerful image of a beast lying in wait for him amidst the twists and turns of his life. Marcher waits for his special fate, but at the same time, he is also afraid of it. He feels that he is not the type of man with whom any woman would like to share her