Rowley is presented as the ne'er-do-well character, though he justifies his lack of a career by saying that he has enough money to live on and sees no reason to work. He's handsome and charismatic, characteristics that make him the life of any gathering and the man who attracts the attention of almost every woman in attendance, married as well as single. It seems feasible that Rowley, faced with Mary's lack of sexual interest, is caught up in the conquest but realizes that nothing less than marriage will bring Mary to him as a lover.