Chapters 31-35 Summary

Chapter 31: When Hetty receives and reads Arthur's letter proclaiming his undying love but acknowledging that their affair is futile, Hetty collapses on the bed and wails herself to exhaustion. She then falls into a deep sleep in her clothes and only awakens at 4 a.m., to face the gray dawn and the realization that she would have to hide her grief just as she hid her short-lived happiness. "She would like to run away that very morning and never see any of the old faces again," the author says. (p. 351) Hetty asks her uncle if she can work as a lady's maid in another household. "Nay, Nay," says Mr. Poyser with a promise to find a better husband for her. This, Hetty knows, refers to Adam Bede. In her own cunning way, Hetty begins to consider that possibility simply for the...