Chapter 12 Summary

The sisters of George Osborne and William Dobbin treat Amelia Sedley quite poorly. They find her boring and plain and wonder what George could possibly see in her. The narrator suggests this is because they are extremely jealous that all the men in the immediate area are mad for Amelia. They assume George spends every waking moment with her, and when he is not around the handsomest men around are asking her to dance. In reality, Amelia spends her days longing for George, who spends his days shooting pool and avoiding her. Dobbin assures Amelia that George spends his spare time with his sisters because he is afraid his regiment could be called to battle at any moment.

Peace is then declared in Europe, and Amelia rejoices because she thinks George will finally marry her. She writes him novel-length letters, to which he...