The Way of All Flesh

Like Theobald, Christina treats Ernest strictly, cherishing religious ambitions for him. She views the use of water from the Jordan River for Ernest’s baptism as a miracle and a sign of things to come. Theobald begins to teach Ernest to read at a young age and whips him to motivate him. After George dies and his will is revealed, Theobald and Christina fear that the money George left for Ernest to inherit at the age of 21 will only tempt or corrupt Ernest.

Overton visits Battersby occasionally in the following years, where he provides gifts for the children, who parrot their parents’ religious views. Christina is disappointed to find that none of her children is a “genius,” a complaint that Overton considers silly.

One Sunday evening, Ernest repeatedly struggles to pronounce the word “come” correctly during a hymn, instead saying “tum.” Overton is amused, but Theobald grows angry. He beats Ernest and sends him to bed.

Theobald calls the household together for a reading from the Bible, which highlights the harsh punishment of those who broke the Sabbath, followed by prayer. In his mind, Overton compares the Pontifex family’s prayers to bees he noticed going up and down the floral wallpaper, looking for real flowers but finding nothing.

The next day, Theobald, Overton, and Ernest go to buy some eggs. When the young son of the woman from whom they are buying eggs steps on an egg, breaking it, she simply sends him away. Afterwards, Ernest asks Theobald why the woman didn’t beat the boy. Seeing that Overton sympathizes with Ernest, Theobald does not invite him to visit as often from then on.

Theobald is appointed as a rural dean in the church.

Overton describes the preceding incidents as typical of the Pontifex family’s home life. Of the three children, Ernest is the most rebellious. Overton quotes the adult Ernest’s opinion of the family unit as unnatural and detrimental to individual development. Overton recalls an amusing incident when seven-year-old Ernest announced that he was going to have a “natural child,” or a child born out of wedlock, without having any idea where children come from.

Three or four years after Charlotte’s birth, Christina becomes pregnant. Fearing she will not survive another childbirth, she writes a letter to be given to her sons when Ernest turns 16. In it, she urges them to obey their father, lead lives of religious faith, and to take care of each other and their sister. Christina survives and the baby dies, but she keeps the letter, which Ernest receives after her death years later.

Overton suggests that Christina cared more about her sons’ welfare in the afterlife, as she understood it, than their happiness in life. He adds that she used religion to maintain control over Ernest “lest the offspring should come to have wishes and feelings of its own” (82). In Overton’s view, those belonging to the clergy make poor parents because the strictness of their lives leads to tension, which they take out on their children. They are also biased, interpreting everything through the lens of the church. Due to their religiosity, Theobald and Christina maintain a high opinion of themselves, even as their children suffer.

By the age of 12, Ernest is familiar with Latin and Greek literature, arithmetic, geometry, and French. His parents send him to a boarding school in Roughborough run by Dr. Samuel Skinner, who is widely admired for his intellect and upstanding moral character.

Overton recalls meeting Skinner once during the Christmas holidays, when he happened to be in Roughborough. The two played a game of chess, and Mrs. Skinner asked her husband what he wanted for dinner. Solemnly and dramatically, he first refused dinner, then asked for mere bread and butter. After the game was over, they sat down to an elaborate meal. Overton sarcastically suggests everything Skinner did or said carried “deeper and more hidden meaning” (87). He views Skinner as responsible for corrupting and deceiving the youth who come under his care.

Frightened by rumors about the school, Ernest cries as his parents drop him off, which Christina interprets as a sign that he will miss them. While Christina tours the living quarters with Mrs. Skinner, Dr. Skinner takes Ernest and Theobald to his library, where he discusses current events and the potential for reconciliation between the Church of England and the Catholic Church. The discussion ends when Ernest begins to cry. His parents turn him over to the care of Mrs. Jay, the matron, and leave.

On the way back to Battersby, Theobald thinks about his relationship with Ernest, deciding that he “cannot like a son who, I am sure, dislikes me” (94). Christina, meanwhile, imagines the high social connections Ernest might make at school.

Ernest sleeps for a while, then wakes up and worries, feeling inadequate and naughty, especially compared to what he imagines his parents must have been like in their youth.

At home, Theobald and Christina feel confident that they did all they could for Ernest. A few days later, they receive a letter from Ernest detailing his progress and desire to work hard.

At school, Ernest is relieved not to be bullied, but he is not happy. Small for his age, he lives in fear of Dr. Skinner and avoids sports. He not popular among his peers, but they don’t hate him either.

Lacking motivation, Ernest falls behind in his studies. Overton notes that Ernest has low self-esteem because he accepts what his parents and teachers tell him about himself, instead of listening to his “inner self.” Ernest takes up with a group of boys who drink and smoke; he only drinks temporarily, but he becomes a smoker for life. Overall, he falls into the category of boys who are somewhat disreputable without being openly hostile or defiant.

Overton pauses to discuss Alethea. Following her father’s death, she inherits a moderate income, so she settles in London. Overton continues to admire and associate with her, but she opposes marriage on principle, so they remain mere friends. An unconventional thinker, Alethea attends church but opposes both religious and anti-religious dogma.

During Ernest’s childhood, she occasionally visits Battersby and pays particular attention to the children. In 1849, a year and a half into Ernest’s education in Roughborough, she visits him there to assess his character. Taking him to dinner, she learns of his parents’ harsh punishments, previously concealed from her, his dislike of Skinner, and his strong interest in music.

Alethea decides to move to Roughborough to be close to Ernest, whom she now considers a potential heir. Pretending that her doctor suggested she leave the city for a while, she buys a house in Roughborough, making Theobald and Christina nervous about the “worldly” influence she might have on Ernest. After moving in, she ingratiates herself to the boys at the school, the Skinners, and the other teachers.

Noticing his aversion to sports, Alethea determines to find a way for Ernest to develop his physical skills and strength. One day she tells him about the organs his grandfather built, and soon Ernest resolves to build one himself. Theobald and Christina are not thrilled at the idea, but they allow it. Christina imagines the organ being installed at the church in Battersby, earning the praise of esteemed visitors. To prepare, Ernest meets with a carpenter once a week and carries out odd jobs for Alethea, whose simple encouragement contrasts with his parents’ criticisms. Ernest takes greater pleasure in carpentry than in his studies.

Ernest makes progress on the organ during the next two months and is happier than ever. Alethea grows increasingly fond of him, overlooking some little faults he learned or inherited from his parents.

In the spring of 1850, Aletha contracts typhoid fever. She sends for Overton and her lawyer and explains that she wishes to leave the bulk of her money to Ernest. Because she considers Ernest naïve and trusting to a fault, she places the money in a trust to be overseen by Overton until Ernest turns 28, by which time she hopes he will know how to manage money wisely. No one must know, however, that Ernest will inherit the money. She instructs Overton to be patient with Ernest, allowing him to try different things until he finds a fitting profession.

Two weeks later, Alethea dies.

Alethea’s siblings arrive in Roughborough shortly before her death to find her delirious. When they learn the nature of her will, they are angry and leave before the funeral. In keeping with Alethea’s wish to be buried at Paleham, Overton takes her body to the village, going there for the first time since the death of his father six years earlier. The village is changed, with a train station standing where the Pontifex home once stood. Overton considers placing a musical fragment on Alethea’s tombstone and writes to ask Ernest for a recommendation. Ernest suggests the theme from a fugue by Handel, but Overton decides against it.

Theobald and Christina are particularly disappointed by Alethea’s will because they assumed she would make Ernest her heir. Theobald writes to Ernest, suggesting that he failed to earn Alethea’s good opinion and instructing him to give up on building the organ. Theobald also informs Ernest that he plans to deduct some funds from the inheritance George left Ernest to receive at the age of 21.

Hurt by the letter, Ernest falls back into disreputable company at the school. Only his interest in music provides temporary relief. Ernest takes to selling his textbooks to purchase sheet music and tobacco. At the start of the summer holidays in 1851, Ernest returns home with a dismal report on his conduct, to Theobald’s displeasure.