The Well of Loneliness

On the day that Mary’s cherry tree blossoms, Stephen receives a letter from Martin asking Stephen to forgive him and hoping to rekindle their friendship. He tells her he is in Paris recovering from a war injury. She calls him immediately and invites him for dinner. He accepts, and Stephen informs Mary about their dinner guest. Mary asks lots of questions as she thinks it’s odd Stephen has never mentioned Martin before, and because she thought Stephen “didn’t like men” (375).

Martin arrives at dinner, and he, Stephen, and Mary stay up late into the night talking and laughing. They make plans to meet Martin’s Aunt Sarah the next day. When Martin leaves, Stephen asks Mary what she thinks of him, and Mary replies that she thinks he is “nice.”

At lunch the next day, despite her “good manners,” Stephen can tell she is not well-received by Martin’s Aunt Sarah. Aunt Sarah loves Mary, however, and thinks it scandalous she remains unmarried when she is “excessively pretty.” On the way home Mary expresses her fear that Aunt Sarah may turn out like Lady Massey. Stephen denies it. However, she decides Mary should go to visit Aunt Sarah alone from now on.

Stephen is grateful for the return of Martin’s friendship. She worries, however, about Mary and Martin growing closer and closer, as they are always dancing together and spending time with judgmental Aunt Sarah.

One night, Stephen divulges her whole past to Martin, outside of the name Angela Crossby. He cries because he feels bad that her sexuality has disposed her to such heartbreak. He says it makes him “deny God’s existence” (382). She tells him that though she sometimes questions her faith, she believes in God, and she reminds him of the trees he used to reference as proof of God’s existence.

Mary is in a better mood than ever, feeling that Martin and the respectable corner of Paris he has introduced them to have restored her “self-respect.” Martin is preparing to leave Paris, so he is spending as much time with Mary and Stephen as possible. Stephen detects that his upcoming departure makes Mary sad. One evening she grabs Mary quite hard and asks how much Mary loves her. Mary says Stephen is hurting her and that Stephen should know she loves her “more than life” (384).

Martin is in love with Mary; Mary is in love with Martin. Stephen looks on, fully aware of Martin’s feelings and unsure of Mary’s. Martin feels guilty about his feelings because he doesn’t want to hurt Stephen, but he feels a duty to Mary. He thinks he can save her from “despair.” Martin confronts Stephen about his love for Mary. He says he is going back to Canada so he doesn’t interfere with their relationship. Stephen tells him to stay, saying that she is not afraid of losing Mary. He tells her she should give Mary up if she loves her because she cannot give Mary a respectable life like he can. She tells him to stay and fight her for Mary. She says she will win. He agrees to stay in Paris and tells her he will do everything he can to win Mary.

Martin spends all his time making marriage seem attractive to Mary. Mary does see this possibility as attractive, but she still feels committed to Stephen. Stephen writes ferociously so that she can offer Mary protection, the one thing Martin seems to have over her.

Martin is losing, but Stephen realizes Mary is “deeply unhappy” (392). She starts actively pushing Mary away and purposely spending all her time with Valérie in order to upset Mary. One day, Mary tells Stephen she can no longer be around Martin because he clearly loves her. When Stephen plays the fool, Mary gets upset and says the only reason Stephen doesn’t notice Martin’s love is because she is so obsessed with Valérie. She tells Stephen she loves her, and she doesn’t understand why she is pushing her away. She then says if it weren’t for Stephen, she would love Martin. When Stephen repeats Mary’s words, Mary tries to take back what she said.

Martin calls a meeting between him and Stephen. He surrenders and says he is leaving for Canada. She tells him to stay and that she has a plan. She then leaves Martin and goes to church.

Stephen asks Valérie to pretend to be her lover so that Mary will be able to leave her guilt-free. Valérie tries to get her to reconsider. Stephen sends for Martin and tells him to stand by her house and wait for a distressed Mary to exit.

Stephen makes it seem like she is having an affair with Valérie. Mary flees because she is so upset at this revelation. Stephen watches Mary and Martin unite outside her window. She then turns to God and screams at him to give homosexuals “the right to existence” (399).