The Enchanted April

Mrs. Arbuthnot and Mrs. Wilkins discuss the other two guests. Mrs. Wilkins is happy that Mrs. Fisher seems to be taking over much of the decision-making, but Mrs. Arbuthnot finds it inappropriate: She and Mrs. Wilkins found the castle, so they should be the hosts.

Mrs. Wilkins asks how Mrs. Arbuthnot can feel out of sorts in such a beautiful place, and Mrs. Arbuthnot must admit that Mrs. Wilkins is right. The entire castle is covered in wisteria and other beautiful blooms. Between the bright colors of the flowers and the surreal blue of the sky and the Mediterranean, Mrs. Arbuthnot feels that they are “drenched” in color. Mrs. Wilkins’s happiness is infectious, and Mrs. Arbuthnot’s bad mood vanishes. They are so happy that, running into Caroline, they fail to see how irritated she is by their presence. Lady Caroline has decided that she does not enjoy the company of these two “silly” women and resolves to avoid them as much as possible.

Caroline takes a seat in her favorite of the castle’s small gardens, the one that contains a Judas tree. She hopes that no one will interrupt her and wishes that each woman would stake out her own space and keep to it. She wants nothing other than to be left alone for an entire month. At 28, she has begun to feel adrift. Her life does not strike her as meaningful. She does not want to choose a husband. Her parents fuss over her. She is bored with her friends and sure that most people her age do not feel as she does.

The cook, Costanza, interrupts her troubled musings. Mrs. Fisher has declined to give lunch orders. This shocks and irritates Caroline, who was sure she could depend on Mrs. Fisher to make the necessary, and tedious, decisions that were required each day. Caroline gives in and orders lunch, but then explains that she will not do so again. The cook will have to ask one of the other women.

Mrs. Fisher sits alone in one of the castle’s many common areas that she hopes she can commandeer as her own. She values privacy and seclusion above all else and came to Italy so that she could relax alone, not get to know new people. She admits that if she comes to find the company of these women pleasurable, she might amend her position on solitude, but she finds this outcome unlikely. From what she has seen of them so far, she has no desire to make friends with Mrs. Arbuthnot, Mrs. Wilkins, or Caroline. She instructs Domenico to move some of the furniture around so that the area in which she is sitting is less accessible. This, she hopes, will deter visitors. The gong sounds, and lunch is served.

Mrs. Fisher is the first to arrive. Minutes go by, and no one else comes. She asks Francesca to serve her and is displeased to see that the first course is pasta. She dislikes pasta, finding it undignified to eat. More time passes and still, she is the only diner. She asks Francesca to sound the gong again. Irritated, Francesca complies. The others come in, but Caroline soon leaves, pleading a headache.

Discussion ensues about the proper remedy for headaches and whether or not it can be procured in Italy, but Mrs. Wilkins pipes up that Caroline doesn’t really have a headache, she just wants to be left alone. Mrs. Fisher is doubtful, but Mrs. Wilkins assures them that she is right. Giving her space is, she asserts, an easy request to grant.

Caroline, or “Scrap” as she thinks of herself (her favorite nickname) retreats to the small garden with the Judas tree, hoping to be left alone. Mrs. Fisher interrupts her reverie and asks her if she is quite well. Caroline tries to pretend that she is asleep, but Mrs. Fisher can see the cigarette in her hand. She will be forced to interact with this unpleasant old lady. Mrs. Fisher, for her part, finds Caroline equally unpleasant. She thinks back to the heyday of her favorite Victorian authors: None of them would have approved of a woman smoking, and neither does she. She says as much to Caroline, but Caroline appears unruffled by the criticism. She explains that she is not ill and that she would just like some peace and quiet. Mrs. Fisher surveys her with obvious judgment.

Caroline retreats back into her thoughts momentarily. She has no idea what she is supposed to do with her life. The only man she thinks she could have ever loved or married was killed in the war. Since then, she’s been entirely disillusioned with both love and life. She is tired of her parents, her friends, and her fame: She comes from a prominent family, and their personal business is often in the news. She is grateful that none of the other women seem to be aware of her notoriety.

Mrs. Fisher snaps her back to reality with an offer to procure castor oil for her headache in the neighboring village. Caroline declines, stressing again that she is not ill. She adds that she would like to come “to a conclusion” in Italy (99). Mrs. Fisher snorts and replies that what a woman of her age ought to do is procure a husband and children. She does not, she adds, enjoy “modern” women. Caroline again brushes off the criticism and tells Mrs. Fisher that marriage is just one of the options she is considering and would like to come to a concrete observation about. 

Mrs. Fisher has attempted to commandeer one of the castle’s sitting rooms and is chagrined when Mrs. Arbuthnot and Mrs. Wilkins sit down with her in it. Exasperated, she asks them why they have not chosen to spend time in the sitting room that is closer to their own private rooms. Mrs. Wilkins replies amiably that it is nice for people to share things, and Mrs. Fisher is filled with anger. She resents her cheeriness and easygoing attitude. She also resents that a woman who is obviously without means would presume to try to instruct someone who is not only her elder, but her financial and social superior. Mrs. Fisher appreciates economy and frugality, but she is in actuality quite a wealthy woman. Mrs. Wilkins smiles again and apologizes for having disturbed Mrs. Fisher’s peace. She takes Mrs. Arbuthnot’s hand, and the two leave.

Mrs. Arbuthnot did not want to leave. She was upset with Mrs. Fisher: She’d taken the nicest room as “her own” when she was not even the one to have found the castle and made arrangements for the vacation. She is struck by how unchristian her attitude is and equally struck by how much Mrs. Wilkins has blossomed since arriving in Italy. She is attuned to the needs of others, wants to befriend everyone, and has even expressed guilt that she went off to Italy without Mellersh. Now it is Mrs. Wilkins who seems the more mature one.

Mrs. Wilkins informs Mrs. Arbuthnot that she has written to Mellersh to invite him to Italy. Stunned, Mrs. Arbuthnot replies that they are in Italy precisely to get away from Mellersh (and her husband). Mrs. Wilkins smiles and explains that she thinks she approached marriage in the wrong way: She only loved when she perceived that she was loved back in equal measure. Love, she asserts, should not be so stingy. She advises Mrs. Arbuthnot to invite Frederick. Afraid that Frederick is only too happy to be rid of her, Mrs. Arbuthnot does not believe she will do so.

All four women arrive for dinner on time. Lady Caroline is wearing a thin wrap that Mrs. Fisher finds indecent. She says as much, and Lady Caroline responds calmly that it is very difficult to be indecent when not in the presence of men. A few minutes later, she pours herself a second glass of wine, and Mrs. Fisher objects to that too. Again, Lady Caroline is unperturbed by Mrs. Fisher’s judgment.

Mrs. Wilkins informs the group that she has invited her husband, and Mrs. Fisher instantly turns her fury from Caroline to her. She does not want a man to join and argues that there is not enough space. Mrs. Wilkins points out that there are four of them and eight beds, and there is also one small, additional bedroom. She does not wish to share hers with Mellersh. The goodwill she feels toward him does not extend that far.

No one else objects after a moment or so, but Mrs. Fisher’s mind whirs: If she were to invite someone, then it would make more sense for her friend to get the extra room. Mellersh then would be forced to stay in the room with his wife, which would be much more proper. Later that evening, she announces that she intends to invite her friend Kate to join their party.