Anne of Green Gables: Chapter 38: The Bend in the Road Summary & Analysis

The next evening, Anne returns from a visit to Diana’s and finds Marilla sitting at the kitchen table looking depressed. Concerned, she asks what the oculist had to say. Marilla explains that, according to the doctor, if she gives up anything that strains her eyes—like reading, sewing, or crying—and wears special glasses, her eyesight might be saved, and her headaches will go away. But if not, she’ll be blind within six months. After a moment of shock, Anne tells Marilla that there’s still hope. She fixes Marilla tea and sends her off to bed. Anne cries at her window for a while, thinking about how much has changed since her triumphant return from Queen’s. But by the time she goes to sleep, her heart is at peace, as she’s come to terms with her duty.

A few days later, Anne sees Marilla talking with a man from Carmody in the yard. When she comes inside, there are tears in her eyes. She tells Anne that she’s planning to sell Green Gables. She doesn’t know what else to do: she can’t run the house without her sight, and if Green Gables falls into disrepair, nobody will ever buy it. If she sells the house, at least she’ll have something to live on. She starts to cry.

Anne tells Marilla she can’t sell Green Gables: Anne is going to decline her Redmond scholarship and stay home. She decided this after Marilla’s oculist appointment. She can’t abandon Marilla after all she’s done for Anne, and she’s made a plan. Mr. Barry hopes to rent their farm, so they will have all the money they need. And Anne will find a teaching job, probably at Carmody. She and Marilla will live comfortably together, and Anne will make sure Marilla is cared for and that her eyes have a chance to heal.

Marilla is reluctant to let Anne sacrifice for her, but Anne says losing Green Gables would be far more painful for her. She’s made up her mind, and she’s not giving up her ambitions: she’s simply changed them. She wants to be a good teacher, save Marilla’s eyesight, and do some college coursework from home. It’s just a bend in the road, and Anne is determined to make the best of it. Marilla gives in, feeling that Anne has given her new life.

When rumors of Anne’s decision circulate in Avonlea, some people think she’s being foolish. Mrs. Allan is moved by Anne’s choice, however, and Mrs. Lynde is glad Anne’s giving up the foolish idea of college—women don’t need to study Latin and Greek, she huffs. Anne laughs and tells her she’ll be studying in the evenings anyway. Then Mrs. Rachel tells Anne the happy news that Anne is being offered the job at Avonlea school. When Gilbert heard about Anne’s situation, he withdrew his application and took a job at White Sands instead. Mrs. Lynde says it’s a big sacrifice for Gilbert, since he’ll have to pay for board and won’t be able to save up for college.

Just then Diana flashes her old candle signal from Orchard Slope, so Anne runs over to talk to her. Watching her, Mrs. Lynde remarks that there’s still a girlishness about Anne. Marilla retorts that she’s very much a woman in other ways. But Marilla is no longer as brusque and sarcastic as she used to be. That night, Mrs. Lynde tells her husband that Marilla “has got mellow. That’s what.”

On her way home from a lingering visit to Matthew’s grave, Anne drinks in the beauty of Avonlea. As she passes the Blythe homestead, Gilbert comes out of the gate and abruptly stops whistling when he sees Anne. He is about to pass without a word, but Anne, blushing, stops him. She tells Gilbert she appreciates him giving up the Avonlea job for her. He tells her he was happy to do it, and he asks if they can now be friends. Anne tells him she forgave him long ago and apologizes for being so stubborn. Gilbert happily tells her they’re destined to be friends. He walks her home, and they talk at the Green Gables gate for half an hour. When Anne finally comes in, Marilla teases her about her long talk with Gilbert—she didn’t know the two were such good friends. Anne says she didn’t realize they talked so long—it felt like just a few minutes. After all, they have five years’ worth of conversation to catch up on.

That night, Anne sits at her window, feeling content as she overlooks Green Gables. Her horizons have narrowed since the beginning of the summer, and yet she trusts her path will be a happy one—she’ll never stop dreaming. And there might yet be another bend in the road.