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Mrs. Poulteney
Ernestina’s father. Mr. Freeman has made his fortune through his draper’s store on Oxford Street. He exemplifies the upper-middle-class nouveau riche of the Victorian Era. Though he strives to be a gentleman and wants his daughter to gain an aristocratic title by marriage, he also disdains the aristocracy as lazy and snobbish. He and Charles don’t get along terribly well. They’ve argued about Darwin’s theory of evolution, and Mr. Freeman wants Charles to take over his business one day, which makes Charles feel trapped. After Charles breaks off his engagement to Ernestina, Mr. Freeman treats him harshly, making him sign a confession of guilt.
Mr. Freeman Quotes in The French Lieutenant’s Woman
The The French Lieutenant’s Woman quotes below are all either spoken by Mr. Freeman or refer to Mr. Freeman. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Chapter 38
Quotes
To be sure there was something base in his rejection—a mere snobbism, a letting himself be judged and swayed by an audience of ancestors....
But there was one noble element in his rejection: a sense that the pursuit of money was an insufficient purpose in life. He would never be a Darwin or a Dickens, a great artist or scientist; he would at worst be a dilettante, a drone, a what-you-will that lets others work and contributes nothing. But he gained a queer sort of momentary self-respect in his nothingness, a sense that choosing to be nothing... was the last saving grace of a gentleman; his last freedom, almost.
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Mr. Freeman Quotes in The French Lieutenant’s Woman
The The French Lieutenant’s Woman quotes below are all either spoken by Mr. Freeman or refer to Mr. Freeman. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Chapter 38
Quotes
To be sure there was something base in his rejection—a mere snobbism, a letting himself be judged and swayed by an audience of ancestors....
But there was one noble element in his rejection: a sense that the pursuit of money was an insufficient purpose in life. He would never be a Darwin or a Dickens, a great artist or scientist; he would at worst be a dilettante, a drone, a what-you-will that lets others work and contributes nothing. But he gained a queer sort of momentary self-respect in his nothingness, a sense that choosing to be nothing... was the last saving grace of a gentleman; his last freedom, almost.
Related Characters:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
