Washington Square

by

Henry James

Mrs. Montgomery Character Analysis

Mrs. Montgomery, a widow with five children, is Morris Townsend’s sister. Dr. Sloper visits her to learn more about Morris’s character. Mrs. Montgomery resists Dr. Sloper’s pressure to give him evidence against Morris, but admits that he’s caused her to suffer financially and finally tells him, “Don’t let him marry [Catherine].”

Mrs. Montgomery Quotes in Washington Square

The Washington Square quotes below are all either spoken by Mrs. Montgomery or refer to Mrs. Montgomery. 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:
Gaining Independence Theme Icon
).
Chapter 14 Quotes

The Doctor eyed her a moment. “You women are all the same! But the type to which your brother belongs was made to be the ruin of you, and you were made to be its handmaids and victims. The sign of the type in question is the determination—sometimes terrible in its quiet intensity—to accept nothing of life but its pleasures, and to secure these pleasures chiefly by the aid of your complaisant sex. Young men of this class never do anything for themselves that they can get other people to do for them, and it is the infatuation, the devotion, the superstition of others, that keeps them going. These others in ninety-nine cases out of a hundred are women. What our young friends chiefly insist upon is that someone else shall suffer for them; and women do that sort of thing, as you must know, wonderfully well.” The Doctor paused a moment, and then he added abruptly, “You have suffered immensely for your brother!”

Related Characters: Dr. Austin Sloper (speaker), Catherine Sloper, Morris Townsend, Mrs. Montgomery
Page Number: 66
Explanation and Analysis:
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Mrs. Montgomery Quotes in Washington Square

The Washington Square quotes below are all either spoken by Mrs. Montgomery or refer to Mrs. Montgomery. 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:
Gaining Independence Theme Icon
).
Chapter 14 Quotes

The Doctor eyed her a moment. “You women are all the same! But the type to which your brother belongs was made to be the ruin of you, and you were made to be its handmaids and victims. The sign of the type in question is the determination—sometimes terrible in its quiet intensity—to accept nothing of life but its pleasures, and to secure these pleasures chiefly by the aid of your complaisant sex. Young men of this class never do anything for themselves that they can get other people to do for them, and it is the infatuation, the devotion, the superstition of others, that keeps them going. These others in ninety-nine cases out of a hundred are women. What our young friends chiefly insist upon is that someone else shall suffer for them; and women do that sort of thing, as you must know, wonderfully well.” The Doctor paused a moment, and then he added abruptly, “You have suffered immensely for your brother!”

Related Characters: Dr. Austin Sloper (speaker), Catherine Sloper, Morris Townsend, Mrs. Montgomery
Page Number: 66
Explanation and Analysis: