The Collector

by

John Fowles

The Collector: Part 2 Summary & Analysis

Summary
Analysis
The perspective shifts to Miranda’s point of view, which is told in a series of journal entries starting on October 14th, the seventh night of her time at Clegg’s home. At this point, Miranda does not think Clegg is interested in her for sex, but she still sees madness behind his eyes. She feels entirely powerless and wishes she had some ability to fight back even though she despises violence. She hates how much time she spends in darkness and longs desperately to escape. Every night, she prays, which she has not done in a long time, even though she is not sure if she believes in God.
Miranda’s perspective covers the majority of her time spent with Clegg, providing further insight into the events that were already described in the first part of the novel. Unsurprisingly, the Miranda in Part 2 is far more nuanced than the Miranda of Part 1 because she is able to express herself in her own words. In Part 1, Clegg influences how the reader sees Miranda; here she has an opportunity to speak for herself.
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Quotes
On October 15th, Miranda writes that Clegg does not believe in God, which makes her want to believe more. Then, she recalls the first full day she spent with Clegg. On that day, Miranda felt Clegg was awkward, and she notes that he speaks in a manner that is meant to sound educated even though he is not. She also says that the rapid changes in mood she exhibited over the course of the day were deliberate, as she was attempting to see how he would react to different attitudes.
Throughout the novel, whenever Miranda and Clegg speak about philosophy, art, or any other high-brow topic, Miranda always appears very sure of herself. However, her writings express far more uncertainty. Additionally, Miranda quickly recognizes that Clegg wants to be perceived as upper class. Because she is an upper class person herself, she can easily see through his façade.
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On October 16th, Miranda talks about how difficult it is to escape Clegg. He seems to have thought of everything, as there is nothing she can use to get away from him. Additionally, she has been outside at this point and knows that there is no one around for miles. During Miranda’s first bath upstairs, she quietly searches the bathroom for anything useful, but she finds nothing of note. Also, the windows are boarded, so there is no chance for her to escape.
Although Miranda may not respect Clegg’s formal education, she quickly comes to realize that he is not stupid. He seems to have taken every precaution, so that even a clever young woman like herself is let with no option but trying to physically overpower him, which is simply not going to happen.
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Miranda describes Clegg’s home decorations, which she finds atrocious. She thinks Clegg’s behavior is so aggressively ordinary that it is notable. She also thinks about the butterflies Clegg showed her, which she found beautiful despite the violence that was necessary to stage them. The more time Miranda spends around Clegg, the more she feels as if she is going insane. She desperately wishes to be back home with her family, particularly her sister, Minny, to whom she addresses this journal entry.
The presence of class awareness even in such an extreme situation demonstrates how deeply embedded class-based thinking is in English society. Although Miranda hates Clegg for many reasons, she tends to be most vitriolic when discussing his poor taste and lack of formal education. The best part about Clegg for Miranda is his butterflies because they are the only things that appear genuine, despite what they might say about his controlling and violent impulses.
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Quotes
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On October 17th, Miranda hates herself for changing her behavior to give Clegg what he wants. However, she also notes that, generally speaking, Clegg does whatever she asks of him except grant her freedom. She finds it ironic that Clegg constantly buys her expensive gifts only to place them in a dingy cellar. Still, she appreciates the beauty and finds that they make her living conditions slightly more tolerable.
Although Miranda is Clegg’s prisoner, she has a significant amount of control over him, even if he will never give her the one thing she wants. Miranda takes advantage of Clegg’s generosity as a way of coping with her general feeling of powerlessness.
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Miranda finds herself feeling superior to Clegg when it comes to judging beauty. Although she does not want to come off as hopelessly classist, she feels that Clegg is the definition of “human ugliness.” At this point, she starts referring to Clegg in her journal entries as Caliban. She asks Clegg to buy her more art books and decides that she might as well use her time in Clegg’s cellar to develop her artistic skills.
Again, Miranda’s hatred for Clegg stems from education and aesthetics more than anything else. Calling him Caliban is yet another small way to assert her power over him. However, it is not real power that will help her out of her situation. Rather, it is a general feeling of superiority that merely makes her feel better—if it even does that.
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Quotes
On October 18th, Miranda describes showing her fruit sketches to Clegg. She is annoyed that Clegg did not pick the one she liked best, though she is not surprised. She reiterates her belief that Clegg is hopeless when it comes to artistic taste and recognizing beauty. Then, at lunch, Miranda has a conversation with Clegg about nuclear weapons. Miranda asks Clegg what he thinks about nuclear disarmament, which she firmly believes in. Clegg says that he does not have an opinion, other than he hopes he never dies from a nuclear explosion. Miranda prods Clegg, trying to figure out why he does not care more about the state of the world. Clegg responds that it would not make a difference if he did.
Although Miranda is dissatisfied with Clegg’s answers, he is actually revealing a lot about himself and the class of people he comes from. Clegg is not interested in political engagement because he feels his opinion does not matter; presumably, this is because he was always told or made to feel like this is the case. Meanwhile, Miranda, who comes from the ruling class, feels like she as an individual has the power to make genuine change, so she believes her opinion matters.
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Clegg and Miranda argue about the topic for a while, which leads to a conversation about class. Clegg is convinced that Miranda cannot understand people like him; instead, she is someone who can only see things from her own perspective, which he feels is highly linked to her class status. Miranda says that she understands more about Clegg than he thinks, though Clegg is not convinced. Eventually, the topic of conversation returns to nuclear weapons and Clegg offers to write a check in Miranda’s name supporting the cause of nuclear disarmament. At first, Miranda says she would rather Clegg show genuine support for the cause than write a check. However, when she sees she will not persuade him, she settles for the check, hoping it will make some small difference.
Here, Clegg makes a point that Miranda refuses to acknowledge. Miranda hates Clegg because of the way his upbringing shaped him. However, she refuses to consider how her own upbringing factored into the person she is today. That is, she does not consider that her wealthy family is what allowed her to take an interest in art and politics. Also, this scene shows how Clegg’s new solution to any problem that arises is to throw money at it. He does not think his money will help the cause of nuclear disarmament, but he does think it will make Miranda drop the subject, which does not interest him.
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On October 19th, Miranda describes getting to go outside for the first time, albeit in the dark. While outside, she senses that Clegg wants to kiss her, which makes her nervous because it seems as though he kidnapped her for sexual reasons after all. While on her walk with Clegg, Miranda hears a car go by, but she does not try to escape. She knows that she will have to be strategic about when she tries to run away and reminds herself not to jump at every opportunity.
Here, Miranda is beginning to test the boundaries Clegg put up for her. She knows she will have to try to escape, but she does not want to awaken Clegg’s violent side. She quickly realizes that sexual urges control Clegg more than he realizes, and she worries that he will inflict sexual violence on her.
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As the days go by, Miranda feels more and more dejected, as she feels entirely cut off from the world. She talks about how Clegg often photographs, though she feels there is nothing artistic about how he takes photographs. She also contemplates the complicated feelings she has for Clegg. As much as she hates him, he is the only human being she has any contact with and there are moments where she finds herself appreciating his company. She would never go so far as to call what they have a friendship, but at least it is something. 
Photography reminds Miranda of death at the best of times, which makes Clegg’s artless pictures feel all the more ominous and pointless. Still, Miranda cannot help but want to spend time with Clegg. Her isolation in his cellar leaves her longing for human connection, even if the only person available is the one responsible for putting her in this position in the first place.
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On October 20th, Miranda describes attempting to escape by pushing the door to the cellar back into Clegg’s face when he comes to bring her breakfast. However, her attempt barely fazes Clegg, who simply warns her that she could have hurt him. He points out that she claims to be a pacifist and should not be resorting to such methods. In response, Miranda can only shrug and smoke a cigarette. When Clegg is gone, she begins looking around the cellar for any stones that might be loose. She does not find any.
Miranda’s escape attempt is such a failure that it barely phases Clegg. Instead of being bothered, he weaponizes her philosophy and suggests she is being hypocritical. There is no real feeling in the statement for Clegg other than pure manipulation. He does not care whether Miranda is a pacificist, he simply does not want her to behave violently toward him.
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Then, Miranda changes the subject of her journal entry. She begins thinking about her personal life before Clegg captured her. Briefly, she thinks about her strained relationship with her mother, who she has always hated. Miranda’s mother is an insufferable alcoholic, and she does not know why her father, who Miranda loves, continues to tolerate her mother.
Miranda’s hatred for the new middle class stems from how she feels about her mother. Miranda’s mother embodies all of the traits Miranda associates with the new middle class. As such, Miranda’s feelings on this subject are at least as personally motivated as they are politically motivated.
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Additionally, Miranda thinks about an older artist she is infatuated with, who she calls “G.P.” Miranda appreciates G.P.’s mind and is impressed with how much of the world he has seen. She lists out the various ways G.P. has helped her develop as a person and as an artist. Because of G.P., Miranda feels that an artist should be wholly dedicated to their art. Additionally, she thinks it is necessary to be a Socialist because “Socialists are the only people who care.” In thinking about G.P. and what he has taught her, Miranda is comforted. If nothing else, it is a distraction from her current situation.
G.P. is the antithesis of Miranda’s mother. Though G.P. is also a member of the upper-middle class, Miranda thinks of him—and herself by extension—as separate because he is an artist. However, nothing Miranda says about G.P. is particularly profound. His political and artist philosophies are overly broad, as his quote about socialists demonstrates. Still, Miranda is attracted to him because she thinks he is the opposite of everything her mother represents.
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Quotes
On October 21st, Miranda briefly discusses forcing Clegg to cook healthier food for her. She also delights in getting Clegg to buy expensive foods for her that she has not tried. In the evenings, Miranda often flips through art books with Clegg, and she tries to teach him about various painters. However, she feels that he has no mind of his own. Instead, he simply agrees with everything she says. Miranda knows other people like Clegg must exist in the world, but she has never met someone so blind to the beauty of art as him.
Miranda assumes Clegg is mindless because he does not share her interests. Miranda thinks of people who do not appreciate art as fundamentally below her. She is happy to fight for the rights of the working class as a Socialist, but as soon as someone from that class gains some social mobility, she shuns them because they do not share her values.
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Miranda asks Clegg why he does not have more books around the house. Clegg says he has a few, but generally only reads “light novels” such as detective novels. Miranda suggests that he read The Catcher in the Rye, which she is reading currently. Clegg says that he already tried reading it before he gave it to her, and it did not appeal to him. However, he promises to try it for her sake. In response, Miranda tells him, “You make me sick.”
In part, Clegg bothers Miranda because he is so agreeable when it comes to art and literature. He does not have strong opinions himself, so he simply agrees with whatever she says, thinking it will make her happy. However, Miranda wants someone who will debate with her, not someone who crumbles any time she pushes back.
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On October 22nd, Miranda feels ill and thinks that she must escape soon if she is to have any chance at all. She decides that she must trick Clegg into leaving the house for several hours while she attempts to tunnel out of the cellar. Then, Miranda changes the subject altogether and writes about her first meeting with G.P. Caroline, Miranda’s aunt, introduced her to G.P. on a shopping trip. Miranda does not like Caroline and is quickly amused when she sees that G.P. does not even try to pretend to care about what Caroline is saying. However, she finds herself feeling ashamed to be in Caroline’s presence. Miranda thinks that Caroline and her mother, who is equally pretentious and boring, represent everything that is wrong with bourgeois women.
Miranda spends much of her time reflecting on G.P. because it helps her mentally escape from her present situation. Here, it becomes increasingly clear that Miranda is so found of G.P. because he stands in opposition to Caroline, who acts like Miranda’s mother. Meanwhile, from Caroline’s perspective, G.P. is simply rude. Miranda dislikes people like Caroline for their snobbishness, but she rebels by taking an interest in someone who is equally snobbish—and she seems to have no awareness that this is what she’s doing.
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One week later, Miranda meets G.P. again by coincidence while taking the Tube. After a brief conversation, G.P. decides that he likes Miranda and tells her she can pay him a visit sometime as long as she does not bring Caroline. At first, Miranda finds herself trying too hard to impress G.P. However, after a while, she settles down. G.P. introduces Miranda to several of his friends and takes her to a number of fashionable spots for artists around London.
G.P. introduces Miranda to a different version of London than the one she is used to. Because it is full of people like G.P., Miranda finds it far more attractive than the life she is accustomed to. Again, part of the attraction is that Miranda gets to feel like she is above other people, even if she does not want to acknowledge as much.
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While out on the town, G.P. shows Miranda a Rembrandt and tells her that it moves him deeply. Miranda says that it does the same for her. In response, G.P. says, “It can’t possibly. Not for years yet.” He thinks that though Miranda might understand the work, she still has much time before she will be able to feel it. After Miranda sees G.P., Caroline warns her to stay away from him because he has a reputation around town regarding his relationships with women.
Here, Miranda gets caught copying G.P.’s ideas in an attempt to please him, the same thing she chastises Clegg for doing. As it turns out, Miranda’s opinions on art, politics, and philosophy are not as unique as she would like to think. Rather, they are opinions she has borrowed from G.P. Just as Miranda feels like Clegg is incapable of understanding certain subjects, G.P. thinks Miranda is too young and naïve to fully grasp what he is talking about.
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On October 23rd, Miranda compares herself to Emma Woodhouse (the titular character in Jane Austen’s Emma). Miranda finds herself admiring how Emma can turn her faults into virtues and feels that she must do the same in order to escape Clegg. At night, Miranda writes more about G.P. She describes the first time she brought some of her studio art for G.P. to examine. G.P. acknowledges that Miranda has a certain level of talent, but ultimately nothing impresses him. He does not think she does anything to distinguish herself from any other art student her age.
Miranda imagines Clegg as an unsympathetic character from The Tempest, while comparing herself to Austen’s intelligent (and wealthy) heroine. The difference in these comparisons demonstrate that Miranda does not even imagine herself as living in the same world as Clegg. Meanwhile, G.P.’s analysis of Miranda’s art is not much different than Clegg’s. Both feel she has talent but are ultimately unimpressed.
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G.P.’s comments hurt Miranda, though she appreciates his honesty. G.P. tells Miranda that a true artist only finds their voice over time. He suggests that one day she may become a true artist, but the chances are slim, and it is impossible to know for sure. Meanwhile, Miranda thinks G.P. is a talented painter and is sure he will become famous.
Again, G.P. speaks down to Miranda, suggesting she is not yet capable of comprehending what he is trying to tell her. However, because Miranda respects him, she takes his words to heart, even if G.P., who is in his 40s, has yet to find success himself.
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On October 24th, Miranda finds herself contemplating all the things she hates about Clegg. She feels that he is dead inside and speaks in an old-fashioned manner, which includes endless cliches. Miranda blames the social class that raised him; seeing that they grew up in the same place, she knows a good deal about his upbringing. For Miranda, who takes after G.P. in this regard, Clegg represents everything that is wrong with the new middle class. She finds herself wishing that she could flee England altogether for Paris, where art is appreciated.
Miranda does not like Clegg because he is unoriginal in the way he expresses himself. However, the novel has established that Miranda is also pretty unoriginal. Her manner of speaking, as well as the content of what she says, comes from her social context, just like Clegg’s. Miranda does not recognize her hypocrisy, instead thinking herself to be one of the enlightened artists who is worthy of living in an artist’s haven like Paris.
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Then, Miranda recalls a dream she had recently. In the dream, she painted something that pleased her, though she cannot remember what it was. When the painting was complete, Miranda’s mother found it and destroyed it. Miranda wakes up thinking about how much she hates her mother. She recalls that her mother did not want her to be an artist because she wanted her daughter to have a job that earned respect and made more money.
Throughout the novel, painting and drawing are associated with life while photography is associated with death. However, many of the paintings and drawings in the novel are destroyed, while the photographs remain. Life, like these paintings and drawings, is impermeant. Meanwhile, death is forever.
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On October 25th, Miranda writes about the time she took some of her friends to meet G.P. at his apartment. During the meeting, she feels G.P. goes out of his way to be rude to her friends and will not discuss any of his work with them. After some time, G.P. puts on a record and then lies down dramatically on his divan. Miranda’s friends feel like G.P. is striking a sort of pose, though Miranda does not see it herself. The mix of the pose and the music make Miranda’s friends laugh, which sends G.P. into a rage. He orders them to get out of his apartment.
Miranda wants her friends to be just as impressed with G.P. as she is. However, their reactions suggest that they think he is a pretentious fake. His pose on the divan seems artificial and as soon as he feels threatened, he explodes. Miranda despises pretentiousness, and yet she idolizes someone who others perceive as pretentious (and her friends seem to have the right idea).
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Miranda comes back after her friends have left to apologize to G.P. She expects an apology in return but does not get one. Instead, G.P. tells her that they will not be able to sleep together because he is not interested in her. Miranda says she understands, and, after this incident, their relationship returns to normal. The next time she sees G.P., they have a friendly outing together, and he is exceptionally sweet. However, he never apologizes for the incident at his apartment.
Miranda’s relationship with G.P. often parallels her relationship with Clegg. Though G.P. and Clegg are very different men, they are both controlling. Additionally, Miranda’s relationship with G.P. changes rapidly, just like her relationship with Clegg; one day it can seem like they are friends and the next day there is significant hostility.
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On October 26th, Miranda writes about the absurd amount of money Clegg spends on her. She admits to liking whenever he comes back from a shopping trip because it is like Christmas every day, even under the circumstances. Still, Miranda does not lose sight of the fact that, underneath all of the gifts, Clegg is trying to emotionally manipulate her. Miranda spends much of her day attempting to draw G.P. from memory, though she finds herself having a hard time.
Miranda never clocks the similarities between Clegg and G.P. In her mind, G.P. is the ideal man—flaws and all—while Clegg is a monster. Of course, Clegg is far more a monster than G.P., but G.P. is far from perfect. Still, Miranda needs this idealized version of G.P. to keep her sane. It is a small comfort, just like the gifts Clegg showers her with.
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On October 28th, Miranda thinks about G.P.’s faults as a person and artist. She believes that he hates many talented painters for no reason and knows that he is notorious for his lascivious ways. Miranda often sees women in his apartment, who she assumes he has slept with. Additionally, one day G.P. propositions Miranda herself for sex. Surprised, Miranda rejects his advances, claiming she only wants to go to bed with someone she loves. G.P. tells Miranda she is making the right decision and warns against getting romantically involved with him in the future. Then, he goes on a lengthy rant about the women he has slept with and how he despises many of them. He also tells Miranda that she would be boring if it was not for her beauty. After, G.P. and Miranda play a game of chess together and Miranda thinks G.P. is letting her win.
Clegg eventually comes to dislike Miranda because he feels she is oversexed. Here, Miranda expresses the same sentiment about G.P. While Miranda’s concerns are far more reasonable, this is one of the ways she and Clegg are actually alike. In general, Clegg tends to represent extreme conservation, while G.P. represents its opposite. Meanwhile, Miranda sits somewhere in the middle, making her feel far too liberal for Clegg and too conservative and inexperienced for G.P. In this section, G.P. demonstrates that he’s just as misogynistic as Clegg, showing that misogyny pervaded all facets of English society during this period.
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On October 29th, Miranda writes more about G.P. She finds herself increasingly hurt by the many women he is sleeping with. When she complains to Caroline, Caroline warns her to stop spending so much time with G.P. Miranda feels that she should cut G.P. out of her life altogether, though she has no real plans to do so. When Miranda confronts G.P., he warns her that he is not a good man. Rather, his value is in his experience and willingness to speak frankly.
G.P.’s sexual escapades and his self-awareness are two ways that he is significantly different from Clegg. Here, Miranda is more like Clegg because she is hurt by the fact that G.P. is so sexually open. When Miranda confronts G.P., G.P. gives an answer that inverts one of Clegg’s refrains in the novel. Clegg always likes to tell Miranda how good he is compared to other men. Meanwhile, G.P. insists that he is a morally dubious man.
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After their conversation, Miranda and G.P. play chess and G.P. wins. Following this meeting, Miranda only saw G.P. a few more times, but never when he was by himself. Miranda wonders if G.P. thinks that she belongs to the same middle-class faction that she desperately wishes to remove herself from. In retrospect, Miranda realizes that G.P.’s primary goal was to sleep with her, though he never tried to use force.
G.P.’s willingness to beat Miranda in chess is a change from the previous scene where he lets her win. The chess games suggests that G.P.’s relationship with Miranda was merely a game as well, one in which he was merely toying with her to get her into bed with him.
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Later, Miranda also writes about Clegg, who is reading The Catcher in the Rye to please her. After reading for a while, Clegg asks Miranda if he can photograph her in a bikini, though he does so in a roundabout manner. Clegg claims that he would find the experience “interesting.” At this point, Miranda thinks he is telling the truth, as he seems to think of her more as a specimen than an object of desire. However, Miranda does not include her response to Clegg’s question.
This is a moment that Clegg does not discuss in his section of the novel, making it unclear whether Miranda agreed to be photographed. It is an interaction that captures the dual nature of Clegg’s fascination with Miranda, which combines the asexuality of scientific experimentation with his repressed sexual energy.
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Miranda also records a conversation she has with Clegg about his family. Clegg does not want to talk about his parents or his other relatives, but Miranda forces it out of him. Quickly, Miranda finds herself feeling pity for Clegg, as she realizes that his staid middle-class upbringing is what turned him into the person he is today. When Miranda speaks poorly of Aunt Annie, Clegg quickly defends her because he feels indebted to her for taking him in as a child. Quickly, Miranda and Clegg’s conversation turns into an argument, which ends with Miranda telling Clegg to “shut up” because he is “ugly enough without starting to whine.” Then, seeing that she has hurt Clegg, she moves to comfort him. After the situation is less tense, Miranda once again asks him what he wants with her. Clegg simply says that he loves her.
Miranda seems willing to recognize that, to some extent, Clegg is a victim of his upbringing. She is willing to lend him a certain degree of compassion despite everything he had done to her. Here, she shows far more awareness and understanding toward Clegg than he ever demonstrates toward her. However, she still cannot help but insult him. Her insults all suggest that he is more animal than man, and she treats him as though he has no feelings. Despite the verbal abuse, Clegg still claims he loves her. However, his love, much like Miranda’s love for G.P., is doomed to fail.
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On October 31st, Miranda looks at some art with Clegg and attempts to psychoanalyze him. She realizes that sitting close to her makes Clegg especially rigid. She thinks about how living with Clegg has become her new normal, even though everything about the situation is bizarre. Miranda also writes about a time when she went over to G.P.’s house and was upset. G.P. puts on a record and lays next to Miranda while she cries. When the music is over, G.P. asks Miranda if he can go to bed. Miranda let him go but, in retrospect, she wishes she had kissed him.
Miranda’s attempt to psychoanalyze Clegg is her trying to understand Clegg and, in doing so, win back some control. The normalization of her bizarre living situation with Clegg highlights the psychological impact of her prolonged captivity, where the abnormal becomes routine. Meanwhile, the reflection on her past with G.P. illustrates her longing for genuine human connection and stands in sharp contrast to her current situation.
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On November 1st, Miranda finds a nail while she is out of the cellar. She tricks Clegg into turning his back for a moment, so she can grab it and hide it. Clegg suspects she is trying to fool him but does not find the nail. Miranda also writes about speaking to someone G.P. slept with in the past, who she calls the Nielsen woman. Nielsen is frank about her relationship with G.P. and also mentions that he is interested in Miranda. The casual nature of the conversation shocks Miranda. Miranda finds herself feeling jealous and also wishing that G.P. was far younger, so it would make more sense for them to be together.
Miranda’s conversation with the Nielsen woman reveals her insecurities and her idealized view of G.P. The more Miranda learns about G.P., the more her naïve view of him is shattered. Still, she cannot bring herself to set him aside altogether. She knows that a romance with G.P. is doomed to fail, yet she is too in love with him and what he has done for her to resist. In this way, Miranda idealizes love just like Clegg, though Clegg is, of course, far more delusional.
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On November 2nd, Miranda gives Clegg a lengthy list of items to purchase in London, hoping it will keep him busy for several hours. One object, in particular, catches Clegg’s eye: Miranda wants a painting from George Paston (G.P.). When Clegg asks Miranda about G.P., Miranda says he is simply an old friend whom she wants to support. Clegg says he will try to find everything on the list the following day. While he is away, Miranda intends to escape. She finds herself feeling bad for Clegg because she thinks he will be in a great deal of pain when he finds her missing.
G.P.’s painting is a reminder of Miranda’s past that gives her hope for the future. Despite her desperate situation, Miranda’s empathy for Clegg’s potential pain upon discovering her escape reveals her complex emotional state, where she can still feel pity for her captor despite his actions. Although Miranda hates Clegg for what he has done to her, she still finds a way to recognize his humanity, which is far more than he ever does for her.
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Quotes
On November 4th, Miranda writes about her failed escape attempt. Although she managed to work a few stones out of the wall with her nail, she only found another wall of stone on the other side. She tried to put the stones back in place, but it was no use. She knew Clegg would know what she had done. Now, Clegg has put the stones back where they belong. Clegg also presents Miranda with the various things she asked him to buy, including a painting of a young woman from G.P. Miranda thinks that G.P. has done far better work, but she appreciates its authenticity. Miranda is grateful for the painting and treats Clegg kindly for a few days.
The painting from G.P. serves as a bittersweet reminder of Miranda’s past life and connections, providing her with a brief emotional respite. However, her failure to escape Clegg is almost too much to bear. Meanwhile, Clegg does not know it, but he has supplied Miranda with a painting from his romantic rival. While Miranda never genuinely considers romancing Clegg anyway, Clegg still holds out hope that she will come around, not realizing that this will never happen.
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However, on November 5th, Miranda finds herself in a fit of rage. She smashes more of Clegg’s china and nastily insults him to his face. In retrospect, she feels that she went way too far. However, she was annoyed because she spends all day talking to Clegg, and he does not listen to what she is saying. She finds herself growing increasingly paranoid about Clegg dying while out on one of his trips, leaving her in the cellar to rot.
Miranda’s rage and destruction of Clegg’s china signify her growing frustration and desperation. Her outburst is a release of pent-up emotions and a response to the powerlessness she feels. The retrospective regret indicates her awareness of the precariousness of her situation and the need to manage her emotions to survive.
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On November 6th, Miranda fakes appendicitis by rubbing talc on her face. She is confused when Clegg leaves the door to the upstairs open and wonders what happened to him after he ran out of the basement. She slowly makes her way upstairs only to find Clegg there waiting for her with something—possibly a hammer—in his hands. For a moment, she wonders if Clegg intends to attack her. Rather than continue her escape attempt, she turns around and goes back down into the cellar. Once again, she finds herself feeling more like a specimen than a human being. She worries that trying to escape is futile.
Miranda’s escape attempts are like experiments for Clegg. Clegg has controlled Miranda’s environment as much as possible, ensuring her escape attempts will always end in failure. After each failed attempt, Clegg learns something new about what Miranda is willing to do to escape. Meanwhile, Miranda is left feeling powerless and dehumanized, as she feels Clegg treats her more like an insect than a person.
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On November 7th, Miranda has a conversation with Clegg about The Catcher in the Rye, as he has now finished the book. Clegg says he does not like the book because he cannot stand how Holden Caulfield speaks. Miranda tells him that she thought he would like the book because he would relate to Caulfield, who feels like he doesn’t fit in anywhere. Clegg responds that the book is not realistic because Caulfield acts too disaffected for someone who comes from rich parents.
Holden Caulfield is the protagonist of The Catcher in the Rye. Like Clegg, he feels alienated from those around him and engages in morally dubious behavior. However, he is ultimately a far more sympathetic character than Clegg. Because Clegg cannot see beyond class any more than Miranda can, he thinks the novel is unrealistic because he cannot imagine rich people feeling alienated (even though he is now rich himself).
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Miranda finds herself thinking Clegg is stupid and hates having to put up with him. She feels that society’s only hope lies with its teachers and artists, not the new middle class that Clegg belongs to. Despite everything, Miranda thinks she is superior to Clegg because she has an artistic temperament and cares deeply about the world. She considers herself a martyr who is being sacrificed to satisfy the Calibans of the world.
Whenever Miranda is upset with Clegg, class superiority is the first thing she uses against him. Like Miranda’s mother, Clegg is a representation of the new middle class, which spends without thought or consideration. This belief in spending over substance disgusts Miranda, and she feels the artists of the world must stand against it.
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On November 9th, Miranda changes her mind. She realizes she is not an artist yet, but rather an aspiring artist. Additionally, she realizes that Clegg is not a typical representation of any social class. She writes about how poorly Clegg spends his money, buying many furnishings for his home without any sense of taste. In this way, she thinks he is similar to the new middle class, who also spend and consume without an artistic eye. Despite her feelings of resentment toward Clegg, Miranda often wishes for his company when he is not around because she is so lonely.
Miranda softens her harsh view after she calms down a bit. However, even in her calm moments, class and taste always comes between her and Clegg. When Miranda is at her loneliest—as she is here—she is also in a space where she is willing to treat Clegg more like a fellow human being, even when he gives her reasons not to.
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On November 10th, Miranda argues with Clegg about his money. She wants him to donate it to a good cause, but he refuses to do so. He thinks all charities are corrupt and will waste his money. Miranda also accuses him of failing to make a charitable donation in her name as he promised. Clegg assures her that he did as she asked but claims he does not have a receipt because he made the donation anonymously. Miranda does not trust him but has no proof one way or the other. Through their conversation, Miranda realizes that Clegg will only spend money on material things that he can see and touch because, to him, there is no world outside of his own.
Here, Miranda tries to get Clegg to think about the world outside of his solitary existence. Clegg’s worldview is largely self-centered; he cares only about himself and how others can please him. Still, he is willing to donate to charity—or at least pretend to—if it will temporarily satisfy Miranda. Of course, satisfying Miranda is how Clegg thinks he will eventually win her over, making even his charitable donations fundamentally selfish in nature.
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On November 12th, Miranda writes about her conflicted feelings regarding Clegg. If she ever escapes his clutches, she genuinely wants to put him in touch with a psychiatrist and even plans to introduce him to some of her friends. However, these things will only occur if Clegg lets her go when he promised.
Once again, Miranda expresses genuine interest and concern in Clegg. Though she is treating him like a specimen, just as he does to her, her thoughts about sending him to a psychiatrist demonstrate that she wants to understand him emotionally.
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Miranda thinks back to the past, two months ago, when G.P. had just returned from a trip to Spain. G.P. tells Miranda that he wishes she went to Spain with him. Then, he says that he wants to marry Miranda. After he says this, there is a brief pause and Miranda will not meet his gaze. Then, G.P. says that, because he wants to marry her, he thinks it would be better if they did not see each other anymore because it would never work between them. He also tells Miranda that she is more mature than him in many ways, especially in matters of morality.
G.P. and Miranda’s relationship mirrors Miranda’s relationship with Clegg in that both of them are tumultuous and end in failed proposals. Similar to Clegg, G.P.’s love is fickle, and it always feels like his first priority is himself rather than Miranda. However, G.P. once again demonstrates that he is far more aware of his faults than Clegg: rather than imprisoning her in a marriage, he breaks up with her.
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On November 18th, Miranda writes that she is on a hunger strike and has been for five days. She refuses to eat anything Clegg gives her, despite the concerning pain beginning to develop in her stomach. She plans to resume eating the following day because she does not want to die. In her current state, she finds herself despising Clegg more than ever.
Hunger strikes are Miranda’s way of trying to seize back control from Clegg. She counts on the fact that Clegg wants her to stay healthy, though notably she has to end the hunger strike herself, suggesting that he would have let her die.
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On November 19th, Miranda declares Clegg her permanent enemy. She has just woken up in her underwear after being dosed with chloroform the night before. She thinks about Clegg undressing her and it makes her upset, although she does not think his intention was sexual in nature. Miranda also recalls telling Clegg that she intends to kill him. For his part, Clegg says he will let her go in another four weeks, but Miranda does not believe him. She hates herself and Clegg for the current situation. She feels she has prostituted herself to Clegg, letting him spend great amounts of money on her while waiting to gain her freedom. Now that it does not looking like her freedom is coming, Miranda is angrier and more dejected than ever. In her mind, she completely dehumanizes Clegg, instead thinking of him as “empty space disguised as a human.”
Miranda’s declaration of Clegg as her permanent enemy marks a turning point in her psychological state. The violation of being undressed while unconscious, even without sexual intent, deepens her sense of violation and powerlessness. Also, her statement about prostituting herself reflects her internal conflict and guilt over her survival strategies. She feels that Clegg has dehumanized her and so, in return, she dehumanizes him. However, though she may wish it were true, Clegg is not “empty space.” Instead, he is a very capable and disturbed person who holds Miranda’s life in his hands.
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On November 20th, Miranda is on a hunger strike and refusing to talk to Clegg. As such, Clegg leaves her alone for the most part. Miranda finds that her mood is rapidly changing as she sits and waits for her next opportunity to escape. Everything begins to have a slight quality of unreality. In part, Miranda knows she is suffering because of her complete lack of social interaction. She feels like she is in a trance.
Miranda’s life becomes predictably chaotic, as she tries every method possible to change Clegg’s mind. Here, she begins to break under the pressure, as nothing is working, and she feels herself beginning to go insane.
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On November 21st, Miranda writes in her journal after managing to remove a gag from her mouth. As she writes, her hands are still bound together. In her journal entry, she describes attacking Clegg with the axe she found lying on the ground. She deliberately hit him with the blunt side of the axe, thinking it would be enough to stun Clegg and let her get away. When Clegg caught her, Miranda felt sure that she had finally gone too far, and that he was going to do something terrible to her in retaliation. However, he simply returned her to the basement, albeit with a ferocious look in his eye.
Miranda knows that she is playing a dangerous game with Clegg. Thus far, he has allowed her to rebel, but she smartly assumes that there is some limit to what he will allow her to get away with. In this case, Miranda comes close to killing Clegg, which she worries is a step too far. However, as she expressed earlier in the novel, she does not know what to fear. She does not know if Clegg intends to inflict physical or sexual violence because it still is not clear to her why he kidnapped her in the first place.
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On November 22nd, Miranda feels bad for using violence to try to escape. She has always preached nonviolence and feels she has betrayed her principles. She decides to take a gentle approach with Clegg once again, thinking of him as someone who needs sympathy. However, after spending the day with Clegg, Miranda worries her task is hopeless. She does not think Clegg is capable of learning anything about art and his manner of speaking annoys her more than ever. She thinks that even the concept of art is shocking to Clegg, much like sex.
Miranda’s change of attitude serves a dual purpose. First, she knows a better attitude will make it more likely that she will survive. Second, because she is empathetic, she knows that she has wounded Clegg both physically and emotionally. Still, as much as Miranda wants to be better, her disgust always overrides her sense of empathy, especially when art is involved.
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On November 28th, Miranda decides that she will seduce Clegg, feeling as though she has run out of all other ideas. Although she plans to engage in sexual behavior, she decides that she will not have full intercourse with Clegg no matter what. She feels certain that Clegg will respect this boundary. However, she is less certain that Clegg is able to have sex. She suspects he might not be interested in her because he is impotent. Either way, she will learn the truth soon.
Because Miranda does not understand Clegg, she reduces his needs to what she assumes all men want: sex. Although she does not know it yet, this is her fatal error, which ultimately leads to the events described at the end of Part 1. Miranda knows that Clegg has repressed his sexuality, but she does not realize just how disgusted sex makes him feel.
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On November 20th, Miranda declares that her relationship with Clegg is worse than ever. She recounts attempting to seduce Clegg. As she suspected, he was awkward throughout the entire encounter and could not perform. She felt she was taking him by force and had to do everything in the interaction. Although Miranda is left feeling humiliated and out of ideas, she is glad that nothing worse happened to her.
Miranda’s attempt to seduce Clegg reveals her desperation to use any means to gain some control over her situation. The sexual encounter itself showcases Clegg’s deep-seated issues with intimacy and control. Ultimately, it is a moment of futility, as Miranda feels she has debased herself only to worsen her situation.
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On December 1st, Miranda feels that Clegg hates her because she has learned he is impotent. She grows frightened of him as she worries that he no longer has an incentive to keep her happy and safe. Over the next few days, as Clegg is supposedly preparing a room upstairs for her, Miranda’s mind is filled with thoughts about G.P. She cannot decide whether she loves or hates him.
Miranda’s preoccupation with G.P. during this time indicates her longing for a different kind of connection than the one she is currently experiencing. As dysfunctional as her relationship with G.P. was, it looks way more desirable in comparison to what her situation with Clegg has become.
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Then, on December 7th, Miranda falls ill. At first, she does not think the illness is a big deal. However, as she quickly grows sicker, she worries she is going to die in Clegg’s cellar. As her condition worsens, she curses God and thinks that God cannot be good if he allows so many people to suffer unnecessarily. She writes, “God is impotent. He can’t love us. He hates us because he can’t love us.” By the end of the day, Miranda feels herself losing the ability to write, and she feels horribly alone.
It is not a surprise that Miranda falls ill given her living conditions. The illness is the final straw for Miranda, who has been trying desperately to remain optimistic. However, as her situation worsens, her religious faith—which was tenuous from the start—leaves her altogether. She cannot rationalize how both God and Clegg could exist.
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Over the next few days, Miranda writes brief and fragmented journal entries. In one, she states that she is going mad and hopes Clegg has gone to fetch a doctor. She insists that she won’t die but is also growing delirious. She also attempts to write something to G.P. but does not have the strength to finish it. Her final journal entry sees her begging God not to let her die over and over again.
Here, Miranda retains some amount of hope. However, the abrupt ending of her journal entries suggests that the help she was hoping for never arrived. She does not get to narrate the end of her story because she is not physically capable of doing so. Throughout the novel, writing is the one way Miranda retains some control over her life. Now, that is gone as well.
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