That Unfortunate Marriage, Vol. 2

In Short

Set in the provincial English city of Oldchester and its fashionable surroundings, this volume traces the social and romantic trials of May Cheffington, a young woman caught between two worlds. Raised partly by her grounded, plain-spoken grandmother, Mrs. Dobbs, May possesses gentle birth through her unreliable father, Augustus. As social ambition, unexpected inheritances, and financial crises ripple through Oldchester society, May must navigate unwanted suitors, local gossip, and her developing attachment to the high-minded Owen Rivers. Frances Eleanor Trollope paints a dryly humorous, perceptive portrait of Victorian middle-class ambition, family duty, and the quiet resilience required to live honorably within rigid social structures.

The Story

The narrative opens as May Cheffington returns from London to Jessamine Cottage, the modest home of her maternal grandmother, Sarah Dobbs. Though May insists she remains unchanged by her exposure to higher social circles, four months away have altered her perspective. She notices the shabby reality of the house, the thinness of her family's finances, and the frail health of her beloved grandmother. Despite her father’s desire that she mix with high society and visit wealthy patrons at Glengowrie, May resolves to stay in Oldchester to care for Mrs. Dobbs.

Her return coincides with subtle shifts across Oldchester’s social landscape. Gossip ignites when news arrives that May’s father, Augustus Cheffington, has become the potential heir to Viscount Castlecombe following the declining health and eventual death of George Cheffington. Suddenly, May’s social standing rises in the eyes of local matchmakers and ambitious acquaintances. Among those seeking her favor is Mr. Bragg, an extraordinarily wealthy, elderly businessman who approaches Mrs. Dobbs to propose a match with May. Though Mrs. Dobbs privately weighs the material security such a union would bring her granddaughter, May firmly rejects the idea of a loveless marriage for money.

Simultaneously, romantic and professional tensions center around Owen Rivers, an independent, proud young man employed as Mr. Bragg’s secretary. Owen is deeply attached to May, but his pride and modest income keep him from speaking freely. May’s cold, arrogant acquaintance Theodore Bransby also harbours designs on her, though his cold nature inspires aversion in May and hostility from Owen.

Disaster strikes the prominent Bransby family when the easy-going patriarch, Martin Bransby, dies suddenly, leaving his business affairs in chaos due to past financial speculations. His young widow, Louisa, and her children are left facing near-destitution, shielded only by the cold charity of stepson Theodore. Young Martin Bransby, aged twelve, offers to abandon his education to work for weekly wages, displaying the family's sudden fall. In this crisis, Owen steps forward to support the widow, agreeing to board at Mrs. Bransby’s house and help organize her affairs—a generous gesture that Theodore insidiously misrepresents at a dinner party to spark jealous rumors regarding Owen and the young widow.

Throughout these shifting fortunes, musical evenings, public concerts, and local intrigue provide a backdrop where characters expose their vanity and true motives. Despite social pressures, financial anxieties, and malicious gossip designed to alienate her from Owen, May remains steadfast in her values, choosing genuine affection and moral integrity over mere wealth or social advancement.

How It Unfolds

The return to Jessamine Cottage May comes back from London to live with her grandmother, Mrs. Dobbs, immediately noticing that the older woman's health and finances are declining. She decides to reject fashionable society visits in order to remain at home and fulfill her filial duty.

News of the succession Word spreads through Oldchester that May's father, Augustus, has become the next heir to Lord Castlecombe's title and estate. The town gossips begin calculating May's elevated value on the marriage market, though May herself remains indifferent to the news.

An unexpected proposal The wealthy, older businessman Mr. Bragg approaches Mrs. Dobbs to express his interest in marrying May. Mrs. Dobbs considers the security of his fortune, but May refuses to consider a marriage lacking affection.

Tragedy at the Bransby household Martin Bransby dies unexpectedly, exposing a history of poor investments that leaves his young widow, Louisa, and her children without adequate means. His eldest son from a previous marriage, Theodore, offers minimal aid while displaying icy condescension.

Owen steps into the breach Owen Rivers takes a position as Mr. Bragg's secretary and offers assistance to the widowed Mrs. Bransby, agreeing to move into her home as a boarder. This generous act provides needed income for the family but stirs up romantic misunderstandings and gossip across Oldchester.

The People

• May Cheffington wants to live a life governed by genuine affection and duty rather than social ambition. Caught between her father's aristocratic connections and her grandmother's humble household, she refuses to sell her heart for wealth, growing more confident and discerning throughout her trials.
• Mrs. Sarah Dobbs wants to secure her granddaughter May's future before her own failing health gives out. Though tempted briefly by wealthy suitors who offer financial stability, her warm heart and pragmatic wisdom ultimately lead her to support May’s independence.
• Owen Rivers wants to establish an honorable career on his own terms without trading on family connections or sacrificing his principles. Capable, proud, and deeply in love with May, he learns to navigate commercial life under Mr. Bragg while offering selfless support to those in distress.
• Theodore Bransby wants social respect, order, and control over those around him, treating life as a series of formal obligations. His cold self-righteousness alienates his family and makes him a subtle antagonist to both May and Owen.
• Mr. Bragg wants a sensible, respectable life and a suitable wife, using his vast wealth as a quiet source of social weight. Though disappointed by May’s refusal, he shows a practical generosity by valuing Owen’s integrity.
• Louisa Bransby wants to protect her young children following the sudden death of her husband, finding herself wholly unprepared for sudden financial hardship.

In Its Own Voice

"She thought the house delightful. But a very brief acquaintance showed it to be badly built and inconvenient--one of those paltry 'bandboxes' of which Mrs. Dobbs had been wont to speak with contempt."

May's return to her grandmother's modest home immediately exposes the contrast between romantic idealization and practical domestic reality.

"To most of the rich manufacturers of the place (whether they really thought themselves 'as good as a lord' or not) a lord whom they never beheld, and into whose house neither they nor their children had the remotest chance of being admitted, was, at any rate, genuinely uninteresting."

The narrative dryly captures the pragmatic, class-conscious indifference of Oldchester's industrial middle class toward distant aristocracy.

"You see, honesty makes a capital slow-combustion kind of fire, but if you want a white heat you must have honour."

Mr. Bragg reflects in his deliberate manner on the rare moral quality he recognizes and values in his young secretary, Owen Rivers.

What It's Really About

At its heart, the novel examines the friction between social position and moral integrity in Victorian England. It questions whether class identity is defined by lineage, money, or personal conduct. Through May and her father Augustus, the narrative contrasts the superficial prestige of aristocratic blood with the quiet dignity of honest work and personal loyalty. Trollope critically inspects the marriage market, illustrating how women are relentlessly pressured to treat matrimony as a financial transaction. The story argues that true self-respect requires resisting social expectations, demonstrating that financial collapse and social snobbery cannot diminish those who anchor their lives in duty, affection, and emotional honesty.

Why Read It Today

Readers who appreciate the detailed social comedy of Anthony Trollope or the gentle domestic realism of Elizabeth Gaskell will find much to admire here. Frances Eleanor Trollope writes with a sharp eye for human vanity, subtle humour, and a deep appreciation for unsung moral courage. The book offers an immersive, unhurried portrait of nineteenth-century English provincial life, filled with vivid musical evenings, local gossip, and delicate power struggles within domestic drawing rooms.

The novel presents few real difficulties for modern readers, though its unhurried pace, deliberate character development, and minor details of period etiquette require patient reading. A few characters speak with subtle provincial phrasing, but the prose is consistently clear, elegant, and accessible. What stays with the reader is the author's warm portrayal of intergenerational love—particularly the bond between May and her plain-spoken grandmother—and the satisfying observation of ordinary people maintaining their dignity against the petty snobberies of their world.