Chapter 2, The Decline Summary

Latimer's father's health declined shortly after his son's marriage, so Latimer and Bertha stayed at home more and, consequently, saw each other more. A chill still existed between them, which became even greater on the night of Latimer's father's death. Just after his father died, Latimer joined Bertha in her sitting room and discovered that he was suddenly able to read her thoughts. What he read in her mind terrified him.

Latimer discovered that Bertha thought of him as a weak, silly man and always had. He suddenly realized that he was hated and alone. He saw that Bertha was petty and reveled in causing pain to other people. He also learned the cause of the coldness he had been feeling from her - Bertha had been disillusioned. She had believed that Latimer's weakness would make him her slave...