Chapter 3 Summary

Previously Mary asked Robert, who grew up in London, how he met his Canadian wife. His response is a peculiar. That, he says, cannot be explained without describing his sisters and his mother and they, in turn, must be described in terms of his father.

Robert's father is a diplomat and a man who is not simply respected, but feared, by his family and perhaps even those outside his family. Robert implies that he is a remarkably imposing figure. But Robert clearly harbors an enduring adoration - even worship - for his father and, as the only son; Robert had been his father's favorite. Acknowledged as the next head of the family, Robert is permitted to lord over his sisters and is taught to believe that he is eminently superior to the women in his household. Subsequently, his four sisters begin to hate...