Chapter 4 Summary

In this chapter, Quentin tries to make sense of what he has learned. He guesses that Sutpen must have found out in New Orleans that Bon had a mistress and child, and forbidden the marriage to Judith. From here, he guesses that Bon may have deliberately backed off so that he could watch and manipulate the situation, and begin plotting a way to marry Judith despite the opposition.

He knows that there was no actual courtship between Bon and Judith during the vacations. There is, however, an old love-letter from Bon to Judith, in which he said he intended to return and marry her. It is the only surviving communication between the two, written towards the end of the war.

Quentin thinks that Henry cared so much for Bon that he gave up his claim as the heir to his father's Estate. He...