Summary

This short story begins with a description of the Danish countryside that subtly makes the distinctions between the generations of gentry who have owned the land and the poor who have worked it for them. There is detail in the description of the thatched huts that clearly speaks of the impoverished village in contrast to the mansion and its fine furnishings that indicate no expense was spared in creating a comfortable and pleasurable environment for its inhabitants.

Among its inhabitants were the women who bore the sons that carried on the family name and inherited all that was left by those who came before. The lady of the manor might appear to be – in all her finery – mere window dressing, but the legitimacy she passed to her offspring was the very heart of her family's existence. One of the story's main...