Chapter 39: Return, Storytelling, and Court Intrigue

⚠️ Spoiler Warning: This guide contains detailed spoilers for the entire novel. Proceed only if you've finished reading or are comfortable knowing the plot.

Summary

The narrator waits anxiously for Lady Katherine’s return, hoping to be restored to her teaching position. While walking in the garden with Claire, Madame D’Artois, and the girls, they hear heralds announcing the family’s approach. The girls rush to dress and greet their mother. That evening, no summons comes, and the narrator fears she is considered disreputable. The next morning, the girls deliver a message: Lady Katherine wishes to speak to all three teachers, but especially to the narrator. She dresses in her gold necklace and descends.

In the newly furnished great hall, Lady Katherine presents her stepdaughters Louise and Anne (the latter widowed). The ladies press the narrator for stories of New France. She tells them about white bears, killing one with an arquebus, and skinning it with her knife, showing the claw. The ladies are horrified yet fascinated. Lady Katherine declares she must present the narrator to the Queen, who will visit in a month. Louise and Anne insist on dressing her for the occasion.

Afterward, Claire and Madame D’Artois express sorrow for what the narrator endured, not disapproval. That night, the narrator cannot sleep. She wakes Claire and presses her to reveal why Madame D’Artois left the Queen’s service. Claire reluctantly explains that the poet Clément Marot fell in love with her mother and asked to marry her, but the Queen (Marguerite de Navarre) was angered that her mother even listened. Marot left court, and Madame D’Artois lost favor. The narrator realizes her own guardian was Marot’s patron, and she fears the Queen will judge her harshly for her past disobedience.

Key Events

The Montfort family arrives at the estate, announced by heralds.
The narrator waits all day and evening for word from Lady Katherine, but none comes.
The next morning, Suzanne and Ysabeau deliver a summons: Lady Katherine wants to see the teachers, especially the narrator.
The narrator puts on her gold necklace and joins Claire and Madame D’Artois.
In the great hall, Lady Katherine, Louise, and Anne question the narrator about her time in New France.
The narrator describes killing white bears, using her knife, and shows the bear claw.
Lady Katherine decides to present the narrator to the Queen during her upcoming visit.
That night, the narrator wakes Claire and learns the secret of why Madame D’Artois lost the Queen’s favor: Clément Marot’s proposal.
The narrator realizes her guardian was Marot’s patron and fears the Queen’s judgment.

Character Development

The narrator (Marguerite): She transitions from a passive, anxious supplicant to an active storyteller, using her survival narrative to regain agency. Her fear of the Queen’s judgment reveals deep insecurity about her past sins and her illegitimacy.
Claire: She shows loyalty and compassion, feeling sorrow rather than shock at the narrator’s violent tale. She also reveals the painful family secret, trusting the narrator with this vulnerability.
Madame D’Artois: Her strict piety and silence are now contextualized by her past disgrace. She remains guarded, warning the narrator not to be certain of the Queen’s kindness.
Lady Katherine: She is gracious and perceptive, recognizing the narrator’s value as a curiosity to be presented at court. She is not shocked by the brutal story but sees it as a social asset.
Louise and Anne: They represent courtly society—initially dismissive but quickly awed by the narrator’s raw experience. Anne’s widowhood adds a layer of unspoken grief.
The Queen (Marguerite de Navarre): Though absent, she looms as a figure of capricious power; her favor can be lost for even listening to a suitor, as shown by Madame D’Artois’s fall.

Themes, Symbols, or Motifs

Storytelling as power: The narrator’s tale of survival captivates the ladies, transforming her from a dependent teacher into a person of interest worthy of the Queen’s audience.
Protection and vulnerability: The chapter opens with the narrator longing for Madame Montfort’s offer of protection. She later prays to the Virgin for shelter from her guardian. The knife and bear claw are tangible symbols of the protection she once provided herself.
Court favor and caprice: The story of Madame D’Artois and Clément Marot illustrates how quickly royal favor can be lost, even when one is blameless. This foreshadows the narrator’s precarious position.
The Virgin Mary as mother figure: The narrator prays to a Virgin who resembles her mother—a maternal protector in a world where her real mother is absent.
Contradiction and intermingling of good and evil: The narrator reflects that her guardian—who tormented her—was also Marot’s patron, and the same psalms that were used against her later comforted her. Life is full of paradoxes she cannot explain.

Why This Chapter Matters

This chapter is the turning point where the narrator’s New World survival story enters the courtly sphere. It sets up the critical encounter with Queen Marguerite de Navarre, which will determine the narrator’s future. The revelation of Madame D’Artois’s past deepens the novel’s exploration of power, reputation, and the price of royal favor. The narrator’s internal conflict—whether she can confess her own sins before the Queen—raises the stakes for the next chapters. The chapter also enriches the theme of storytelling as both a survival tool and a dangerous act of self-revelation.

Study Questions and Answers

Why does the narrator fear the Queen’s judgment after hearing Claire’s story?
The narrator realizes that Queen Marguerite punished Madame D’Artois merely for listening to Clément Marot’s proposal. Since the narrator has committed far more serious acts of disobedience (including traveling to New France under her guardian’s control and possibly breaking vows), she fears the Queen will see her as irredeemably sinful rather than as a survivor worthy of help.
How does the narrator’s storytelling in the great hall shift her status in the household?
Initially she is a returning teacher hoping for charity. By telling her extraordinary story of killing bears and surviving alone, she becomes a spectacle that Lady Katherine can present to the Queen. Louise and Anne immediately begin planning to dress her, elevating her from an anonymous dependent to a court curiosity whose story has social currency.
What does Claire’s reluctance to reveal her mother’s secret tell us about their relationship?
Claire is loyal and protective of her mother’s reputation. She only speaks after the narrator presses her, and she insists the secret never be mentioned again. This shows that Claire trusts the narrator as a friend, but also that the family carries a wound they rarely discuss. It highlights the fragility of honor in the courtly world.