Chapter 6 Summary: The Haunted Mother

⚠️ 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 chapter opens in 1950 with the story of Belinda's infancy. Born in January 1900, Belinda's mother Rose Harrison died in childbirth. From birth, Belinda screamed almost constantly, filling the house with her wails. Her father, Levi Holland, a Harvard botany professor, hired governess after governess, but all quit. Even the housekeeper, cook, and local reverend couldn't endure it. Desperate, Levi hired Johanna, a deaf Dutch immigrant from a school for the deaf, who could hold the screaming baby without being disturbed by the sound. Johanna's two deaf friends joined the household as housekeeper and cook.

Belinda's half-brother James, seven years older, was sent away to relatives and boarding school, and never forgave his sister for displacing him. Belinda developed normally despite the screaming, but she also began hitting her head against walls and pulling at her ears, shouting. At age four, while Johanna slept, Belinda wandered into her father's greenhouse and tried to cut off her ears with gardening shears. She was rushed to the hospital, where doctors made clean incisions to repair the damage. Through long conversations, Levi learned that Belinda had heard her mother's dying screams echoing in her ears since birth. After the incident, the screams receded to a distant roar, like the ocean in a seashell.

The chapter then shifts to Belinda's young adulthood. Impoverished and living in a shabby boardinghouse, she was dependent on her half-brother James, who paid her rent. James arranged for her to meet Henry Chapel, a vice president of the Chapel Firearms Company. Belinda initially refused his advances, but when James threatened to cut off her rent, she agreed to date Henry and eventually married him, reasoning that death in childbirth was preferable to starving on the streets. The narrative notes that Belinda's stories always ended at her wedding day—the daughters were the epilogue.

Returning to the present, the chapter describes the weeks after Aster's death. Belinda was sedated, then sent to Fern Hollow, a private psychiatric clinic near Greenwich. While she was away, the sisters fell into a dreary routine, immobilized by grief. Iris visited Belinda's empty rooms, touching her belongings and wondering if her mother felt guilty about Aster's death. The wedding gifts were donated, the wedding dress and Iris's flower-girl dress were incinerated, and Iris was left with guilt over the ruined last week of Aster's life.

When Belinda returned home on trial, she was calm and quiet, which unsettled her daughters. Rosalind was particularly angry that Belinda showed no visible grief for Aster. Belinda explained to Iris and Zelie that she was waiting for Aster's spirit to visit her, believing her daughter would come to her when ready. Iris fell under her mother's spell, keeping nightly vigils in a chair by the window, watching the family plot. She began falling asleep in class and was sent to the principal's office, where she overheard the principal and nurse gossiping about the mystery of Aster's death.

On the night of the full moon, Iris saw a white figure in the family plot. She went outside and found Belinda, who admitted she knew Aster wasn't there but needed to make sure. Belinda said she used to catch the scent of Aster's perfume in the house but it was gone now. Iris persuaded her mother back inside and slept in her bed. The next morning, Belinda wept and said Aster wasn't coming—she could no longer feel her daughter. Then Belinda began to scream with terrifying intensity, a scream Iris described as the most terrifying thing she'd ever heard. Their father entered, took Iris away, and shut the door.

A new nurse arrived, keeping Belinda on Veronal indefinitely. Belinda became like a ghost, sedated at night and barely lucid during the day. Iris was forbidden from visiting Aster's grave and had to keep her bedroom door open at night so Rosalind could check on her. Rosalind passed her driving test and began taking the sisters on outings—pumpkin patch, apple picking, a Yale football game—slowly pulling them away from the fever dream of those weeks. Rosalind warned Iris that their mother was crazy and Iris would end up like her if she wasn't careful.

Key Events

Belinda's infancy: constant screaming, all caregivers quit, deaf nurse Johanna hired
At age four, Belinda tries to cut off her ears; doctors discover she hears her mother's dying screams
Belinda's reluctant marriage to Henry Chapel, arranged by her half-brother James
Belinda is sent to Fern Hollow clinic after Aster's death
Belinda returns home on trial and announces she's waiting for Aster's spirit
Iris keeps nightly vigils and falls asleep in class
On the full moon, Iris finds Belinda in the family plot; Belinda admits Aster isn't coming
Belinda's violent screaming breakdown the next morning
A new nurse sedates Belinda with Veronal; Iris is watched by Rosalind

Character Development

Belinda: This chapter reveals the origins of her screaming and her psychic sensitivity. Her mother's death screams haunted her from birth, and her violent attempt to silence them only pushed them to a distance. Her marriage to Henry Chapel was a survival decision, not a love match. After Aster's death, her calm is revealed to be a form of waiting—she genuinely believed her daughter's spirit would visit her. When that hope fails, she breaks down completely.

Iris: Iris emerges as the most devoted and vulnerable of the daughters. She visits her mother's rooms, keeps nightly vigils, and falls under Belinda's influence. Her guilt over Aster's death is palpable—she wonders if she and her mother are responsible. Her loyalty to Belinda puts her at odds with Rosalind, who becomes her watcher.

Rosalind: Rosalind is angry and pragmatic. She refuses to sleep in the room she shared with Aster, she's openly hostile to Belinda's calm, and she ultimately becomes the family's enforcer, watching Iris and warning her against becoming like their mother.

The sisters: Calla, Daphne, and Zelie are present but more peripheral. Calla quotes Tennyson, Daphne sketches and occasionally defends Iris, and Zelie is bold and tactless, asking Belinda directly why she isn't crying.

Themes, Symbols, or Motifs

Maternal haunting: Belinda is literally haunted by her mother's dying screams. The chapter frames this as both a psychic gift and a curse—her mother's death imprinted on her at birth.

Inherited trauma: Belinda's trauma is passed down through generations. The chapter suggests the daughters fear becoming their mother, and Rosalind explicitly warns Iris about it.

Birth-death connection: Belinda's birth coincided with her mother's death. The chapter emphasizes this intertwining of life and death, which recurs throughout the family's story.

The wedding as story's end: Belinda's life story ends at her wedding day, like a fairy tale. The daughters are the epilogue. This motif connects to Aster's own wedding, which ended in death.

Waiting for the dead: Belinda's vigil for Aster's spirit mirrors Iris's nightly vigils. The chapter explores the agony of not knowing where the dead are.

Sedation and madness: The chapter contrasts Belinda's haunted state with the chemical sedation that turns her into a ghost. The family's solution to grief is to drug it away.

Perfume as presence: Aster's Yardley's English lavender perfume is a sign of her lingering presence—both Iris and Belinda smell it in the house.

Why This Chapter Matters

This chapter provides essential backstory for Belinda, explaining her screaming, her psychic sensitivity, and her reluctant marriage. It deepens the mystery of Aster's death by showing how the family and the wider community discuss it—the principal and nurse gossip about the mystery, and Iris realizes everyone knows Aster didn't die of the flu. The chapter also establishes the pattern of the daughters' relationship with their mother: they fear her, resent her, and yet are drawn into her world. Belinda's breakdown and subsequent sedation set up the family's approach to grief—suppression rather than processing—which will likely have consequences for the remaining daughters. Finally, Rosalind's warning to Iris about becoming like their mother introduces the theme of inherited madness that will presumably shape the rest of the novel.

Study Questions

1. How does Belinda's childhood explain her adult behavior?

Belinda's constant screaming as an infant was a response to hearing her mother's dying screams echoing in her ears. This sensory haunting shaped her entire life—her violent attempt to cut off her ears, her connection to the spirit world, and her belief that she could communicate with the dead. Her marriage to Henry Chapel was a survival decision born of poverty and her half-brother's cruelty. After Aster's death, her calm was not indifference but a form of waiting—she genuinely expected Aster's spirit to visit her, as the Chapel victims visited her nightly. When that hope failed, she broke down completely.

2. What role does Iris play in this chapter, and how does her relationship with Belinda develop?

Iris is the most devoted daughter, visiting Belinda's rooms, keeping nightly vigils, and falling under her mother's influence. She believes Belinda's claims about the spirit world and hopes Aster will visit them. Her guilt over the week before Aster's wedding—the ruined gifts, the headless bride, the flower-girl dress—weighs on her. When Belinda breaks down, Iris tries to protect her, but is pulled away by her father. Afterward, she is watched by Rosalind and warned against becoming like her mother, setting up a conflict between loyalty to Belinda and the family's desire to suppress the past.

3. How does the chapter use the motif of waiting, and what does it reveal about grief?

Waiting is central to the chapter. Belinda waits for Aster's spirit; Iris waits at her window each night; the family waits to see if Belinda will cope with her trial at home. The chapter suggests that grief is a form of waiting—for answers, for closure, for the dead to return. Belinda's admission that Aster isn't coming is the moment her hope collapses, triggering her breakdown. The family's response—sedation and outings—is an attempt to stop waiting and move on, but the chapter implies this suppression is not healing.