Ruth

“Those bright happy people—as much without any semblance of care or woe as if they belonged to another race of beings. Had they ever to deny themselves a wish, much less a want?”

This quotation conveys Ruth’s wonderment at observing members of the upper classes. The comparison to “another race of beings” suggests the vast gap between individuals from different class backgrounds and hints at why the relationship between Bellingham and Ruth was always doomed. The quotation also immediately positions members of the upper classes as invariably selfish and foreshadows how Bellingham will recklessly seduce Ruth to gratify his desires.

“His spirited and natural action of galloping into the water to save the child, was magnified by Ruth into the most heroic deed of daring; his interest about the boy was tender, thoughtful benevolence in her eyes.”

Ruth romanticizes and idealizes Bellingham, leading her to trust him and overlook his obvious faults. The quotation reflects the theme of appearances versus reality and hints to the reader not to make the same mistake of imagining Bellingham as a romantic hero. The quotation also shows that individuals cannot be assessed based on any single choice: Bellingham is a bad person who sometimes still does good deeds, whereas Ruth will be shown to be a good person who sometimes still makes mistakes.

“But do you think it would be right, sir? It seems as if it would be such a great pleasure, that it must be in some way wrong.”

Ruth nervously seeks reassurance from Bellingham about whether it is socially appropriate for them to spend time together alone. Even though Ruth is sheltered and naïve, she has good instincts that reveal her innate moral integrity. Ruth is rightfully dubious about spending time with Bellingham, but she is also too innocent and trusting to stand up for herself.

“‘I will not,’ thought she, ‘embitter his life; I will try and be cheerful. I must not think of myself so much.’”

Ruth and Bellingham’s relationship starts to fall apart, revealing early signs of Ruth’s self-sacrificing and submissive nature. She sees it as her responsibility to make Bellingham happy and does not ask for anything in return. Even though Ruth is in a dangerous and isolated situation, she still thinks she should primarily focus on someone else and do everything she can to make him happy.

“He wished, in the languid way in which he wished and felt everything not immediately relating to his daily comfort, that he had never seen her. It was a most awkward, a most unfortunate affair.”

This quotation reveals Bellingham’s inner thoughts and feelings as he tries to figure out what to do about Ruth. He callously wants to get rid of her and does not think about everything Ruth has sacrificed to be with him. The quotation reveals how the difference in class and gender positions between Ruth and Bellingham radically informs their level of privilege and autonomy. As an upper class man, Bellingham can discard Ruth and move on with his life with basically no consequences.

“When she saw her, she could no longer imagine her to be an imposter, or a hardened sinner.”

Faith gazes at Ruth, who is sleeping during her illness in Wales. While Faith has initially assumed Ruth must be a sinful woman, she changes her mind because of how young, beautiful, and innocent Ruth appears. While the moment represents an example of a character showing compassion for a fallen woman, it also reveals the importance of Ruth’s outward appearance in achieving her redemption. Her beauty and youth generate sympathy and lead to her receiving a second chance.

“It was the decision—the pivot, on which the fate of years moved; and he turned it the wrong way.”

The narrator comments on Mr. Benson’s decision to lie and tell everyone that Ruth is a widow. The quotation creates a sense of suspense and a mood of fateful tragedy by making it clear that this decision will be very significant and that it was the wrong decision. While Mr. Benson acts with good intentions, he sets the stage for Ruth to be vulnerable because she must maintain the deception. The metaphor representing the decision as a kind of machine set in motion highlights the important theme of moral decision-making throughout the novel.

“I do think I’ve a talent for fiction, it is so pleasant to invent, and make incidents dovetail together.”

Faith explains to her brother that she enjoys concocting lies about Ruth’s past. The quotation hints that Faith’s creativity and intellect may have been stifled by living a moral and socially appropriate life, and now she can finally explore what it is like to live with greater freedom. The quotation also playfully pokes fun at the experience of being a writer; much like a novelist creating stories about her characters, Faith discovers the pleasures of creativity and invention. 

“She dreamt that the innocent babe that lay by her side […] had started up into man’s growth and […] was a repetition of his father, and like him, lured some maiden […] into sin.”

After Leonard’s birth, Ruth is haunted by a fear that her son will grow up to resemble his father. While she initially idealized Bellingham, Ruth later comes to see her former lover as a source of corruption and is horrified by Leonard hurting someone the way Bellingham hurt her. This quotation shows Ruth becoming more pragmatic and realistic, and it also illustrates the theme of parental protectiveness as her maternal instincts awaken.

“She read in the early morning the books that he marked out; she trained herself with strict perseverance to do all these thoroughly; […] her ambition was to learn Latin, in order to teach it to her boy.”

After she gives birth, Ruth becomes highly motivated to become a good mother, which includes preparing herself intellectually. Ruth’s education functions as part of her overall process of growth, redemption, and self-improvement, showing that she wants to become a better person. Ruth’s commitment to intellectual pursuits also shows her adapting to her somewhat unusual role as a single mother. Typically, a boy’s education would have been primarily supervised by his father, but Ruth wants to step in to fill that role so that Leonard is never shortchanged by his lack of a father.

“What harm do you think she can do? What is the risk to which you think we are exposing Mr. Bradshaw’s children?”

When Mr. Bradshaw invites Ruth to come and work as a governess, Faith and Mr. Benson disagree about whether it is necessary to tell him the truth about Ruth’s past. Faith shows herself to be more pragmatic than her brother since she argues that lying is acceptable if it helps Ruth advance her career. Faith also argues for empirical evidence rather than theoretical principles since she and her brother know Ruth based on observation rather than rumors. Based on these ideas, Faith concludes that Ruth is not a source of danger and that there is nothing wrong with her being around young girls.

“I think it’s for them without sins to throw stones at a poor child.”

Sally intervenes on Leonard’s behalf and prevents him from being whipped as a punishment for making up stories. Sally picks up on the clear hypocrisy of Mr. Benson (who has fabricated an entire story about Ruth’s past) chastising Leonard for lying. She uses Biblical imagery, referring to the story in which Jesus intervened on behalf of a woman who was about to be stoned to death for adultery, and implies individuals who have committed their sins should not be judgmental of others. This allusion is highly topical to the novel’s plot, given Ruth’s status as a fallen woman and the theme of individuals showing moral hypocrisy.

“Many things are right for men which are not for girls.”

Richard Bradshaw carelessly justifies his behavior to his sister, highlighting the theme of masculine privilege within the novel. He feels entitled to bend moral rules and lie to his father, but he expects Jemima to be held to a different standard. Likewise, Bellingham faces no consequences for having an illicit relationship and fathering a child outside of wedlock. Within the novel’s world, male characters are often sanguine about the gendered double standard from which they benefit.

“What business has he […] to lecture me? Often I can hardly bear it from papa, and I will not bear it from him.”

Jemima muses on why she often feels frustrated by Mr. Farquhar. Because Mr. Farquhar is significantly older than her and somewhat serious in disposition, Jemima sometimes interprets him as taking on a paternal role with her, and she resents it. Although she genuinely does love Mr. Farquhar, Jemima’s rebellious nature does not want to submit to any man trying to control her. To be happy, Jemima must learn not to rebel needlessly and to appreciate Mr. Farquhar’s many good qualities.

“These things are better than your cold way of looking out for a wife, just as you would for a carpet, to add to your comforts and settle you respectably.”

After Jemima misunderstands Mr. Farquhar’s motivations and intentions, she grimly thinks about how he might view their relationship. She uses the metaphor of Mr. Farquhar shopping for a wife in the same way someone might purchase a carpet to highlight how she feels dismissed and objectified. The metaphor of a carpet is telling because it is an item that might be used to create an atmosphere of coziness and hominess, and a bachelor might similarly look for a wife to enhance his domestic comforts rather than appreciating her on her own terms. While most of the novel focuses on the experience of fallen women, Gaskell also applies social criticism to how women can sometimes lack agency during courtship and marriage.

“It seemed as if weights were tied to her feet—as if the steadfast rocks receded—as if time stood still.”

This quotation dramatically conveys Ruth’s reaction to discovering that Mr. Donne is Mr. Bellingham. Gaskell uses a series of similes and imagery to convey the intensity of what Ruth feels, showing that Ruth’s sense of freedom and agency vanishes almost entirely when she meets Bellingham again. Ruth’s intense emotions manifest in her body, in her sense of the natural world around her, and even in a metaphysical sense, showing how complete and all-consuming the experience is for her.

“Oh, my God! I do believe Leonard’s father is a bad man, and yet, oh! pitiful God, I love him.”

Ruth’s emotions burst forth in a rare moment of total honesty as she wrestles with a moral conflict. She has stopped idealizing Bellingham and even holds him accountable for his cruel actions, but she cannot help still feeling intense emotions for him. Ruth’s helpless love for Bellingham reveals her inner virtue because she loves Bellingham as faithfully as if he were her husband. The word choice in the quotation also shows why Ruth finds it so hard to give up her emotions for Bellingham: by referring to him as “Leonard’s father,” she reveals how she is deeply tied to him.

“Whatever Ruth had been, she was good, and to be respected as such, now.”

Jemima concludes that she will not judge Ruth nor reveal her secret to anyone. Despite being jealous and resentful of Ruth, Jemima still must concede that Ruth has never done anything wrong and does not deserve any moral condemnation. While other characters struggle to overlook Ruth’s past, Jemima immediately and intuitively separates whatever Ruth might have done in the past from the woman she is at present.

“The blood bubbled up to her brain, and made such a sound there, as of boiling waters, that she did not hear the words which Mr. Bradshaw first spoke.”

Dramatic imagery shows Ruth’s intense reaction to Mr. Bradshaw rebuking and shaming her. The imagery and simile of Ruth’s blood boiling like water reveal how traumatic the moment is for her: she literally blocks out the sound of his voice because she cannot stand to hear it.

“Let the shame fall on me! I have deserved it, but he—he is so innocent and good.”

Ruth intercedes and pleads on behalf of her son. She docilely accepts that she is a sinful woman who deserves to be ashamed and will not stand up for herself, but she will stand up for her son. While Ruth’s moral status is debatable within the novel, Gaskell uses the trope of the innocent and sinless child to suggest that Leonard should not be blamed for his parents’ sins.

“I believe to be His truth, that not every woman who has fallen is depraved; that […] many, many crave and hunger after a chance for virtue.”

In his confrontation with Mr. Bradshaw, Mr. Benson makes an impassioned speech asserting that women like Ruth might have sexually illicit relationships and still be capable of living good and virtuous lives. Mr. Benson makes this claim not only as his personal belief but takes the more radical step of arguing that this belief is also better aligned with Christianity than the more traditional practice of condemning and ostracizing fallen women. By using imagery of hunger, Mr. Benson implies that most women are oriented toward virtue, even after making mistakes, and want to become better if they have the opportunity to do so.

“Such a one as her has never been a great sinner; nor does she do her work as a penance, but for the love of God […]. She will be in the light of God’s countenance when you and I will be standing far off.”

After Ruth has heroically worked in the fever hospital and saved many lives, an impoverished man stands up for her after hearing her being called a sinner. He asserts that Ruth is not only a good person but more honorable and virtuous than many others. This quotation is important because it shows how Ruth has completed her arc of redemption through her courage, hard work, and care for others. The quotation is also important because Leonard overhears the conversation and feels a newfound sense of pride that his mother is finally respected again.

“I never was kind to you, and I dunnot think the world was very kind to you, my darling—but you are gone where the angels are very tender to such as you.”

After Ruth’s death, Sally laments how she initially judged Ruth and treated her harshly. Sally grieves that she and many others were unkind and unforgiving to Ruth but comforts herself with the belief that Ruth will now be safe and happy in Heaven. While this perspective aligns with Christian belief, it shows how society has largely failed Ruth by only truly being able to see her worth after she was dead.