Original Text(~250 words)
CHAPTER II. PAULINA. Some days elapsed, and it appeared she was not likely to take much of a fancy to anybody in the house. She was not exactly naughty or wilful: she was far from disobedient; but an object less conducive to comfort—to tranquillity even—than she presented, it was scarcely possible to have before one’s eyes. She moped: no grown person could have performed that uncheering business better; no furrowed face of adult exile, longing for Europe at Europe’s antipodes, ever bore more legibly the signs of home sickness than did her infant visage. She seemed growing old and unearthly. I, Lucy Snowe, plead guiltless of that curse, an overheated and discursive imagination; but whenever, opening a room-door, I found her seated in a corner alone, her head in her pigmy hand, that room seemed to me not inhabited, but haunted. And again, when of moonlight nights, on waking, I beheld her figure, white and conspicuous in its night-dress, kneeling upright in bed, and praying like some Catholic or Methodist enthusiast—some precocious fanatic or untimely saint—I scarcely know what thoughts I had; but they ran risk of being hardly more rational and healthy than that child’s mind must have been. I seldom caught a word of her prayers, for they were whispered low: sometimes, indeed, they were not whispered at all, but put up unuttered; such rare sentences as reached my ear still bore the burden, “Papa; my dear papa!” This, I perceived, was a one-idea’d nature; betraying that monomaniac...
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Summary
Little Paulina Home is slowly dying inside from missing her father. Lucy watches this six-year-old waste away with homesickness so severe it makes rooms feel haunted. The child prays desperately each night for 'Papa,' showing what Lucy calls a 'monomaniac tendency'—being so focused on one person that nothing else matters. Then suddenly, Paulina spots her father through the window and transforms completely. She bolts from the house and into his arms. When Mr. Home enters, we see a reserved Scottish man who clearly adores his daughter but struggles with his own emotions. The reunion is quietly intense—no dramatics, just deep relief. Paulina immediately takes charge of serving her father tea, insisting on doing everything for him just like at home. She's desperate to prove her usefulness, her worth. When young Graham Bretton returns and playfully teases Paulina with formal introductions, she responds with serious dignity before retreating to bed. This chapter reveals how some people—even children—pour their entire sense of self into one relationship. Paulina's devotion to her father is touching but troubling. She has no identity beyond being his 'comfort.' Lucy observes it all with her characteristic emotional distance, recognizing the dangerous intensity of such singular attachment. The chapter shows how love can become a form of imprisonment when it's the only thing that makes us feel alive.
That's what happens. To understand what the author is really doing—and to discuss this chapter with confidence—keep reading.
Terms to Know
Monomaniac tendency
An obsessive focus on one person or idea that dominates someone's entire mental and emotional life. In Paulina's case, her father is literally the only thing that matters to her - she can't function without him.
Modern Usage:
We see this in people who make their romantic partner their whole world, or parents who live entirely through their children's achievements.
Home sickness
In Brontë's time, this wasn't just missing home - it was considered a serious medical condition that could make people physically ill or even die. Paulina is literally wasting away from separation.
Modern Usage:
We now call this separation anxiety or attachment disorder, especially common in military families or when parents travel for work.
Catholic or Methodist enthusiast
Religious people known for intense, emotional prayer styles that seemed excessive to reserved Protestants. Lucy is disturbed by how desperately Paulina prays.
Modern Usage:
Like someone who gets so intense about their beliefs - political, religious, or otherwise - that it makes others uncomfortable.
Infant visage
A child's face, but Brontë emphasizes how Paulina looks old and worn despite being only six. Her emotional suffering is aging her prematurely.
Modern Usage:
When we say a child has 'old eyes' or looks too mature for their age due to trauma or stress.
Discursive imagination
An overactive mind that jumps around and creates dramatic scenarios. Lucy claims she doesn't have this, positioning herself as practical and rational.
Modern Usage:
Someone who overthinks everything, creates worst-case scenarios, or makes mountains out of molehills.
Antipodes
The opposite side of the earth - literally as far away as you can get. Used to describe extreme homesickness for Europe from distant colonies.
Modern Usage:
When someone feels completely displaced, like military families stationed overseas or immigrants missing their homeland.
Characters in This Chapter
Paulina Home
Tragic child figure
A six-year-old whose entire identity revolves around her father. She's literally dying inside from his absence, then transforms completely when he returns. Her desperate need to serve him tea shows how she defines her worth through usefulness.
Modern Equivalent:
The child of divorced parents who can't function when away from their primary parent
Lucy Snowe
Observant narrator
Watches Paulina's suffering with clinical detachment, claiming she's rational and not overly imaginative. Her emotional distance lets her see patterns others miss.
Modern Equivalent:
The coworker who notices everything but keeps their opinions to themselves
Mr. Home
Reserved father
A Scottish man who clearly adores his daughter but struggles with showing emotion. The reunion is intense but quiet - no dramatics, just deep relief and connection.
Modern Equivalent:
The single dad who's trying his best but doesn't know how to handle his daughter's emotional intensity
Graham Bretton
Playful youth
Returns to tease Paulina with formal introductions, treating their reunion like a game. His lightness contrasts sharply with Paulina's serious intensity.
Modern Equivalent:
The family friend's kid who doesn't read the room and keeps joking during serious moments
Why This Matters
Connect literature to life
This chapter teaches how to identify when devotion crosses the line into unhealthy dependence.
Practice This Today
This week, notice when you feel anxious about one person's opinion or approval—that's your early warning system for single-point dependency.
You have the foundation. Now let's look closer.
Key Quotes & Analysis
"This, I perceived, was a one-idea'd nature; betraying that monomaniac tendency"
Context: After observing Paulina's nightly prayers for her father
Lucy recognizes the dangerous pattern of making one person your entire world. It's both touching and troubling - love that becomes obsession isn't healthy, even in a child.
In Today's Words:
This kid was completely obsessed - she literally couldn't think about anything except her dad.
"Papa; my dear papa!"
Context: Her constant prayer every night while kneeling in bed
These whispered words reveal the depth of her desperation. She's not just missing him - she's praying for him like he's her salvation, her only reason for existing.
In Today's Words:
Daddy, please come back - you're all I have.
"that room seemed to me not inhabited, but haunted"
Context: Finding Paulina alone with her head in her hands
Lucy sees how grief can make someone ghostlike - present in body but absent in spirit. Paulina's suffering is so intense it changes the atmosphere of any space she occupies.
In Today's Words:
The kid was so miserable she made every room feel creepy and sad.
Intelligence Amplifier™ Analysis
The Road of Single-Point Dependency
Building your entire identity and sense of worth around one person, relationship, or role, creating fragile dependence that ultimately harms both parties.
Thematic Threads
Identity
In This Chapter
Paulina has no sense of self beyond being her father's comfort and caretaker
Development
Introduced here - shows how identity can become dangerously narrow
In Your Life:
You might recognize this when someone in your life has no interests or friends outside of serving you.
Emotional Control
In This Chapter
Mr. Home struggles with showing emotion despite clearly adoring his daughter
Development
Introduced here - explores how people manage intense feelings
In Your Life:
You see this in people who care deeply but were taught that showing emotion is weakness.
Class Expectations
In This Chapter
Paulina insists on formal dignity when Graham teases her, maintaining social propriety
Development
Continuing from Chapter 1 - children absorb and perform class behaviors
In Your Life:
You might notice how even kids learn to code-switch between casual and formal behavior based on who's watching.
Observation
In This Chapter
Lucy watches Paulina's devotion with emotional distance, analyzing rather than intervening
Development
Continuing from Chapter 1 - Lucy's pattern of observing rather than participating
In Your Life:
You might recognize this tendency in yourself to analyze other people's drama while staying safely removed.
Human Relationships
In This Chapter
The father-daughter bond is intense but potentially unhealthy in its exclusivity
Development
Introduced here - shows how love can become imprisonment
In Your Life:
You see this in relationships where love feels more like need than choice.
Modern Adaptation
When Everything Depends on One Person
Following Lucy's story...
Lucy watches her coworker Maria slowly fall apart. Maria's been at the international school for three years, but she's built her entire life around her relationship with the principal, Dr. Chen. She stays late to organize his files, brings him coffee every morning, volunteers for every committee he chairs. When Dr. Chen mentions he might transfer to another school next year, Maria stops eating lunch. She starts checking her phone obsessively for his messages. She can't focus on her students because she's constantly worried about proving her value to him. Lucy recognizes the signs—Maria has no friends outside work, no hobbies, no identity beyond being Dr. Chen's most reliable teacher. When Maria breaks down crying in the supply closet because Dr. Chen praised another teacher's lesson plan, Lucy realizes Maria isn't just dedicated—she's dependent. Her entire sense of worth lives or dies by one person's approval. Lucy's seen this pattern before, in herself and others. It always ends the same way: with someone losing themselves completely.
The Road
The road little Paulina walked in 1853, Maria walks today. The pattern is identical: building your entire identity around one person's approval, then withering when that connection feels threatened.
The Map
This chapter provides a diagnostic tool for recognizing single-point dependency. Lucy can spot when someone—including herself—has put all their emotional eggs in one basket.
Amplification
Before reading this, Lucy might have seen Maria's behavior as admirable dedication. Now she can NAME it as dependency, PREDICT it will lead to control and anxiety, and NAVIGATE it by encouraging Maria to build other connections.
You now have the context. Time to form your own thoughts.
Discussion Questions
- 1
What physical and emotional changes does Paulina experience while separated from her father, and how does she transform when he returns?
analysis • surface - 2
Why does Paulina insist on serving her father tea and doing everything for him herself? What does this behavior reveal about how she sees her role in his life?
analysis • medium - 3
Where do you see this pattern of 'single-point dependency' in modern relationships—at work, in families, or in romantic partnerships?
application • medium - 4
If you were Mr. Home, how would you help Paulina develop independence while still maintaining your close bond? What specific steps would you take?
application • deep - 5
What does Paulina's story teach us about the difference between healthy love and dependent attachment? How can we tell when devotion becomes dangerous?
reflection • deep
Critical Thinking Exercise
Map Your Dependency Points
Draw a simple diagram of what gives your life meaning and purpose. Put yourself in the center, then draw lines to all the things that make you feel valuable: relationships, work, hobbies, communities, skills. Look at your map honestly. Are most of your lines going to just one or two things? If those disappeared tomorrow, what would be left?
Consider:
- •Notice which connections feel essential versus enriching
- •Consider whether any relationships require you to be needed rather than wanted
- •Think about what would happen if your strongest connection was threatened
Journaling Prompt
Write about a time when you or someone you know put all their emotional eggs in one basket. What happened when that relationship or situation changed? What would you do differently now?
Coming Up Next...
Chapter 3: The Dance of Childhood Attachment
What lies ahead teaches us children navigate power dynamics in relationships through strategic vulnerability, and shows us the way intense early attachments can both nurture and overwhelm developing personalities. These patterns appear in literature and life alike.