'She laid her hand upon his shoulder ... "I am ready."'

Grayscale illustration of a young woman laying her hand on the shoulder of an old man whose upper body is lying on a table, dead.

This illustration captures the climax of Chapter 48, where Dorothea Brooke approaches her husband, Edward Casaubon, in the garden to finally submit to his demand for a lifelong promise of intellectual service. The scene is profoundly significant because it highlights the irony of Dorothea's "readiness"; by the time she offers her submission, Casaubon is already dead, leaving her technically free from her word but permanently haunted by the shadow of his unfinished work and his vindictive will. "But immediately she feared that she was wrong, and turning towards him she laid her hand on his, adding in a different tone, 'Pray do not be anxious about me. I shall have so much to think of when I am alone. And Tantripp will be a sufficient companion, just to take care of me'" (Book 5, Chapter 48).

Shepperson, Pina

George Eliot Archive , edited by Beverley Park Rilett. https://GeorgeEliotArchive.org

1900

CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Shepperson, Pina, 'She laid her hand upon his shoulder ... "I am ready."', George Eliot Illustrations Gallery, George Eliot Archive , edited by Beverley Park Rilett. https://GeorgeEliotArchive.org, Accessed September 7, 2026. https://www.georgeeliotarchive.org/items/show/83468