Northanger Abbey: Volume 2, Chapter 7 Summary & Analysis

When she wakes the next morning, Catherine rushes to look at the manuscript she had found. To her disappointment, it is a laundry bill. She feels that her fantasies about the chest and cabinet were absurd, especially given how modern the furnishings are in the room. She thinks that she would be very embarrassed if Henry Tilney were to find out how carried away she has been. Catherine goes into the breakfast room and finds Henry Tilney alone. He hints that perhaps the storm terrified her. Not wanting to lie, she confesses that it kept her awake a little bit, but that she is happy that the morning is bright.

Catherine changes the subject, noting the hyacinths in the garden and saying that Eleanor taught her to admire them. She says she never cared about flowers before. Henry says a taste for flowers is good for women because it tempts them to spend time outdoors, and Catherine replies that she already loves to be outdoors. Henry replies that he appreciates that she has “a habit of learning to love” and “a teachableness of disposition.”

The General arrives to breakfast. When Catherine compliments the beauty of the breakfast plates, the General says he does what he can to support English manufacturing, and that he was tempted recently to buy an even newer set, but did not because he has no vanity about his possessions. He says he hopes to soon have an opportunity of selecting a new set of china, but not for himself. Everyone but Catherine understands this hint.

Henry prepares to leave for Woodston and they all gather to see him off. Catherine asks if Woodston is pretty, and the General says that Eleanor should say, since ladies are better judges, but then does not let Eleanor speak. The General then tells Catherine that Henry’s income does not depend solely on his living, although that income is rather large. Although none of his children need to work for money, the General says he thinks that it’s good for them to have employment. He is trying to impress Catherine, and he does: she says nothing in reply.

The General offers to give a tour of Northanger, and Catherine gladly accepts. The General says that he can see she may prefer looking at the grounds first, and goes to get ready for a walk with Catherine and Eleanor. Catherine is disappointed. She thinks that without Henry there to explain the landscape, she will not know what is picturesque. She tells Eleanor that the General does not need to take them on a walk now just because he believes her to want to go on a walk, when in fact she wants to tour the property. Eleanor, slightly embarrassed at having to explain her father’s true motives, tells Catherine that her father always walks at this time of day. Catherine thinks it odd that the General takes walks so early, and wonders if he is reluctant to show her around the Abbey.

Seeing the Abbey from the lawn, Catherine praises it enthusiastically, to the General’s pleasure. Catherine is shocked by the size of the garden, and the General proudly says gardening is his hobby. He adds that although he does not care much about the quality of food, he loves good fruit. The General asks Catherine how his own possessions compare to Mr. Allen’s, and is satisfied to hear that his outstrip the latter’s.

Eleanor starts down a path, but the General says it is too cold and damp. Catherine goes with Eleanor, but the General decides to take a sunnier route and meet them at the tea-house. Catherine feels relieved in his absence and talks gaily to Eleanor about the “delightful melancholy” of the path. Eleanor tells her it was her mother’s favorite walk, and says that she misses her mother terribly, especially because she has no sister. Although Henry visits often, she is often alone. Catherine remarks that Eleanor must miss Henry very much, and Eleanor says that she does, but a mother would have always been there.

Catherine begins to question Eleanor about her mother, asking if she was charming and beautiful, and if she liked this grove because she was depressed. Eleanor chooses not to answer Catherine’s more prying questions, but Catherine forms a theory that the late Mrs. Tilney had been unhappy in marriage. She sees proof for this conjecture in the fact that the General does not love his late wife’s favorite path. Catherine asks if Mrs. Tilney’s picture hangs in the General’s room, and Eleanor says that her father was dissatisfied with the painting, which she has hung in her own room. Catherine then feels an aversion towards the General: he was clearly cruel to his charming wife. When they meet the General again, Catherine finds it hard to be pleasant. The General worries that Catherine may have overexerted herself and sends her back to rest, but instructs Eleanor to wait for him to tour the Abbey.