Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in The Three Musketeers, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Friendship and Loyalty
Honor
Class and Power
The Secrets of the Past
Seduction and Romance
Summary
Analysis
Just as Lord de Winter assumed, Milady’s wound is minor. Milady is satisfied with herself; she knows she’s done what is necessary to win Felton over to her. However, Lord de Winter informs her that he has sent Felton away because he can no longer trust him. Additionally, Lord de Winter has nailed a piece of wood over her door so that she cannot talk to anyone outside of her cell. This doesn’t bother Milady at all because it gives her more privacy.
Lord de Winter takes extra precautions because he knows what Milady is capable of. Even her voice is too dangerous to be heard. However, the boards on Milady’s cell come at a cost because they ensure that she cannot be observed.
Themes
The same night, a storm rages. At some point in the evening, Milady hears someone at her window. She gets up and finds Felton. He promises to rescue her, but she has to give him time. Over the next few hours, he files away the bars on the window and then gets Milady to crawl outside. Slowly but surely, they descend a rope ladder that Felton brought with him. During this process, Milady pretends to be less capable than she actually is because she needs to keep up the façade that she is suffering from an injury.
Despite all of Lord de Winter’s precautions, Milady still manages to escape with the help of Felton. Lord de Winter was clever, but not clever enough. Even Felton, his most loyal solider, could not withstand Milady’s intelligence and beauty. Of course, just because she’s out of her cell, Milady is not in the clear yet, which is why she keeps up her performance.
Themes
Eventually, Milady and Felton reach the ground. Felton then takes Milady to a boat he chartered to bring him to Portsmouth. He tells Milady that when he gets to Portsmouth, he plans to kill the Duke of Buckingham. Milady is overjoyed; not only has she escaped, but she also managed to find someone to kill the duke after all. On the way to Portsmouth, Milady realizes that Felton needs no further encouragement. He is already more than prepared to kill the duke. If anything, Milady wonders if he is too eager. Before Felton leaves their boat, he tells Milady to wait for him until 10 a.m. If he is not back by that time, Milady is free to leave without him. Externally, Milady swears that she won’t leave without him, but internally she knows that she’ll do whatever it takes to save her own skin.
Milady’s escape from Lord de Winter’s castle is especially impressive because she manages to kill two birds with one stone. Not only does she regain her freedom, but she also found someone to assassinate the duke as well. Even better, she managed to stick to roughly the same time frame that the cardinal initially expected. She is a diabolical force whose actions are impressive, even if they are immoral. Her actions are also a great example of the use of seduction as a weapon.
Themes
