The Two Devereaux Marriages

This flow links the elder Devereaux’s broken marriage and return with Hank’s own habits of distance, making family history a force in the present.

increasingBearing stren­gth in each eventdecreasing

A Wife Left Behind

The First Separation A Departure William Henry Devereaux, Sr. leaves his wife for a graduate student. His wife keeps his name and later describes herself as remaining his wife in spirit despite the divorce. The Son’s Inheritance Hank grows up between a mother who pays attention and a father whose attention remains difficult to obtain. The separation becomes a family fact that neither parent explains in a way Hank can use.

A Landlord’s Courtship

A Possible New Suitor Charles Purty’s Attention Charles Purty drives Hank’s mother when she needs a ride and hopes to win her affection. She treats his interest as an inconvenience while accepting help when it suits her. A Choice She Keeps Open She admits that marriage to him might mean living in Europe, but fears meeting someone else she prefers. Her independence and her attachment to the absent father coexist without becoming a simple romance.

A Reunion with Old Habits

The Former Couple Together Moving In Again Hank’s mother welcomes her former husband back and plans to find him familiar surroundings, books, and a teaching position. Charles Purty helps move the books, recognizing the pair’s deep resemblance. Old Roles Persist The reunion restores a household arrangement without repairing the marriage’s history. Hank’s mother remains capable of organizing his father’s life, while his father remains largely absorbed in himself.

A Son Refuses to Deign

Resentment Surfaces A Delayed Visit Hank’s mother is angry that he has not come to see his father sooner. Hank answers that he was not withholding a visit as a favor and reminds her that his father once disappeared from their lives. Forgiveness as a Demand His mother says she has forgiven the man and wants Hank to do the same. Hank insists that having no ill will is not the same as forgiving, exposing a disagreement their affection has never resolved.

A Lasting Family Arrangement

A Marriage Completed by Death His Mother’s Response William Henry Devereaux, Sr. dies a few months after returning to Railton. Hank’s mother appears less devastated than he expected, as if she feels released from the obligation created by her wedding promise. A Life on the Page She turns to his papers and discovers an unfinished novel. Her excitement suggests that she can meet the man she loved more readily in his writing than in the conversations they missed.

when Hank is in junior high school

during the years after Hank’s mother retires

after William Henry Devereaux, Sr. returns to Railton

the week after the move, when Hank visits his mother

after the elder Devereaux’s death