They then change the topic of conversation towards their outstanding dislike for the Laphams' conversation, background, and upbringing. He says that they can rationalize Tom's love for Penelope and not Irene as a kind of 'second marriage' to make it seem more socially acceptable in their minds (268). When Anna does eventually talk to Bromfield, he too seems fatalistically resigned to letting the marriage happen. Anna closes by telling Tom that she will discuss the engagement with Bromfield. Tom is shocked, telling Anna that he was only nice to Irene for his mother's sake and explaining that he loves Penelope for how true her heart is and how unsparing she has been in her self-critique. Anna responds by saying that all the Coreys thought this to be the case as well. Tom then tells his mother about the Laphams' mistaken assumption that he was interested in Irene all the while. She inserts some brief points about her disappointment regarding the Laphams' upbringing, but she has resigned herself to making Tom happy, even if it will bring her personal difficulty.

They discuss Tom's engagement to Penelope, an event which Anna seems to fatalistically accept. The narrative point of view then switches to the Corey home, where Tom accosts his mother one evening on her way up to the bedroom. Silas responds coldly by telling Persis to ready his bags.

Persis tells Slias that she wonders if Rogers would have ever entered into such shady business practices if it were not for Silas' earlier mistreatment of him as a partner. Silas suspects that Rogers knew about the railroad's plans for the road when he offloaded the mills on Silas. Railroad recently purchased the P., Y., and X., essentially leaving Silas at the mercy of the railroad to sell the mills for whatever price they will offer (thus making Silas lose money). Silas anticipated being able to fetch a decent price for the mills eventually, but the G., L., and P. Rogers' latest business failure (for which Silas lent him money).Įxplaining this failure further, Silas tells Persis that Rogers had sold him some milling properties on the P.

The two then formalize their plan for Silas to take Irene west, where Silas will be made to deal with Mr. Persis mentions this inactivity on Penelope's part to Silas and contrasts it with Irene's constant activity when he returns from work. Persis then herself sees Penelope in person, and Penelope tells her mother that she and Tom are engaged, though she is not excited about it in the least. When Persis inquires after Penelope, Silas tells her that Penelope still seems hesitant to yield to Tom's advances. She tells Silas that Irene remained mostly stoic and silent after they departed Boston, and Silas says that he will take Irene with him when he heads to the West for business in the coming days. As Chapter 20 opens, Persis has just returned from her week in Lapham with Irene.

The rise of silas lapham cliff notes