# Lady Macleod — Can You Forgive Her? character guide

> Lady Macleod in Can You Forgive Her? by Anthony Trollope.

**Role:** supporting

**Also known as:** old Lady Macleod, Macleod, Poor Lady Macleod

**First appearance:** 0001-ii-lady-macleod

## Snapshot

Alice's seventy-six-year-old aunt, a pious, penurious woman who walks two miles to save a cab fare and disapprove of her niece in person.

## Who they are

Lady Macleod spends her precious London month in a cramped King Street lodging, enduring second-rate dinners among noble relatives she half-disapproves of, all for the supposed good of Alice. She never leans back in a chair, never wastes a shilling, and never misses an opportunity to remind her niece of duty. Her stern, threadbare respectability represents the older generation's claim on Alice's conscience, and her daily visits make the drawing-room a quiet battleground over what a woman owes her family.

## In the story

### [Mr. Vavasor and His Daughter](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/can_you_forgive_her_se/chapters/i-mr-vavasor-and-his-daughter)

Alice's elderly cousin who raised her, a devout Calvinistic Sabbatarian and believer in noble rank, who loves Alice deeply despite their differences.

### [Lady Macleod](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/can_you_forgive_her_se/chapters/ii-lady-macleod)

Visits Alice to express disapproval of the Swiss tour with George Vavasor, arguing it is improper and could displease John Grey; represents traditional views on female obedience.

### [John Grey, the Worthy Man](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/can_you_forgive_her_se/chapters/iii-john-grey-the-worthy-man)

Lady Macleod visits Alice to urge her to set a wedding date, but Alice resists, leading to a brief and hurried conversation.

### [George Vavasor, the Wild Man](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/can_you_forgive_her_se/chapters/iv-george-vavasor-the-wild-man)

Mentioned as having called George a wild man, a label Alice assented to.

### [Paramount Crescent](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/can_you_forgive_her_se/chapters/xv-paramount-crescent)

Lady Macleod hosts Alice in Cheltenham, lectures her on matrimony, and secretly arranges John Grey's visit. She is overawed by Grey's presence but supports his efforts.

### [Alice Vavasor's Great Relations](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/can_you_forgive_her_se/chapters/xviii-alice-vavasor-s-great-relations)

Present with Alice; she had hoped Lady Midlothian's letter would do good but misjudged Alice's reaction.

### [Alice Is Taught to Grow Upwards, Towards the Light](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/can_you_forgive_her_se/chapters/xxi-alice-is-taught-to-grow-upwards-towards-the-light)

Alice's aunt encourages the visit to Matching Priory, believing it may reconcile Alice with Mr. Grey and is a step in the right direction socially. She is saddened by Alice's refusal to answer Lady Midlothian's letter.

### [The Travellers Return Home](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/can_you_forgive_her_se/chapters/lxxvii-the-travellers-return-home)

Ill at Cheltenham, writes to Alice asking her to visit before she dies.

## Links

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- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/can_you_forgive_her_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/can_you_forgive_her_se/characters