# Imogene Graham — Indian Summer character guide > Imogene Graham in Indian Summer by William Dean Howells. **Role:** major **Also known as:** Graham, Imogene, Imogene Grahamovna **First appearance:** 0000-i ## Snapshot A fervent young American woman whose earnest ideals and restless heart make her both the darling and the destabilizer of the Florentine expatriate circle. ## Who they are Imogene throws herself into books, self-improvement, and moral seriousness with a convert's ardor, seeking a model for who she ought to become. Her admiration for Colville's kindness and her susceptibility to Mr. Morton's earnest prescriptions pull her in incompatible directions, and her sleepless, tearful confessions reveal a girl terrified of her own fickleness. She embodies the story's question of whether sincerity can survive the tangle of romantic expectation. ## Relationships ### [Mrs. Bowen](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/indian_summer_se/characters/mrs_bowen) _psychological_ Imogene Graham is intensely obsessed with Mrs. Bowen, viewing her as a rival and object of fixation. ### [Effie Bowen](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/indian_summer_se/characters/effie_bowen) _friendship_ Effie Bowen and Imogene Graham have a friendly, though somewhat unequal, relationship as younger and older companions. ### [Mr. Morton](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/indian_summer_se/characters/mr_morton) _social_ Imogene Graham and Mr. Morton are acquaintances within the same social circle, with no deep emotional bond. ### [Rev. Mr. Waters](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/indian_summer_se/characters/rev_mr_waters) _social_ Imogene Graham and Rev. Mr. Waters are social acquaintances, with limited direct interaction. ### [Mrs. Bowen](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/indian_summer_se/characters/mrs_bowen) _psychological_ Imogene Graham is intensely obsessed with Mrs. Bowen, viewing her as a rival and object of fixation. ### [Mrs. Bowen](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/indian_summer_se/characters/mrs_bowen) _psychological_ Imogene Graham is intensely obsessed with Mrs. Bowen, viewing her as a rival and object of fixation. ### [Effie Bowen](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/indian_summer_se/characters/effie_bowen) _friendship_ Effie Bowen and Imogene Graham have a friendly, though somewhat unequal, relationship as younger and older companions. ### [Mr. Morton](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/indian_summer_se/characters/mr_morton) _social_ Imogene Graham and Mr. Morton are acquaintances within the same social circle, with no deep emotional bond. ### [Effie Bowen](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/indian_summer_se/characters/effie_bowen) _friendship_ Effie Bowen and Imogene Graham have a friendly, though somewhat unequal, relationship as younger and older companions. ### [Rev. Mr. Waters](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/indian_summer_se/characters/rev_mr_waters) _social_ Imogene Graham and Rev. Mr. Waters are social acquaintances, with limited direct interaction. ### [Rev. Mr. Waters](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/indian_summer_se/characters/rev_mr_waters) _social_ Imogene Graham and Rev. Mr. Waters are social acquaintances, with limited direct interaction. ### [Mr. Morton](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/indian_summer_se/characters/mr_morton) _social_ Imogene Graham and Mr. Morton are acquaintances within the same social circle, with no deep emotional bond. ## In the story ### [III](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/indian_summer_se/chapters/iii) A statuesque young woman staying with Mrs. Bowen for the winter; Colville is struck by her beauty. ### [IV](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/indian_summer_se/chapters/iv) Reveals her preference for older, more experienced heroes and criticizes young men's conversation. Shows intellectual curiosity and a romantic view of Florence. ### [V](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/indian_summer_se/chapters/v) Engages in a deep conversation with Mrs. Bowen about Colville's past; expresses admiration for Colville and moral outrage at Jenny Milbury's treatment of him. ### [VI](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/indian_summer_se/chapters/vi) Dances with unabated joy throughout the evening, appears oblivious to Colville's mood, and is full of rapture on the way home. ### [VII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/indian_summer_se/chapters/vii) Engages Colville in talk about literature, ghosts, and nature; displays youthful enthusiasm and a touch of wilfulness by the river, then retreats into formal dignity. ### [Chapter VIII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/indian_summer_se/chapters/viii) Accompanies Colville and Mrs. Bowen to Carnival events; finds the festivities underwhelming and judges the songs Mrs. Bowen once sang as 'rowdy.' ### [IX](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/indian_summer_se/chapters/ix) Dances with Colville, enters into a secret pact, feels faint, and engages in sentimental wordplay. ### [Chapter X](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/indian_summer_se/chapters/x) Present during Colville's visit; later questioned by Mrs. Bowen about her feelings for Colville; appears confused and defensive. ### [Chapter XI](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/indian_summer_se/chapters/xi) Writes a letter to Colville taking blame, learns of his departure, and breaks down in tears. ### [Chapter XII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/indian_summer_se/chapters/xii) Mentioned as occupying Colville's thoughts during the opera. ### [Chapter XIII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/indian_summer_se/chapters/xiii) Expresses guilt and remorse over her past behavior toward Colville, insists on writing to him to ask him to stay, and accepts Mrs. Bowen's help. ### [Chapter XIV](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/indian_summer_se/chapters/xiv) Imogene passionately confronts Colville about his departure, declares her feelings, and convinces him to remain. ### [Chapter XV](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/indian_summer_se/chapters/xv) Imogene accepts the engagement but confesses to hating Mrs. Bowen, feeling conflicted and unhappy. ### [Chapter XVI](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/indian_summer_se/chapters/xvi) Confesses her misery and belief that Mrs. Bowen detests her, then reconciles with Mrs. Bowen and pushes for a defined engagement. ### [Chapter XVII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/indian_summer_se/chapters/xvii) Dances at parties, criticizes Colville's coat lapels, reveals Mrs. Bowen's distress about their engagement, and expresses her own frustration and exhaustion. ### [XVIII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/indian_summer_se/chapters/xviii) Notices Mrs. Bowen's coldness toward her but is reassured by Colville; participates in planning the Fiesole outing. ### [XIX](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/indian_summer_se/chapters/xix) Seeks guidance on self-improvement and expresses a desire to be more worthy of Colville; later insists on managing Mr. Morton's feelings herself. ### [Chapter XX](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/indian_summer_se/chapters/xx) Acts strangely, makes a pointed joke about 'old people,' and breaks from abstraction with aggressive remarks toward Colville and Mrs. Bowen. ### [XXI](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/indian_summer_se/chapters/xxi) Does not visit during Colville's illness; later bursts into his room to beg forgiveness after her mother explains her lack of love. ### [Chapter XXII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/indian_summer_se/chapters/xxii) Referenced in Colville's confession about the broken engagement and the pain caused to her. ### [XXIII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/indian_summer_se/chapters/xxiii) Mentioned as having refused Mr. Morton's proposal; Colville fears her appearance but she does not come. ### [XXIV](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/indian_summer_se/chapters/xxiv) The affair with her is a grain of sand to the Colvilles; Mrs. Graham's letter suggests Mr. Morton may marry her. ## Links - HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/indian_summer_se/characters/imogene_graham - Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/indian_summer_se - All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/indian_summer_se/characters