# Mrs. Edmund Yule — New Grub Street character guide

> Mrs. Edmund Yule in New Grub Street by George Gissing.

**Role:** supporting

**Also known as:** Edmund Yule, Mrs. Yule

**First appearance:** 0001-ii-the-house-of-yule

## Snapshot

A euphemistic Westbourne Park widow, she manages social appearances with practiced delicacy, converting family scandals into genteel misfortunes too painful to discuss plainly.

## Who they are

Presiding over a comfortable drawing-room in Westbourne Park, Mrs. Edmund Yule receives callers and dispenses news with a tact that smooths every awkward fact into respectable vagueness. When her son-in-law Reardon abruptly abandons his literary career for a clerkship in Islington, she frames the catastrophe as a mysterious affliction rather than a humiliation, urging Jasper Milvain to investigate on the family's behalf. Her instinct for social damage control exposes the genteel world's dependence on polite fictions, and her drawing-room becomes a stage where the novel's harsh economic realities are translated into acceptable conversation.

## In the story

### [The Way Hither](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/new_grub_street_se/chapters/v-the-way-hither)

Mother of John and Amy; speaks with Reardon at the gallery.

### [Marian's Home](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/new_grub_street_se/chapters/vii-marian-s-home)

Marian's mother, who shares a reserved relationship with her daughter and worries about her loneliness.

### [A Warning](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/new_grub_street_se/chapters/xiii-a-warning)

Anxious and distressed by the conflict between Marian and her father, pleads for peace.

### [The Old Home](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/new_grub_street_se/chapters/xviii-the-old-home)

Portrayed as a pretentious and socially anxious widow who is devastated by Amy's separation from Reardon, fearing the social disgrace and struggling to maintain appearances.

### [XX: The End of Waiting](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/new_grub_street_se/chapters/xx-the-end-of-waiting)

Hosts Jasper and discusses Reardon's behavior, expressing concern about his sanity.

### [Mr. Yule Leaves Town](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/new_grub_street_se/chapters/xxi-mr-yule-leaves-town)

Terrified of her husband's wrath after the servant incident; suffers from suspense and weeping during his absence.

### [A Proposed Investment](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/new_grub_street_se/chapters/xxiii-a-proposed-investment)

Marian's mother; mentioned as being informed about supper and later reading an illustrated magazine.

### [Married Woman's Property](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/new_grub_street_se/chapters/xxvi-married-woman-s-property)

Hopes for reconciliation between Amy and Reardon, is dismayed by the separation announcement, and eagerly anticipates a legacy from the Wattleborough relative's death, only to be disappointed.

### [XXIX: Catastrophe](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/new_grub_street_se/chapters/xxix-catastrophe)

Attempts to mediate between Alfred and Marian; expresses helplessness and fear of being a burden.

### [XXX: Waiting on Destiny](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/new_grub_street_se/chapters/xxx-waiting-on-destiny)

Distressed by the family's troubles, conveys Alfred's news to Marian, and struggles to maintain household order.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/new_grub_street_se/characters/mrs_edmund_yule
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/new_grub_street_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/new_grub_street_se/characters