# Marjorie Carling — Point Counter Point character guide

> Marjorie Carling in Point Counter Point by Aldous Huxley.

**Role:** supporting

**Also known as:** Carling, Marjorie, Maggie

**First appearance:** 0001-ii

## Snapshot

Walter's mistress of two years, pregnant and painfully self-controlled, whose quiet dignity and unspoken jealousy expose the slow cruelty of a love already ending.

## Who they are

Marjorie left her husband to live with Walter, but Carling's Christian scruples and quiet sadism have denied her a divorce, leaving her socially exposed and dependent on a man whose affection is visibly dying. Pregnant and ill, she clings to principles of self-restraint that forbid her the 'scenes' her feelings demand, so that her only outlet is a pleading 'Half-past twelve, Walter.' Her exhausted patience and the physical toll of her pregnancy make her the moral counterweight to the novel's more flamboyant seekers of sensation.

## Relationships

### [Walter Bidlake](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/point_counter_point_se/characters/walter_bidlake)

_romantic_

Marjorie is Walter's long-suffering, devoted mistress whom he neglects and emotionally abandons for Lucy.

### [Walter Bidlake](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/point_counter_point_se/characters/walter_bidlake)

_romantic_

Marjorie is Walter's long-suffering, devoted mistress whom he neglects and emotionally abandons for Lucy.

### [Walter Bidlake](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/point_counter_point_se/characters/walter_bidlake)

_romantic_

Marjorie is Walter's long-suffering, devoted mistress whom he neglects and emotionally abandons for Lucy.

## In the story

### [I](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/point_counter_point_se/chapters/i)

Pregnant and emotionally vulnerable, she pleads with Walter to stay, but he leaves for the party.

### [V](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/point_counter_point_se/chapters/v)

Rereads Walter's old letters, recalling his kindness and her love for his gentle nature, now shattered by his cruel behavior.

### [XII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/point_counter_point_se/chapters/xii)

Confronts Walter about his neglect and infidelity, initially angry but later comforts him after his emotional breakdown.

### [XIII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/point_counter_point_se/chapters/xiii)

Sews at home, detects Lucy's perfume on Walter, and angrily confronts him, leading to his departure.

### [XV](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/point_counter_point_se/chapters/xv)

Pretends ignorance of Walter's affair, playing a comedy of silence and courtesy; considered leaving but lacks resources and is still attached to Walter.

### [XXI](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/point_counter_point_se/chapters/xxi)

Questions Elinor about why Walter is obsessed with Lucy, expresses anguish over Walter's infatuation.

### [Chapter XXX](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/point_counter_point_se/chapters/xxx)

Finds comfort in Rachel Quarles's Christian counsel, experiences a mystical trance of divine nothingness, and feels distant from Walter's distress.

### [XXXI](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/point_counter_point_se/chapters/xxxi)

Mentioned as having had a talk with Mrs. Quarles at the cottage.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/point_counter_point_se/characters/marjorie_carling
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/point_counter_point_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/point_counter_point_se/characters