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The Moonstone · Chapters

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Chapter companions for The Moonstone by Wilkie Collins.

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  1. Chapter 1

    The Moonstone

    The chapter introduces the Moonstone, a valuable diamond with a dark history, and sets the stage for its theft and the ensuing investigation.

  2. Chapter 2

    Prologue

    The prologue recounts the storming of Seringapatam in 1799, focusing on the actions of Colonel Herncastle, who murders two Indian guards and steals the sacred Moonstone diamond from the forehead of a Hindu idol, thereby bringing a curse upon himself and his family.

  3. Chapter 3

    I

    The chapter opens with a letter from an unnamed correspondent to Franklin Blake, dated July 30, 1849, in Dorking, Surrey. The writer apologizes for the delay in producing a report concerning the late Mr. Godfrey Ablewhite, explaining that obstacles required patience and time to overcome. The report aims to answer Franklin's questions about how Godfrey met his death, including inferences and conclusions from the facts, and to detail discoveries about Godfrey's proceedings before, during, and after his time as a guest at Lady Verinder's country-house.

  4. Chapter 4

    II

    This chapter presents a detailed report on the murder of Godfrey Ablewhite, concluding that the three Indians are the likely perpetrators, motivated by theft of the Moonstone diamond. The evidence includes the discovery of his body smothered with a pillow, an open trapdoor, a ladder used for access, and the Indians' flight to Rotterdam.

  5. Chapter 5

    III

    This chapter reveals the double life of Godfrey Ablewhite: publicly a charitable gentleman, privately a man of pleasure with a villa and lady. His death prompts an inquiry uncovering that he embezzled a £20,000 trust fund by forging the co-trustee's signature. On the eve of Rachel's birthday, he sought a loan from his father, was refused, and proposed to Rachel to solve his debts. After her refusal, he conspired with Mr. Candy to drug Franklin Blake with laudanum, setting the stage for the theft.

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  1. Chapter 6IV
  2. Chapter 7First Period: The Loss of the Diamond (1848)
  3. Chapter 8I
  4. Chapter 9II
  5. Chapter 10III
  6. Chapter 11IV
  7. Chapter 12V
  8. Chapter 13VI
  9. Chapter 14VII
  10. Chapter 15Chapter VIII
  11. Chapter 16Chapter IX
  12. Chapter 17The Opium Experiment Proposed
  13. Chapter 18Chapter XI
  14. Chapter 19XII
  15. Chapter 20XIII
  16. Chapter 21Chapter XIV
  17. Chapter 22XV
  18. Chapter 23XVII
  19. Chapter 24XVIII
  20. Chapter 25XIX
  21. Chapter 26XX
  22. Chapter 27XXI
  23. Chapter 28XXII
  24. Chapter 29XXIII
  25. Chapter 30Second Period: The Discovery of the Truth (1848–1849)
  26. Chapter 31First Narrative
  27. Chapter 32I
  28. Chapter 33II
  29. Chapter 34III
  30. Chapter 35IV
  31. Chapter 36V
  32. Chapter 37VI
  33. Chapter 38VII
  34. Chapter 39Chapter VIII
  35. Chapter 40Second Narrative
  36. Chapter 41I
  37. Chapter 42II
  38. Chapter 43III
  39. Chapter 44Third Narrative
  40. Chapter 45I
  41. Chapter 46II
  42. Chapter 47III
  43. Chapter 48IV
  44. Chapter 49V
  45. Chapter 50VI
  46. Chapter 51VII
  47. Chapter 52Chapter VIII
  48. Chapter 53Chapter IX
  49. Chapter 54The Opium Experiment Proposed
  50. Chapter 55Fourth Narrative
  51. Chapter 56Fifth Narrative
  52. Chapter 57Sixth Narrative
  53. Chapter 58I
  54. Chapter 59II
  55. Chapter 60III
  56. Chapter 61IV
  57. Chapter 62V
  58. Chapter 63Seventh Narrative
  59. Chapter 64Eighth Narrative
  60. Chapter 65Epilogue: The Finding of the Diamond
  61. Chapter 66I: The Statement of Sergeant Cuff’s Man (1849)
  62. Chapter 67II: The Statement of the Captain (1849)
  63. Chapter 68III: The Statement of Mr. Murthwaite (1850)
  64. Chapter 69Endnotes
The Moonstone — Chapters Explained