# Obsession and Madness in The Nebuly Coat

> Theme guide for The Nebuly Coat by John Meade Falkner.

Martin Joliffe's fixation on proving his lineage and the organist Sharnall's descent into alcoholism illustrate how obsession can lead to ruin, with the nebuly coat serving as a symbol of consuming delusion.

## Where it surfaces

- [Chapter II](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_nebuly_coat_se/chapters/ii): Martin Joliffe's lifelong quest to prove his Blandamer ancestry, which consumed his fortune and sanity, is a central focus of Sharnall's narrative.
- [Chapter XI](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_nebuly_coat_se/chapters/xi): Sharnall's growing secretiveness over Martin Joliffe's papers and Miss Euphemia's fear that the papers will 'bewitch' the gentlemen echo the theme of obsessive pursuit.
- [XII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_nebuly_coat_se/chapters/xii): Sharnall's obsessive attachment to his composition and Westray's sudden, frantic journey to London suggest a theme of fixation and irrational response.
- [XIV](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_nebuly_coat_se/chapters/xiv): Westray's fixation on Sharnall's absence and the eerie atmosphere of the minter reflect the theme of obsession; Sharnall's earlier hallucinations about a man with a hammer hint at madness.
- [XX](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_nebuly_coat_se/chapters/xx): Martin Joliffe's lifelong obsession with proving his legitimacy and claiming Fording is portrayed as a delusion that consumed his life.
- [Chapter XXI](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_nebuly_coat_se/chapters/xxi): Lord Blandamer's obsessive dedication to the nebuly coat and his paranoia about threats to his title reflect a near-mad fixation.
- [XXII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_nebuly_coat_se/chapters/xxii): Westray's obsessive remorse and the psychological strain of his moral compromise border on a kind of madness, as he contemplates sacrifice and self-destruction.
- [XXIII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_nebuly_coat_se/chapters/xxiii): Westray's decision to remain in the belfry until the last moment and Lord Blandamer's calm, almost reckless rescue reflect a fixation on the tower's fate that borders on the obsessive.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_nebuly_coat_se/themes/obsession_and_madness
- Themes index: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_nebuly_coat_se/themes