The Turmoil · Character

Mr. Vertrees

A gentleman of the old school whose Landseers and breeding cannot pay bills, he watches his daughter's courtship with a hope he dare not speak aloud.

supporting

Also known as V Mr. Vertrees

First appearance: III

As a supporting figure in The Turmoil, Mr. Vertrees is not background color—the story leans on what they do once the chapter opens.

Mentioned as a gentleman of old family who lives on his income; James Sheridan hopes to meet him.

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Mr. Vertrees belongs to a fading order of gentility, a man raised to talk around things rather than name them, now living next door to the raw new money of Sheridan's New House. He and his wife share a slender, unspoken hope that Mary's beauty might restore what their pride has lost, a hope neither can bear to put into words. His silent, backward-looking dignity makes him the quiet counterweight to Sheridan's blustering energy, and the measure of what the new century is displacing.

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See Mr. Vertrees in III

Narrative arc

Story tension across the book — this chapter sits in Exposition.

Setup
Escalation
Breaking point
Aftermath
Closing

This passage marks the narrative climax because Bibbs reaches an emotional and psychological peak by articulat…

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In the story

Mr. Vertrees appears across 6 companion beats. Open any chapter in the free preview to see the notes beside the text.

III
Mentioned as a gentleman of old family who lives on his income; James Sheridan hopes to meet him.
V
Paces the library anxiously, reflecting on his financial ruin; he watches Mary and her mother leave and return, deeply concerned about their future.
XVII
Discusses financial dissolution with his wife, opposes Mary selling her furs, and expresses bitterness toward the city and Sheridan.
XIX
Mentioned as distressed by the removal of the piano from the room.
Chapter XXVIII
Mentioned as having tried unsuccessfully to find a job for over two years; the Vertrees house was sold on foreclosure.
XXXI
His failed stock is purchased by Bibbs for $1,155.

Chapter companion notes

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See Mr. Vertrees in III