Vanity and Self-Absorption

Where it surfaces

• Zuleika Dobson

  Zuleika is deeply aware of her beauty and its effect on others, using it to manipulate the undergraduates for her own amusement.

• I

  Zuleika's beauty and self-regard cause a stir, while the undergraduates' instant infatuation shows their own vanity and neglect of family.

• II

  Zuleika delights in the homage she receives, reads every line printed about her, and revels in her own image as a spectator of her life.

• III

  The Duke's dandiacal nature is emphasized—he values his appearance and perfection above all, and his struggle against love is a battle to maintain his self-absorption.

• IV

  Both the Duke and Zuleika are consumed by their own feelings—the Duke wallows in self-pity, while Zuleika laments the loss of her idolized image of him.

• V

  Both characters display vanity: the Duke in his detailed listing of possessions, and Zuleika in her pride about her family and social standing.

• VII

  Both characters are absorbed in their own perspectives: the Duke in his romantic self-dramatization, Zuleika in her power over him.

• Chapter IX

  Zuleika's concern that the Duke call her name so everyone knows he died for her highlights her vanity and need for public validation.

• The Concert and the Aftermath

  Zuleika's delight in the crowd's adoration and her performance, despite her lack of skill, underscores her vanity and self-absorption.

• XIII

  The Duke's pride and self-image are central; his concern with honor and ridicule drives his internal conflict.

• Chapter XIV

  The Duke's self-regard is evident as he composes a letter designed to punish Zuleika while maintaining his own dignity, and Zuleika's letter reveals her manipulative self-concern.

• XVIII

  The Duke's meticulous dressing and admiration of his own reflection highlight his narcissistic preoccupation with his appearance and legacy.

• XXI

  Zuleika's bath and her reflection on her past as a governess highlight her self-absorption, even as she feels lonely and questions the meaning of her triumphs.

• Chapter XXII

  Zuleika's vanity is evident as she dismisses Noaks and revels in her power over men, while Katie's pride in her engagement shows her own self-absorption.

• XXIV

  Zuleika's primary concern is how the world will perceive her role in the undergraduates' deaths, rather than the deaths themselves.