“Miss Graham told me nothing… without so much as one word of recommendation from any living creature,” (Braddon 234).
Before this passage, Robert asks both Mrs. Vincent and Miss Tonks where Lucy Graham was coming from. Mrs. Vincent gave a very vague answer that she was coming from the seaside. In this passage, Miss Tonks answers, “Miss Graham told me nothing; she was too clever for that.” We can see that Miss Tonks is very sure that Lucy Graham is hiding something, especially when Robert asks, “you think she had secrets, then?” and she make sure to emphasize, “I know she had.” We are also previously given information that Miss Tonks has a very good memory and if she cannot remember where Lucy had come from or when, then that makes Robert even more suspicious. It also seems that even though Miss Tonk has little information on Lucy, she has no problem with throwing her under the bus with any information she has, “She made the most of what she did know,” (Braddon 235). Though Robert is suspicious of Lucy, he also notices how easy it is for her to do this when she reveals the box, “How pitiless these women are to each other.” With this box, Robert was able to discover a label, “which bore the name of Miss Graham, passenger to London,’ which brought the novel to a cliffhanger with more evidence for Mr. Audley’s investigation.
First of all, using the phrase “throwing her under the bus” was brilliant and I think perfectly captured both the sentiment and general essence of Miss Tonk’s character. That being said, I think you did a great close read of her dialogue-being able to read what wasn’t written and interpret Miss Tonk’s overarching message and feelings towards the late Mrs. Helen Talboys. I would love to know what you were able to pick up on the relationship between Miss Tonks and Mrs. Vincent.
Yeah, I agree Miss Tonk’s behavior did seem a bit odd, especially when she was talking about Lucy Graham’s secretes very vaguely. Her choice of words seemed very specific and very suspicious without, however, them having much meaning or sense. As you said she did not mind totally exposing Lucy Graham with the evidence she had, even though she did not have much to say. She did, however, prove to be very helpful as she did manage to find a great piece of evidence that was a significant part of the story’s plot.
It was interesting how you pointed out the importance of Miss Tonks mentioning that Lucy Graham is hiding something. The book sets up Miss Tonks as a knowledgeable character who seems to have the answers to all of Mrs. Vincent’s questions, yet when Robert arrives with some simple questions about Lucy Graham, Miss Tonks is left without an answer for the visitor. These lines show just how secretive Lucy Graham really is. Also, the fact that Miss Tonks still believes Lucy Graham is hiding something further proves she does in fact have a secret.
I agree with a lot of what you said regarding the vague answers given by Ms. Vincent. I think this speaks a lot to the vagueness of a lot of characters in the book and how a lot of characters have a very shallow background that we are first introduced too. I also think their is a larger meaning behind the fact they she provided physical evidence instead of just her word especially with all the mysteries at hand in the moment.