The House of Doors

Penang, 1910

Part I:

The morning after learning of Robert’s affair, Lesley unpacks a Nyonya kebaya (a garment with Chinese, Malay, Siamese, Javanese, and European influences) from storage. Despite her admiration for the style, she rarely wears it due to Robert’s criticism of its Asian influences. She dons it for Arthur’s fundraising party. She is the only white attendee, and her attire attracts curious glances. She considers leaving but stays when Arthur tells her Sun and Geoff will soon arrive. She donates a large sum in her and Robert’s names. When she speaks with Geoff, she reveals she now knows the identity of Robert’s lover, whom she describes using racist and anti-gay slurs. To Geoff’s surprise, she still does not wish for a divorce, and finds it “liberating” to know that the “failure” of her marriage is not her fault. They debate the difference between adultery and polygamy, which Geoff cites as a cultural difference, and Geoff offers that Dr. Sun’s political goals are more important than any personal practices Geoff may dislike. Sun arrives and gives a stirring speech, though Lesley doubts that the rest of the audience is as affected as she is.

Sun admires Lesley’s attire and expresses his gratitude at having all his family together. A woman named Diana Chua asks if women will vote under Sun’s leadership; he says they will. Diana cites Queen Victoria’s description of women’s rights as “wicked folly,” framing Sun as “more enlightened” than the deceased queen. A storm looms, and all the guests except Lesley and Dr. Sun depart, and he expresses his dismay at “begging for crumbs from these rich, spoilt people” (205). Lesley chafes at the way Sun disparages Overseas Chinese while asking for their money. Sun departs, and Lesley and Arthur discuss Arthur’s collection of and admiration for Maugham. Arthur complements Lesley’s beauty, and they arrange to meet at “the House of Doors.” They travel there separately and, despite Lesley’s sense that she is doing something wrong, begin a sexual affair.

When she leaves, Arthur encourages her to keep the key to the house. Lesley feels a huge shift. She pauses at a photographer’s studio to be photographed in her Nyonya kebaya. When Robert returns from Kuala Lumpur, she is surprised at how easy she finds it to treat him normally and wonders at Robert finding her unchanged by her new affair.

Part II:

Lesley and Arthur continue their affair, though she insists on extreme caution about never sending notes or being seen together. At a party, Lesley encounters Wagner, Ethel’s lawyer, a week before the trial begins. He asks her to testify that Ethel normally dressed up for a night at home and to help quash rumors of Ethel’s affair with Steward. Lesley is uncertain, but Wagner presses; she is the only friend Ethel has left.

Lesley begins to spend more time in the House of Doors, with and without Arthur. Arthur plays a song based on a poem by Paul Verlaine, which Lesley finds romantic until she learns that Verlaine left his wife to have an affair with poet Arthur Rimbaud. Lesley is regularly surprised by evidence of Arthur’s Chinese heritage and is disrespectful of Arthur’s beliefs regarding his ancestors. He admits having visited Cassowary House, standing outside so he could picture Lesley during her regular life. This angers her, and they argue about Arthur’s casual disregard of the possibility that his wife could be having an affair as well. She admits Robert is unfaithful, which annoys Arthur, who feels their affair is an act of revenge. Arthur tells her the legend of the casuarina tree whispering the future under the full moon.

Arthur offers to accompany Lesley to Kuala Lumpur for Ethel’s trial, but she declines. She explains she has been summoned as a witness, admitting to Ethel’s affair. Arthur encourages Lesley not to go to the trial, insisting they will never hang a white woman, even if she’s found guilty. Lesley opines that the trial will soon be forgotten, and Ethel will return to her usual life, which she feels is right.

Penang, 1921

Robert is ill, and when Willie helps him to bed and confides that Lesley has been sharing Ethel’s story, Robert makes reference to Ethel’s father and husband and “what they did” to Ethel (221) but falls asleep before he can clarify. Willie asks Lesley what Robert meant, and she claims not to know. She asks if Willie knew about Robert’s sexual interest in men, and the two quarrel when Lesley asks how Willie’s affair affects his wife. She finds him later and confides that she has struggled not to discuss Robert’s affair with anyone. Willie tells her that Syrie has used her powerful connections to ensure Gerald cannot return to England, and suggests that, in marrying Robert, Lesley has saved him from persecution, a perspective she dismisses. Willie inquires about Ethel.

Penang, 1910

Part I:

Ethel’s trial arrives, the courtroom packed. Lesley is astonished to realize how much has changed in her own life since the inquest and is anxious to be called as a witness. Ethel, who looks wan after her time in jail, is unhappy to see Lesley. William Proudlock is called to testify about the day of the killing, including about the gun involved, which Ethel had purchased for his birthday, five days before the shooting. He recounts going to dinner with a friend and returning to find Ethel in distress over shooting Steward, then relays the story Ethel told him of that night, in which Steward suddenly attacked her, leading Ethel to shoot him with a nearby revolver. The prosecutor asks about Ethel’s “moral conduct,” which William defends. When asked about Ethel’s health, he reveals she has leucorrhoea (a medical term used to describe thick vaginal discharge, which may reflect normal hormone fluctuations or possible infection, including those caused by sexually transmitted infections); William characterizes this as causing Ethel pain and affecting her mood. The prosecutor inquires about a trip William took to Hong Kong, which Lesley knows to be when Ethel had sex with Steward.

Next, Goodman Ambler, the friend with whom William dined the evening of Steward’s death, testifies. He stayed with Ethel while William fetched a doctor and reports her fluctuating mood and rambling that “he made me do it” (234), though he cannot make sense of her words. After court adjourns for the day, Lesley records details in her journal, wishing for Arthur.

The following day, Detective Inspector Charles Wyatt testifies that prints from a lady’s shoes were found next to Steward’s body, the revolver nearby. Dr. Edward McIntyre testifies to the absence of injuries on Edith, though she had bloodstains on her front and back. He reports Edith’s clarity of mind after the incident, which he comments as surprising, following an attempted assault and a killing. On cross-examination, the doctor reports seeing Edith the next day and finding her more distressed and bruised on her arms and legs, which he allows could have been from the previous day. Dr. McIntyre comments on Edith’s leucorrhoea, calling her “a nervous and hysterical woman” (238).

Inspector Frederick Ferrant reports finding a chest of drawers full of European-style women’s and girl’s clothes at Steward’s house; appalled, Lesley wonders if Edith took her daughter to her assignations at Steward’s home. He encountered four Chinese women at Steward’s house, one of whom wept violently when she learned of his death. Ferrant’s implication that Steward was having an affair with that woman is corroborated by one of Steward’s friends. Lesley recognizes the prosecution’s plan to present Ethel as having murdered Steward due to jealousy.

Part II:

Lesley trims newspaper clippings about the trial, adding them to her journal. As the case continues, Ethel’s spirits improve, and her lawyer asserts she will be acquitted. When called to testify, Lesley emphasizes Ethel’s love of clothes but denies that Ethel had an affair with Steward. Ethel is called to testify next. She explains that she only invited Steward to her verandah out of politeness and that he attacked her suddenly. Her shots, she claims, were intended to frighten him; she shot once or twice but does not remember what happened next. She cannot account for the other four shots and claims no memory of what she said to Goodman Ambler. She denies an affair, declaring, “I would rather be convicted of murder than live out the rest of my life under the cloud of being an unfaithful wife” (245).

Part III:

The final day of the trial arrives, and, to the astonishment of both Lesley and the rest of the courtroom, Ethel is convicted and sentenced to death by hanging. Ethel, who has been stoic throughout the trial, breaks down weeping as she is taken back to jail.

Penang, 1921

Willie and Robert visit Penang Hill. They are carried to the top by Tamil workers in dhoolies, wicker armchairs hoisted by poles. At the top, they have lunch at a restaurant that looks out over George Town. Willie prods Robert to recall his comment about Ethel, but Robert claims ignorance of what he meant. Robert points out various half-completed buildings that he won’t see finished, given his intent to move to South Africa. He asks if Willie, like Lesley, thinks him “barmy.” Willie responds with the tale of a doctor, intending to punish his unfaithful wife, who moved their family to a remote village in China, where he contracted cholera and died. He recalls that the woman returned to Hong Kong and is happily married to her lover, but he tells Robert that the woman never left the remote village where her husband is buried. Robert admits that moving is drastic, but that he has no other option. Willie offers to visit in South Africa. 

Penang, 1910

Part I:

After the trial, Lesley returns to Penang. The atmosphere is tense at Tong Meng Hui headquarters, but Lesley never asks for details. Tong Meng Hui publishes its first newspaper in Penang, called the Glorious China Daily; the first issue contains an article by Arthur about Ethel, which Lesley considers fair and objective. Letters in various Penang papers claim that a European woman shouldn’t be sentenced to hang for “defending her honour” (254). Ethel’s lawyers file for an appeal and send a petition to the Sultan of Selangor asking for leniency, which cannot be granted until the appeal is tried. Lesley visits Ethel, who reports that she has withdrawn the appeal and requested a pardon from the Sultan. Lesley urges her to reconsider, but Ethel ignores her.

Robert travels with Peter Ong. Lesley is happy with Arthur and muses on the irony that she and Robert “each had [their] own Chinese lover” but can never discuss this (255). When he returns from Kuala Lumpur, Robert reports outrage among the European community that Ethel, a white woman, has put her fate in the hands of an Asian ruler. He further reports that Dr. Sun will be deported the following day as a result of a speech criticizing British rule of Malaya. Robert urges Lesley, whom he still suspects to be having an affair with Sun, to bid him farewell.

Part II:

Lesley travels to the docks to say goodbye to Sun; he thanks her for her help with his cause, and she urges his family to visit her if they need anything, as they will be staying in Penang. He encourages her to visit China after the revolution. Sun’s deportation incites his supporters. One morning, visiting the House of Doors, Lesley notices the hamsa carved into the front doors. Arthur saw it in Maugham’s books and liked it for “their” house.

Part III:

In August, an insurrection in Canton is quickly quelled by the imperial army, leading to the execution of more than seventy revolutionaries. The reading club debates the efficacy of Sun’s leadership, though Lesley is convinced he will succeed. The following month, a larger uprising begins in Wuchang, then spreads to neighboring provinces. Sun hurries from America to Canton to lead the uprising, despite not having organized it.

Part IV:

Arthur tells Lesley he plans to go to China to fight in the revolution. Lesley, not wishing to lose him, accuses him of being selfish. They see each other once more before Arthur’s departure; Lesley gifts him an amulet in the shape of the hamsa, which she says is to keep him safe. He says he will write, but she refuses. She promises to wait in Penang for his return. She asks him to play “L’heure exquise,” based on the Verlaine poem, then the two kiss farewell.

Part IV:

A week after Arthur’s departure, the doors with the Japanese samurai poem are delivered to Lesley’s house. Robert tells her that the Sultan of Selangor will pardon Ethel on the condition that she leave Malaya and not return. Robert says this is better, as “her own people—us whites—will never forgive her” (262). Ethel visits Lesley on her way to England, thanks Lesley for her support, and says her husband forced her to kill Steward, though she won’t explain more. Ethel promises to keep in touch but doesn’t.

Part V:

In January 1912, Lesley learns Dr. Sun is now President Sun Yat Sen. She thinks of Arthur and, though she goes to the reading club to cheer Sun’s success, feels she no longer belongs there. She watches many Chinese men snip off their Manchu-mandated hairstyles at an open-air barber, envious at their chance to start a new life as she feels she is returning to her old one.

Penang, 1921

After concluding her story, Lesley feels sad instead of liberated, as she’d expected. She invites Willie to the beach, where clouds of plankton light up with bioluminescence in the water. They swim naked, Willie reluctantly, their movements lighting up the plankton. Lesley sinks into the water, not realizing she is running out of air until Willie grabs her and pulls her to the surface. They float together, looking up at the stars.