Crome Yellow by Aldous Huxley
"Crome Yellow" is a novel by Aldous Huxley, published in 1921, that explores themes of love, philosophy, and social issues through the story of a house party at the country estate of Crome. The protagonist, Denis Stone, is a shy young poet deeply in love with Anne, the niece of the hosts, Henry and Mrs. Wimbush. Throughout the gathering, Denis struggles with feelings of inadequacy as Anne dismisses him due to their age difference and engages with other guests, including artists and intellectuals, who bring their own complexities and perspectives to the narrative.
As the events unfold, Denis's attempts to confess his feelings for Anne are thwarted by misunderstandings and jealousy, particularly concerning Anne's interactions with the artist Gombauld. The social dynamics are further complicated by the eccentric personalities of the other guests, each grappling with their own dreams, aspirations, and repressions. The story highlights Denis's internal conflict and his desire for meaningful connection amidst the satirical backdrop of the gathering. Ultimately, the novel reflects on the human condition, revealing the challenges of communication and the impact of societal expectations on personal relationships.
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Crome Yellow by Aldous Huxley
First published: 1921
Type of work: Novel
Type of plot: Social satire
Time of plot: 1920’s
Locale: England
Principal characters
Henry Wimbush , the owner of CromeAnne Wimbush , his nieceDenis Stone , a young poetMr. Scrogan , a man of reasonGombauld , an artistMary Bracegirdle , a victim of repressionsJenny Mullion , a deaf but keen-eyed observer
The Story:
Denis Stone, a shy young poet, goes to a house party at Crome, the country home of Henry Wimbush and his wife. He goes because he is in love with Wimbush’s niece, Anne. Anne looks down on Denis because he is four years younger than she, and she treats him with scorn when he attempts to speak of love. Mr. Wimbush is interested in little except Crome and the histories of the people who lived in the old house. Mrs. Wimbush is a woman with red hair, probably false, and with an interest in astrology, especially since she recently won a bet on a horse with her star-given information. Other guests at the party include Gombauld, an artist who was invited to paint Anne’s picture; the diabolically reasonable Mr. Scrogan; deaf Jenny Mullion; and Mary Bracegirdle, who is worried about her Freudian dreams. Denis and Anne quarrel, this time over their philosophies of life. Denis tries to carry all the cares of the world on his back, but Anne thinks that things should be taken for granted as they come. The quarrel costs Denis his first opportunity to tell Anne that he loves her.
Mary discusses her dreams and repressions with Anne. Having decided to secure either Gombauld or Denis for a husband, she chooses the wrong times to talk with both men. Gombauld is busy painting when Mary comes up to him. Denis is smarting with jealousy over the time Anne and Gombauld spend together.
Ivor Lombard arrives for the party. Ivor, a painter of ghosts and spirits, turns his attentions toward repressed Mary and secretly visits her one night in the tower. He goes away without seeing her again.
At various times, Mr. Wimbush calls the party together while he reads stories of the early history of Crome. These stories are from a history on which Mr. Wimbush worked for thirty years. Denis often wonders if he will ever get a chance to tell Anne that he loves her. Walking in the garden after a talk with Mr. Scrogan, whose cold-blooded ideas about a rationalized world annoy him, he finds a red notebook in which Jenny was writing for the past week. The notebook contains a collection of sharply satirical cartoons of all the people at the house party. Jenny drew him in seven attitudes that illustrate his absurd jealousy, incompetence, and shyness. The cartoons deeply wound his vanity and shatter his self-conception.
He is further discouraged by the fact that there is nothing for him to do at a charity fair held in the park outside Crome a few days later. Mr. Scrogan makes a terrifying and successful fortune-teller; Jenny plays the drums; Mr. Wimbush runs the various races; and Denis is left to walk aimlessly through the fair as an official with nothing to do. Gombauld makes sketches of the people in the crowd, and Anne stays by his side.
The night after the fair, Denis overhears part of a conversation between Gombauld and Anne. Denis is unaware that Anne repulsed Gombauld, for she made up her mind to accept Denis if he ever gets around to asking her; consequently, he spends hours of torture thinking of the uselessness of his life. At last, he decides to commit suicide by jumping from the tower. There he finds Mary grieving, because she received only a brisk postcard from Ivor. She convinces Denis that both their lives are ruined and advises him to flee from Anne. Convinced, Denis arranges a fake telegram calling him back to London on urgent business. When it arrives, Denis realizes with dismay that Anne is miserable to see him go. The telegram is the one decisive action of his life. Ironically, it separates him from Anne.
Bibliography
Baker, Robert S. The Dark Historic Page: Social Satire and Historicism in the Novels of Aldous Huxley, 1921-1939. Madison: University of Wisconsin Press, 1982. Invaluable work, especially the chapter entitled “Crome Yellow and the Problem of History.”
Barfoot, C. C., ed. Aldous Huxley: Between East and West. Amsterdam: Rodopi, 2001. Collection of essays, including analyses of the themes of science and modernity in Huxley’s interwar novels, utopian themes in his work, his views of nature, and his use of psychedelic drugs and mescaline. Also includes “White Peacocks in a Waste Land: A Reading of Crome Yellow” by Wim Tigges.
Bedford, Sybille. Aldous Huxley: A Biography. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1974. First-rate, extensive biography that traces Huxley’s intellectual and moral development from early childhood on.
Birnbaum, Milton. Aldous Huxley’s Quest for Values. Knoxville: University of Tennessee Press, 1971. Deals with Huxley’s novels by theme rather than by chronology, but the index references to Crome Yellow are worth looking up. Birnbaum, a college student in the 1920’s, writes in his preface, “In debunking the traditional sources of value he [Huxley] was, in a sense, acting as our surrogate.”
Bowering, Peter. Aldous Huxley: A Study of the Major Novels. New York: Oxford University Press, 1969. Notes the counterpull, beneath the benign skepticism of its surface, of an underlying gravity in Crome Yellow.
Firchow, Peter. Aldous Huxley: Satirist and Novelist. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press, 1972. Offers sound insights into Huxley’s literary technique in Crome Yellow.
Meckier, Jerome. Aldous Huxley: Modern Satirical Novelist of Ideas, a Collection of Essays. Edited by Peter Firchow and Bernfried Nugel. London: Global, 2006. This collection of Meckier’s essays written from 1966 through 2005 includes a discussion of Sir George Sitwell’s contributions to Crome Yellow.
Murray, Nicholas. Aldous Huxley: A Biography. New York: St. Martin’s Press, 2003. Murray’s 500-plus-page biography and intellectual history is a wide-ranging survey of Huxley’s writing and his social, personal, and political life. The book stretches from Huxley’s early satirical writing to his peace activism, and from his close relations and friendships with Hollywood filmmakers and other intellectuals to his fascination with spirituality and mysticism. Illustrations, bibliography, and index.
Watt, Donald, ed. Aldous Huxley: The Critical Heritage. London: Routledge & Kegan Paul, 1975. Fascinating compendium of reviews, articles, and letters, arranged chronologically. F. Scott Fitzgerald, at that time the author of one published novel, said in his review of Crome Yellow, “Huxley . . . is said to know more about French, German, Latin, and medieval Italian literature than any man alive. I refuse to make the fatuous remark that he should know less about books and more about people.” Watt’s introduction provides further insights into Crome Yellow.