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On Sunday, Mrs. Mooney goes about her normal morning routine. She makes sure all of the curtains are open and she oversees the servant, Mary, as she cleans up from the boarders’ breakfast of eggs, bread, and bacon. She also instructs Mary to save any of the leftover crusts and pieces of bread so that she can use it in Tuesday’s bread pudding and makes sure that her supply of sugar and butter have been locked away. As she does so, she reflects on the awkward conversation that she had with Polly about her relationship with Mr. Doran and thinks about her impending meeting with the man in question.
Mrs. Mooney is looking forward to her confrontation and is pleased that she will have plenty of time to speak with Mr. Doran. Mrs. Mooney is in a cheerful mood because she is confident that she is going to “win” the interaction by defending her daughter’s honor and convincing Mr. Doran to offer his hand in marriage. Waiting for the time to pass, Mrs. Mooney figures the odds are in her favor for a number of reasons. To begin with, she has the “weight of social opinion on her side” because Mr. Doran compromised her daughter’s reputation. She reflects that men have the liberty to enjoy their “moment[s] of pleasure” but that this same liberty is not afforded to young women who can be ruined forever by such a dalliance. Mrs. Mooney feels that Mr. Doran should bend to her every demand because he is a man in his mid-thirties and therefore well outside the excuses of youth. Finally, Mrs. Mooney is convinced of her own victory because Mr. Doran has garnered much respect for the work that he has done for a wine merchant for the past thirteen years and will choose the option that least harms his career. She knows that many people are aware of his and Polly’s relationship, and that he would not want to face the publicity that would result from rejecting Mrs. Mooney’s demands.
Meanwhile, in his room upstairs, Mr. Doran anguishes over the impending meeting with Mrs. Mooney. He attempts to shave twice while he waits to be called downstairs but his shaking hands have rendered that activity impossible. As he waits, he remembers the difficult confession he made to his priest on Saturday evening, in which he was harshly reproved for his sinful romantic affair. Mr. Doran understands that he only has two options: he can either marry Polly or not. Mr. Doran does not view either one as particularly good. If he chooses the former option, he will have to marry a girl that he knows his family will not approve of. However, if he chooses the latter option, he will ruin his sound reputation. He bemoans how small of a city Dublin is and he knows that the gossip will be overwhelming if he does not marry Polly. Convincing himself that he has been duped, Mr. Doran bemoans Polly’s unimpressive family, her ill manners, and her poor grammar, and wonders how he can remain free and unmarried.
