The Painted Veil Lesson Plan

What ultimatum does Walter give Kitty? What purpose does this wager serve?

Walter tells Kitty that she must either move to Meitan-fu with him or he will file a divorce petition. Kitty gets him to alter his threat by agreeing to allow her to divorce him (instead of vice versa) on the condition that Dorothy Townsend divorce Charles and that Charles marries Kitty within the week.

Students ought to discuss both sides of Walter’s proposal. His desire for Kitty to accompany him to Meitan-fu may be an act of revenge. The city is in the midst of a deathly cholera epidemic and moving there may be fatally dangerous for both of them. On the other side of the proposal, allowing...