Martin Eden Chapter IV

In which Martin Eden, newly stirred by thoughts of a refined lady, gazes upon his weathered reflection and contemplates the vast gulf between his rugged existence and her gentle world, feeling the humble weight of his hands and the coarse callouses borne of toil. As visions of contrasting lives flicker before him, he resolves to reform himself, embracing the strange etiquette and refinement of a world unknown, whilst his heart wrestles with the rawness of his own past and the soft allure of distant grace.