Marmee is at the hospital, sitting at Mr. March’s bedside, reflecting on her decision to encourage him to join the war effort. She looks at him and “wonder[s] where the face has gone that [she] loved so much” (209). She ponders whether the goals of the war have been worth the cost. 

She reflects on the day Mr. March declared he would join the soldiers in the war effort. She saw that “the moment was carrying him away” and she “raised [her] arms to him, imploring him not to say the words that [she] knew were forming in his mind” (211). He then looked at her and ignored her tears. Subsequently, she “had to pretend to be pleased by [her] hero of a husband’ (211). She again looks at her husband’s wasted body and acknowledges that she would not have recognized him if she’d not been told it was him.

The day before, she set out for Washington, escorted by a young family friend, Mr. Brooke. They arrived at the Blank Hotel, a formerly luxurious inn that is now being used as a hospital. At the hospital, Marmee immediately sought out Mr. March’s doctor, Surgeon Hale. He told her that her husband’s condition was very grave.