We are told lots of information about Mr. Framton Nuttel
in the first few paragraphs that explain his susceptibility to Vera's storytelling
genius. We know that he is visiting the countryside as part of a "rural retreat" because
he is trying to undergo a "nerve cure". He is only visiting the Sappleton family because
his sister has insisted on arranging invitations for
him:
"I know
how it will be," his sister had said when he was preparing to migrate to this rural
retreat; "you will bury yourself down there and not speak to a living soul, and your
nerves will be worse than ever from moping. I shall just give you letters
of introduction to all the people I know there. Some of them, as far as I can remember,
were quite nice."
Clearly,
although we are given no details about the specifics of his "nervous condition", Framton
Nuttel is a jittery, nervous and shy character. What is key to appreciate is that Vera
is able to read him very accurately and very quickly, assessing his susceptibility to
her story telling. In a sense, she establishes that he is like an "open window", in that
he is so gullible that she can feel free to have some fun with him. It is this that
makes him vulnerable to someone like Vera.
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