The climax occurs when Percy tricks the
Chauvelin into taking snuff that is really pepper. From
that time he has the upper hand. This occurs in chapter
25.
TheChauvelin is the French envoy to
England. He is blackmailing Marguerite, Percy’s wife, and has accused her brother
Armand of being in league with the mysterious Scarlet Pimpernel, who is trying to rescue
French aristocrats from the Guillotine.
When Percy tricks
him into taking snuff that is actually pepper, the Chauvelin “never even remotely
guessed the trick which was being played upon him” (ch 25). Percy is thus able to sneak
away.
When she
realised what had happened, a curious mixture of joy and wonder filled her heart. It all
was so neat, so ingenious. Chauvelin was still absolutely helpless …whilst his cunning
adversary had quietly slipped through his fingers. (ch
26)
A climax is a turning
point, and the point where the story changes. The rising action is the series of
interesting events leading up to the climax, and the falling action is the result of the
events of the climax. In the rising action, Sir Percy is in danger from the Chauvelin,
and in the falling action he escapes and rescues his wife’s
brother.
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