for the love of money

There seems to be a clear battle between those who favor material things and those who would rather have a greater happiness among the characters in The Professor's House. Material possessions are an issue in the fist part of the book, and are placed in contrast through the very different marriages of the professor's daughters, with the professor and his wife in a kind of middle ground.

Rosamond and Louie have a relationship that is almost wholly based on money. It is kind of suggested that Louie marries Rosamond in order to get at Tom Outland's legacy, and that Rosamond allows this because he can market that legacy and make money off of it. When they talk they talk of nothing but money and what they are planning to do with their money. Often, Louie is the one to make the grand reveals whenever they complete some project, and especially whenever they do something nice. Rosamond seems to be a little more protective of her fortune, and she is less likely to share it, as we see with Augusta and the Cranes. They both appear to be superficially happy, but I don't think that either is really in love with the other.

Kathleen and Scott appear to be in love. Indeed, at one point they even tell each other “I love you,” something that we never see the other couples do. They are also the least well off of the family marriages. Kathleen seems to resent her sister's wealth, and especially the way it was acquired. She doesn't seem to resent the fact that Rosamond is wealthy, but that her wealth has changed her and was gained in a way that seemed to deny Rosamond's true sense of self and her love for Tom. Kathleen doesn't mind that her sister is wealthy, but she doesn't want that money to be held over her head.

Mr. and Mrs St. Peter are a middle ground. They are well-to-do, but not as extravagantly wealthy as Rosamond and Louie. Mrs. St. Peter seems to like the idea of being extravagant and having the best of everything, while Godfrey seems to recognize the utility value of money, but prefers stability to extravagant change, although many aspects of his opinion on money are unclear or undecided. They are a couple that has worn thin with time, but they still have some affection for each other, as is evidenced by the theater scene.

Even Tom Outland is not left untouched by quarrels over whether there are more important things than money. He loses his best friend, Rodney, over the sale of the Indian relics that they found on the mesa. Rodney was the closest thing that Tom ever had to a father or a brother, but when he sold the relics Tom was so mad that he did not stop Roddy from leaving. Tom clearly thought that there were more important things than money to be had in the world, and I don't think that he would have liked the way that Rosamond has turned out since she got the profits from his gas. Because Tom is portrayed as such a heroic character, I think that it is safe to say that this view of money is the one that Cather wants us to come away with, but it will be interesting to see how the rest of the book plays out, and what kind of view the professor ends up with.