vocation. He stays in Exeter to execute his plan and proximity to the Warricombes, especially Sidwell and her father, seems to be getting him closer to his goals. However Buckland Warricombe distrusts him, seeing him as a social upstart, and seeks out Peak's London friends to ascertain his motives. He meets with the Moxeys and while there Malkin arrives, whose mouth runs away with him, exposing Peak's authorship of the article thus revealing Peak as a fraud and hypocrite. Marcella does not stop Malkin despite knowing the consequences for Peak, as it suits her ends to hamper Peak and Sidwell's relationship. Ironically Marcella is shown to be a better mate for Peak but he is more interested in Sidwell's beauty and social position. Buckland exposes Peak as a hypocrite and possible fraudster to Sidwell and her father (who liked Peak believing him to be sympathetic to his anti-evolutionary Anglicanism). However Sidwell has fallen in love with Peak and forgives him but Peak feels he cannot stay in Exeter and be shamed by the revelation of his hypocrisy, reminiscent of his leaving college rather than be associated with tradespeople. They part but keep up a cool, sporadic correspondence for some years. Then Marcella Moxey is killed while trying to prevent a horse being beaten and leaves her considerable wealth to Peak. He reluctantly accepts it (she had previously offered him money but he refused it) and now an independent man of means he proposes marriage to Sidwell. She almost accepts him but out of love and loyalty to her family, and father in particular, she turns him down. Denied his aspiration to marry into society Peak goes on a tour of Europe where he contracts Malaria and dies alone in a Viennese boarding-house. Thus Peak was born, lived and died in Exile. References Further reading Henriot, Émile (1933). "Un Julien Sorel Anglais," Revue Bleue, Vol. LXXI, pp. 16–20. Huguet, Christine (2001). "'Written, too, in Exile!' A Metatextual Approach to Born in Exile." In: A Garland for Gissing. Amsterdam: Rodopi, pp. 163–170. Kermode, Frank (1991). "Squalor: On George Gissing." In: The Uses of Error. Harvard University Press, pp. 224–235. Korg, Jacob (1968). "The Spiritual Theme of 'Born in Exile'." In: Collected Articles on George Gissing. London: Frank Cass & Co., pp. 131–141. Ogden, Stephen (2001). "Darwinian Scepticism in George Gissing's Born in Exile." In: A Garland for Gissing. Amsterdam: Rodopi, pp. 171–178.