Compare her sketch of the ruined San Tomé mineworks and her description of Don Jose: "He has suffered -- and yet he hopes." As usual Mrs Gould is drawn to spectacles of ruin and suffering.

On the other hand, it is telling that Parochetti, who had access to photographs, still required Mrs Gould's sketch to produce his "fair likeness." This subtly continues the theme that human spirit and art are higher values than outward fact and history. See Conrad's reference to "the charm of art" as something that preserves its nature "for ever."