Sense and Sensibility
Mr. Thomas Palmer
The grumpy husband
Charlotte’s cynical, newspaper-reading husband, who is kinder than he lets on.
Mr. Palmer is a member of Parliament, gruff, cynical and perpetually annoyed. He reads his newspaper to avoid conversation, and he has a sarcastic word for most things.
Beneath that gruffness he is secretly decent, a husband to a wife who never stops laughing and a son-in-law to a mother-in-law who never stops talking. He has little patience for fools and often says so. His rudeness is more habit than cruelty, and people who look past it find a practical man.
In the story
Contains spoilers.
The Palmers host Elinor and Marianne at Cleveland on the journey home from London. When Marianne becomes severely ill, Mr. Palmer shows unexpected practical kindness.
It is a small piece of evidence that the people around the Dashwoods are better than they first appear. He is a reminder that a person who seems unfriendly can still be reliable. The household is better off with him in it.
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