Gwendolin

Brought up as an Englishman, in ignorance of his Jewish birth, Daniel Deronda is despised by Grandcourt, the nephew of his benefactor, Sir Hugo. The mystery of his birth is aggravated by his love for Mirah, a singer, whom he rescues from self-destruction in the river when her father agrees to sell her into bondage. Daniel has placed Mirah, who is a Jewess, in the care of friends, and accidentally she discovers her brother, long lost to her, who will not permit her to marry Daniel because his is not a Jew. Grandcourt meets Gwendolin and wishes to marry her, but she is warned against him by Lydia, sister of his late wife. Gwendolin goes abroad to forget the experience, and the failure of a business sweeps away her fortune. To recoup her gambling losses, she pawns her jewels, but they are returned to her with a note by Daniel. To save her mother from poverty, Gwendolin decides to break her promise to Lydia and marry Grandcourt. A rabbi persuades Daniel's mother to restore her son's birthright, and he learns with joy that he is a Jew. After the wedding Lydia tells Gwendolin that she has robbed Grandcourt's children of their heritage and adds, "May it prove a curse." The curse works out, for Grandcourt is drowned while sailing with his wife. Daniel and Mirah are married, as no obstacle now exists.