Every vote counts.Enola Holmes · 2020 — Chapter 11 of 12 · 3'33" · B2
Enola Sneaks into the Finishing School, Explained: see right through someone
Enola disguises herself as a porter to break Tewkesbury out of Miss Harrison's school, and the plan runs straight into its flaw: "Miss Harrison, she will see right through you." It survives only because Enola can invent a delivery, an employer and an order not to open the parcel on the spot.
What happens
Enola turns up at Miss Harrison's finishing school dressed as a porter, trying to smuggle Tewkesbury out. He doubts the disguise will hold, and he is right to: the headmistress stops them and questions Enola, who claims to be delivering a parcel for Mycroft Holmes that must be opened in private.
Listen for
see right through someoneprodigious memorywhat are you waiting forweigh a ton
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Phrase of the scene
see right through someone
to understand someone's real intentions at once
特克斯伯里担心校长会一眼看穿他们的伪装，于是提醒伊诺拉小心。
Don't lie to her; she sees right through people.
Also in this scene
- prodigious memory
an unusually powerful memory
- what are you waiting for
a nudge telling someone to act now
- weigh a ton
to be extremely heavy
Everything marked in this scene
21 notes across 49 lines
elision
Every vote counts.weak form
What does he want? [SIGHS]You're supposed to be helping me out, not getting in with me.You're supposed to be helping me out, not getting in with me.be supposed to be doing
You're supposed to be helping me out, not getting in with me.an unusually powerful memory
I have quite the prodigious memory when I choose to use it.when-clause
I have quite the prodigious memory when I choose to use it.That's an excellent idea.liaison
That's an excellent idea.Nope. Nope, nope, nope. Help me up.to understand someone's real intentions at once
Miss Harrison, she will see right through you.Tewkesbury. Oh, I knew there was a flaw. Shh. Let me think.Could you please direct me to her office?Well, open it up. Let me see what's inside.mandative subjunctive
And who might that be?to be extremely heavy
Oh, this weighs a ton.a nudge telling someone to act now
Why is it so heavy? So what are you waiting for? A tip?Enola Sneaks into the Finishing School, explained
What's really going on
The scene is a small masterclass in getting caught and talking your way out. Enola's disguise is good enough for the corridors but not for the woman who runs the place, which Tewkesbury predicts with "Miss Harrison, she will see right through you." What saves her is not the disguise but the performance: a plausible job, a plausible employer, and a rule she claims she cannot break. The lie she picks is Mycroft's parcel, marked to be opened in private, which turns the headmistress's own manners into a shield. It also quietly continues the film's theme: Enola is repeatedly underestimated because of how she looks, and repeatedly wins by being faster in conversation than the people testing her. "I am the headmistress of the school" sounds like authority; it is also exactly the kind of line she can turn against it.
Theme
IdentityEnola hides behind a porter's coat and an invented role, succeeding because people judge her by appearance.
DeceptionShe wins the interrogation with a fake delivery, a fake employer and a rule about opening the parcel in private.
What you'll learn
- 'prodigious' carries more than its dictionary gloss.
- 'be supposed to do something' changes the pressure of the reply.
- The surrounding lines set the social temperature.
Listen for
- Every vote counts — elision
- What does he want — weak form
- excellent idea — liaison
Mother thought I was extraordinary.Enola's opening thought, framing her whole story as a daughter living up to a mother who believed in her.
Miss Harrison, she will see right through you.Tewkesbury's warning that the headmistress will read through Enola's disguise at once.
You're supposed to be helping me out, not getting in with me.The complaint that Enola came to help him escape, but is now caught inside the school with him.
I am the headmistress of the school.The authority line that stops the escape, answered by Enola with a parcel and a rule.
Questions about this scene
Why does Enola go to Miss Harrison's school?
To get Tewkesbury out. She disguises herself as a porter and plans to leave the same way she came in, using her memory of the route.
What does 'see right through someone' mean?
It means to understand someone's real intention or lie immediately. Tewkesbury warns that the headmistress will see right through Enola's disguise.
How does Enola avoid being caught?
She pretends to deliver a parcel for Mycroft Holmes and claims express instructions that it be opened in private, which stops the headmistress from examining it on the spot.
Why does the parcel matter?
It is her excuse and her exit. Because it is heavy and supposedly private, the headmistress has it carried to her office, which gives Enola a reason to move through the school.
Who is Mycroft Holmes?
Enola's older brother, whose name she borrows to make the delivery believable. Claiming to work for Mycroft gives her story the weight of a real household.
Enola Holmes · 12 chapters
All chapters →
Up next · Chapter 12right a wrongEnola and Tewkesbury Flee the School
Chapter 1one's own companyEnola Confronts Her Brothers
Chapter 2unpickEnola Decodes Her Mother's Message
Chapter 3leave someone strandedEnola Hides on the Train
Chapter 4the game is afootSherlock and Mycroft Argue Over Enola
Chapter 5prepare the groundEnola Bluffs Her Way Into Basilwether
Chapter 6for better or worseA Talk of Power Over Tea
Chapter 7lead someone astrayEnola Meets the Dowager
Chapter 8do funny things to someoneTewkesbury Finds Enola's Hideout
Chapter 9fend for oneselfEnola at Miss Harrison's School
Chapter 10pick my brainsSherlock Visits Enola
Watching · Chapter 11see right through someoneEnola Sneaks into the Finishing School
Chapter 12right a wrongEnola and Tewkesbury Flee the SchoolChapter 11 of 12 · about 3 min to go