“I don't mind confessing I'm all in.”
Why it's great
A gentle lead-in and a slangy punch line make the admission sound honest, not needy.
Register
Informal
Use it yourself
I don't mind confessing I'm out of ideas.
00:00 / 03:03
00:00 / 03:03
Ong Brings Joyce a Delicate Matter, Explained
The Letter · 1940
Chapter 5 of 15 · 3'03"
Robert arrives at Howard Joyce's office worn out by his wife's imprisonment, saying 'I'm all in.' Joyce offers him a place to stay in town and calms his anger at the trial. Then the clerk Ong asks for a private word: something 'very delicate and confidential' has surfaced in the Crosbie case.
Key moments
Start here, then watch the full scene- 0:34–1:28
Robert Breaks Down to His Lawyer
55s - 2:30–3:02
❝ Monologue · 5 lines Ong Asks for a Private Word
32s
Ong Brings Joyce a Delicate Matter, explained
What happens
Robert visits his lawyer, Howard Joyce, in town. Exhausted and lonely, he says he is 'all in' and would even let the plantation 'go to blazes.' Joyce invites him to stay in the city and reassures him about the upcoming trial. After Robert leaves, Joyce's clerk, Ong, asks to speak privately about a delicate matter connected to the case.
What's really going on
Everything in this scene is polite, and everything matters. Robert can barely hold himself together — 'I don't mind confessing I'm all in' — and Joyce manages him with an invitation and calm: 'Now, stop worrying about the trial. That's your lawyer's job.' The trial is described as an 'ordeal,' and Robert's grief is almost a liability; Joyce even tells him to sleep and change before seeing Leslie. But the real turn comes at the end. Ong, the 'perfect confidential clerk,' waits until Robert has gone, then lowers his voice: 'The matter upon which I desire to speak to you, sir, is very delicate and confidential.' The wording matters because it announces a problem the lawyer will want to handle alone. Joyce's warm, open office is about to become a place of secrets.
Key lines & what they mean
- “I don't mind confessing I'm all in.”
- Robert admits he is exhausted and overwhelmed, using a casual phrase to confess weakness to his lawyer.
- “I've tried to work. The plantation can go to blazes for all I care. I hate the house and every tree on the place.”
- He says he cannot work and no longer cares about the plantation or the home he once shared with Leslie.
- “It's monstrous they should have kept her in that filthy prison all this time.”
- Robert vents anger that Leslie has been jailed before trial, calling the detention cruel and unfair.
- “She shot him as she would have shot a mad dog.”
- He insists the killing was justified, comparing Hammond to a rabid animal rather than a man.
- “If you are not too busy, sir, might I trouble you for a few words in private conversation?”
- Ong politely asks for a private talk, signaling the news is for the lawyer alone.
- “The matter upon which I desire to speak to you, sir, is very delicate and confidential.”
- Ong declares that what he has to say is sensitive and secret, raising the stakes before he reveals it.
Theme
- Secrets — The scene ends as Ong asks for a private word about a delicate, confidential matter tied to the case.
- Marriage — Robert is undone by his wife's imprisonment, saying he is 'all in' and hates the empty house.
What this chapter teaches
Teaching points
Review right after watchingMy level0/5
A1–C2 is the CEFR scale. Cards above the level you pick fade, and playback will not auto-pause on them.
Language points
Click a card to jump to its moment in the videoGolden lines
A great line in its own right — why and how to use it“I've tried to work. The plantation can go to blazes for all I care. I hate the house and every tree on the place.”
Why it's great
A curse plus hatred down to every tree turns private grief into a bitter, vivid outburst.
Register
Informal
Use it yourself
That old car can go to blazes for all I care.
“It's monstrous they should have kept her in that filthy prison all this time.”
Why it's great
Indignation and tenderness share one word, and the filthy prison makes the injustice physical.
Register
Formal
Use it yourself
It's monstrous they made him wait two years.
“She shot him as she would have shot a mad dog.”
Why it's great
The mad-dog comparison absolves her in one breath; its casualness is the whole defence.
Register
Neutral
Use it yourself
She brushed it off as she would have brushed away a fly.
“If you are not too busy, sir, might I trouble you for a few words in private conversation?”
Why it's great
The old-fashioned courtesy shows his rank and his care; every soft word is a social calculation.
Register
Formal
Use it yourself
Might I trouble you for five minutes of your time?
“The matter upon which I desire to speak to you, sir, is very delicate and confidential.”
Why it's great
Two formal adjectives set the stakes and warn of danger, all in one polite sentence.
Register
Formal
Use it yourself
The matter I must raise is delicate and confidential.
Monologue
One character carrying the scene — shadow the whole passage❝ Ong's private request
If you are not too busy, sir, might I trouble you for a few words in private conversation? No trouble at all, Ong. The matter upon which I desire to speak to you, sir, is very delicate and confidential. Well... what matter is it? It has to do with the case of the crown vs. Crosbie.
Courtesies stack up until the case name lands like a card laid face down.
Up next · 06put a different complexion onThe scene: Ong Brings Joyce the LetterTakeaways
What you walk away with- Robert's collapse is spoken before it is shown.
- The clerk's courtesy is a tool for getting heard.
- Talk of Hammond's hidden life quietly builds the case.
- The chapter ends on a door that the letter will open.
People also search
Questions, then the linesWhy does Robert want to move into town?
He is lonely and exhausted while Leslie is in prison. Staying near her in the city, with Joyce and Dorothy, keeps him from being alone on the plantation.
Why is Leslie in prison before her trial?
She admitted to killing Hammond, so in a civilized community a trial is unavoidable. Until it ends, she is held in jail rather than released.
What does Joyce think of the trial?
He treats it as routine. He tells Robert to stop worrying, that the trial is 'your lawyer's job,' and plans to prove Hammond was married to the Eurasian woman.
Why does Ong wait for Robert to leave?
The news is 'very delicate and confidential.' Ong wants to tell the lawyer alone, showing he understands the matter should not reach the husband yet.
What does Robert think about Hammond?
He compares Hammond to a mad dog and says Leslie shot him justly, showing he fully believes her account and feels only contempt for the victim.