Character Relationship Map: A Desert Wooing

Characters

• Avice Bereton (played by Enid Bennett) — protagonist

  Avice is the daughter of a wealthy, decadent family and the wife of ranch owner Barton Masters. She initially believes she loves Dr. Van Fleet, but rejects him when he breaks into her room. After Mast...

• Barton Masters (played by Jack Holt) — supporting

  Masters is a wealthy westerner who marries Avice and hosts a party at his ranch after their wedding. He beats Van Fleet when the doctor breaks into Avice's room, then tries to break Avice's proud resi...

• Dr. Van Fleet (as Donald McDonald) (played by Donald MacDonald) — supporting

  Dr. Van Fleet is a society lounge lizard and a guest at Masters's ranch, where Avice still believes herself in love with him. He breaks into her room, is beaten by Masters, and leaves the ranch. Later...

Canonical Relationships

Family, romantic, and professional connections based on plot evidence.

• Avice Bereton → Dr. Van Fleet (as Donald McDonald) (Romantic Former Love Interest) — Unrequited romantic attachment that initially drives Avice's marriage but later turns into hostility.
• Avice Bereton → Barton Masters (Family Husband) — Married couple bound by social expectation, evolving from distant spouses to reconciled partners.

Story Dynamics

Alliances, conflicts, and narrative interactions that evolve throughout the story.

• Barton Masters → Dr. Van Fleet (as Donald McDonald) (Conflict Hostile Guest) — Host and unwanted guest whose relationship deteriorates into physical violence and exile.

Story Analysis

A marriage arranged under social pressure transforms through conflict, violence, and the discovery of genuine love.

Plot Progression

1. A Marriage Under Pressure — A wealthy family's daughter learns that her mother has placed her on the marriage market. She accepts marriage while still believing she loves another man.
2. Violence at the Ranch — The newly married couple receives guests at the ranch. A nighttime intrusion leads to rejection, a beating, and the doctor's expulsion.
3. Pride and Failed Persuasion — After the guests leave, the husband tries to overcome his wife's pride. His friend and her brother use a supposed rival woman, but the scheme fails.
4. The Threat of Separation — The wife declares her intention to return East and abandon the marriage. The rejected doctor turns his humiliation into a plan for revenge.
5. A Wound Reveals Love — The doctor shoots the husband, forcing the wife to confront her true feelings. She compels the doctor to treat the wound, and happiness follows recovery.