“My instincts are all against a woman being too frank and at her ease with me. It is no compliment to a man.”

Ned’s perspective on women is in keeping with the times in which Doyle wrote the novel. Being with an independent-minded woman would diminish his status, not complement it. He would rather be worshipped by a subservient woman than coexist in marriage as equals.

“She could but refuse me, and better to be a repulsed lover than an accepted brother.”

Ned explains his rationale for proposing to Gladys, even though he is not certain that she will accept. Gladys appreciates bold gestures, and he would rather fail while acting than remain passive. Ned’s attitude foreshadows how Gladys will choose someone else while Ned is away. He becomes neither a repulsed lover nor an accepted brother.

“If you want to write good copy, you must be where the things are.”

The academics doubt Challenger’s account partly because he was the only one there. Ned wants to have an adventure and an incredible story to tell. Rather than report on other people’s exploits, he wants to prove his own courage and gain professional accolades in the process. The reference to “the things” foreshadows how many indescribable things he will see in South America.