In Charlotte Brontë’s Villette (1853), the Bildungsroman of Lucy Snowe is woven into her experience of the material culture in Villette where she is frequently rendered impotent by things. In the chapter ‘Auld Lang Syne’, Lucy’s confusion over things reaches a climax with the presence of ‘Bretton things’. These objects from the Bretton house in England first appear at the opening and then turn up again at La Terrasse in Labassecour. Although such objects initially shatter Lucy’s consciousness, they play an important role in her journey towards self-establishment. Contrary to scholarly perspectives that suggest Lucy’s selfhood is fragmented and lost amid the reappeared Bretton things, this paper argues that these objects enable Lucy to confront her suppressed passions and desires. Through her exploration, Lucy gradually moves beyond her dependence on the Bretton things and people and succeeds in adjusting the understatedness of British materiality with the materiality of Villette. This paper aims to reveal how Lucy’s relationship with the materiality of objects empowers her to face life’s adversities. As Lucy narrates her story, she demonstrates a profound understanding of how to live among the shadows of death, with objects becoming the tangible threads that connect the past, present and future.