Anelli 1 Bronte Anelli Dr.

Sophie De Schaepdrijver History 083T: Societies and Their Critics 15 December 2011 The Tree of Society Imagine a squirrel climbing up a tree. As this animal tries to ascend the massive trunk it looses its footing and falls unable to save itself. The tree represents the ladder of society while the squirrel represents the different characters in Colonel Chabert, Madame Bovary, Villette, New Grub Street, Sister Carrie, and House of Mirth and their effort to change social statues. The main characters in these books either experience a rise in class or a drop from their social status because of their effort to place higher than before much like the squirrel and the tree. All of the books that were discussed contained a main character that had experienced a fall or rise in the society, but a rare few experienced both. In Colonel Chabert, the Colonel himself experiences both an increase and decrease of his stature throughout his life. While his wife, the Countess Ferraud, only rose in society through marriage to both a count and the Colonel. Emma Bovary, in Madame Bovary, reduced her status in society as she was trying to elevate it. Lucy Snowe, in Villette, rose in society by not wanting to be anything but herself. Finally, Reardon and Amy, his wife, in New Grub Street wanted to rise in society but only plummeted to poverty much like the squirrel. In Sister Carrie, Carrie successfully rises from her small town girl to an actress. Her lover, Hurstword, started at the top and declined throughout the book because of his choices.

Anelli 2 Finally, Lilly Bart in The House of Mirth fell from the grace of society for a multitude of reasons from her own choices that lead to other peoples distrust of her. Colonel Chabert was a poor man of lowly birth and, under Napoleon Bonapartes rule, became a highly respected officer in his army. During his time in the military, the colonel met and married his wife the Countess Ferraud and lived a happy life. As a Colonel, Chabert obtained many types of finery throughout his carrier as an officer. This is the first rise in society that the Colonel experiences. Suddenly, his life status falls. Chabert fought at Eylau against the Russians and was pronounced dead to his family and colleagues. Years later after being taken care of in a German hospital, Chabert reappears in French society but not as a hero of the army but as poor man. The old Colonel fell from societies grace and returned back to obtain what was rightfully his; his wife and money. In the beginning of the story, Chabert relays his tale of woe to Mousier Derville. The Colonel relates what he had owned before his furnishings were all sold. To the colonels surprise his wife sold everything at a lower rate to buy it all back. Your wife had no scruples about cheating the poor. She no doubt refrained from including cash at hand and jewelry, or most of your silver in the inventory, and had the furnishings estimated at two thirds their actual price that way she could pay lower inheritance taxes. She sold everything and then bought it back (Colonel Chabert pg 48-49) His wife gave everything a lower value so she could buy it back as a Countess. Chaberts ex-wife cheated not only the government but also her husband out of the goods that were rightfully his. Then, when Chabert asked about his money the government gives as income,

Anelli 3 Derville says that, after everything was appraised and sold, the Colonel is now worth 300,000 francs instead of the 30,000 Chabert wanted. After some debacle between the Countess and the Colonel, the Colonel decides not to pursue his money or wife any further because of his complete disgust for his wife. I do not curse you ; I despise you. I thank fate for severing our tiesI want nothing from you I will never lay claim to the name I may have made illustrious (pg 89-90). The Colonel chose to no longer pursue his prior status taking comfort in the idea that he is just a poor man who was cheated by his wife. The Cornels rise and fall from society was quite drastic. He went from being a nobody to a Colonel in Napoleon Bonapartes army to being just another number at a poor mans house near the end of his life. The Countess however experienced a different society change. Countess Ferraud is a woman who only experiences a rise through society. Before she married the Colonel, she was only an escort in the red light district. Then when she married the officer, she suddenly became a woman who holds favor with the emperor because of her husbands loyalty and success on the battle field. When the Colonel dies, his estate was divided up between the state, the lawyers, and herself. She cheated the system and lowered the value on most if not all of the expensive items in the household. By doing this, the Countess paid a lower property tax and when everything was sold she bought it all back with the money that was given to her. By owning her own furnishings and having an income provided by the regime, Countess Ferruad rose in society through her own means. By marrying a Count, she only climbed up the ladder more because he offered her a house of prestige and she offered him the wealth they both needed to stay in the upper class. When her legitimate husband came back to claim her, the Countess did everything in her power and knowledge to stop any possible declining of her own status in

Anelli 4 society by manipulating Chabert to sign a contract. She was much like the squirrel climbing up societies latter through tricks and deceit. Countess Ferruad and Colonel Chabert werent the only figures however to experience a different status in society throughout the book. In George Gissings New Grub Street, Reardon and Amy experience some changes in society. Amy and Reardon end up moving out of each other homes because Amy can not deal with the drop of standards she had to experience. As a result, Amy moved in with her mother. When Amy and Reardon got married, they were living a decent middle class life. They followed all the rules that were presented to them to stay within that society. As time went on, Reardon suffered from writers block and because he wasnt getting the money needed to live from his manuscript, he took up a job with his old boss as a clerk lowering his position in society. By breaking a rule of society, Reardon slowly becomes a member of a lower class. When he meets Amy again, after Amy inherits the ten thousand pounds, he no longer resembles the model of a perfect society member. His cloths are tattered and reek because they havent been washed and they are too outworn. And because Reardon has a job, he now earns a wage which, in the 19th Century, was frowned upon because he no longer had the ties that would have been highly looked upon in society. Reardon plummeted much like the squirrel from the high tree tops of society. However, his fall from the upper class was nothing compared to another fall created by Gustave Flaubert. Madame Bovary by Gustave Flaubert had one of the biggest falls from society that actually resulted in her own death. In the beginning of the novel, Emma Bovary is a farmers daughter who marries a doctor named Charles. She gives her own testimony on

Anelli 5 how she doesnt really want to marry him for love but she hopes that one day the love will click and they will be as happy as all the couples in the books she read. Throughout the book, Emma realizes that this is not the reality she wanted and she wants more. She buys any expensive cloth, servants, or trinkets for herself that makes her look like she is from the upper class. Her want to belong in the wealthiest of classes stemmed from her night at the Chteau observing all the gaieties and furnishings that they had and wanted. Most importantly Madame Bovary wanted to easiness and frivolousness that the rich seemed to have. After this night, Madame Bovary started acting above her rank in society. She wanted to climb the tree of society and the only way she knew how was to have similar items and act similarly to them. Emma, after the dinner at the Chteau, starts spending. She first buys a servant to which she trains as a lady in waiting for herself which is unusual for the wife of a mediocre doctor. Emma then buys finer cloth for clothes and presents for her lovers. One evening when he returned home, Leon found in his room a velvet and wool coverlet, with foliage designs on a pale ground. (Madame Bovary pg 118) A trinket, with such a high level of craftsmanship, shows that Emma was spending more money then a poor middle class doctor had. Later in the novel, Emma starts acting like she is almost nobility in the farmers fair. Throughout Chapter 8 in part two, Emma and her latest lover Rodolphe walk around the fair behaving as if they are both from a higher class then any of the people there. Neither Madame Bovary nor Rodolphe made any reply, though at their slightest movement he edge up to them saying, Beg your pardon? and touching his hat. (Madame Bovary pg 160) The person who approaches the party is named Homais and is considered

Anelli 6 to be of the same class as the doctors wife. It is perfectly acceptable for the wife of a doctor and the pharmacist to talk to each other in society. However, when Homais approached the couple to pay his respects, they both shunned him and refused to answer. Emma, by doing this, acted like she didnt want anything to do with them because he was not from the social class that she wanted. Therefore she was trying to further her class in society by acting the part. However, she couldnt keep up the pretences long. Emma commits suicide after learning of her un-payable debt she had from all of her items. Madame Bovary tried to excel herself into a higher class by spending and acting with a snobbish decorum. As she decreases her stance, prior members of her circle of society like Homais rise and even start to shun her in ways like not speaking to the family or allowing his children to play with Berthe, the daughter. Emma kept declining in society by becoming so much in debt she didnt know what to do but take her own life. Not all 19th century novels, however, end with people falling from their current status. Lucy Snowe, in Villette by Charlotte Bronte, is the rarity that moves up in society but in a very subtle way. Unlike Emma who tries to surpass her position or even Colonel Chabert who tries to retain the society he was used too, Lucy Snowe doesnt try to surpass her station in society by buying fineries and acting outside of her station. She accepts her position and does what is asked of her. Her elevation through society has been because of people whom she has met throughout her life give her opportunities. Lucys rank was first elevated when she was asked to substitute for a class. The first time Lucy taught at the boarding school she immediately thought she had a talent for teaching and was thrown into the teaching position permanently. This was such

Anelli 7 a great opportunity because Lucy was a social nothing before she was a teacher. Lucy was just a young woman who just went with the flow and was content with what ever came her way. Because of this, like the squirrel, Lucy climbed the tree of society without portraying herself as something she isnt. Near the end of the book, a young man by the name of Mousier Paul actually bought a small school house for Lucy. This act was one of admiration but the actual act of owning a school house gave Lucy the rise in status that she never truly sought. In the town of Villette, France, it was looked upon highly if you owned a business that gave to the community. By giving Lucy her own boarding school, Paul helped Lucy gain the freedom she longed for but never asked. Then when Lucy took on the task of her own school, she was looked upon highly. But even in the beginning of the book Lucy Snowe changed her social class multiple times. She started as nobody in France and went through multiple depressions then suddenly was flung into a modest teaching position giving Lucy the chance to peruse something she excelled in. Then finally she was presented with her own school giving the final push to become someone of importance in society. Lucy wasnt the only main heroine to better her standing. Carrie, in Sister Carrie, started as a farm girl going to the city of Chicago who became a famed actress in the city of New York. Carrie was smarter than other characters both in her book and others that were read. In the beginning, Carrie acknowledges that by leaving she can either be successful or a failure. When a girl leaves her home at eighteen, she does one of two things. Either she falls into saving hands and becomes better, or she rapidly assumes the cosmopolitan standard of virtue and becomes worse. (pg 3-4). Carrie meets her saving hands in the form of a young man by the name of Drouet. Drouet, after

Anelli 8 Carrie leaves her sisters house to pursue a better work style than one in a factory, offers Carrie money to buy better and more suitable cloths. He also invites her to her house to stay there and live with him as a friend. During this time, Carrie is presented with a chance to act in a play for the Elks club. She takes the part with great enthusiasm and turns out to be better then expected. in a manner which was weak by comparison but which could not now spoil the tender atmosphere which Carrie had created and maintained. She would have done nearly as well with a block of wood. The accessories she needed were within her own imaginationsThey joined equally in the burst of applause which called Carrie out As he went, Carrie came out, and seeing an immense basket of flowers being hurried down the aisle toward her (pg 191 and 193). Everyone who came that night to the club marveled at Carries talent on the stage and at the end of the performance all wanted to praise her. They called her out for applause and they presented her flowers. This play gave a sense that Carrie would pursue this lifestyle later on, which she did in New York. In New York, Carrie becomes well known after she remembers her love for acting. After getting criticisms from her new acquaintance Ames about acting, Carrie first becomes known as a chorus girl and gets paid a decent amount of money then soon takes up a speaking part in a play. Lola, a new required friend of Carries, moves in with Carrie and gets a cheap apartment in a hotel because the hotel manager wants to use Carries famous status to gain higher revenue. Her original companion, Hurstword, no longer lives with Carrie and declines from his high society to is untimely fate.

Anelli 9 Unlike Carrie, Hurstwood declined in societies favor as a result of his actions throughout the book. When Carrie first meets Hustwood, he was a very well known man who had the ability to network properly with the higher class citizens in Chicago. However, once Hurstwood leaves Chicago to go to Montreal with Carrie to escape his marriage and marry Carrie, his life spirals down and soon hits rock bottom. Hurstwood is wanted for taking money from his employer. After paying back to money owed, Hurstwood takes Carrie to New York. Hurstwood thinks that he could use his same connections in this city as he had in Chicago, however, he no longer has any of them and no one in New York knows his name. He is forced to find a job but because he isnt used to work he just continues his laidback lifestyle. He gambles his money away and just keeps obtaining credit to pay for the apartment. Carrie soon suspects the lack of money and obtains a job where her social status shoots up. However, Hurstwood becomes so poor and indebt that he doesnt know how to handle his life anymore and soon takes his own life. He started off as wealthy well known man who made bad choices that untimely lead to his decline in societies favor. Lilly, in The House of Mirth, has the same fate as Hurstwood. However, for Lilly, her decline from societies grace was from her own making as well as other malicious women. Lilly starts off as a very delicate and beautiful woman who excites being in the circle of high society. She is presented with a marriage offer from Rosedale whom she declines because she thinks that she can do better then Rosedale, a successful society climber, as a husband. Unfortunately, Lilly is plagued with money troubles. She asks for loans from the Trenor family which starts her part in declining from society. Mr. Trenor obliges but he feels like Lilly owes his something in return for helping her.

Anelli 10 Lilly refuses any feelings back toward him and she becomes very worried about her financial obligations. At this time, she is invited on a yacht by Mrs. Bertha Dorset who uses Lilly as a smoke screen for her husband George as Bertha has her own affair with Nelson. Lilly knows why she is asked to go on the yacht and accepts because she wants to escape her financial troubles. In Europe, Lilly is kicked off the ship when George becomes suspicious of Mrs. Dorsets affair. Bertha publicly calls Lilly on her affair with her husband George. This gets Lilly off of the ship and ruining any future hope of rising into society. Lilly finds solace in high middle class society. Here she finds Mrs. Hatch a woman who brings Lilly out again and welcomes her in their circle. Lilly then goes back to Rosedale and accepts the proposal. Rosedale withdrawals his offer because he feels he can do better for a wife much like how Lilly thought she could do better in the beginning. Then Bertha extends her hand of friendship to this lower class using her high class to further destroy Lillys social standing. Lilly is forced to get a job and live in an apartment in a poor neighborhood. Even in this society, Lilly is shunned because the lower class citizens understand that she lost favor with the upper class. During this bleak moment, Lilly receives 10,000 pounds and pays of her loan debt to Mr. Trenor. A few days after, Lilly accidentally overdoses on sleeping pills ending her life. Lillys life went from being in high favor with many high class people to dying a poor maid in the slums of the city. The fall or rise through society is experienced by many 19th century characters. Much like the squirrel climbing, Lucy Snowe, Sister Carrie, Amy, in the end, and Countess Ferraud ascended society and hold favor through money or the freedom to work. However, more characters declined in favor. Colonel Chabert, Amy and Reardon, in the end, no

Anelli 11 longer had societies grace as they did before. Some characters even plummeted to their death like the squirrel. Lilly, Hurstwood, and Madame Bovary all took their life because they could no longer live with themselves. The fall from society, however, was all an outcome of the many choices that each character made.