Nineteenth-century novelists used physical descriptions in their stories to impose thematic integrity on their characters. Flaubert, it could be argued, also followed the traditions of realism and moderated Frederick's inclinations toward romanticism with an ironic and often pessimistic tone. Many characters in A Sentimental Education, in fact, are readable through Flaubert's physical portraits. Their intentions are clear, their roles in the novel revealed, their symbolic meaning exposed to scrutiny. But these are minor characters, those for whom a simple external detail can elucidate the whole person's purpose in the novel. The main characters shouldn't be so lucky. After all, Flaubert offers in his novel a “moral – sentimental – would it be more accurate – history of the men of [his] generation”. And the objective reason favored by realism would be put aside in the face of the inconsistency and irrationality of feelings and sentiments. Throughout the novel, Flaubert provides an abundance of detail about the outward appearance – clothing and ornaments – particularly of Madame Arnoux. Objects can convey possession or desire, and Frédéric, unable or wanting to possess Madame Arnoux and truly know her, transfixes his desire and obsession onto his objects. Clothes, as they exist in the real world, are not even superficial and, in this case, instead of characterizing or reflecting its owner, they constitute an obstacle to knowing her true character. The narrative reflects Frédéric's desire by placing too much emphasis on Madame Arnoux's clothing and ornaments, thereby undermining his sense of traditional realism. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get an original essay For the most part, Madame Arnoux appears in the novel in one of two different, but not entirely distinct, modes of dress. One pale, the other dark, her dress gives two images of her person: one radiant, maternal, angelic; the other modest, secret, domestic. As both are equally inaccessible to Frédéric, the objects that define her (apparently, externally) are the same ones that Frédéric fetishizes. From his first meeting with Madame Arnoux, the reader perceives Frédéric's point of view, his romantic idealization of the heroine dressed in light colors: “She wore a wide-brimmed hat whose pink ribbons fluttered behind her in the wind. Parted in the middle, her black hair curved around the tips of her arched eyebrows and fell low as it lovingly framed her oval face. The voluminous folds of her pale polka dot chiffon dress flared all around her. She was working on a piece of embroidery, her chin, her whole body stood out against the airy blue background. Similarly, during a chance encounter later in the novel, Flaubert again evokes the imagery of light: “She was bathed in sunlight; and her oval face, her arched eyebrows, her black lace stole hanging on her shoulders, her dove-gray cliché-silk dress, the bouquet of violets in the corner of her poke-bonnet, everything about her seemed extraordinary and magnificent. "Frédéric sees Madame Arnoux as a radiant and supernatural apparition, a symbol of perfection, beauty and pure love. From the moment he sees her for the first time, his poetic aspirations have found a purpose, for later, when a return in a carriage, he devotes his life to her: "She looked exactly like the women in romantic novels... he abandoned himself to his dreams of never ending happiness." He describes his hair as black and attributes his darker skin toexotic lineage, “from Andalusia or perhaps the West Indies”. Frédéric's romanticized vision of Madame Arnoux contrasts sharply with Deslauriers' description when first sighted: “of average height, brown hair. ..not bad, nothing special." Frédéric voluntarily and irrationally transmits to her all kinds of virtues based on her outward appearance. He is able to elevate her to a level of imaginary sublimity because he cannot or perhaps does not want to subject her to a more realistic or non-superficial examination. Thus, Frédéric's idea of ​​her is inextricably linked to her external attributes and effects - her eyes, her hair, her clothes. Madame Arnoux's personal but mundane feelings are closely linked to Frédéric's impression of her Looking back on his first interaction with Madame Arnoux during the boat ride to Nogent, he notices that her "long purple-striped shawl was hanging down. on the brass handrail behind her back", and immediately wonders about the object, "how often, on humid evenings during long sea voyages, she had to wrap it around her, cover her feet, and even sleep there! » Later still, Frederick imagines her on exotic journeys, and his fantasies are always accompanied by a mental image of her dress or her ornaments: "...his mind returned to embrace her even in centuries past, he replaced the characters in the photo of Elle with a hennin on her head, she would be kneeling in prayer behind a leaded window in her castle in Flanders or Castilles, she would be seated with a starched ruff and a bodice made of baleen; whale with immense puffs; Then she descended some splendid porphyry staircase, surrounded by senators, under a canopy of ostrich feathers, in a brocade dress. Other times, he dreamed of her in yellow pants... "Frédéric. cannot separate himself from the idea of. Madame Arnoux according to her physical description. The details of his outward appearance are very real, but his true identity remains an abstraction. Thus her possessions, both fantastic and real, do not contribute to forming a realistic portrait of Madame Arnoux; their detailed descriptions are only manifestations of Frederick's obsession with his ideal. Perhaps the most telling passage suggests the inseparability of the ideal of her from her clothes: "One thing that surprised him was that he did not feel jealous of Arnoux and that her innate modesty seemed so strong, relegating her sex to a secret and obscure background, that he could never imagine her undressed. » Later, at the start of their romantic encounters, he tells Madame Arnoux of the permanence of his previous visions of her, in effect revealing his preoccupation with imaginary ideals: “He told her about his dreary school years and his dreams poetic, filled with the radiant vision of a woman's face that he had recognized as soon as he saw her. They usually only talked years since they saw each other regularly. would remind him of unimportant details, the color of her dress on certain occasions... "This preoccupation with physical details is also present when Madame Arnoux, aware and perhaps even enjoying Frédéric's obsession" offers him a pair of her gloves and, the week later, his handkerchief. This is perhaps the manifestation of Frédéric's idealized love: the possession of his personal objects replaces his possession. As Frédéric's desire for Madame Arnoux replaces his personal effects, these objects become humanized: “[Frédéric] loved everything. linked to Madame Arnoux - her furniture, her servants, her house, her street... for him her comb, her gloves, her rings were something completely special, as remarkable as any work of art, possessing a personality that..