named after its heroine, but it can fairly be seen as the story of Charlotte's seducer, Montraville; the plot treats of a man's youthful transgressions. Consider the moment when Montraville sees Charlotte for the first time, coming out of her school for young ladies with her duenna, the morally dubious Frenchwoman Mlle. La Rue, "He saw the gate which led to the pleasure grounds open, and two women come out, who walked arm-in-arm across the field." To Montraville, this is a highly pleasing moment aesthetically, which suggests the sexual joys to come to him soon. Charlotte's duenna sets her up for seduction by introducing her to Montraville. As the inmate of a girl's school, Charlotte, by even talking to Montraville, has already stepped over the line by this act and transgressed the rigid rules of this institution. Wild for freedom, rebellious, and totally without experience, she falls easily to him.
After her Fall, Charlotte exists in that area of the patriarchy, an unnamed......
Join Now or Login to view the rest of this paper.
Approximate Word Count: 724
Approximate Pages: 3 (260 words per double-spaced page) |