Calvary · Chapter
IX explained
The narrator, in deep despair and isolation at Ploch, awaits Juliette's arrival, oscillating between hope and self-disgust.
What happens
The narrator, in deep despair and isolation at Ploch, awaits Juliette's arrival, oscillating between hope and self-disgust. He reflects on his ruin and the suffering he caused to Old Marie, Felix, and Mother Le Gannec. Juliette eventually arrives, and they reunite with intense emotion. The chapter also includes his encounter with Demoiselle Landudec, a brief respite from his obsession, and his continued torment by visions of Juliette's infidelity.
Themes in this chapter
Self-Destruction and Obsession
The narrator's obsessive waiting for Juliette, his fantasies of her infidelity, and his self-loathing over his ruin and mistreatment of others.
Love and Corruption
Juliette's arrival brings both ecstasy and pain; the narrator's love is intertwined with jealousy, degradation, and a sense of being used.
Class and Materialism
The narrator contrasts Juliette's world of races and banquets with the desolate beach and peasant life, highlighting her mercenary nature.
Characters to notice
- Juliette Roux
The narrator anxiously awaits her arrival; she eventually comes to Ploch, and they embrace tearfully.
- Mother Le Gannec
The narrator's caretaker in Ploch, who tries to comfort him and shares stories of Lirat and her late husband.
- Lirat
Mentioned as a past guest of Mother Le Gannec, known for his liveliness and appetite.
- Jean-François-Marie-Mintié
Referred to as 'Old Marie'; the narrator feels guilt for expelling him and Felix.
- Felix
Mentioned alongside Old Marie as a victim of the narrator's actions.
- Demoiselle Landudec
A young woman the narrator sees on the jetty; her purity contrasts with Juliette, offering a brief distraction.
Key passages
“What more could I give her? Nothing. Why then should she come? If I had only told her that I had ten thousand francs left she would have come running.”
The narrator realizes he has nothing left to offer Juliette, and that only money would have motivated her to visit.
Reflects his despair and awareness of her materialism.
“I saw them bent over their staffs, horribly thin, coughing, harassed, spending nights in chance lodgings.”
He imagines Old Marie and Felix suffering as a result of his actions.
Shows his guilt and remorse.
“A young girl who has never felt the impure breath of man upon her, whose ears are chaste, whose lips have never known lewd kisses, what a joy it would be to love her, to love her as angels do!”
He fantasizes about an innocent girl, contrasting her purity with Juliette's corruption.
Highlights his longing for redemption and escape from obsession.