Sir Percy Hits Back · Chapter
XVIII explained
Fleurette and Louise arrive in Orange, where Fleurette hopes to find Bibi and secure Amédé's release.
What happens
Fleurette and Louise arrive in Orange, where Fleurette hopes to find Bibi and secure Amédé's release. Lieutenant Godet, who recognizes Fleurette from a previous encounter, offers to guide them. He leads them to the Committee of Public Safety, where Fleurette discovers that Bibi is actually Citizen Chauvelin.
Themes in this chapter
Disguise and Deception
Fleurette's journey is built on deception (obtaining passes, hiding her true purpose), and the chapter culminates in the shocking revelation that Bibi is actually Citizen Chauvelin.
Innocence and Corruption
Fleurette's innocent trust in Bibi is shattered by the discovery of his true identity as a revolutionary official, contrasting her purity with the corrupt political world.
Love and Loyalty
Fleurette's love for Amédé drives her to undertake the dangerous journey, and her loyalty to Bibi is tested by the revelation.
Characters to notice
- Fleurette
Arrives in Orange determined to find Bibi and free Amédé; shows resourcefulness and determination throughout the journey.
- Old Louise
Travels with Fleurette, grumbling and fearful, but ultimately follows her lead.
- Lieutenant Godet
Recognizes Fleurette at the inn, offers to guide her, and leads her to the Committee of Public Safety where he reveals Bibi's true identity as Chauvelin.
- Bibi
Revealed to be Citizen Chauvelin; Fleurette finds him at the Committee of Public Safety and embraces him.
- Citizen Chauvelin
Identified as Bibi; Fleurette discovers his true identity when Godet announces her as his daughter.
Key passages
“She had never ceased to protest against the madness of this adventure, prophesying every kind of calamity for them both: but Fleurette with the quiet obstinacy of the habitually meek had persisted.”
Louise constantly warned Fleurette that their journey was reckless and would end in disaster, but Fleurette, though usually gentle, was stubbornly determined.
Highlights Fleurette's quiet resolve and Louise's fearful opposition.
“What she did not realize was that the miracle merely consisted in the fact that in these outlying corners of beautiful France, in Dauphiné and in Provence, there was still plenty of the good old kindly stock left, some of the chivalry, the warmth of heart, the bonhomie, which all the tyranny and the cruelty perpetrated in the great cities had not contrived to kill.”
Louise attributed their safe journey to a miracle, but the real reason was that people in the countryside still possessed kindness and generosity, untouched by the brutality of the cities.
Contrasts rural virtue with urban revolutionary tyranny.
“The daughter of Citizen Chauvelin? What did the man mean? Fleurette, puzzled and frowning, pulled him by the sleeve. She was the daughter of Citizen Armand: she’d never heard the name of Chauvelin before.”
When Godet announced Fleurette as Chauvelin's daughter, she was confused and protested, believing her father was Citizen Armand.
Marks the moment of Fleurette's shocking discovery about Bibi's true identity.