# The Last Day explained — Travel Essays

> Chapter companion for Travel Essays by Robert Louis Stevenson.

## What happens

The narrator awakens in St. Germain de Calberte, a quiet hamlet with a violent history during the Camisard wars. He reflects on the beauty of the chestnut groves, the local Catholic-Protestant tensions, and the story of Du Chayla. He dines with Catholics who condemn a man for changing his religion, and later ascends the hill of St. Pierre at night, recalling the Camisard leader Castanet and his wife Mariette. He shares a final meal with Modestine before descending to St. Jean du Gard.

## Themes in this chapter

### Nature and the Sublime

The narrator deeply enjoys the chestnut groves and the moonlit view from St. Pierre, feeling light and content in the natural landscape.

### Human Connection and Community

The narrator dines with Catholics who discuss religious conversion, and reflects on the bonds of friendship and the difficulty of changing one's creed.

### Mortality and the Passage of Time

The chapter reflects on the violent past of the region, the death of Du Chayla, and the quiet present, with the narrator's own journey nearing its end.

## Character check-ins

### Modestine

Shares a final meal with the narrator on the summit of St. Pierre, eating bread from his hand.

### Du Chayla

The Christian martyr whose body, pierced with fifty-two wounds, was interred in the church at St. Germain de Calberte.

### Castanet

Camisard leader and stronghold of Mount Aigoal; married Mariette during the war and exchanged prisoners for her.

### Mary

Mariette, the young wife of Castanet, called the Princess of the Cévennes; was taken hostage and later exchanged.

### Salomon Couderc

Leader of the legion of Salomon that overlooked St. Germain de Calberte from Cassagnas.

### The Camisards

The insurgents who engaged in the wars around St. Germain de Calberte; militiamen traded powder with them.

### Séguier

Spirit Séguier, whose rumored approach caused the assembly to flee during the curé's sermon.

## Key lines

> I have not often enjoyed a place more deeply. I moved in an atmosphere of pleasure, and felt light and quiet and content.

The narrator felt a profound sense of joy and peace in the chestnut groves, as if surrounded by a pleasant aura.

_Reflects the narrator's deep appreciation for the natural beauty of the location._

> It is a bad idea for a man to change, said one.

One of the Catholics at dinner stated that changing one's religion is a poor decision.

_Highlights the local sentiment against religious conversion._

> The poor brute would eat more heartily in this manner; for she had a sort of affection for me, which I was soon to betray.

Modestine ate more eagerly from the narrator's hand, showing a fondness that he would soon disappoint.

_Foreshadows the narrator's impending separation from Modestine._

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/travel_essays_se/chapters/the-last-day
- Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/travel_essays_se
- All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/travel_essays_se/chapters