Book Five
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Chapter One: The History of a Progress in Black Glass Trinkets
A little context for 1818:
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Louis XVIII is still the reigning monarch;
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That's about all I can find
Chapter Two: Madeleine
Reminder that the Legion of Honor is the greatest honor awarded by the King.
Notable quotes:
"'The two prime functionaries of the state are the nurse and the schoolmaster.'"
"'Society' claimed him for its own."
"When they saw him making money, they said, "He is a man of business." When they saw him scattering his money about, they said, "He is an ambitious man." When he was seen to decline honors, they said, "He is an adventurer." When they saw him repulse society, they said, "He is a brute."
"'Remember this, my friends: there are no such things as bad plants or bad men. There are only bad cultivators.'"
Definitions that elude me:
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Probity: the quality of having strong moral principles; honesty and decency
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Chevalier: a knight; chivalrous man
Chapter Three: Sums deposited with Laffitte
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Nothing much to say here...
Chapter Four: M. Madeleine in Mourning
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Notable quote:
"…to be able to verify the fidelity of one being amid the eclipse of the world…"
Chapter Five: Vague flashes on the Horizon
In Greek mythology, the River Styx is the frontier to the underworld.
Brutus was a Roman statesman that led the conspiracy to assassinate Caesar…and later killed himself.
Vidocq was a criminal that rose to prominence for founding the first National Police (sûreté nationale), as well as head of the first known private detective agency. Victor Hugo modeled both Jean Valjean and Javert after him.
Joseph de Maistre was a Savoyard and pro-Bourbon philosopher, writer, diplomat, and lawyer.
Notable quotes:
"Therein lay his connection with humanity."
Definitions that elude me:
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Calumny: the making of false and defamatory statements about someone in order to damage their reputation; slander
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Imperturbable: unable to be upset or excited; calm
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Belie: 1) (of an appearance) fail to give a true notion or impression of (something); disguise or contradict or 2) fail to fulfill or justify (a claim or expectation); betray
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Imperious: assuming power or authority without justification; arrogant and domineering
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Intractable: hard to control or deal with
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Baseness: lack of moral principles; bad character
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Latent: (of a quality or state) existing but not yet developed or manifest; hidden or concealed
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Gimlet: a small T-shpaed tool with a screw-tip for boring holes
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Implacable: unable to be placated; relentless, unstoppable
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Cosmogony: the branch of science that deals with the origin of the universe, especially the solar system
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Ambuscade: am ambush
Chapter Six: Father Fauchelevent
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Nothing much to say here...
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Chapter Seven: Fauchelevent becomes a Gardener in Paris
This is important to remember :)
Definitions that elude me:
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Extreme poverty; destitution
Chapter Eight: Madame Victurnien expends Thirty Francs on Morality
The Bernadines are a branch of Catholicism (the Order of Cistercians, to be exact). They live in simplicity, in relative silence and solitude, but practice hospitality at all times, to anyone.
Reminder that the Jacobins were the left-wing radical club established in Paris in 1789, at the very beginning of the French Revolution.
Notable quotes:
"The gossip who did this thing was a gorgon named Madame Victurnien, the guardian and door-keeper of every one's virtue."
"…re-enforced the mask of ugliness with the mask of age." I don't understand how he is this clever and funny!!!
Definitions that elude me:
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Improvident: not having or showing foresight; spendthrift or thoughtless
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Suborn: bribe or otherwise induce someone to commit an unlawful act such as perjury
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Captious: (of a person) tending to find fault or raise petty objections
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Cassock: a full-length garmet of a single color worn by certain Christian clergy, members of church choirs, acolytes, and other having some particular office or role in a church
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Ostentation: pretentious and vulgar display, especially of wealth and luxury, intended to impress or attract notice
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Chapter Nine: Madame Victurnien's Success
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Nothing much to say here...
Chapter Ten: Result of the Success
Military fever is a diseased that took epidemic in France in 1821--it had a high mortality rate.
Definitions that elude me:
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Harangue: a lengthy and aggressive speech
Chapter Eleven: Christus nos Liberavit
Notable quotes:
"Misery offers; society accepts."
Definitions that elude me:
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Dolorous: feeling or expressing great sorrow or distress
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Mire: a situation or state of difficulty, distress, or embarrassment from which it is hard to extricate oneself
Chapter Twelve: M. Bamatabois's Inactivity
A dandy is a man unduly devoted to style, neatness, and fashion in dress and appearance.
A knave is a dishonest or unscrupulous man.
Morillo was a Spanish general that fought against Simon Bolivar's revolutionary armies.
We have moved on to the year 1823.
Chapter Thirteen: The Solution of Some Questions connected with the Municipal Police
Notable quotes:
"Supreme misery an occasion for obscenity."
"Curiosity is a sort of gluttony. To see is to devour."
Definitions that elude me:
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Paroxysm: a sudden attack or violent expression of a particular emotion or activity
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Redoubtable: (of a person) formidable, especially as an opponent
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Prodigious: unnatural or abnormal
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Esplanade: a long, open, level area, typically beside the sea, along which people may walk for pleasure
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