Suggestions
Use up and down arrows to review and enter to select.Please wait while we process your payment
If you don't see it, please check your spam folder. Sometimes it can end up there.
If you don't see it, please check your spam folder. Sometimes it can end up there.
Please wait while we process your payment
By signing up you agree to our terms and privacy policy.
Don’t have an account? Subscribe now
Create Your Account
Sign up for your FREE 7-day trial
Already have an account? Log in
Your Email
Choose Your Plan
Save over 50% with a SparkNotes PLUS Annual Plan!
Purchasing SparkNotes PLUS for a group?
Get Annual Plans at a discount when you buy 2 or more!
Price
$24.99 $18.74 /subscription + tax
Subtotal $37.48 + tax
Save 25% on 2-49 accounts
Save 30% on 50-99 accounts
Want 100 or more? Contact us for a customized plan.
Your Plan
Payment Details
Payment Summary
SparkNotes Plus
You'll be billed after your free trial ends.
7-Day Free Trial
Not Applicable
Renews April 4, 2023 March 28, 2023
Discounts (applied to next billing)
DUE NOW
US $0.00
SNPLUSROCKS20 | 20% Discount
This is not a valid promo code.
Discount Code (one code per order)
SparkNotes Plus subscription is $4.99/month or $24.99/year as selected above. The free trial period is the first 7 days of your subscription. TO CANCEL YOUR SUBSCRIPTION AND AVOID BEING CHARGED, YOU MUST CANCEL BEFORE THE END OF THE FREE TRIAL PERIOD. You may cancel your subscription on your Subscription and Billing page or contact Customer Support at custserv@bn.com. Your subscription will continue automatically once the free trial period is over. Free trial is available to new customers only.
Choose Your Plan
For the next 7 days, you'll have access to awesome PLUS stuff like AP English test prep, No Fear Shakespeare translations and audio, a note-taking tool, personalized dashboard, & much more!
You’ve successfully purchased a group discount. Your group members can use the joining link below to redeem their group membership. You'll also receive an email with the link.
Members will be prompted to log in or create an account to redeem their group membership.
Thanks for creating a SparkNotes account! Continue to start your free trial.
Please wait while we process your payment
Your PLUS subscription has expired
Please wait while we process your payment
Please wait while we process your payment
Placid, virtuous, and all but mute, Madame Arnoux is less a woman than an object onto which Frédéric projects his desires. From the moment Frédéric sees her on the ship he is taking to Nogent, Madame Arnoux occupies his imagination as a specimen of superb beauty and female perfection. Often portrayed as sitting by a fire, sewing, and tending to her children, Madame Arnoux is a pure, ideal mother figure. This idealized image is so intense in Frédéric’s mind that he rarely speaks of lust when he speaks of his desire for her. He says at one point that he can’t think of her naked. Although she is virtuous, she does eventually reciprocate Frédéric’s feelings, even though they do no more than share a kiss. Frédéric engages liberally in sordid sexual affairs, particularly with the well-known Rosanette, yet none of these women satisfy him as he believes Madame Arnoux would. She is the sole object of his affection, his impossible dream.
Madame Arnoux’s role in Frédéric’s life is ultimately one of a mother rather than a mistress. He can never possess her sexually, but she is a constant force in his life, both in reality and in imagination. She is the one thing that stays the same for him through tumultuous love affairs, social humiliations, thwarted ambitions, and the general political unrest in Paris. On some level, Frédéric must realize this, since he never takes an aggressive step to conquer her physically. Madame Arnoux, however, makes her gravest error when she finally offers herself to him. Misunderstanding her role in his life, she tries to cross the line from mother figure and constant companion to lover, which marks the end of their relationship.
Please wait while we process your payment