Analytical Studies by Honoré de Balzac
page 64 of 665 (09%)
page 64 of 665 (09%)
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But you must not give the name of virtuous woman to her who, in her struggle against an involuntary passion, has yielded nothing to her lover whom she idolizes. She does injury in the most cruel way in which it can possibly be done to a loving husband. For what remains to him of his wife? A thing without name, a living corpse. In the very midst of delight his wife remains like the guest who has been warned by Borgia that certain meats were poisoned; he felt no hunger, he ate sparingly or pretended to eat. He longed for the meat which he had abandoned for that provided by the terrible cardinal, and sighed for the moment when the feast was over and he could leave the table. What is the result which these reflections on the feminine virtue lead to? Here they are; but the last two maxims have been given us by an eclectic philosopher of the eighteenth century. XVIII. A virtuous woman has in her heart one fibre less or one fibre more than other women; she is either stupid or sublime. XIX. The virtue of women is perhaps a question of temperament. XX. The most virtuous women have in them something which is never chaste. |
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