The Function of Seduction in Maupassants novels Bel-Ami, Pierre et Essay

The Function of Seduction in Maupassants novels Bel-Ami, Pierre et Jean and Une vie - Essay Example First, the male characters in Bel-Ami and Pierre et Jean use seduction appealing to women in order to be accepted by them because perhaps they do not accept themselves the way they are. George Duroy (Bel-Ami) seduces all the women in the novel because he does not have what Roy (Engendrement du Romanesque) calls the â€Å"ideal self†. It is this lack of self-confidence, the weakness of his ego, that pushes him to seduce. Duroy comes from a modest family which he wants to change by becoming wealthy. Second, male protagonists often use seduction to change their identity, to take one some other identity. . In Bel-Ami, Duroy is frustrated of being part of the lower social rank, so he always tries to dissimulate his poverty from others. For example, when Duroy invites Mme de Marelle to his place, he changes the decor of his â€Å"shabby apartment† in order to hide his poverty. Also, in order to hide his peasant background, Duroy â€Å"forgets† to invite his parents to his wedding with Madeleine Forestier. Similarly in ‘Une vie’, Julien de Lamare disconcerts us by his successive metamorphoses all along the novel. The narrator portrays Julien as a handsome man, a seductor and as someone full of disguise and dissimulation. In fact, we realize that Julien is just a fortune hunter who knows how to play his physical appeal for seducing. Once he marries Jeanne, he drops his mask and reveals his true personality. Third, men use seduction to reach wealth and power. Indeed, in Une Vie, Julien de Lamare comes from a ruined family and that had a great impact on him. Julien will do anything to seduce and marry a rich commoner (Jeanne) in order to regain legitimacy and the glamour of his name (Ball 56). In Bel-Ami, on Madeleine Forestier’s recommendations, Duroy seduces Mme de Marelle and then Mme Walter. One provides him with housing and money while the other makes him chief editor. After Mme de Marelle remark about Mme

Global study-xxx Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Global study-xxx - Essay Example Overall, the issue is really complicated because on the one hand the Confederate flag is the part of the American history, and one the other hand it is not correct to have it on the Capitol due to the latest events. This debate being one of the pages of American history is greatly influenced by western imperial and colonial legacies. In fact, the legacy of western imperialism and colonialism is felt in many of today’s conflicts in regard to ethnic or religious questions, and the issue of the Confederate flag is one of them. The roots of this conflict go deep in history up to the times of slavery, and this is here that western imperialism and colonialism enter the problem. The matter is that the notion of racism, which gave birth to the current debate as well as numerous hate crimes and other issues similar to them, originates from western imperialism and colonialism, and mostly from westerner’s desire to expand the territories they had and to exploit free labor of slaves. In fact, the main reason why the notion of racism does take place in modern America is that it is imperialism and colonialism that set the boundaries between races and established the idea of differences between races and of submission of one race to another. Therefore, it is possible to say that western imperialism has given rise to animosity between people, which resulted in racism and, consequently, the issue under consideration as well. In addition to this, as it follows from Peter Frankopan’s article Go East, Young Knight, western imperialism is seen in the tendency of shifting focus when it comes to historical events. In particular, it appears that very often history is written in the way particular personalities want it to be. This is why the Confederate flag is the issue of discussion which needs clarification as there is no agreement on its meaning and role because of the differences in points of