Quest of the Spirit: From Suffering to Acceptance

133. Gothic Romance: Stendahl's The Charterhouse of Parma

                               Fabrizio's Quest for Meaning in Stendahl's  The Charterhouse of Parma

         "I am forced to live perpetually alone, with no relaxation of any kind except my work, and even my work fails me sometimes. In the midst of this stern and dreary manner of spending the long hours of each day, an idea had come into my head, which torments me incessantly, and against which I have struggled in vain for the last months. My son will never love me. He never hears my name." These disturbing words, taken from Stendahl's  The Charterhouse of Parma, echo protagonist Fabrizio del Dongo's despair at being condemned to an lifelong separation from Clelia Conti, the woman he loves, and their son Sandrino. These heartbreaking circumstances create a tragic backdrop for a sad tale of loss and betrayal. Set in northern Italy during the Napoleonic Wars, Stendahl's Charterhouse concerns a young nobleman's quest for meaning and the tragic circumstances that ironically forbid the culmination of his dreams. With no one to love or comfort him as a child, Fabrizio's only solace derives from his helpless mother who entertains him by reading accounts of the chivalrous adventures from his family's past. Rejected by a cruel and despotic father and brother, the young Fabrizio finds himself abandoned among the ruffians of his age whose habits further contribute to his reputation as a common delinquent. Falsely accused as an incorrigible, a traitor, and murderer, the hero realizes for the first time that money and physical charm can open more doors to freedom than truth or justice. Fabrizio's attempt at finding love also falls short of his ideal of courtly love and devotion. Instead, the main character ultimately faces false murder charges and fights heroically to exonerate himself. Throughout the novel Stendahl uses the concepts of fate and irony to enhance the tragic aspect of Fabrizio's continual struggle against his sinister accusers.

                Stendahl uses Fabrizio's innocence to enhance the tragic nature of the hero's coming-of age. Fabrizio is born into the world a victim of his family's cruelty as well as society's. His father and brother reject him because they feel he should emulate their brutality. The young man next turns to Napoleon and the heroes of chivalry for an honorable role model, but here , too, his ideals fail him, as the soldiers refuse to recognize or accept him. Fabrizio's dream of becoming a military leader fades as he ignorantly attempts to join Napoleon's army without properly enlisting, which causes him even more confusion as the soldiers suspect him of treachery and espionage. Assuming that war embodies the most glorious acts of valor, the protagonist soon realizes that here too his notions are flawed, as he witnesses the ruthless inhumanity of combat and the crude insensitivity of its participants. Following a brief imprisonment, the hero's fascination turns to carnal attraction which also leaves his heart empty after each encounter with the country wenches who return his advances. From these experiences, Fabrizio realizes that physical love also has little to contribute to his spiritual quest; and after attending seminary, he concludes that wit and few words can charm and deceive his enemies to his own advantage. Truth, he discovers, similarly, has little place in the hearts and minds of nobility.

                 Stendahl also uses political conflict and intrigue to enhance the tragic circumstances surrounding the hero's fate. Unfortunately, Fabrizio's father's sinister reputation plays a significant role in the hero's illegal imprisonment. The political rivals among the affluent of Parma use his incarceration for their own benefit. The young protagonist is imprisoned for taking the life of a commoner who would have otherwise would have killed him. Under normal circumstances, a nobleman like Fabrizio would never have even been charged for such a crime. The accused innocently awaits his own execution for charges he does not fully understand. Ironically, as the main character ponders his dilemma in the depths of the dungeon, he discovers what appears to him to be a regrettable truth: that wealth and reputation speak louder than love. His beloved has just married a wealthy courtier so that she can support her aged, impoverished father. Here again, the hero grows confused over what he has learned about truth, and how the true qualities of the heart collapse under the influence of materialism. The ideals instilled in him by his aunt and the Jesuits completely counter the values of the world. Despite his losses, Fabrizio clings to his faith, and as a result becomes priest. His choice to hold fast to his beliefs denotes the next phases of the hero's spiritual transformation. This heroic act, however, like his earlier appointment to the Church which ironically saved him from his accusers, separates him even more from the woman he loves. For now, he cannot marry the one person whom he realizes truly returns his love. Here Stendahl uses tragic irony and fate to destroy the heart and soul of the young hero. Finally, freed, yet rejected, Fabrizio meets his beloved clandestinely, and after a period of several months, she conceives and bears their child, an infant who, because of his mother's marriage, is also condemned never to see or hear the name of his father pronounced. Desperate, the hero devises a plan to kidnap his son so that he can prove to him the extent of his love for them. Fate, however, intervenes in this case as well, as the baby becomes ill during the kidnapping attempt, and dies without any knowledge of his real father. Ironically, Fabrizio's original plan was to tell his beloved's husband that the infant had died during one of the courtier's business trips. As the story closes, Fabrizio sadly returns to live near the aunt who first took an interest in him. The tragic events of his life, however, weigh so heavily upon him that he only lives a short time after his son's death. As fate would have it, Fabrizio's aunt, the Duchess, dies only a few months later. Consequently, Stendahl's tragedy of loss and betrayal ends with isolation and despair in the hearts of the main character, his beloved, and the aunt who sacrifices everything in a futile attempt to save him. This is Stendahl's heartbreaking message for the idealist living in a materialistic world. Sadly, with each stage of Fabrizio's transformation, the hero arrives at a greater understanding of the vast disparity between the appearance of emotional fulfillment and the reality of its elusiveness.