Carnation Girl

Author: (French) Alexandre Dumas fils
Publisher:
Publishing Date: 2005-01-01
Features: This book tells the story of Marguerite, who was originally a poor country girl. After coming to Paris, she began a life of selling her charms. Due to her stunning beauty, Parisian aristocrats competed to pursue her, making her a red-hot "social star." She always carried a bouquet of tea flowers with her, earning the nickname "La Dame aux Camélias." Marguerite contracted tuberculosis and, while undergoing spring water treatment, met a noblewoman in the sanatorium who bore a striking resemblance to Marguerite in both appearance and physique, though her tuberculosis had advanced to its third stage and she died shortly thereafter. The noblewoman's father, the Duke of Morny, accidentally discovered that Marguerite bore a strong resemblance to his daughter and took her in as his adopted daughter. Marguerite revealed her origins, and the Duke promised to support her entirely if she could change her past life. However, Marguerite could not fully comply, so the Duke reduced his support by half. Marguerite struggled to make ends meet and had accumulated tens of thousands of francs in debt by now.
One evening, around 10 o'clock, Marguerite returned home to find a group of guests visiting. Her neighbor, Bourget, brought two young men, one of whom was the son of the tax collector, Monsieur Duval, named Amant Duval, who was deeply in love with La Dame aux Camélias. A year earlier, during Marguerite's illness, Amant visited her daily to inquire about her condition but refused to reveal his name. Bourget recounted Amant's ardent affection to Marguerite, who was deeply moved. During a dance with her friends, Marguerite's condition suddenly worsened. Amant, showing great concern, urged her not to harm herself so and confessed his love to her. He told La Dame aux Camélias that he still treasured a button she had lost six months earlier. Marguerite's already fragile heart was moved once again, and she gave Amant a tea flower as a token of her affection. Amant's sincere love rekindled Marguerite's hope for life, and she resolved to escape the tedious life in Paris and live in the countryside with Amant for a while. She planned to raise money alone and asked Amant to leave her for the night.
When Amant left, he happened to encounter Marguerite's former lover, and jealousy flared up in him. He wrote a harsh letter to Marguerite, saying he did not want to be laughed at and would leave Paris. However, he did not leave. Marguerite was his entire hope and life, and he knelt before her, begging for forgiveness. Marguerite confided in Amant, "You are the one I called in my chaotic solitude." Through effort, Marguerite and Amant rented a house outside Paris. When the Duke learned of this, he cut off Marguerite's financial support. Secretly, Marguerite pawned her jewelry and carriage to pay for living expenses, without Amant's knowledge. Upon learning this, Amant decided to transfer his inheritance from his mother to settle Marguerite's debts. The broker asked him to sign the documents, and he left Marguerite to go to Paris. The letter was actually written by Monsieur Duval, Amant's father, who wanted to trick Amant into leaving so he could find Marguerite. He told Marguerite that his daughter had fallen in love with a respectable young man, and the family, upon learning of Amant and Marguerite's relationship, threatened to call off the engagement if Amant did not break ties with Marguerite. Marguerite desperately pleaded with Monsieur Duval, but he refused to budge. For Amant and his family, she had no choice but to sacrifice and vow never to see Amant again.
Marguerite wrote Amant a letter of farewell filled with sorrow and then returned to Paris, resuming her former reckless life. She accepted the pursuit of the Baron de Varville, who helped her pay off all her debts and her jewelry and carriage. Amant, filled with pain, returned to his hometown with his father. Deeply missing Marguerite, he returned to Paris, determined to take revenge for her "betrayal." He found Marguerite and made her life miserable, calling her a heartless, ungrateful prostitute who sold love as a commodity. Faced with Amant's misunderstanding, Marguerite tearfully urged him to forget her and never see her again. Amant, however, demanded she leave Paris with him, escape to a place where no one knew them, and cherish their love together. Marguerite said she could not do that because she had already vowed never to see him again. Amant, mistakenly believing she had sworn eternal love with the Baron, angrily pushed her to the ground, threw a stack of money at her, and left. Marguerite cried out and collapsed. Overwhelmed by this shock, she fell ill and could not recover. The Baron and Amant fought a duel and were injured. Amant left the country.
As the New Year approached, Marguerite's condition worsened, her face pale, and no one visited her. She felt exceptionally lonely. Monsieur Duval wrote to her, thanking her for keeping her promise and informing Amant of the truth. Marguerite's only hope was to see Amant again. On her deathbed, creditors arrived with IOUs, demanding she repay her debts. An executioner arrived to enforce the judgment, seizing her entire property, to be auctioned off after her death. As she lay dying, she kept calling Amant's name, "Tears streamed silently from her eyes." She never saw the one she loved again. Only a kind neighbor, Millot, helped her with her funeral. When Amant returned to Paris, she gave him a diary of Marguerite's. From it, Amant learned of her noble soul. "Aside from your humiliation being proof of your love for me, I seem to think that the more you torment me, the more noble I will appear to you on the day you learn the truth." Overwhelmed with regret and sorrow, Amant had Marguerite reburied with great care and laid white tea flowers at her graveside.