Chapter summary
Taken to a cell for the condemned, Julien Sorel rehearses what he would say to Madame de Rênal if he saw her before the end. He imagines the God of the Christians, who seems to him a vengeful despot, and the God of Fénelon, who may forgive him because he loved much. He laughs at his own quip about being guillotined in three days and recalls a line from Rotrou's play Venceslas, in which the king tells his son that the scaffold is ready too. In the morning, Mathilde de La Mole wakes him in a fury because Abbé de Frilair has betrayed her. Julien treats her character with the cool composure of a skilled pianist and refuses to appeal, because he now feels he has the courage to die without provoking laughter, and he does not know whether he will have it in two months. Mathilde, offended, hurls curses at him, and he listens, thinking of Madame de Rênal weeping as she reads the news of the execution. Mademoiselle de La Mole calls the lawyer Félix Vaneau, a former captain of the Army of Italy, who opposes the decision as a mere formality and reminds Julien that he has two full days to appeal. Julien shakes his hand and feels more friendship for the lawyer than for Mathilde.
Analysis
Julien refuses to appeal because he now feels he has the courage to die without provoking laughter, and he does not know whether he will keep it for two months. The decision is that of someone who fears his own future weakness more than death. He treats Mathilde's character with the composure of a pianist and listens to her while thinking of Madame de Rênal weeping as she reads the news of the execution.
Julien in prison, thinking of Madame de Rênal: After an action like that, how can I persuade her that it is her alone that I love? For, after all, did I want to kill her out of ambition or out of love for Mathilde?
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