Chapter 2 Summary

The second chapter begins with a re-telling of Florent and Quenu's history. Florent, the older of the two boys, is the product of his mother's first marriage. Florent's father was a very tender-hearted man from Provençe in the south of France, on the Mediterranean coast. Florent's mother lavishes most of her attention on him. Quenu's father is their mother's second husband and when Quenu is still a very young child (around two or three years of age), his father dies of indigestion. Florent's mother does not invest in Quenu's education because she sees that the younger boy is somewhat slow, albeit even-tempered. Florent is in Paris studying law when their mother dies. Although not a rich woman, her ribbon business sells for a moderately good price and Florent assumes responsibility for raising Quenu all by himself.

The brothers move from Le Vigan...