I've finished reading Theodor Fontane's Effi Briest, and the last section went much smoother than the last part. I just gave myself up to the story and didn't worry about trying to read for deeper meaning. Well, poor Effi certainly ranks up there with Emma Bovary and Anna Karenina--just as tragic an ending though perhaps not quite so dramatically presented. Lizzy has provided this week's questions.
The questions deal with the latter half of the plot and motivations and outcomes, so do beware if you've not read this and would like to.
Why do you think Effi kept Crampas's letters?
I've been wondering about this since they are so significant. Had she burned them or thrown them away, she would not have been cast out. She felt so guilty over the affair, though the guilt had more to do with not feeling as guilty over her actions as she should have than remorse for her behavior. She was looking for warmth and affection from someone, so perhaps she couldn't quite bear to part with them and how the affair made her feel?
Did Instetten have a choice?
I think he did, but at the time he probably didn't think so. He was such an upright and honorable man, yet he couldn't give Effi, his beloved wife, a break. He stood by the letter of the law--society's standard of how a woman should act, rather than letting it all go and fade away. He says if it were a matter of living in isolation he could let it go, but that they are all part of a larger whole and they must have regard for that larger whole. It would have been so easy for him, though--the affair occurred seven years prior to finding the letters, which is practically ancient history. In the end he seemed to regret it as it didn't seem to buy him anything and he felt only emptiness.
Are there any events in this final section that make you feel outraged? Is that how Fontane wants you to feel?
Yes, outrage over Instetten's choice to duel with Crampas, kill him and then turn his wife out and separate her from her child. If all that is not bad enough, Effi's parents also initially reject her as well. Could Society be so judgemental and unbending? Maybe so. I wasn't sure what Fontane's motivation was, but I think it was a way to pull the blinds up on Society.
Is there a villain in this piece?
My inclination is to say Instetten since I didn't like him and think his unwillingness to forgive caused so much more suffering, but now I am not so sure. He seemed to regret his actions in the end. Did he feel bad about his choices or about the success that came his way ended up being so empty. I'm not entirely sure.
Discuss Effi's reaction to her mother's accusation "You brought it on yourself".
Effi accepts her guilt. She blames Instetten to a degree but then decides that his actions were correct, that he was acting nobly and had no other choice. I consider that a pretty selfless act, as she wanted no bitterness and more wanted to console Instetten. I'm not so sure I could be as good as Effi, but I understand her wish to find inner peace.
Were you surprised by the ending?
No, I knew how similar the story was going to be to both Madame Bovary and Anna Karenina, so I was not expecting a happy ending.
Where would you place Effi in the pantheon of C19th fictional adulteresses?
She ranks right up there with Emma and Anna. I only wish her outcome would have been happier, though hers seemed more peaceful. She paid for her sins, but as discussed in the introduction to my edition, she also managed to hold on to her own inner integrity. So in that respect, I suppose her outcome was somewhat happier.
Do you think you would ever reread Effi Briest?
Definitely. After reading the novel and the very good introduction I see how tightly knitted the narrative is. Fontane is very subtle, he never hits the reader over the head but lets them decide for themselves and interpret events. I think there are all sorts of allusions I missed this first time around, so a second read would be much richer.
I really enjoyed this book. It was occasionally challenging, but so very worth reading. I do want to share one quote from the introduction, which I found very interesting and very true.
"The intimate sphere of a broken marriage is a barometer of the health of the state and society as a whole, but in Effi Fontane has equally created a warm, attractive personality who, whatever she represents, is above all a vital, convincing character whose life and world we come to know and understand, and in knowing and understanding them we may know ourselves and out own world better too."