Who Julien Sorel is
Julien Sorel grows up in Verrières, where his father and brothers despise his reading and treat him harshly. He learns to hide his feelings, and his brilliant memory gives him a possible escape from the sawmill.
As tutor to Monsieur de Rênal's sons, he enters a household that values both money and rank. He keeps discipline without beating the children, yet watches the adults for signs that they consider him inferior.
What Julien Sorel wants
Julien wants to rise beyond the position his birth seems to assign him. Napoleon offers him a model of glory, but Julien chooses the Church as the practical route upward. He studies Latin and theology less from faith than from a determination to get ahead.
Julien Sorel and the others in the story
Madame de Rênal's kindness reaches a young man accustomed to suspicion rather than tenderness. His pursuit of her begins as a matter of pride, but genuine affection gradually complicates his ambition.
Abbé Pirard protects Julien at the seminary and recommends him for work with the Marquis de la Mole. In Paris, Mathilde de la Mole is drawn to his independence, while their courtship becomes a contest of pride.
Questions
Who is Julien Sorel?
Julien Sorel is the central character of The Red and the Black, a gifted young man trying to overcome poverty and low rank.
Why does Julien Sorel enter the Church?
He sees the Church as a way to advance in society after Napoleon's fall closes the military path he admires.
Is Julien Sorel good or bad?
He is neither simply good nor simply bad. He deceives others to advance, but he also feels tenderness and suffers from the conflict between ambition and love.
