The Return Of Martin Guerre

880 Words4 Pages
The Return of Martin Guerre Protagonist Martin Guerre, living as a French peasant in the sixteenth century is the subject of a peculiar case regarding imposture in Natalie Zemon Davis’ The Return of Martin Guerre. Davis retells the facts and events of the case, while also clearly establishing the roles and relationships of men and women during that time. Bertrande de Rols, wife of the real Martin Guerre, is deserted by her husband and finds herself at a lower social standing in the village, one of the many consequences due to her husband’s abandonment. After eight years of Bertrande’s suffering, impostor Arnaud du Tilh enters her life, fulfilling all her wants and needs in a marriage. Though it seems as if Bertrande is well aware of Arnaud’s falsehood, she continues to defend Arnaud and treat the impostor as her husband, maybe even more so than Bertrande did the real Martin. Bertrande’s loyalty to the impersonator throughout the novel displays how Arnaud succeeded in meeting the standards of a husband, while the real Martin did not. The marriage of young Bertrande to Martin Guerre began at very tender ages, just as Martin and Bertrande were entering early adolescence. Soon after wedlock, the couple was pressured to consummate the marriage and have children. In the sixteenth century, procreation was seen as the main importance and product of marriage. Bertrande soon found that her new husband, Martin, was impotent. “It was humiliating, and the village surely let them know about it. A married couple who had not had a pregnancy after a certain period of time was a perfect target for a charivari (20).“ Not only did the wife of Martin feel shameful, but Bertande’s parents were pressing their daughter to separate from Martin as soon as possible. The unconsummated marriage was among the first ways in which Martin is portrayed as an unsuitable husband by sixteenth
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