# Marriage and Its Discontents in A Daughter of Eve

> Theme guide for A Daughter of Eve by Honoré de Balzac.

The book contrasts two unhappy marriages: Marie-Angélique's suffocatingly perfect union with Félix de Vandenesse, which breeds boredom and a longing for passion, and Marie-Eugénie's loveless, tyrannical marriage to the wealthy banker du Tillet, which leaves her isolated and powerless.

## Where it surfaces

- [A Daughter of Eve](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_daughter_of_eve_se/chapters/a-daughter-of-eve): Marie's marriage to Félix is loving but stifling, highlighting the lack of passion and freedom for women in aristocratic unions.
- [Sisterly Confidences](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_daughter_of_eve_se/chapters/ii-sisterly-confidences): Both sisters are trapped in unhappy marriages: Marie in a 'tame, colorless life' and Eugénie under the tyranny of a cold, ambitious husband.
- [The Story of a Happy Woman](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_daughter_of_eve_se/chapters/iii-the-story-of-a-happy-woman): The chapter explores how even a carefully constructed happy marriage can become a source of restlessness as the wife's heart develops beyond her husband's plans.
- [IX: A Husband’s Triumph](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_daughter_of_eve_se/chapters/ix-a-husband-s-triumph): Félix's compassionate but strategic handling of Marie's affair highlights the complexities of marital fidelity and forgiveness in aristocratic society.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_daughter_of_eve_se/themes/marriage_and_its_discontents
- Themes index: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_daughter_of_eve_se/themes