A Marriage Settlement · Character

Paul de Manerville

A handsome, well-drilled Count who spent six years and seven hundred thousand francs learning Paris, then came home to Bordeaux to marry well and be elected Deputy.

major

Also known as Paul, Comte de Manerville, Count Paul, Monsieur Paul, Le Comte Paul de Manerville

First appearance: A Marriage Settlement

As a major figure in A Marriage Settlement, Paul de Manerville is not background color—the story leans on what they do once the chapter opens.

Paul is the prospective groom, caught between the legal wrangling over his marriage settlement and his desire for domestic happiness.

In the storyA Marriage SettlementOpen this moment free

See Paul de Manerville in A Marriage Settlement Book page

Free preview opens at this moment — character cards, Character Web, and themes sit beside the text as you read.

Paul is the eligible heir of Lanstrac, a man whose elegance is real but second-rate: his servants are well drilled, his suppers succeed, and he has never once been the fashion. Having burned through his father's savings on embassies, racecourses, and a bachelor's den among the seven or eight finest in Paris, he returns to Guienne resolved on marriage as a form of wisdom. His friend de Marsay calls this the one step that will make him ridiculous; the novel's early arc is the slow, costly test of which man is right.

Continue beside the text

The fuller portrait of Paul de Manerville sits in Reading Lens — open the free preview to keep reading with notes on the page.

See Paul de Manerville in A Marriage Settlement

Character Web

15 connections

A slice of how Paul de Manerville sits in the book — open the reader for the full interactive map.

Relationship types

Psychological
Professional
Romantic
Friendship
Other

Character groups

Protagonist
Marriage Negotiation Factions

+10 more in the full Character Web

Open in reader

Relationships

Madame Evangelista
psychological · negative
Madame Evangelista manipulates Paul through financial and emotional control, treating him… How this plays out →
Mathias
professional · positive
Mademoiselle Natalie Evangelista
romantic · ambivalent
Henri de Marsay
friendship · ambivalent
Madame de Manerville
family · positive
Josette
professional · positive
Madame Evangelista
psychological · negative
Madame Evangelista manipulates Paul through financial and emotional control, treating him… How this plays out →
Madame Evangelista
psychological · negative
Madame Evangelista manipulates Paul through financial and emotional control, treating him… How this plays out →
Mathias
professional · positive
Mathias
professional · positive
Henri de Marsay
friendship · ambivalent
Mademoiselle Natalie Evangelista
romantic · ambivalent

Madame Evangelista
Madame Evangelista manipulates Paul through financial and emotional control, treating him as a pawn in her schemes.
Mathias
Mathias is Paul's loyal and devoted notary, managing his affairs with paternal concern.
Mademoiselle Natalie Evangelista
Natalie is Paul's young, beautiful fiancée, but her affection is shallow and driven by her mother's ambition.
Henri de Marsay
Henri is Paul's worldly, cynical friend who offers dubious advice and represents the fashionable Parisian set.
Madame de Manerville
Madame de Manerville is Paul's mother, who worries about his future but is largely absent from the main action.
Josette
Josette is Paul's maid or servant, attending to his household needs with quiet loyalty.
Madame Evangelista
Madame Evangelista manipulates Paul through financial and emotional control, treating him as a pawn in her schemes.
Madame Evangelista
Madame Evangelista manipulates Paul through financial and emotional control, treating him as a pawn in her schemes.
Mathias
Mathias is Paul's loyal and devoted notary, managing his affairs with paternal concern.
Mathias
Mathias is Paul's loyal and devoted notary, managing his affairs with paternal concern.
Henri de Marsay
Henri is Paul's worldly, cynical friend who offers dubious advice and represents the fashionable Parisian set.
Mademoiselle Natalie Evangelista
Natalie is Paul's young, beautiful fiancée, but her affection is shallow and driven by her mother's ambition.

Relationship notes

How these ties play out is in the reading companion — open the free preview.

See Paul de Manerville in A Marriage Settlement

In the story

Paul de Manerville appears across 1 companion beat. Open any chapter in the free preview to see the notes beside the text.

A Marriage Settlement

Chapter companion notes

Spoil-light check-ins for Paul de Manerville unlock in the free preview.

See Paul de Manerville in A Marriage Settlement