Chapter 7, Cross Channel Summary

Geoffrey is on the ferry crossing the channel. He likes crossing during the off-season, the in-between times. Geoffrey thinks that these months are without certainty, not quite summer or winter. It's the third time he's made the trip this year. Geoffrey likes that it's different on the French side of the Channel than it is on the English side. The light is different. Geoffrey goes to France for these small differences.

Flaubert didn't believe in progress, instead he believed that democracy made people more stupid. Geoffrey agrees with Flaubert. Geoffrey has three stories to tell: one about Flaubert, one about his wife, Ellen, and one about himself. His own story is the simplest but also the hardest to start. His wife's story is more complicated but he wants us to be prepared when he tells that story so instead...