Part 3: Chapter 10 Summary

Homais' letter to Monsieur Rouault had not reached him for three days, and he headed to Yonville at a dead heat. Charles' friends gloss over the events surrounding Emma's death in an attempt to spare her father.

At the funeral, Charles watches and cries. When Emma is lowered into the ground, he tries to throw himself in with her. Charles' mother imagines them living the rest of their days together, and she is so relieved to finally have her son's affection back.

Part 3: Chapter 10 Analysis

This chapter shows the effect that Emma's death had on several people, the most profound being Charles. It also shows Charles coming full circle with his return to his mother. This return to his mother is mirrored in the cycle of wealth that Charles experiences. Everything in the novel is cyclical with the birth/death cycle...