frédéric moreau

The protagonist of the novel. Frédéric is passive and lacks ambition, relying on an inheritance for financial support and on his friends and acquaintances to help him enter bourgeois society and meet women. Realistic to the point of pessimism, he indulges his friend Deslauriers in discussing their grand plans for the future but privately doubts that any of their dreams will be realized. Motivated only by the thrill of the chase, he loses interest once he gains someone or something. His driving passion is his love for Madame Arnoux; however, when she finally returns his feelings, he casts her aside. He lacks self-awareness and consequently does not mature or develop throughout the course of the novel.