The Nightingale

Vianne’s earliest memories are of war. She remembers watching her mother cry as her father left to fight. She also recalls being cold and hungry. More than anything, she remembers how much the war changed her father. After the war, her father began drinking more and ignoring his family; he became stoic and always walked with a limp. Now, Vianne rarely reaches out to her father, and they don’t have a real relationship. Vianne knows Isabelle still tries to make things work with their father, but she thinks it is a fool’s errand.

The night Antoine tells Vianne he is going off to war, they have sex. Afterward, Antoine tries to console Vianne; he knows she is afraid of war and assures her that France will be okay. The following day, Vianne and Sophie visit Rachel de Champlain, Vianne’s best friend. Vianne met Rachel in the aftermath of her mother’s death, and the women mean a great deal to each other. Vianne and Rachel speak privately about the war. Both are worried about how their husbands will fare. Like Antoine, Rachel does her best to cheer up Vianne.

The next day, Antoine and Vianne have a serious conversation about the coming weeks. Antoine suggests that Vianne take Sophie to Paris, where she could live with Julien Rossignol, her father. However, Vianne refuses—she wants to stay put. Antoine accepts Vianne’s decision and tells her that he’s emptied their bank account, so she’ll have plenty of money to use while he’s gone. This information makes Vianne nervous; she is not used to handling the family’s finances.

After this conversation, Vianne goes and gets Sophie. Sophie is sad that Antoine is leaving. She puts on a crown made of daises he created for her the day of the picnic and then dutifully follows her mother. Together, Vianne, Antoine, and Sophie leave their home. Outside, Vianne spots three little crosses on the perimeter of their property. These crosses represent the three miscarriages Vianne suffered before giving birth to Sophie. This topic regularly brings Vianne great sadness, but today she doesn’t want to think about it; it would be too much.

The Mauriacs get into their automobile and then drive to the train station at Tours. While there, Vianne does her best not to think about what happened the last time she witnessed soldiers returning from war. However, she cannot help herself; she thinks about all the men she saw with burns and with broken and missing limbs. After arriving at the station, the family hasn’t long to say their goodbyes. Antoine tells his wife and child he loves them and then quickly departs. Vianne is too choked up even to say goodbye.