Misrecognition And Recognition In Villette, By Charlotte Bronte

In the novel Villette, by Charlotte Bronte, Lucy Snow comes in contact with a multitude of characters who are not always new to her throughout her story in Villette. Often times they are character who the reader was already introduced to earlier in the novel and she simply does not always make that connection, for reasons that vary with each character. On a superficial level, misrecognition is used to build suspense in the novel, but on a deeper level misrecognition and recognition is a tool used to allow Lucy to open up to the readers and other characters more than she had in the past. Graham Bretton is first introduced to the reader in the very beginning of the novel as the son of Lucy Snow’s godmother, Mrs.Bretton, and as a student that a young

She is first introduced to us as young Polly who comes to stay with Mrs.Bretton while her father is ill and who is obsessed with the young Graham Bretton. During this time, she and Lucy are never close and only share one scene where they even interact in a close way that is not Lucy observing her. Lucy often finds her annoying and childish during this time. Later, she is reintroduced to the reader as Genevra’s noble cousin who was almost trampled at a theater production. Graham attends to her and they soon realize that Paulina is the young girl who once stayed with the Bretton’s, and Lucy to an extent, while her father was ill. Paulina and Lucy eventually become close once she re-enters the story and Lucy sees her as her only female friend and confidant. Paulina plays an important part in allowing Lucy to show the reader her emotions when it comes to her playfulness in teasing Paulina and allowing the reader to see a more relaxed version of Lucy. Paulina also plays an important role since she is the only female character in the story that Lucy even comes close to liking or even spending her free time