Virtue In Nino Ricci's Lives Of The Saints

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People are often taught the morals of right and wrong and are expected to follow these virtues throughout their lives. In Lives of the Saints by Nino Ricci, the moral standards of a community are broken by Cristina, who is ostracized for her transgressions. In Valle del Sole, the Cristina exhibits her sinfulness through her violent tendencies. Similarly, she displays her pride by believing she is better than the other townspeople and not accepting her faults. Most importantly, she shows her weak character by unapologetically committing adultery. Ultimately, Cristina’s lack of proper ethics makes her sinful and a poor role model.
Those who are violent often possess immoral virtues. After a fight between Vittorio Innocente and Vincenzo Maiale, …show more content…

After staying home for the church mass for the festival, Cristina gets into an argument with her father. Cristina’s father shouts, “For my sake! Was it for my sake you behaved like a common whore? Do you think you’re better than those people?” (Ricci 149). Cristina’s adultery is already known by everyone in the village. Cristina has sex consensually with another man while her husband, Mario, is in Canada trying to make money for her and Vittorio. Cristina’s infidelity is a sin for her disloyalty to her husband and cares only for her needs. In addition, Cristina is not sorry for her cheating on Mario. She acts as if shes proud that she commits adultery. Cristina never states she is sorry for cheating on Mario and neither does she say she is in the wrong. When Cristina is visibly pregnant she does not apologize for her sins but shows it off with pride that she is unloyal. Notably, Cristina’s infidelity hurts her family’s lives. Her grandfather feels ashamed in front of the townspeople and loses their respect. For example, he no longer sings at church because he feels ashamed. Vittorio also faces the consequences of Cristina’s actions. Alfredo and his friends make fun of Vittorio and pull sick jokes on him because he is now an easy target. Cristina’s inability to show repentance for her adultery shows how weak and prideful she is. Cristina’s disloyalty is her biggest sin and what makes her an immoral

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