Vargas Llosa's "The Bad Girl" - Week One

Mario Llosa's book, The Bad Girl, directly relates to what we have been discussing in class since it was inspired by the book we are reading, Madame Bovary.  Llosa takes the classic novel, Madame Bovary, and updates it to fit the new upcoming culture of the "swinging sixties" and the seventies.  One quote that stuck out to me in the very beginning of the book is when Llosa writes "Lily's face focused with the same fervor she brought to taking communion at twelve o' click Mass at the Parque Central church, her gaze fixed on the incandescent ball, waiting for the moment when the sea swallowed up the last beam to formulate the wish that the great star, Or God, would grant" (Llosa 7).  Lily directly relates to Emma.  Lily is a daydreamer who constantly fantasizes about this ideal image she has.  In class we have been discussing about Emma's behaviors as well.  Emma is cut from the same cloth as Lily.  Emma desires to have a better life so she consumes herself in these fantasies that nobody else understands.  I think that this quote is important to have at the very beginning of the novel because it instantly shows us who Lily is.  As the reader, we understand that Lily is someone who is searching for a greater life than what she has, and ultimately, we cannot be mad at her just like we cannot be mad at Emma.  Both of their biggest faults is that they are daydreamers.  Neither of them are content with the life they are living, so they do something about that.  This relates to the theme in class that women should not have to merely accept the boring life they are given.  Women should be allowed to embrace their fantasies.  This is why this quote is perfect to set the character up of Lily.  Another quote that I found interesting is when she leaves Ricardo.  Ricardo says that "She went to Switzerland to make a deposit and took everything, everything, and ruined me.  Chapeau, un coup de maitre! She knew I couldn't denounce her without accusing myself, without ruining my reputation and my position.  She knew if I denounced her I'd be the first one injured, for keeping secret accounts, for evading taxes.  Do you understand how well planned it was?  Can you believe she could be so cruel toward someone who gave her only love and devotion" (LLosa 63).  This takes place immediately after the "bad girl" leaves Ricardo and takes all of his money.  What sticks out to me most in this quote is the very last sentence when Llosa writes "Can you believe she could be so cruel toward someone who gave her only love and devotion?".  This goes back to the whole idea that she needs to do whatever she can to fulfill her fantasies.  Charles gave Emma a fairly comfortable life, but this still did not stop her from cheating on him.  At the end of the day,  both women were not satisfied in their boring relationships.  Thus, should they be punished for that?  No, I do not think so.  Both women do whatever they can to attain their ideal image of life, and there is nothing wrong with this.