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Calixta
Alcée Laballière is a young, rich, and handsome Creole planter. He loves Clarisse, his mother Madame Laballière’s goddaughter, and is attracted to Calixta, a young Acadian woman from town. Towards the beginning of the story, readers learn that Alcée lost his crops in a cyclone, just days after being rejected by Clarisse. The cyclone was more a blow to his pride than his finances, as Alcée is from an established family: “the Laballières were rich […] there were resources our East, and more again in the city.” Still, an upset Alcée, “in a mood for ugly things,” decides to go to the ball to relieve frustrations. Alcée’s good looks and social standing, as well as his recent misfortune, make him the center of attention at the ball among both men and women: the men “could not help but admire his ‘nerve’ after such a misfortune befalling him” and the young women walked past him, looking into his eyes with their own that were “big, dark, soft, as those of the young heifers standing out in the cool prairie grass.” At the ball, Alcée fixes his intentions on Calixta, and appears to be intent on seducing her and perhaps involving her in, what would be considered a scandalous love affair in the late-19th century. His plan is derailed after Clarisse shows up to the ball and asks him to come home. Through his eager assent to Clarisse’s request and abandonment of Calixta, readers can gather that while Alcée is attracted to Calixta, he is in love with Clarisse. At the end of the story, Clarisse reciprocates his affections and Alcée, overjoyed, forgets about the cyclone and Calixta: “The one, only, great reality in the world was Clarisse standing before him, telling him that she loved him.”
Alcée Laballière Quotes in At the ’Cadian Ball
The At the ’Cadian Ball quotes below are all either spoken by Alcée Laballière or refer to Alcée Laballière. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
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At the ’Cadian Ball
Quotes
But he must have been crazy the day he came in from the rice-field, and, toil-stained as he was, clasped Clarisse by the arms and panted a volley of hot, blistering love-words into her face. No man had ever spoken love to her like that.
“Monsieur!” she exclaimed, looking him full in the eyes, without a quiver. Alcée’s hands dropped and his glance wavered before the chill of her calm, clear eyes.
“Par exemple!” she muttered disdainfully, as she turned from him, deftly adjusting the careful toilet that he had so brutally disarranged.
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It was an awful thing, coming so swiftly, without a moment’s warning in which to light a holy candle or set a piece of blessed palm burning.
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“The ’Cadian ball,” she repeated contemptuously. “Humph! Par exemple! Nice conduc’ for a Laballière. An’ he needs a saddle-bag, fill’ with clothes, to go to the ’Cadian ball!”
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Calixta’s senses were reeling; and they well-nigh left her when she felt Alcée’s lips brush her ear like the touch of a rose.
Was it last week the cyclone had well- nigh ruined him? The cyclone seemed a huge joke, now. It was he, then, who, an hour ago was kissing little Calixta’s ear and whispering nonsense into it. Calixta was like a myth, now. The one, only, great reality in the world was Clarisse standing before him, telling him that she loved him.
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Alcée Laballière Quotes in At the ’Cadian Ball
The At the ’Cadian Ball quotes below are all either spoken by Alcée Laballière or refer to Alcée Laballière. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
At the ’Cadian Ball
Quotes
But he must have been crazy the day he came in from the rice-field, and, toil-stained as he was, clasped Clarisse by the arms and panted a volley of hot, blistering love-words into her face. No man had ever spoken love to her like that.
“Monsieur!” she exclaimed, looking him full in the eyes, without a quiver. Alcée’s hands dropped and his glance wavered before the chill of her calm, clear eyes.
“Par exemple!” she muttered disdainfully, as she turned from him, deftly adjusting the careful toilet that he had so brutally disarranged.
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It was an awful thing, coming so swiftly, without a moment’s warning in which to light a holy candle or set a piece of blessed palm burning.
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“The ’Cadian ball,” she repeated contemptuously. “Humph! Par exemple! Nice conduc’ for a Laballière. An’ he needs a saddle-bag, fill’ with clothes, to go to the ’Cadian ball!”
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Calixta’s senses were reeling; and they well-nigh left her when she felt Alcée’s lips brush her ear like the touch of a rose.
Was it last week the cyclone had well- nigh ruined him? The cyclone seemed a huge joke, now. It was he, then, who, an hour ago was kissing little Calixta’s ear and whispering nonsense into it. Calixta was like a myth, now. The one, only, great reality in the world was Clarisse standing before him, telling him that she loved him.
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