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Isabelle Rossignol
Gaëtan is a French resistance fighter as well as Isabelle’s lover. He is a strong and brave man who does everything he can to thwart the Nazis. At first, Gaëtan actively avoids a relationship with Isabelle; he loves her but knows that one of them could likely die in the war and doesn’t want to make life harder than it already is. However, eventually he gives in to his feelings, and he and Isabelle start a passionate relationship. Shortly after, their resistance efforts force them apart, and they do not see each other for a long time. After the war is over, Gaëtan manages to return to Carriveau to reunite with Isabelle one last time before her death.
Gaëtan Quotes in The Nightingale
The The Nightingale quotes below are all either spoken by Gaëtan or refer to Gaëtan. 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:
).
Chapter 1
Quotes
If I have learned anything in this long life of mine, it is this: In love we find out who we want to be; in war we find out who we are.
Related Characters:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 6
Quotes
“Something like that. But like I said, a nice girl like you wouldn’t know anything about survival.”
“You’d be surprised the things I know, Gaëtan, There is more than one kind of prison.
Chapter 28
Quotes
She was wiser than she’d been before. Now she knew how fragile life and love were. Maybe she would love him for only this day, or maybe for only the next week or maybe until she was an old, old woman. Maybe he would be the love of her life . . . or her love for the duration of this war . . . or maybe he would only be her first love. All she really knew was that in this terrible, frightening world, she had stumbled into something unexpected.
Chapter 38
Quotes
Don’t forget me, Isabelle thought. She wished she had the strength to say it out loud.
Get the entire The Nightingale LitChart as a printable PDF.
Gaëtan Quotes in The Nightingale
The The Nightingale quotes below are all either spoken by Gaëtan or refer to Gaëtan. 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:
).
Chapter 1
Quotes
If I have learned anything in this long life of mine, it is this: In love we find out who we want to be; in war we find out who we are.
Related Characters:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 6
Quotes
“Something like that. But like I said, a nice girl like you wouldn’t know anything about survival.”
“You’d be surprised the things I know, Gaëtan, There is more than one kind of prison.
Chapter 28
Quotes
She was wiser than she’d been before. Now she knew how fragile life and love were. Maybe she would love him for only this day, or maybe for only the next week or maybe until she was an old, old woman. Maybe he would be the love of her life . . . or her love for the duration of this war . . . or maybe he would only be her first love. All she really knew was that in this terrible, frightening world, she had stumbled into something unexpected.
Chapter 38
Quotes
Don’t forget me, Isabelle thought. She wished she had the strength to say it out loud.
