The excerpt represents the core issue or deciding factor on which you must meditate, and is drawn from The Marriage Contract by Honore de Balzac: careful nothing more rapidly evaporates than conjugal love. The
influence a wife ought to have over her husband depends entirely on
how she begins with him. You need the best advice."
"But you will be with us."
"Possibly, my child. Last night, while the ball was going on, I
reflected on the dangers of our being together. If my presence were to
do you harm, if the little acts by which you ought slowly, but surely,
to establish your authority as a wife should be attributed to my
influence, your home would become a hell. At the first frown I saw
upon your husband's brow I, proud as I am, should instantly leave his
house. If I were driven to leave it, better, I think, not to enter it.
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