Notes For All Chapters English Literature Class 9
Juliette puts her villa for sale. She pretends to get the “wretched place ” off her hands and is ready to “sacrifice it at any price Mr. Gaston s wife Jeanne wants to buy a villa so that she can put her parents in it. Mr. Gaston doesn’t want to buy Juliette s villa and deliberately finds faults with it. The garden is very small and the salon is not big. Juliette like a perfect saleswoman, tries to sell the villa in two hundred thousandfrancs. When Juliette and Jeanne are upstairs, Mrs. Al Smith comes. She takes Mr. Gaston as the owner. She is in a hurry and strikes the deal with Mr. Gaston in three hundred thousand francs. She buys the villa as it is near Paramount Studio where she is going to shoot some films. Now the story takes an interesting turn. Mr. Gaston starts praising the villa, its bedrooms, baths and gardens. He also starts showing concern for Jeanne s parents and her sister s children. By now Jeanne gives up the idea of buying the villa. Mr. Gaston at once buys the villa in two hundred thousand francs from Juliette. Juliette is happy but Mr. Gaston is happier. Jeanne simply can’t understand what is going on there. Mr. Gaston tells her that he has earned a cool one hundred thousand francs and a picture of Carot in the bargain.
Villa for Saie
Juliette’s villa was for sale. ‘Villa for Sale’ sign had been hanging on the gate for a month. The whole thing was much more of a ‘sell’ than a ‘sale’. Now she had only one thought. It was to get the ‘wretched place off her hands’. She pretended to sacrifice it at any price. Even one hundred thousand was only twice what it cost her. She wanted two hundred thousand francs and not a franc less than that.
Very close to Joinville, the French Hollywood
The villa was very close to Joinville, the French Hollywood. Even Juliette’s maid got a maid’s role in a film at the Joinville Studio. They wanted a cook in the film as well. She asked Juliette if she liked her to get her the engagement. Juliette replied that she was not so hard up as that yet.
Mr Gaston and Jeanne Gome to See the Villa
Mr. Gaston and Jeanne were shown in by the maid. Mr. Gaston was not impressed with the villa and its garden. Even the ‘salon’ was too small. Actually, he deliberately started finding faults with the villa as he didn’t want to buy it. He knew that Jeanne was buying the villa not for them but to put her father and mother in it. Not only would her parents take possession of the villa but they would also bring her sister’s children to live with them. So he pretended to find the villa quite substandard and extremely costly.
Juliette—a Clever Saleswoman
Juliette was a perfect saleswoman. She called her villa the ‘most delightful little place’. The appearance was ‘modest’ but it had a ‘charm’ of its own. She told Mr. Gaston and Jeanne that it would suit them admirably. The house possessed a great many advantages: Electricity, gas, water, telephone and drainage. She told them that she arranged her house in ‘ accordance with her own tastes. She didn’t want that ordinary people should come to live in it. She was ready to sell the house in two hundred and fifty thousand francs. Mr. Gaston found it ‘decidedly excessive’. Like a good bargainer, Juliette was ready to come down to two hundred thousand francs. She was not ready to accept even a franc less than that. Jeanne and Juliette went upstairs to see the upper floor.
Mrs. Al Smith Settles the Deal in Three Hundred Thousand Francs
Mr. Gaston was alone downstairs. Mrs. Al Smith came. She was in a hurry and mistook Mr. Gaston as the master of the house. She was interested in the villa as it was near Paramount Studio where r she was going to shoot some films. The American lady settled the deal in three hundred thousand francs. She gave Mr. Gaston a cheque and asked him to fill his name on the cheque himself. She lived at the Ritz Hotel and her lawyer would complete the rest of the transaction.
Mr. Gaston — A Great Opportunist
After making a deal in three hundred thousand, Mr. Gaston took a ‘U’-tum. Now he started praising the villa, its rooms, baths and the garden, i He even tried to humour his wife. He agreed to keep her parents and sister’s children in the villa. ‘ Jeanne thought that he was just joking. By now she had given up the idea of buying the villa. But Mr. Gaston very promptly struck the deal in two , hundred thousand. Juliette signed the receipt and exchanged it for his cheque. Jeanne could not understand what was happening there, But Mr. Gaston had earned one hundred thousand francs in the deal.
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