<blockquote>“Never hazard taking part in a quadrille unless you know how to dance tolerably. If you are a novice or but little skilled, you would bring disorder into the midst of pleasure. Beware also of taking your place in a set of dancers more skilful than yourself… refrain from great leaps and ridiculous jumps which would attract the attention of all towards you.”
Marius had long regarded dancing in general and the quadrille in particular as an outlandish terror to which he hoped never to find himself subjected. But, in broader terms, he often felt as though his entire life had been spent failing to abide by this advice – not merely in the ballroom but in the street, the salon, and the lecture-hall alike.</blockquote>
or
<blockquote>Courfeyrac helps Marius reenter society, a little. </blockquote>
