The Count of Monte Cristo

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"Unhappy girl, unhappy girl!" murmured Danglars, turning pale, for
he knew from long experience the solidity of the obstacle he had so
suddenly encountered.

"Unhappy girl," replied Eugenie, "unhappy girl, do you say, sir? No,
indeed; the exclamation appears quite theatrical and affected. Happy, on
the contrary, for what am I in want of! The world calls me beautiful.
It is something to be well received. I like a favorable reception; it
expands the countenance, and those around me do not then appear so ugly.
I possess a share of wit, and a certain relative sensibility, which
enables me to draw from life in general, for the support of mine, all I
meet with that is good, like the monkey who cracks the nut to get at its
contents. I am rich, for you have one of the first fortunes in France. I
am your only daughter, and you are not so exacting as the fathers of the
Porte Saint-Martin and Gaiete, who disinherit their daughters for not
giving them grandchildren. Besides, the provident law has deprived you
of the power to disinherit me, at least entirely, as it has also of