The phrase "you never really appreciate what you have until it's gone" really rings true in this novel, thus far. Even though I think it's an awful cliche, we see this happening twice. First, and most obviously, with Emma. She marries Charles thinking that she can get away from her "boring" life but not really knowing how to be content with herself and what she has. I feel as though Emma would never be content, even if she got what she wanted, or what she thinks she wanted. Secondly, we see this with Charles. He was never in love with his first wife, and immediately felt a deep sense of passion and lust seeing Emma. But it's almost as far as that went. Charles desired her, but he was too struck by her beauty to even realize how unhappy she was in their marriage. Even if he did know and understand, I don't believe he would've done anything to change it--perhaps because he's not sure what he can do.
Again, with Emma as she begins her affair, she thinks that's what she wants--wild, passionate love with Rodolphe. Yet, once she has him, she rethinks how she feels about her marriage. We see a shift in her thinking. This is mostly due to Emma having such a desire for the chase, I believe. It seems as though she loves the idea of having someone, of escaping from her boring and predictable life, but once she has it, she doesn't care much for it and prefers what she had before (ie. her marriage after her physical affair with Rodolphe and her romantic affair with Leon.)
While their marriage isn't over, at least not right now, it's never going to be the same again. Especially if Emma continues to be so careless as to almost openly announce her affair.
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