Showing results by author "Honoré de Balzac" in All Categories

Voici donc l'histoire de ce père Goriot, vermicellien ayant fait fortune et qui, tel l'Albatros de Baudelaire, se déchirera les entrailles pour élever ses enfants. Mais, malgré le titre du roman, en est-ce vraiment le héros où est-ce Eugène de Rastignac, jeune homme issu d'une noble mais pauvre famille, venu faire des études de droit à Paris et qui va essayer par tous les moyens de se hisser dans l'échelle sociale parisienne ?

Delve into the intriguing world of Balzacs Magic Skin, a captivating novel that echoes the themes of Dorian Gray within the framework of Comedies Humane Philosophique. This work not only marked Balzacs debut success but also showcases his unique promotional approach, where he penned criticisms of his own writing to generate excitement before its release. A sharp critique of materialism and the French bourgeoisie, this novel invites readers to explore recurring characters that appear throughout his body of work. Join us as we unravel the complexities of human desire and societal values in this ...

Life has the capacity of great moments and attainment, of lives well lived, fulfilling for ourselves and for those we touch. But for others life is arduous. There is no spark to ignite the curiosity, to explore and achieve a stability and a growth to their lives. Indeed their lives, in their own eyes, become almost meaningless, their sense of themselves subsumed under a myriad of problems, whether real or imagined. Seismic events in a life might crush them; the loss of a loved one for instance. Coping is difficult, support hard to find and isolation abounds.

“The Two Brothers” (1842) is a captivating piece from Balzac’s monumental series, “The Human Comedy.” Originally titled “La Rabouilleuse” in French, it has also been known as “The Black Sheep” and “A Bachelor’s Establishment” in various English translations. Delving deep into the complexities of family dynamics, Balzac paints a vivid picture of strained relationships among parents, children, and siblings. Set in a small town in post-Napoleonic France, a father’s mistaken belief about his daughter’s legitimacy leads to her being raised by her in-laws in Paris. As she...

Dive into the world of Gobseck, a captivating installment in Balzacs La Comédie Humaine and a follow-up to the renowned Father Goriot. This short novel centers around the enigmatic pawnbroker and moneylender Gobseck, who played a critical role in sustaining the lavish lifestyles of Goriots pampered daughters. As we reconnect with one of these daughters, Mme Restaud, prepare for a rich exploration of ambition, greed, and the intricacies of human relationships. (Summary by JCarson)

The Bette referred to in this magnificent novel's title is Lisbeth Fischer, an excruciatingly cunning poor relation who both depends upon and nurses a terrible grudge against the family of her beautiful cousin, Adeline. That family is slowly being ruined by the uncontrollable sexual appetites of Adeline's husband, Baron Hulot - appetites that will, in time, give Cousin Bette opportunity to exact her vengeance.

Impoverished young aristocrat Eugene de Rastignac is determined to climb the social ladder and impress himself on Parisian high society. While staying at the Maison Vauquer, a boarding house in Paris's rue Neuve-Sainte-Genevieve, he encounters Jean-Joachim Goriot, a retired vermicelli maker who has spent his entire fortune supporting his two daughters. The boarders strike up a friendship and Goriot learns of Rastignac's feelings for his daughter Delphine. He begins to see Rastignac as the ideal son-in-law, and the perfect substitute for Delphine's domineering husband. But Rastignac has other opportunities too....

This brilliant collection of France’s foremost nineteenth-century novelist and playwright delivers four of his most fascinating works - stories of love, rivalry, horror and adventure - all brought to life by a stellar cast included Stephen Fry and Alex Kingston. A huge influence on many of the most famous writers from Proust to Kerouac to Dickens, Balzac delivers beautifully observed and complex characters with an unsurpassed attention to the details of society at the time, making him an exemplary of realism in European literature.

Ten vintage dramas on the theme of murder, written by internationally recognised authors and set across the globe ‘Murder is murder, anywhere in the world. The taking of life, the most terrible crime a human being can commit, is the same in any language, whether it springs from vengeance...

Lisbeth Fischer has lived in the shadow of her beautiful cousin Adeline for much of her life. Pampered while Lisbeth works in the fields, Adeline makes an enviable leap in status when Baron Hulot offers her his hand in marriage. Out of kindness, they bring Lisbeth to Paris, where she falls in love with the artist Wenceslas, her protege. However, when she is jilted for Adeline's daughter Hortense, her jealousy and rage exponentially intensify, and she resolves to bring the Hulot family to ruin, employing the cold seductress Valerie Marneffe as her vehicle for revenge.

Brothers Philippe and Joseph Bridau are completely unalike: Philippe, braggart and soldier, formerly aide-de-camp to Napoleon, is their mother Agathe's favorite; Joseph, a poor and aspiring artist, is raised in his brother's shadow. When Agathe is reduced to poverty and Philippe accrues gambling debts, the family join forces to focus their attentions on Agathe's brother, Jean-Jacques Rouget, heir to the family fortune. The struggle for his inheritance pits the family against Rouget's beautiful maid Flore ("La Rabouilleuse"), the apple of her master's eye, and her crafty lover.

Felix Grandet, having married well and become a wealthy landowner and wine-grower, is a miser who watches like a hawk the sugar lumps and the bread slices. The question of who will marry his daughter and inherit his fortune fuels endless speculation in the town of Saumur. The arrival of Eugénie’s cousin sparks feelings and a resolve that puts her on a collision course with her father’s control. As the years pass and she must navigate the self-interest of potential suitors, we see how habits manifest themselves in a new generation.

Inspiré à Balzac par son expérience dans l'imprimerie, Illusions perdues raconte l'échec de Lucien de Rubempré, jeune provincial épris de gloire littéraire. En contrepoint au parcours malheureux de ce "grand homme de province", alternativement héros et antihéros plein de faiblesses, l'histoire évoque les modèles de vertu que sont la famille de Lucien et le "Cénacle", cercle intellectuel de "vrais grands hommes".

Lors d'un trajet de Paris à Moulins, deux jeunes gens subissent un accident de voiture. L'un d'eux mourra écrasé, l'autre recevra sa confidence. Le vivant sera ainsi le messager de la mort auprès de la maîtresse du défunt, la jeune et désirable comtesse de Montpersan, mariée à un gentilhomme campagnard et embourgeoisé (en somme le mari trompé idéal). Mais non content d'apprendre à cette femme que son amant est décédé, notre « messager » semble pour le moins désireux de prendre la place du défunt… Rien ne se dit vraiment dans cette histoire où l'essentiel est à lire entre les lignes.

Eugénie Grandet est l’un des romans les plus puissants et durables d’Honoré de Balzac, une magistrale Scène de la vie de province qui révèle la violence silencieuse cachée derrière la respectabilité et la routine.

In the brutal Prussian winter of 1807, Emperor Napoléon Bonaparte’s Grande Armée suffered massive losses to the Russians in the Battle of Eylau. Many thousands died. Young Colonel Chabert falls heroically, his actions having turned the tide of the battle, but he is buried anonymously on the battlefield in a mass grave. Incredibly, he is alive, but severely injured, and digs himself out. On his eventual return to Paris, he finds his wife, the beautiful and ambitious Rosine, now remarried, and his fortune gone.

Step into the world of Cousin Betty (La Cousine Bette), one of Balzacs final masterpieces, first unveiled in serial form in 1846. This captivating tale, part of his extensive collection La Comédie Humaine, unfolds in mid-19th-century France, where a woman grapples with her status as a poor relation. As we delve into her cunning schemes aimed at dismantling the lives of her more affluent family members, we witness a society grappling with change. The old orders stability and idealism crumbles, making way for a new bourgeois reality where virtue is often sacrificed in the relentless pursuit of ...

Une femme, généreuse et belle comme un ange, soupçonnée d'adultère ; un jeune officier qui se lance dans la plus vaine et maladroite des enquêtes ; un agent de change égaré dans les affres de la passion ; une somme d'argent qu'on n'explique pas ; une société secrète (les Dévorants) dont les membres entendent exercer l'absolutisme de leur bon plaisir ; des duels, des assassinats, des suicides ; une évocation de Vidocq.

One of the greatest of French novelists, Balzac, trained as a lawyer, was a great judge of human nature. In 1833 he conceived the idea of linking together his novels so that they would comprehend the whole society in a series of books. This plan eventually led to 90 novels and novellas (including more than 2,000 characters) that he called "The Human Comedy". Balzac's huge and ambitious plan drew a picture of the customs, atmosphere, and habits of the bourgeois France.

At the beginning of the story the heroine lives an unfulfilled life in rural France, her nature crushed by a domineering and miserly father. Gallant cousin Charles arrives and acts as a catalyst on Eugénie's personality and emotions. Will her love survive the strong self-opinion of the young man and the selfishness of her father or is Eugénie's reward destined to be in heaven?