num_pages: 699
description: "Balzac [was] the master unequalled in the art of painting humanity as it exists in modern society," wrote George Sand. "He searched and dared everything."Written between 1837 and 1843, Lost Illusions reveals, perhaps better than any other of Balzac's ninety-two novels, the nature and scope of his genius. The story of Lucien Chardon, a young poet from Angoulême who tries desperately to make a name for himself in Paris, is a brilliantly realistic and boldly satirical portrait of provincial manners and aristocratic life. Handsome and ambitious but naïve, Lucien is patronized by the beau monde as represented by Madame de Bargeton and her cousin, the formidable Marquise d'Espard, only to be duped by them. Denied the social rank he thought would be his, Lucien discards his poetic aspirations and turns to hack journalism; his descent into Parisian low life ultimately leads to his own death."Balzac was both a greedy child and an indefatigable observer of a greedy age, at once a fantastic and a genius, yet possessing a simple core of common sense," noted V. S. Pritchett, one of his several biographers. Another, André Maurois, "Balzac was by turns a saint, a criminal, an honest judge, a corrupt judge, a minister, a fob, a harlot, a duchess, and always a genius."This Modern Library edition presents the translation by Kathleen Raine.
language: English
title: Lost Illusions
titlecomplete: Lost Illusions
characters: Horace Bianchon, Andoche Finot, Raoul Nathan, David Séchard, Henri de Marsay, Daniel d'Arthez, Émile Blondet, Camusot, Felicité des Touches, Eugène de Rastignac, Melchior de Canalis, Ève Séchard, Lucien Chardon de Rubempré, Michel Chrestien, Félix de Vandenesse, Florine (Sophie Grignault), Joseph Bridau, Étienne Lousteau, Marie Louise Anaïs de Bargeton, Coralie, Vautrin, Armand de Montriveau, Diane de Maufrigneuse
genres: Classics, France, Roman, Novels, Classic Literature, Literature, French Literature, Fiction, 19th Century, Literary Fiction
ratings_count: 10779
places: France, Paris
series: Études de mœurs : Scènes de la vie de province, La Comédie Humaine
publisher: Modern Library