Sentence:  Now , although the roots of the mystery story in serious literature go back as far as <WSD>Balzac</WSD> , Dickens , and Poe , it was not until the closing decades of the 19 th century that the private detective became an established figure in popular fiction . 
Meaning of the word marked with <WSD> tags:  French novelist; he portrays the complexity of 19th century French society (1799-1850)