Eugenie Grandet

Eugénie Grandet is a novel first published in 1833 by French author Honoré de Balzac. While he was writing it he conceived his ambitious project, La Comédie humaine, and almost immediately prepared a second edition, revising the names of some of the characters so that Eugénie Grandet then fitted into the section: Scenes from provincial life (Scènes de la vie de province) in the Comédie. He dedicated the edition to Maria Du Fresnay, who was then his lover and was the mother of his daughter, Marie-Caroline Du Fresnay.

Eugénie Grandet is set in the town of Saumur, which should have been familiar to Balzac since he grew up in Tours about 35 miles away. The two towns are both on the Loire, with châteaux, and of similar size. Tours was much more important historically and politically, which may explain why Balzac allows the impression in the opening that the Grandet residence was Saumur's most important building. Though Balzac grew up in the aftermath of the Revolution, he came to adulthood in Paris under the restored Bourbon monarchy (Louis XVIII & Charles X) and wrote most of what we know under the July Monarchy (1830-1848) of Louis Philippe, which came to power when the revolution of 1830 deposed the Bourbon monarchy. It is worth noting that though the Republic had replaced the Livre with the Franc (of equal value), both continued to circulate, as did the Louis. (wikipedia.org)

About the author:

Honoré de Balzac born Honoré Balzac; (20 May 1799 - 18 August 1850) was a French novelist and playwright. The novel sequence La Comédie humaine, which presents a panorama of post-Napoleonic French life, is generally viewed as his magnum opus.

Owing to his keen observation of detail and unfiltered representation of society, Balzac is regarded as one of the founders of realism in European literature. He is renowned for his multi-faceted characters; even his lesser characters are complex, morally ambiguous and fully human. Inanimate objects are imbued with character as well; the city of Paris, a backdrop for much of his writing, takes on many human qualities. His writing influenced many famous writers, including the novelists Émile Zola, Charles Dickens, Marcel Proust, Gustave Flaubert, and Henry James, and filmmakers François Truffaut and Jacques Rivette. Many of Balzac's works have been made into films and continue to inspire other writers. James called him "really the father of us all."

An enthusiastic reader and independent thinker as a child, Balzac had trouble adapting to the teaching style of his grammar school. His willful nature caused trouble throughout his life and frustrated his ambitions to succeed in the world of business. When he finished school, Balzac was apprenticed in a law office, but he turned his back on the study of law after wearying of its inhumanity and banal routine. Before and during his career as a writer, he attempted to be a publisher, printer, businessman, critic, and politician; he failed in all of these efforts. La Comédie Humaine reflects his real-life difficulties, and includes scenes from his own experience.

Balzac suffered from health problems throughout his life, possibly owing to his intense writing schedule. His relationship with his family was often strained by financial and personal drama, and he lost more than one friend over critical reviews. In 1850, Balzac married Ewelina Hańska (née Contessa Rzewuska), a Polish aristocrat and his longtime love. He died in Paris six months later. (wikipedia.org)