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Old Man Goriot

By Honoré de Balzac
Penguin Classics
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3.85 goodreads logo

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Book Hero Magic crafted this summary to help describe this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Summary
Old Man Goriot by Honoré de Balzac delves into the intersecting lives of residents in a Parisian boarding house during the early 19th century. The storyline primarily follows the enigmatic Old Man Goriot and his relationship with his ungrateful daughters, alongside the ambitions of a young law student, Eugène de Rastignac, who is navigating the social dynamics and ambitions of Parisian society. Themes of social status, family loyalty, and moral decline are intricately woven into this vivid portrayal of human nature.
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Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?

You might enjoy this book if you appreciate a richly detailed exploration of early 19th-century Parisian society, packed with themes of ambition, betrayal, and the pursuit of status. This classic novel offers a penetrating look into the lives of its characters and the complex social dynamics they navigate. If you're interested in deep character studies and societal commentary, this book is sure to captivate you.

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Monsieur Goriot is one of a disparate group of lodgers at Mademe Vauquer's dingy Parisian boarding house. At first his wealth inspires respect, but as his circumstances are mysteriously reduced he becomes shunned by those around him, and soon his only remaining visitors are his two beautifully dressed daughters.

Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description

Monsieur Goriot is one of a disparate group of lodgers at Madame Vauquer's dingy Parisian boarding house. At first, his wealth inspires respect, but as his circumstances are mysteriously reduced, he becomes shunned by those around him. Soon, his only remaining visitors are his two beautifully dressed daughters.

Goriot's fate is intertwined with two other fellow boarders—the young social climber, Eugene Rastignac, who sees a way to gain the acceptance and wealth he craves, and the enigmatic figure of Vautrin, who is hiding darker secrets than anyone.

Weaving a compelling and panoramic story of love, money, self-sacrifice, corruption, greed, and ambition, Old Man Goriot is Balzac's acknowledged masterpiece. A key novel in his Comédie Humaine series, it is a vividly realized portrait of bourgeois Parisian society in the years following the French Revolution.

Book Hero Magic summarised reviews for this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! HOW HAS THIS BEEN REVIEWED?

Old Man Goriot by Honoré de Balzac is often praised for its incisive portrayal of Parisian society and its exploration of themes like ambition and sacrifice. Reviews frequently commend Balzac's deep character development, particularly of student Eugène and the titular Goriot. The novel is lauded for its intricate depiction of boarding house life and its poignant observation of the human condition, making it a compelling study of 19th-century social dynamics.

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Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9780140449723

Publisher: Penguin Books Ltd

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 06 January 2011

Country: United Kingdom

Imprint: Penguin Classics

Contributors:

  • Introduction by Graham Robb
  • Translated by Olivia McCannon
  • Notes by Olivia McCannon

Audience: General / adult

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 18.0mm

Width: 130.0mm

Height: 198.0mm

Weight: 248g

Pages: 336

Collections

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About the Author

HONORE DE BALZAC was born in 1799 in Tours, France. Balzac turned exclusively to fiction at the age of thirty and went on to write a large number of novels and short stories set amid turbulent nineteenth-century France. He entitled his collective works The Human Comedy. Along with Victor Hugo and Dumas pere and fils, Balzac was one of the pillars of French romantic literature. He died in 1850, shortly after his marriage to the Polish countess Evelina Hanska, his lover of eighteen years. OLIVIA MCCANNON is a literary translator and writer based in London and Paris. Her writing has appeared on BBC Radios 3 and 4, and her first collection of poetry is forthcoming from Carcanet (Oxford Poets). GRAHAM ROBB's books include Balzac (1994) and Strangers: Homosexual Love in the Nineteenth Century (2003). The Discovery of France (2007), based in part on fourteen thousand miles' cycling in France, won both the Duff Cooper Prize and the 2008 Royal Society of Literature Ondaatje Prize.

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