Une histoire ordinaire avec une morale à deux cennes.

UN DÉBUT DANS LA VIE-HONORE DÉ BALZAC
✒️"On ne s’amuse donc que dans les lourdes voitures de France, dans ce pays si babillard, si indiscret, où tout le monde est empressé de rire et de montrer son esprit, où la raillerie anime tout, depuis les misères des basses classes jusqu’aux graves intérêts des

3,5 *

I think this may be my favourite Balzac yet, it's genuinely funny in parts, it has some characteristically detailed interiors, and its circular plot really works. We've all known an Oscar.

The first part of this novel is fascinating for its depiction of the French coach service, which is reminiscent of other 19th century “coach” narratives: Dickens’
Pickwick Papers
(published a couple years earlier), Maupassant's “Ball of Fat,” Twain's Roughing It, Bret Harte's Overland stories, e

Yaşamda bir başlangıç, bir yolculukla başlıyor.. Neredeyse aynı olan yolcuların çıktığı bir yolculuk ile de son buluyor. Ancak bu kişiler artık eskisi gibi değil. Kimisi yeteneklerini heba ediyor, kimisi şans kapısını aralayıp aydınlık yollardan ilerliyor, kimisi hayallerinin tersi yönde gidip saygı

This was an ok story. In a way, if you are picking up Balzac, you probably know what to expect, and that is also the case with this novella.

Characters: 3

I found it particularly interesting to read this story in the modern time, since you can just google everyone. Here we are spending our time with