Pappa Goriot
Author: Honoré de Balzac
Year of publication: 1959
Plot summary: Père Goriot lives in the boarding house of Madame Vauqer and is the general laughing stock of its inhabitants. His story, once revealed, however, proves to be a sad story about a man everything but laughable. It is revealed to us through the intertwined destiny of the yough student Rastignac who is also staying at the boarding house.
In the first chapter the author has commented that the only ones who can really understand the subtleties and the ironny of the twists of the plot and the personalities of the characters is a parisian, and I think he is mostly right. While it's true that some of the vices and emotions (greed, jealousy, pity) that surfaces throughout this story are universal both in time and space, some references to contemporary politics and culture are difficult to understad fully. The irony, however, is as evident to anyone as to a native frenchman (it somehow reminds me of the tone of Swift), and it is wonderful! There are even some traces of metaliterature in the narrator's observations of the characters and their behaviour.
The story in itself is also intriguing, with an aspect I had not anticipated. At times, though, I felt that it stagnated somewhat, which is the reason I only gave it four stars instead of five on Goodreads :) (in case you were wondering, K ;) ) Now I have many more of Balzac's "Human comedy" to enjoy!
Year of publication: 1959
Plot summary: Père Goriot lives in the boarding house of Madame Vauqer and is the general laughing stock of its inhabitants. His story, once revealed, however, proves to be a sad story about a man everything but laughable. It is revealed to us through the intertwined destiny of the yough student Rastignac who is also staying at the boarding house.
In the first chapter the author has commented that the only ones who can really understand the subtleties and the ironny of the twists of the plot and the personalities of the characters is a parisian, and I think he is mostly right. While it's true that some of the vices and emotions (greed, jealousy, pity) that surfaces throughout this story are universal both in time and space, some references to contemporary politics and culture are difficult to understad fully. The irony, however, is as evident to anyone as to a native frenchman (it somehow reminds me of the tone of Swift), and it is wonderful! There are even some traces of metaliterature in the narrator's observations of the characters and their behaviour.
The story in itself is also intriguing, with an aspect I had not anticipated. At times, though, I felt that it stagnated somewhat, which is the reason I only gave it four stars instead of five on Goodreads :) (in case you were wondering, K ;) ) Now I have many more of Balzac's "Human comedy" to enjoy!