Honoré de Balzac

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Portrait by Théodore Chassériau, 1842

Native name
Born	Honoré Balzac (1799-05-20)20 May 1799 Tours, France
Died	18 August 1850(1850-08-18) (aged 51) Paris, France
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Occupation	Novelist, playwright
Language	French
Nationality	French

Honoré de Balzac (born Honoré Balzac; 20 May 1799 – 18 August 1850) was a French novelist and playwright. He is best known for his magnum opus, La Comédie humaine, a series of interconnected novels and stories depicting French society in the period of the Restoration and the July Monarchy.

Early Life

Balzac was born in Tours, France, to Bernard-François Balssa and Anne-Charlotte-Laure Sallambier. He was sent to a boarding school in Vendôme at the age of eight, where he showed an early interest in literature. After completing his studies, he moved to Paris to study law, but he soon abandoned this career path to pursue writing.

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French novelist and playwright (1799–1850)

Literary Career

Balzac's early works were not successful, and he struggled financially for many years. However, he gained recognition with the publication of Les Chouans in 1829. This was followed by a series of novels that would later be included in La Comédie humaine, such as Eugénie Grandet and Père Goriot.

La Comédie humaine

La Comédie humaine is a vast collection of interlinked novels and stories that depict a comprehensive picture of French society. The series includes over 90 finished works and 46 unfinished works. Balzac's detailed descriptions and complex characters have made him a key figure in the development of realism in literature.

Personal Life

Balzac had a tumultuous personal life, marked by financial difficulties and numerous romantic entanglements. He married Ewelina Hańska, a Polish aristocrat, in 1850, just five months before his death.

Death and Legacy

Balzac died on 18 August 1850 in Paris and was buried in the Père Lachaise Cemetery. His work has had a lasting impact on literature, influencing writers such as Marcel Proust, Charles Dickens, and Émile Zola.

Related Pages

• La Comédie humaine
• Eugénie Grandet
• Père Goriot
• Realism (arts)
• Restoration (France)
• July Monarchy
• Père Lachaise Cemetery

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