B�atrix is an 1839 novel by French author Honor� de Balzac (1799-1850) and included in the Sc�nes de la vie priv�e section of his novel sequence La Com�die humaine.
It first appeared in the periodical Le Si�cle in August 1839, and appeared in volume form the same year. Balzac based the characters in this novel on real figures: F�licit� des Touches, a celebrated musician and writer, is based on George Sand. B�atrix de Rochefide is based on Marie d'Agoult (who wrote under the pen name of Daniel Stern); Gennaro Conti is based on Franz Liszt; Claude Vignon is based on Gustave Planche. (wikipedia.org)
About the author:
Honor� de Balzac born Honor� Balzac; (20 May 1799 - 18 August 1850) was a French novelist and playwright. The novel sequence La Com�die 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 �mile Zola, Charles Dickens, Marcel Proust, Gustave Flaubert, and Henry James, and filmmakers Fran�ois 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 Com�die 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 (n�e Contessa Rzewuska), a Polish aristocrat and his longtime love. He died in Paris six months later. (wikipedia.org)
