Eve and David
By Honoré de Balzac
Lucien had gone to Paris, and David Sechard, with the courage and intelligence of the ox which painters give the Evangelist for accompanying symbol, set himself to make the large fortune for which he had wished that evening down by the Charente when he sat with Eve by the weir. She gave him her hand and her heart. He wanted to make the money quickly and less for himself than for Eve’s sake and Lucien’s. He would place his wife amid the elegant and comfortable surroundings that were hers by right, and his strong arm should sustain her brother’s ambitions—this was the program he saw before his eyes in letters of fire. Journalism and politics, the immense development of the book trade, of literature and the sciences, the increase of public interest in matters touching the various industries in the country; in fact, the whole social tendency of the epoch following the establishment of the Restoration produced an enormous increase in the demand for paper. The supply required was almost ten times as large as the quantity in which the celebrated Ouvrard speculated at the outset of the Revolution.
Then, Ouvrard could buy up the entire paper stock first and then the manufacturers. Still, in 1821, there were so many paper mills in France that no one could hope to repeat his success, and David had neither audacity nor capital enough for such speculation. Machinery for producing paper of any length was coming into use in England. It was one of the most urgent needs of the time, therefore, that the paper trade should keep pace with the requirements of the French system of civil government, a system by which the right of discussion was to be extended to every man and the whole fabric based upon continual expression of individual opinion; a grave misfortune, for the nation that deliberates, is but little wont to act. So, strange coincidence! While Lucien was drawn into the great machinery of journalism, where he was like to leave his honour and his intelligence torn to shreds, David Sechard, at the back of his printing house, foresaw all the practical consequences of the increased activity of the periodical press.
Genre: Gay/Lesbian
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Honoré de Balzac
Honoré de Balzac (20 May 1799 – 18 August 1850) was a French novelist and playwright.
Biography
The novel sequence La Comédie 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 also imbued with character; the city of Paris, a backdrop for much of his writing, takes on many human qualities. His writing influenced famous writers, including the novelists Émile Zola, Charles Dickens, Marcel Proust, Gustave Flaubert, Henry James, and filmmakers François 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 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 these efforts. La Comédie Humaine reflects on his real-life difficulties and includes scenes from his 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 (née Contessa Rzewuska), a Polish aristocrat and his longtime love. He died in Paris six months later.
Honoré de Balzac
