Abstract
This paper analyzes why Jane Austen concentrates so much on dialogue and personal interaction in "Pride And Prejudice" whereas Honore de Balzac in "Pere Goriot" focuses on social description.

Tags:austen, balzac

Abstract
This paper examines Honore de Balzac's novels and how they depict the complexity and intricacy of human life with the focus on realism. It shows how he uses social and personal relations, as well as historical context, to illustrate his ideas and depict Parisian life as he saw it. The paper suggests that Balzac's picture of family life as exploitative and loveless mirrors the harsh reality of the world and society his novels depict.

From the Paper
"Money is an issue in the novel that is also relevant to other characters in explaining the reality of the world. The major characters concerned with this are Vautrin and Rastignac, who are contrasting characters but are influential upon each other. Desire is portrayed as natural to mankind in the form of Rastignac, who wants to become rich by climbing the social ladder because he is attracted by the prospect of the grande bourgeoisie and distracted from his studies. Although initially this may not seem like such a terrible desire, the reason why it is is explained using Vautrin's character. Vautrin is a criminal and explains to Rastingnac that there is no easy or honest way to obtain what he desires. Rastingnac is advised by Vautrin to kill a man in a duel so that he can marry Victorine, a rich banker's daughter. Mme Beauseant also advises him to seduce Delphine in order to integrate himself into Parisian society. All of these actions are, loveless, exploitative, and suggest that life in 19th century Paris was similar to a game where individuals thought nothing of using others in any way possible so long as they could enhance their wealth and status, which were a priority. Perhaps there is a small consolation, however, in the fact that Vautrin is caught and reprimanded for his crimes."

Tags:society, realism, depiction, imagery

Abstract
This paper looks at how Balzac used his works to express his views regarding French social life, particularly in relation to families. The paper examines "Cousin Bette", "Father Goriat," and "Lost Illusions." By using these sources, the paper demonstrates Balzac's belief that modern society, with its greed, corruption, and temptation, threatened the basic family structure, making families into monetary units of far less importance than they had been in previous days.

From the Paper
"In Cousin Bette (Balzac, 1991), the main character, Lisbeth "Bette" Fischer, is a homely, middle-aged spinster who has lived her whole life in envy of her pretty cousin Adeline, who is married to Baron Hector Hulot DErvy, a prestigious military and government official who does not make a lot of money and is a complete womanizer. Hector has a slew of mistresses, despite his wife's loyalty and devotion to him. Their daughter, Hortense, develops a crush on Bette's "boyfriend," Wenceslas Steinbock, a young Polish sculptor, and marries him, convinced that his dreams of becoming a rich artist will someday come true. Bette, still wounded by her years as the homely cousin, decides that the Hulot family has upstaged her too many times and concocts an elaborate revenge scheme."

Tags:valerie, marneffe, adrienne, daughters, anastaria, delphine, boarding, house, david, sechard, paris

Abstract
The paper explores the theme of the absurd in Voltaire's "Candide", Balzac's "Pere Goriot" and Kafka's "The Trial" in reference to their respective landscapes, situations and characters. The paper explains that the point of writing with the absurd is to present an accurate portrayal of life, with all of its degrading and humiliating parts. The paper also brings out how all three of these novels conclude with the protagonists' self-realization.

From the Paper
"In Kafka's novel The Trial, the main character Joseph K, or simply K lives through a series of unfortunate events of which the first he is accused of some ambiguous crime on his 30th birthday. One year later he is killed in the name of the law and K, for his part does not object to the killing. The absurd as a theme in this event is very overtly portrayed. The ambiguous nature of the actions of the other characters in the novel prove to be ridiculous and a definite parody of real life trial situations. The trial itself is a charade because everyone in the courtroom including K already know the outcome; they are merely going through the actions because it is something of a tradition to do so. Thus, the characters are focused, not on the truth of the matter, did K commit a crime, but merely on the trial itself and their part in the facade."

Tags:landscapes, situations, characters, self-realization, human, nature

From the Paper
" In Balzac's Pere Goriot, the glittering world of the wealthiest Parisians is sharply contrasted with the poverty of those who live at the Maison Vauquer. But this is not a contrast between two unconnected phenomena. Between this house and the most fashionable quarter of Paris, the Faubourg Saint-Germain, stretches a range of invisible but clearly understood steps. The two locations are the opposite ends of the phenomenon known as Parisian society. In Pere Goriot, Balzac exposes the connections between them and the struggles of his characters to gain or retain positions on the rungs of the social ladder.
Of course, thousands of people in Paris were poorer than Madame Vauquer's lodgers. But her house represents the lowest point on the economic scale for those who had, or hope to have..."

Abstract
This paper introduces, discusses, and analyzes "Jude the Obscure," by Thomas Hardy and "Lost Illusions," by Honore de Balzac. Specifically, it compares the theme of illusions in these two texts, citing textual evidence. The author discusses how the two protagonists, Jude and Lucien, are spurned into action because of their illusions; however, along their journeys of becoming a poet and a scholar, Lucien loses his illusions, whereas Jude does not. The writer concludes that although there is nothing wrong with illusions, the works both seem to say that when you use them to dominate and rule your life, you will ultimately fail.

From the Paper
"Poor Jude, he is a tragic victim of his illusions from the first page of "Jude the Obscure" until the last. Everything he has sought in his life has been nothing but an illusion. From the moment his teacher leaves Marygreen and tells him about the university in Christminster, Jude is doomed. He longs to study at the university, and this is his first illusion, that Christminster is the wonderland where his future will become complete. His aunt adds to the already growing illusion, by telling him he should have gone with the schoolmaster, and education runs in the family."

Tags:thomas, hardy, jude, lucien, honore, balzac, victim, obscure, lost

Abstract
This paper reviews and analyzes Honore de Balzac's novella "The Girl With the Golden Eyes," emphasizing the use of the themes of beauty and ugliness. According to the paper, the work is the shocking story about the brutal murder of a woman of unsurpassed beauty and innocence. Conveying the ugliness and immorality of Parisian society was necessary in order to examine the consequences of decadence and reveal the fragility and vulnerability of beauty.

From the Paper
" In order to develop his theme in "The Girl With the Golden Eyes," Honore de Balzac spent a lot of time setting up the ugliness of Paris in this shocking story about the brutal murder of a woman of unsurpassed beauty and innocence. Conveying the ugliness and immorality of Parisian society was necessary in order to examine the consequences of decadence and reveal the fragility and vulnerability of beauty. Ultimately, despite Balzac's efforts to convey the beauty in the story, he did not represent it with..."

Tags:balzac, golden, eyes

Abstract
This paper summarizes, compares and analyzes works by Honore de Balzac, Samuel Taylor Coleridge, and Gustav Flaubert. The paper explains that all three authors wished to encourage their readers to live their lives more fully and in a more heightened fashion, by becoming more conscious of the details of the world around them, but that each author had his own unique approach to doing this. The paper illustrates their different approaches through analysis of a work from each of the authors.

From the Paper
"To teach the reader to be a more critical reader of society, throughout Balzac's story, to underline the realistic nature of the tale, Balzac functions as an authoritative commentator on the society and behavior of the world he creates for the reader: "I forgave her stifled laugh." (Balzac 4) Even a reader unfamiliar with the society of Balzac's Paris can appreciate the spectacle of pampered daughters kept by an ugly and social-climbing man, daughters whose manners are taught and forced, rather than natural, although at times Balzac's presence as a narrator can feel oppressive, rather than merely instructive."

Tags:analysis, characters, authorial, voice, naturalistic, specific, details, interspersed, satire

Abstract
This paper discusses how in "Eugenie Grandet", Balzac demonstrates an extensive knowledge of social and historical trends as well as a genius for metaphor, imagery, and insights into human nature. It examines how Balzac depicts provincial life in France as backward and out of touch with urban trends while Paris is portrayed as an advanced commercial society and how this historical pattern represents much more than mere contrast between urban and rural, and becomes a symbol for the context in which Eugenie is situated.

From the Paper
"The person who exhibits the courage and stamina to oppose Grandet is his daughter Eugenie. In order to portray this opposition, Balzac used the analogy he introduced at the beginning of the house in ruins and desolation. The impetus for Eugenie's emotional awakening is her cousin Charles, and the symbol used is the Garden. First of all, Eugenie is initially portrayed as docile and as corresponding to the most traditional social expectations. A painter of the period would have observed in Eugenie "a typical example of Mary's celestial purity in this world, who expects all women to have those modestly proud eyes perceived by Raphael" (Balzac 57). "

Tags:Grandet, France, commercial, society

Abstract
This paper describes the Mexican holiday known as Cinco de Mayo. It then goes on to place Cinco de May in its historical context, recounting the events that led to the Mexican victory at Puebla in 1862. Finally, it discusses Cinco de Mayo as a present day tradition and how it is celebrated both in Mexico and the United States.

From the Paper
"The Mexican holiday of Cinco de Mayo is more than just a day of celebration, it is a day when Mexicans around the world recall, maintain and reaffirm their roots. It is a tradition that marks the Mexican victory at the Battle of Puebla over the French. Since that time no foreign power has ever invaded Mexico and Cinco de Mayo has come to symbolize an end to foreign intervention. According to the American Heritage Dictionary Fourth Edition a tradition is defined as ..."

Tags:Cinco, de, Mayo, Battle, of, Puebla, tradition