Against the Grain · Character
Honoré de Balzac
Novelist whose 'La Comédie humaine' is a touchstone for Des Esseintes.
minor
Also known as the great Balzac
First appearance: ii
Honoré de Balzac shows up with force in The Perfume Experiment. The page is where that presence becomes real.
Mentioned as an author who felt an imperious craving to write to get his hand in, paralleling Des Esseintes' need to practice perfumery.
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In The Perfume Experiment: Mentioned as an author who felt an imperious craving to write to get his hand in, paralleling Des Esseintes' need to practice perfumery. Later, in XII: Mentioned as an example of earlier…
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See Honoré de Balzac in iiCharacter Web
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- Other
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- Eclectic cultural references
- Protagonist
- Catholic and mystical authors
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Story tension across the book — this chapter sits in Exposition.
- Setup
- Escalation
- Breaking point
The emotional and psychological peak occurs in the narrator's horrifying self-confrontation in the mirror, whe…
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Honoré de Balzac appears across 2 companion beats. Open any chapter in the free preview to see the notes beside the text.
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See Honoré de Balzac in ii