# Parisians in the Country — Character guide

> Key figures in Parisians in the Country by Honoré de Balzac.

- [Dinah de la Baudraye](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/parisians_in_the_country_se/characters/dinah_de_la_baudraye.md): Dinah Piédefer arrives in Sancerre with a mind sharpened by reading and a hunger no local drawing-room can satisfy, so she marries the frail Baron de la Baudraye to gain the rank her intellect deserves. Around her gather
- [Étienne Lousteau](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/parisians_in_the_country_se/characters/etienne_lousteau.md): Lousteau belongs to the Parisian press, that trade of talk and borrowed wit where a man lives on his tongue and other people's money. He comes to Sancerre as a curiosity, a specimen of the capital, and discovers in Dinah
- [Gaudissart](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/parisians_in_the_country_se/characters/gaudissart.md): Gaudissart the Great travels in hats, ideas, and other people's credulity, a one-man steam engine of speculation who can be royalist, republican, or devout as the customer requires. His genius is talk, and his comedy is 
- [Monsieur Gravier](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/parisians_in_the_country_se/characters/monsieur_gravier.md): Gravier is the solid local presence in Dinah's orbit, a man of property and steady feeling whose suit is measured in years rather than gestures. He offers what Sancerre can offer: comfort, constancy, and a life without P
- [Monsieur de Clagny](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/parisians_in_the_country_se/characters/monsieur_de_clagny.md): Monsieur de Clagny is the legal mind of the neighborhood, a man whose profession teaches him to weigh evidence and whose heart refuses to weigh Dinah fairly. He adores her with a discretion that costs him, and his presen
- [Baron de la Baudraye](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/parisians_in_the_country_se/characters/baron_de_la_baudraye.md): The Baron de la Baudraye is the last of a family that survived exile, revolution, and its own bad blood by hoarding louis and vineyards. Sickly from birth and schooled in monastic economy, he treats marriage as a transac
- [Horace Bianchon](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/parisians_in_the_country_se/characters/horace_bianchon.md): A celebrated Parisian doctor and friend of Lousteau, appearing in social scenes.
- [Bixiou](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/parisians_in_the_country_se/characters/bixiou.md): A sharp-tongued Parisian caricaturist and wit who visits the provinces.
- [Jenny Courand](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/parisians_in_the_country_se/characters/jenny_courand.md): A young woman involved in the provincial social scene.
- [Paquita](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/parisians_in_the_country_se/characters/paquita.md): A local woman from Sancerre who appears briefly.
- [Madame Margaritis](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/parisians_in_the_country_se/characters/madame_margaritis.md): An elderly provincial woman, mother of Margaritis.
- [Anna Grossetête](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/parisians_in_the_country_se/characters/anna_grossetete.md): A young woman from a neighboring estate.
- [Madame Cardot](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/parisians_in_the_country_se/characters/madame_cardot.md): A formidable provincial matriarch.
- [Mitouflet](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/parisians_in_the_country_se/characters/mitouflet.md): A relentless local character.
- [Nathan](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/parisians_in_the_country_se/characters/nathan.md): A writer and friend of Lousteau from Paris.
- [Didine](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/parisians_in_the_country_se/characters/didine.md): A pet name or nickname for a female character.
- [Madame Schontz](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/parisians_in_the_country_se/characters/madame_schontz.md): A Parisian courtesan mentioned in Lousteau's circle.
- [Félicie Cardot](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/parisians_in_the_country_se/characters/felicie_cardot.md): A young woman from the Cardot family.
- [Malaga](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/parisians_in_the_country_se/characters/malaga.md): A dancer or performer mentioned in Parisian scenes.
- [Présidente de Boirouge](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/parisians_in_the_country_se/characters/presidente_de_boirouge.md): The wife of the local president of the court.
- [Madame Gaudissart](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/parisians_in_the_country_se/characters/madame_gaudissart.md): The wife of Gaudissart.
- [Milaud](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/parisians_in_the_country_se/characters/milaud.md): A lawyer or notary from Nevers, related to the Baudraye family.

HTML index: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/parisians_in_the_country_se/characters