# Dinah de la Baudraye — Parisians in the Country character guide

> Dinah de la Baudraye in Parisians in the Country by Honoré de Balzac.

**Role:** major

**Also known as:** Dinah, Mademoiselle Dinah Piédefer, Piédefer, Mademoiselle Dinah, Dinah Piédefer, the fair Dinah, Madame de la Baudraye, little de la Baudraye, the Baronne de la Baudraye, the beautiful Madame de la Baudraye, Madame, Madame la Baronne, Madame la Baronne de la Baudraye, Baronne de la Baudraye, Madame la Comtesse, Madame la Comtesse de la Baudraye, the Comtesse de la Baudraye

**First appearance:** 0002-story-ii-the-muse-of-the-department

## Snapshot

A Sancerre heiress of letters and ambition, she marries a sickly baron for his name and turns her drawing-room into a stage for provincial longing.

## Who they are

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 a magistrate, a landowner, and a poet, each mistaking her brilliance for a promise. Her restlessness is the engine of the book: she is the provincial woman whose intelligence becomes both her ornament and her trap.

## Relationships

### [Étienne Lousteau](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/parisians_in_the_country_se/characters/etienne_lousteau)

_romantic_

Dinah is passionately involved with Étienne, a Parisian journalist, in an affair that dominates her life in the countryside.

### [Horace Bianchon](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/parisians_in_the_country_se/characters/horace_bianchon)

_friendship_

Horace Bianchon, a doctor, is a trusted friend and confidant to Dinah, offering her medical and emotional support.

### [Monsieur Gravier](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/parisians_in_the_country_se/characters/monsieur_gravier)

_social_

Monsieur Gravier is a local notable and frequent visitor to Dinah's salon, maintaining a polite and respectful acquaintance.

### [Paquita](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/parisians_in_the_country_se/characters/paquita)

_professional_

Paquita is a servant or maid in Dinah's household, attending to her daily needs.

### [Anna Grossetête](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/parisians_in_the_country_se/characters/anna_grossetete)

_friendship_

Anna Grossetête is a close female friend of Dinah, sharing confidences and social visits.

### [Madame Cardot](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/parisians_in_the_country_se/characters/madame_cardot)

_social_

Dinah and Madame Cardot are acquaintances who move in the same provincial social circles.

### [Milaud](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/parisians_in_the_country_se/characters/milaud)

_social_

Milaud is a local magistrate or official who interacts with Dinah in her capacity as a prominent townswoman.

### [Étienne Lousteau](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/parisians_in_the_country_se/characters/etienne_lousteau)

_romantic_

Dinah is passionately involved with Étienne, a Parisian journalist, in an affair that dominates her life in the countryside.

### [Étienne Lousteau](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/parisians_in_the_country_se/characters/etienne_lousteau)

_romantic_

Dinah is passionately involved with Étienne, a Parisian journalist, in an affair that dominates her life in the countryside.

### [Horace Bianchon](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/parisians_in_the_country_se/characters/horace_bianchon)

_friendship_

Horace Bianchon, a doctor, is a trusted friend and confidant to Dinah, offering her medical and emotional support.

### [Horace Bianchon](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/parisians_in_the_country_se/characters/horace_bianchon)

_friendship_

Horace Bianchon, a doctor, is a trusted friend and confidant to Dinah, offering her medical and emotional support.

### [Monsieur Gravier](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/parisians_in_the_country_se/characters/monsieur_gravier)

_social_

Monsieur Gravier is a local notable and frequent visitor to Dinah's salon, maintaining a polite and respectful acquaintance.

## In the story

### [Gaudissart the Great](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/parisians_in_the_country_se/chapters/story-i-gaudissart-the-great)

The superior woman of Sancerre who outwits Gaudissart.

### [The Muse of the Department](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/parisians_in_the_country_se/chapters/story-ii-the-muse-of-the-department)

The central figure, a provincial woman of superior intellect and ambition, who marries the Baron de la Baudraye and becomes the muse of the department.

### [The Muse of the Department](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/parisians_in_the_country_se/chapters/the-muse-of-the-department)

Engages in a sophisticated dialogue with Lousteau, defending provincial women and critiquing Parisian influence.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/parisians_in_the_country_se/characters/dinah_de_la_baudraye
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/parisians_in_the_country_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/parisians_in_the_country_se/characters