Honoré de Balzac, Illusions perdues [Lost Illusions]

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Relatively few works by Balzac can bear comparison with

Illusions perdues

[

Lost Illusions

] for its overall scope and chronological span, or for its range of themes, characters and stylistic registers. This blockbuster of a story is, in effect, a trilogy of novels that were first written separately (

Illusions perdues

, 1837;

Un Grand home de province à Paris

, 1839;

Eve et David

, 1843). They were then brought together and reworked into a single text in three parts, under the title

Illusions perdues

, for the collective edition of Balzac's works in 1843 that was to be entitled

La Comédie humaine

[

The Human Comedy

]. The result is a panoramic narrative spanning the years from the Terror through to the early 1840s, and giving insights into a broad range of social and historical issues that…

2248 words

Citation: Unwin, Tim. "Illusions perdues". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 17 November 2006 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=4537, accessed 19 March 2024.]

4537 Illusions perdues 3 Historical context notes are intended to give basic and preliminary information on a topic. In some cases they will be expanded into longer entries as the Literary Encyclopedia evolves.

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