Public reader discussion about Father Goriot in the WeRead Catalog by Honoré de Balzac.
By keywatches
He totally gives me the vibe of some Matt Berry ancestor. Like, the way he acts feels pretty spot-on for a Berry character. Especially if he’d spent the rest of the day hanging around the local whorehouse. Edit: Also, the name is *very* Toast of London.
By blue-field5
My first Balzac, and kind of wild to start with one by such a super prolific writer. I grabbed this because it’s on the Centaur 100 Greatest list. Only thing is, I don’t really have anything else from him to compare it to, even though it seems like he wrote more than one book about society and Paris. This one feels like a pretty rough take on Paris back then. The wealthier guys come off as mean in a way, and the women are portrayed as weak and pushed around. Like, the “better” people seem to be the working classes, even if there are some idiots mixed in there too. But honestly, it feels like wanting money and chasing fashion and status causes problems for just about anyone. It’s hard not to get the sense Balzac really knew what he was talking about, and he probably wasn’t too impressed with high society. Even if some of it’s exaggerated, he’s still a great writer, so I guess you didn’t need me to say that.
By bronze-eagle
I’m 21 and I’ve never been one of those people who naturally gets into reading. When I was in school I just couldn’t really “get it” and honestly I thought books were basically something you do if you’re in trouble, or the opposite of fun time—like, whatever they call it. I feel like that stuck with me through my teens and kind of still is true now. The only time I actually enjoyed it was in class when everyone had a book and someone would read out loud, but you’d still be following along too. I’m just not into audiobooks at all. Lately though I do feel like I should be reading more, and I actually want to. I’ve got the Game of Thrones boxset (A Song of Fire and Ice) and I’m just starting it now that season 3’s finished. My plan is to read the first three seasons in book form so I can see how different they are, and if I end up getting really into them I might accidentally spoil the show for myself… maybe. The main thing that makes me feel overwhelmed is that I haven’t read much before, so there are just SO many books. I went into a couple bookshops the other day, wandered around, and I just looked totally clueless, like I had no clue what I was supposed to be looking for. I really don’t know where to even start picking stuff. I’m hoping once I actually start reading more I’ll figure out what I like—authors, genres, all that—and it’ll get easier. Which brings me to my actual question: what are the books that everyone should have read? The whole “this is one of those classics you’ve gotta read before you die” type lists. I’ve got a few in mind already—1984, Fahrenheit 451, The Hobbit (I haven’t seen the movie and I don’t plan to until I’ve read it), and some football/soccer books. I’m just not sure if those match what people mean by “must read classics,” though. Also, I own a Kindle, and it’s great for deals and stuff, but I still prefer holding a real book. It just feels better. Any recommendations? :) Also please no horror—I'm really not good with scary stuff and I get scared too easily. Zombies or aliens are fine, though.
By oliveticket5917
Just finished Balzac’s *Père Goriot*, and I’m kinda curious what people think about Vautrin. I can’t really decide how I feel about him, and it doesn’t help that he shows up again in *La Comédie humaine*—so far I’ve only read this one and *Eugénie Grandet*, and I don’t feel like I know his whole deal yet. My lit professor said Vautrin and Mme de Beauséant are the only “self-aware” characters, like they understand Parisian society really well and don’t have those kind of naïve ideas about how things work. I get why that seems true, but I’m not fully convinced. Does anyone have a different take, or any pushback on that?
By doglake
In my hometown (Chihuahua, Mexico) I never really see books in French, but I’m going to be studying in Toulouse this semester, so I can finally grab some. I already picked up La peste by Camus and La nausée by Sartre, and a friend recommended I try Marc-Edouard Nabe for something more modern. So yeah—what are your favorite French books? Any suggestions are welcome :)
By DawnBookworm2
So I just finished Balzac’s *Père Goriot*, and I’m kind of curious what people think about Vautrin. I can’t really decide how I feel about him, mostly because he keeps showing up in *La Comédie humaine* and so far I’ve only read *Goriot* and *Eugénie Grandet*—so my sense of his whole deal is still pretty limited. That said, my literature professor’s take was that Vautrin and Mme de Beauséant are the two “self-aware” characters in the book, like they see Parisian society clearly and don’t fall for the usual fantasies. I mostly get why, but I’m not totally sold. Does anyone have a different interpretation, or any counterpoints, or just thoughts in general?
By shadow_mole1996
I’m kind of in a Henry Miller mood lately, and it feels like he keeps bringing up Balzac in basically everything. I’d like to try getting into him—does anyone have recommendations? And are there any writers that are kinda similar that I should look at too? Also, what’s the big deal with Balzac? His name pops up a lot in other books too, like in Poetics of Space, so I’m guessing there’s something I’m missing.
By Starlight_Mist
I’m Canadian, and our school had us read a bunch of classics—like 1984, Night, Macbeth, Hamlet, Much Ado About Nothing, Othello, Doctor Faustus, Oedipus Rex, Beowulf, Things Fall Apart, The Wars, Brave New World, Man of La Mancha, Romeo and Juliet, Heart of Darkness, To Kill a Mockingbird, The Alchemist, and A Doll’s House. It’s got me curious what “required reading” lists look like in other countries—do they line up with ours or totally change?
By SilentPlanetPanda52
His whole body of work feels kind of complicated, but he’s still influenced a ton of people—just curious if anyone here has actually read anything by him?