Cousin Bette (Cyclopedia of Literary Places)
At a glance:
- Author: Honoré Balzac
- First Published: 1846
- Type of Work: Novel
- Type of Plot: Social realism
- Time of Work: Early nineteenth century
- Genres: Long fiction, Bourgeois fiction
- Subjects: France or French people, Nineteenth century, Marriage, Paris, Pregnancy, Adultery, Death or dying, Revenge, Bankruptcy or financial crisis
- Locales: Paris, France
Places Discussed
*Paris. Political, social, and cultural center of France, even more so in the nineteenth century than in the twenty-first. Cousin Bette is set entirely in central Paris—indeed, the claustrophobic settings of the characters’ scheming change only to the extent that the characters visit one another or move from one dwelling to another. In the mid-nineteenth century, as in the twenty-first, Parisians’ social status was often indicated by the location of their homes. In Cousin Bette, a change in living quarters represents a character’s move,...
[The entire page is 953 words long]
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