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Available
Call number
Collection
Publication
Doubleday Anchor Books (1953), Paperback, 510 pages
Description
The Charterhouse of Parma (1839) is a compelling novel of passion and daring, of prisons and heroic escape, of political chicanery and sublime personal courage. Set at the beginning of the nineteenth century, amidst the golden landscapes of northern Italy, it traces the joyous but ill-starredamorous exploits of a handsome young aristocrat called Fabrice del Dongo, and of his incomparable aunt Gina, her suitor Prime Minister Mosca, and Clelia, a heroine of ethereal beauty and earthly passion.These characters are rendered unforgettable by Stendhal's remarkable gift for psychological insight. `Never before have the hearts of princes, ministers, courtiers, and women been depicted like this,' wrote Honore de Balzac. `Stendhal's tableau has the dimensions of a fresco but the precision ofthe Dutch masters.'The great achievement of The Charterhouse of Parma is to conjure up the excitement and romance of youth while never losing sight of the harsh realities which beset the pursuit of happiness, nor the humour and patient irony with which these must be viewed. This new translation captures Stendhal'snarrative verve, while the Introduction explores the novel's reception and the reasons for its enduring popularity and power.… (more)
User reviews
LibraryThing member gbill
“The Charterhouse of Parma” is not worth the effort it takes to read it. There aren’t many passages of great interest and the plot and style of the book frequently wanders. It needs editing. The only thing going for it occurs early; the description of some of the horrors of war is graphic and
Quotes:
On America:
“From all such matters, the moral can be drawn that the man who approaches a Court compromises his happiness, if he is happy, and in any case risks making his future depend on the intrigues of some chambermaid.
On the other hand, in America, in the Republic, one must waste a whole day in paying serious court to the shopkeepers in the streets, and must become as stupid as they are; and over there, no opera.”
On democracy:
“The love of liberty, the fashion and the cult of the happiness of the greatest number, by which the nineteenth century was so taken, was in the Prince’s eyes merely another heresy which would pass like the rest, but after having slain many souls, just as the plague while it reigns in any one region slays many bodies.”
On love:
“Among all the relationships chance has bestowed upon me at Novara or in Naples, have I ever met a woman whose presence, even in the first days, I preferred to a ride on a fine new horse? Is what the call love,” he added, “only one more lie? Doubtless I love the way I have a good appetite at six o’clock! And could it be this rather vulgar propensity which our liars have made into Othello’s jealousy and Tancred’s passion? Or must I assume I am constituted differently from other men?”
On the present day (which always seems to be at its worst regardless of when something was written):
“Unfortunately, a gentleman can become neither a physician nor a lawyer, and the age belongs to lawyers.”
On the transience of life, and enjoying life:
“The imagination is stirred by the distant sound of the bell in some little hamlet hidden under the trees: such sounds, borne over the waves that sweeten them, assume a tinge of gentle melancholy and resignation, they seem to be telling man: life is fleeting, do not be so hard on the happiness which offers itself to you, make haste to enjoy it!”
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probably ahead of its time in realism. Quotes:
On America:
“From all such matters, the moral can be drawn that the man who approaches a Court compromises his happiness, if he is happy, and in any case risks making his future depend on the intrigues of some chambermaid.
On the other hand, in America, in the Republic, one must waste a whole day in paying serious court to the shopkeepers in the streets, and must become as stupid as they are; and over there, no opera.”
On democracy:
“The love of liberty, the fashion and the cult of the happiness of the greatest number, by which the nineteenth century was so taken, was in the Prince’s eyes merely another heresy which would pass like the rest, but after having slain many souls, just as the plague while it reigns in any one region slays many bodies.”
On love:
“Among all the relationships chance has bestowed upon me at Novara or in Naples, have I ever met a woman whose presence, even in the first days, I preferred to a ride on a fine new horse? Is what the call love,” he added, “only one more lie? Doubtless I love the way I have a good appetite at six o’clock! And could it be this rather vulgar propensity which our liars have made into Othello’s jealousy and Tancred’s passion? Or must I assume I am constituted differently from other men?”
On the present day (which always seems to be at its worst regardless of when something was written):
“Unfortunately, a gentleman can become neither a physician nor a lawyer, and the age belongs to lawyers.”
On the transience of life, and enjoying life:
“The imagination is stirred by the distant sound of the bell in some little hamlet hidden under the trees: such sounds, borne over the waves that sweeten them, assume a tinge of gentle melancholy and resignation, they seem to be telling man: life is fleeting, do not be so hard on the happiness which offers itself to you, make haste to enjoy it!”
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LibraryThing member thorold
If you saw "Chartreuse de Parme" on a restaurant menu, you would probably wonder whether it was a liqueur, a cheese, or a dish with ham in it. As a novel, it seems almost as tricky to pin down. Like all great French 19th century novels it's about a young man on the make and the older woman who is
I think it is very much a writer's novel. There is some great material here, some passages (like the Waterloo chapters or the confrontation between Gina and the Prince) you will want to go back to over and over again, but there's also a lot of mess. You can see that it was a book written in a hurry: just like some of Scott's novels, there are passages where the pacing gets completely out of control, there are obvious afterthoughts, important characters who appear for the first time in the last twenty or thirty pages, and a scattering of minor inconsistencies and anachronisms in the text.
There is a tremendously French cynicism in Stendhal's world-view: the sympathetic characters are all amoral schemers of one sort or another, distinguished from the unsympathetic characters mainly in being less principled and more intelligent. No-one in this novel feels guilty for a moment about adultery or murder, and even less so about betraying family members, political principles, or the government they are members of. Even the innocent young romantic heroine is able to reconcile an adulterous relationship with her conscience by reasoning that she has merely promised not to see her lover (they only meet in the dark, so that's all right...).
A decade before 1848, Stendhal has no hesitation in telling us that absolutism and petty princes have had their day, but he doesn't hold out much hope for what will replace them. American republicanism is too dull for his taste, and the Italian liberals who appear in the story are either hypocrites or fools.
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hopelessly in love with him; it's also a picaresque 18th century story in which the plot is driven by incidents every bit as random as those in Tom Jones or Candide; it's a satirical description of Italian politics in a period when the country was run by wealthy men with huge egos and a complete contempt for proper legal process (no, not Berlusconi - this is the post-Waterloo era); and here and there it gives a stark, clear-sighted view of the cruelty and absurdity of the world that looks more like post-1918 than post-1815. It's hard to believe that Stendhal's description of Waterloo could have been written a century before Brecht's Mother Courage. I think it is very much a writer's novel. There is some great material here, some passages (like the Waterloo chapters or the confrontation between Gina and the Prince) you will want to go back to over and over again, but there's also a lot of mess. You can see that it was a book written in a hurry: just like some of Scott's novels, there are passages where the pacing gets completely out of control, there are obvious afterthoughts, important characters who appear for the first time in the last twenty or thirty pages, and a scattering of minor inconsistencies and anachronisms in the text.
There is a tremendously French cynicism in Stendhal's world-view: the sympathetic characters are all amoral schemers of one sort or another, distinguished from the unsympathetic characters mainly in being less principled and more intelligent. No-one in this novel feels guilty for a moment about adultery or murder, and even less so about betraying family members, political principles, or the government they are members of. Even the innocent young romantic heroine is able to reconcile an adulterous relationship with her conscience by reasoning that she has merely promised not to see her lover (they only meet in the dark, so that's all right...).
A decade before 1848, Stendhal has no hesitation in telling us that absolutism and petty princes have had their day, but he doesn't hold out much hope for what will replace them. American republicanism is too dull for his taste, and the Italian liberals who appear in the story are either hypocrites or fools.
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LibraryThing member HadriantheBlind
A fun and enjoyable read. Burned through this quite easily. Swordfights, duels, prisoner escapes. Not quite as masterly as The Red and the Black but still fun. Straddles the line somewhere between Romanticism and Realism, with its character depictions as well as the imagery.
LibraryThing member P_S_Patrick
This is the sort of story to get lost in for hours, it certainly provided me with a few long afternoons of pleasant reading. There is plenty in the plot to interest most people: romance, intrigue, battle, politics, and various other things, though there is a chance that a reader would find one or
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more of these things boring, and hence enjoy the book less for its presence. I didn't find this book boring though, and was thoroughly entertained by it. I haven't read any Stendhal before, but I believe his "The Red and The Black" is generally thought the better novel, and I will be adding that to the end of my long list of books to read in the future. Though the author was French, the story takes place mainly in Italy, with most of the characters being Italian. The French connection does exist with Napoleon and the Battle of Waterloo featuring to some degree, though apart from that this is an Italian a novel as any other I have read. The one major flaw this book has in my view is its ending, not only does it come on very quickly, but it also is sad and does not really resolve things satisfactorily. If it wasn't for this I would give it four and a half stars, as it is it is going to have to receive only four. This translation was by C. K. Scott Moncrieff. Show Less
LibraryThing member DRFP
"The Red and The Black" is a better novel, I feel, with more depth of character than this one ever achieved. Yet TR&TB was marred by its incredibly rushed ending. CoP is much more consistent, and Stendhal writes with a liveliness and lightness which contrasts to most other authors of this era. At
The story ebbs and flows. The beginning, with Fabrizio running off to fight at Waterloo, is excellent; but then there are passages where the story grinds to a halt, such as during Fabrizio's imprisonment.
As a whole, a decent novel and an enjoyable one, but I can't help shake the feeling that it's a bit lightweight.
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least both books feature Stendhal's wonderful sarcastic wit (something that was surely ahead of its time?).The story ebbs and flows. The beginning, with Fabrizio running off to fight at Waterloo, is excellent; but then there are passages where the story grinds to a halt, such as during Fabrizio's imprisonment.
As a whole, a decent novel and an enjoyable one, but I can't help shake the feeling that it's a bit lightweight.
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LibraryThing member rmckeown
After a long hiatus, involving a 3600-mile road trip wrapped around a week grading the AP English Literature exams, which left me little time for reading, I am back.
Stendahl’s The Red and the Black has long been one of my favorite 19th century novels. How I had not read The Charterhouse of Parma
At first, I felt some confusion over titles. Some were in French, some in Italian, and some in English. Only once did Stendahl explain names and relationships, and then refer only to these characters by their titles. About half way through, I began to become accustomed to this habit, and I sailed through the rest of this 500+ page story.
The notes in the preface tell us that Stendahl wrote this novel in an amazing 53 days. He kept a journal of his progress, noting each day how many pages he had written. The story has a certain level of complication, but no careful reader will fall of the sled more than a time or two.
Another thing that puzzled me involved money. Francs, livrés, écus, and sequins were flying all over the place – sometimes in the same sentence – and I could not grasp the relative values of these denominations. A trip to my faithful friend an companion, the dictionary, did not help, since it only offered dates, precious metals, and countries that had issued these coins.
Nevertheless, the 19th century represents my old comfortable chair that I return to again and again. It gets more comfortable with each visit. The ending came as a pretty nice surprise, even though Stendahl did tie up all the loose ends in about 16 pages. 4-1/2 stars.
--Jim, 6/20/09
Stendahl’s The Red and the Black has long been one of my favorite 19th century novels. How I had not read The Charterhouse of Parma
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in all these years remains a mystery with no further need of resolving. This novel is another masterpiece by Marie Henri Beyle who wrote under the pen name of Stendahl. This novel bears some resemblance of plot to The R & B. The main character, Fabrizio first tries the military (red), but later settles on the clergy (black), although the results in both cases are dramatically different.At first, I felt some confusion over titles. Some were in French, some in Italian, and some in English. Only once did Stendahl explain names and relationships, and then refer only to these characters by their titles. About half way through, I began to become accustomed to this habit, and I sailed through the rest of this 500+ page story.
The notes in the preface tell us that Stendahl wrote this novel in an amazing 53 days. He kept a journal of his progress, noting each day how many pages he had written. The story has a certain level of complication, but no careful reader will fall of the sled more than a time or two.
Another thing that puzzled me involved money. Francs, livrés, écus, and sequins were flying all over the place – sometimes in the same sentence – and I could not grasp the relative values of these denominations. A trip to my faithful friend an companion, the dictionary, did not help, since it only offered dates, precious metals, and countries that had issued these coins.
Nevertheless, the 19th century represents my old comfortable chair that I return to again and again. It gets more comfortable with each visit. The ending came as a pretty nice surprise, even though Stendahl did tie up all the loose ends in about 16 pages. 4-1/2 stars.
--Jim, 6/20/09
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LibraryThing member Steven_VI
I spent four months reading this rather long work (637 pages in my translated edition), mostly because I found it very hard to digest and needed to read other books in between for a balanced diet. The Charterhouse of Parma tells the story of a young Italian nobleman, Fabrice del Dongo, and his aunt
The book could be classified under different genres: love story, Bildungsroman, political satire, adventure. What keeps the story going is mainly the utter naivity of Fabrice. In the first pages he tries to join Napoleons army but almost fails to participate in the fatal battle of Waterloo. After that his main concern is finding out if, in the eyes of the world, he did participate. The book is filled with plotting and scheming characters, but although Fabrice also learns how to have his way he remains utterly simple. In a certain way, Fabrice is a brother of Hašeks good soldier Svejk.
Another remarkable aspect of the book is the style. Stendhal didn't write the book himself, he dictated it to assistants while he was making up the story, giving a sometimes confused but often very lively presentation, comparable to Laurence Sterne and, again, Jaroslav Hašek. There seems to have been very little editing: occasionally there are repetitions, as if Stendhal is trying to remember where the story stood, there are a lot of loose ends, and in the last few chapters digressions are cut off (ostensively so as not to bore the reader) with even a complete three year gap followed by an extremely, almost undecently fast ending.
Even though I finished it, I didn't really like The Charterhouse of Parma. The wandering style, so brilliantly used by Sterne, loses its charm after a few hundred pages. The characters, though sometimes brilliantly painted with a single stroke, remain one-dimensional and their emotions all too theatrical for a modern reader -- a problem I also had with Stendhals other classic, The Red and the Black. Still, from time to time there are small literary gems that almost make it worth the effort. Almost.
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Gina, duchess of Sanseverina.The book could be classified under different genres: love story, Bildungsroman, political satire, adventure. What keeps the story going is mainly the utter naivity of Fabrice. In the first pages he tries to join Napoleons army but almost fails to participate in the fatal battle of Waterloo. After that his main concern is finding out if, in the eyes of the world, he did participate. The book is filled with plotting and scheming characters, but although Fabrice also learns how to have his way he remains utterly simple. In a certain way, Fabrice is a brother of Hašeks good soldier Svejk.
Another remarkable aspect of the book is the style. Stendhal didn't write the book himself, he dictated it to assistants while he was making up the story, giving a sometimes confused but often very lively presentation, comparable to Laurence Sterne and, again, Jaroslav Hašek. There seems to have been very little editing: occasionally there are repetitions, as if Stendhal is trying to remember where the story stood, there are a lot of loose ends, and in the last few chapters digressions are cut off (ostensively so as not to bore the reader) with even a complete three year gap followed by an extremely, almost undecently fast ending.
Even though I finished it, I didn't really like The Charterhouse of Parma. The wandering style, so brilliantly used by Sterne, loses its charm after a few hundred pages. The characters, though sometimes brilliantly painted with a single stroke, remain one-dimensional and their emotions all too theatrical for a modern reader -- a problem I also had with Stendhals other classic, The Red and the Black. Still, from time to time there are small literary gems that almost make it worth the effort. Almost.
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LibraryThing member ErnestHemingway
“…civil war is the best war for a writer, the most complete. Stendhal had seen a war and Napoleon taught him to write. He was teaching everybody then; but no one else learned.”
Green Hills of Africa, pg. 71
"Until I read the Chartreuse de Parme by Stendhal I had never read of war as it was
A Moveable Feast, pg. 133-134
"Stendhal was a great writer with one good book-- Le Rouge et le Noir-- some fine parts of La Chartreuse de Parme (wonderful) but much of it tripe and the rest junk."
Letter to Paul Romaine, 1932
Selected Letters, pg. 366
Green Hills of Africa, pg. 71
"Until I read the Chartreuse de Parme by Stendhal I had never read of war as it was
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except in Tolstoi, and the wonderful Waterloo account by Stendhal was an accidental piece in a book that had much dullness. To have come on all this new world of writing, was tim to read in a city like Paris... was like having a great treasure give to you." A Moveable Feast, pg. 133-134
"Stendhal was a great writer with one good book-- Le Rouge et le Noir-- some fine parts of La Chartreuse de Parme (wonderful) but much of it tripe and the rest junk."
Letter to Paul Romaine, 1932
Selected Letters, pg. 366
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LibraryThing member wrk1
One of the best books I've read. Politics, action, humanism vs.conservatism, passion vs. lack of passion, lovers, rivals, extreme wealth and the values of aristocracy, all the characters with both good and bad actions and ways of thinking. Set in the autocratic monarchy of Parma in Italy between
A fascinating exploration of what motivates people and how they act. The plot is held together by the stories of a brilliant, activist Duchess and her impetuous nephew, but includes many main characters. The author doesn't lead us to sympathize with any of them or choose one to root for--all pay the psychological price for their choices.
Early in the book, the plot turns to a long episode where the Fabrizio, the nephew, goes to France, hoping to fight for his hero, Napolean, who had earlier brought a short period of liberation from the autocracy, the Church, and Austrian influence. On his way, Fabrizio stumbles upon the battle at Waterloo. Stendhal's description of the confusion felt by an individual soldier during a battle is at least as good as Tolstoy's description of the Battle of Borodino in "War and Peace".
Amazing writing.
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1815 and 1830. A fascinating exploration of what motivates people and how they act. The plot is held together by the stories of a brilliant, activist Duchess and her impetuous nephew, but includes many main characters. The author doesn't lead us to sympathize with any of them or choose one to root for--all pay the psychological price for their choices.
Early in the book, the plot turns to a long episode where the Fabrizio, the nephew, goes to France, hoping to fight for his hero, Napolean, who had earlier brought a short period of liberation from the autocracy, the Church, and Austrian influence. On his way, Fabrizio stumbles upon the battle at Waterloo. Stendhal's description of the confusion felt by an individual soldier during a battle is at least as good as Tolstoy's description of the Battle of Borodino in "War and Peace".
Amazing writing.
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LibraryThing member nosajeel
I started The Charterhouse of Parma about fifteen years ago and didn't get through the first chapter. This time I made it through that chapter which was still tough, through the next couple of chapters were perfectly readable but relatively compelling, but when about one-sixth of the way into the
The politics are one part Machiavelli, but with the Prince occasionally restrained with the worry about how he will be depicted in the Paris newspapers. And the love triangle is borderline absurd, but it is compelling and moving nonetheless.
The essence of Stendhal's attitude in writing the book is best captured by this relatively rare piece of narrative commentary:
"But the reader may be somewhat weary of all these procedural details, no less than of all these court intrigues. From which one may draw this moral: that the man who comes near a court compromises his happiness, if he is happy, and in every case, makes his future depend on the intrigues of a chambermaid. On the other hand, in a republic like America you have to suffer the tedium of fawning upon the common shopkeepers all day long and becoming as stupid as they are; and over there, thereês no opera."
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book Gina del Dongo (later Countess Pietrnera, then Duchess Sanseverina for the bulk of the book) comes into her own, Count Mosca is introduced, and the focus shifts to the Principality of Parma, the book really takes off. It becomes a combination of intrigue in the court of a petty despot, romance, adventure, and love story--all strung together with ironic detachment by a narrator who does not seem to have even decided who is the main character or what type of story he is telling. As such, it reads almost like a realistic and compiled chronicle of a period in Parma.The politics are one part Machiavelli, but with the Prince occasionally restrained with the worry about how he will be depicted in the Paris newspapers. And the love triangle is borderline absurd, but it is compelling and moving nonetheless.
The essence of Stendhal's attitude in writing the book is best captured by this relatively rare piece of narrative commentary:
"But the reader may be somewhat weary of all these procedural details, no less than of all these court intrigues. From which one may draw this moral: that the man who comes near a court compromises his happiness, if he is happy, and in every case, makes his future depend on the intrigues of a chambermaid. On the other hand, in a republic like America you have to suffer the tedium of fawning upon the common shopkeepers all day long and becoming as stupid as they are; and over there, thereês no opera."
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LibraryThing member jasonlf
I started The Charterhouse of Parma about fifteen years ago and didn't get through the first chapter. This time I made it through that chapter which was still tough, through the next couple of chapters were perfectly readable but relatively compelling, but when about one-sixth of the way into the
The politics are one part Machiavelli, but with the Prince occasionally restrained with the worry about how he will be depicted in the Paris newspapers. And the love triangle is borderline absurd, but it is compelling and moving nonetheless.
The essence of Stendhal's attitude in writing the book is best captured by this relatively rare piece of narrative commentary:
"But the reader may be somewhat weary of all these procedural details, no less than of all these court intrigues. From which one may draw this moral: that the man who comes near a court compromises his happiness, if he is happy, and in every case, makes his future depend on the intrigues of a chambermaid. On the other hand, in a republic like America you have to suffer the tedium of fawning upon the common shopkeepers all day long and becoming as stupid as they are; and over there, there’s no opera."
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book Gina del Dongo (later Countess Pietrnera, then Duchess Sanseverina for the bulk of the book) comes into her own, Count Mosca is introduced, and the focus shifts to the Principality of Parma, the book really takes off. It becomes a combination of intrigue in the court of a petty despot, romance, adventure, and love story--all strung together with ironic detachment by a narrator who does not seem to have even decided who is the main character or what type of story he is telling. As such, it reads almost like a realistic and compiled chronicle of a period in Parma.The politics are one part Machiavelli, but with the Prince occasionally restrained with the worry about how he will be depicted in the Paris newspapers. And the love triangle is borderline absurd, but it is compelling and moving nonetheless.
The essence of Stendhal's attitude in writing the book is best captured by this relatively rare piece of narrative commentary:
"But the reader may be somewhat weary of all these procedural details, no less than of all these court intrigues. From which one may draw this moral: that the man who comes near a court compromises his happiness, if he is happy, and in every case, makes his future depend on the intrigues of a chambermaid. On the other hand, in a republic like America you have to suffer the tedium of fawning upon the common shopkeepers all day long and becoming as stupid as they are; and over there, there’s no opera."
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LibraryThing member JuliaEllen
A very interesting realistic novel. However, it can become a bit difficult to follow since the author has the tendency to refer to characters by title rather than name, and some names change several times (example: Gina del Dongo, Gina Pietranera, Gina Sanseverina, Gina Mosca).
LibraryThing member hbergander
Solid French Novel of the 19th Century, which will enchant those readers who are accustomed to begin with the end of a story. The last sentence is: "To the Happy Few". Did you know, that the inventor of this winged word lived at the other side of the channel?
LibraryThing member bookwoman247
This book is about the adventures and loves of Fabrice del Dongo, the younger son of an Italian count.
Swashbuckling, romance, adventure and humor made for a fun read!
It was also quite an indictment of the Italian political system in the first half of the 19th Century.
I enjoyed this, not only for
Swashbuckling, romance, adventure and humor made for a fun read!
It was also quite an indictment of the Italian political system in the first half of the 19th Century.
I enjoyed this, not only for
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the fun aspects, but for the historical perspective, as well. Show Less
LibraryThing member charlie68
Good in places, drags in others. The first half of the book is better than the last half. Still worth reading.
LibraryThing member JVioland
An idealistic seventeen-year-old Italian leaves Lake Como to join Napoleon in the latter's One Hundred Days, fights at Waterloo, returns home where his aunt's ambitions promote him to take up the Roman collar... The rest reads like a soap opera. The one redeeming virtue of this novel is the
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depiction of battle. Show Less
LibraryThing member Kristelh
This book written in the 19th century captures the intrigues and politics of the court and life of the aristocracy. The main character is a young man who is rather impulsive, running off to fight with Nepoleon without considering the decision, falling in love with every pretty girl he sees. The
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Duchess is his protector and also loves him though never consummates that love but also jealous of his various love affairs. This book, written by a French author about Italians. A little too long. The middle part could have been shortened as it seemed way to repetitive. It is considered a work of realism. It is a romance. Show Less
LibraryThing member amerynth
I found Stendhal's "The Charterhouse of Parma" to be quite a brutal read. It was long and winding and not terribly interesting to me. I liked Stendhal's "The Red and the Black a lot better than this one, (but that's not saying much, because I didn't particularly like that book either.)
The book
The book
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tells the story of Fabrizio del Dongo, an Italian who gets into hot water after going to fight for Napoleon. He becomes a priest, falls in love with an unavailable girl. The book mostly felt weighted down by court politics. Show Less
LibraryThing member dairylea
My very brief review: Great in places but a bit rambling. Not as good as 'The Red and the Black' in my opinion. Disappointing.
LibraryThing member jonfaith
Read in Morocco, particularly along the Atlantic Coast, I found Fabrice's childish worldview refreshing, almost an antipode to Julien Sorel.
LibraryThing member colligan
Having enjoyed Stendahl's "The Red and the Black", I thought I would try "The Charterhouse of Parma". To me, not in the same league with "The R & B". Well written but not an engaging psychological portrait just a seemingly endless tale of political, romantic, and aristocratic interludes/intrigues.
Readable but, in my mind, not a classic read. Just my ill-informed opinion.
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In the end, the lengthy tale is wrapped up with a hasty and artificial conclusion. Readable but, in my mind, not a classic read. Just my ill-informed opinion.
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LibraryThing member Gypsy_Boy
I guess my biggest takeaway was that I enjoyed The Red and the Black more. The story just never quite engaged me. It takes place at the beginning of the 19th-century in northern Italy and follows a young aristocrat named Fabrice/Fabrizio del Dongo whose political career is nurtured by his aunt/love
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interest and her husband. The political allegiances of different parts of Italy at the time were confusing enough that I had to consult outside sources several times and my translation (by Richard Howard) seemed somehow “not quite right” from time to time, though mostly quite fluid and easy to read. It didn’t help that I didn’t find our protagonist particularly sympathetic or even likeable. (Interestingly enough, I found the protagonist in The Red and the Black also unlikeable but I thought that that book was much better done and much more believable.) Mostly, I just got tired of the “adventures” and what seemed to me to be Stendhal’s too-obvious techniques for delaying the resolution of the problem of the moment. It read a little bit like a bad Errol Flynn movie. Stendhal wrote it in 52 days they say, and while that could be seen as a great achievement, it could also account for some of the problems. Glad I read it, don’t know that I’d particularly recommend it. Show Less
Subjects
Awards
Language
Original language
French
Original publication date
1839
ISBN
none