“My heart is big enough to hold all your troubles.”
Thus speaks Old Goriot, un père extraordinaire. No amount of money is too small for his daughters; no sacrifice is too great. This vermicelli maker has worked hard to amass enough money to marry his daughters well. But, surely it is a fool who thinks that money can offer either satisfaction or security.
His two daughters, Delphine and Anastasie, have each married vile men who forbid them to see their father. He’s good enough to provide them money, of course, but not good enough to come to their homes. And so Goriot lives in a lodging-house of the most modest nature, in a room with wallpaper peeling from the damp.
One of seven lodgers at Maison Vauquer is Eugène Rastignac, who has come to Paris at the great financial sacrifice of his family in the country. Eugène is supposedly a law student in Paris, but he is a much more serious student of Paris’ society in the early 1800s than he is of law. By the end of the novel, his education is almost complete.
Throughout his novel, Balzac brings us to the awareness of the emptiness of riches, and the pain of love’s deceit. As Old Goriot lies dying, having given everything he has for his daughters’ luxuries, he asks Eugène, “Did you see my girls? They’re coming here directly, they will rush here as soon as they know that I am ill; they always took such good care of me in the Rue de la Jussienne!” He lives a life of hope which is at first admirable, but by the end of the novel has become pitiable.
There are other relationships depicted in this book, dalliances and affairs, but none are as significant to me as that of Father Goriot and his daughters. It is a heart wrenching read, so well summarized by this sentiment from Eugène near its conclusion:
There is a God! Oh! yes, there is a God! and he has made a better world for us, or this earth is blank and meaningless.
He knows that there is no fulfillment to be found in Paris, in a world which he had once wished to gain. Now he faces Society, with the words, “It’s war between us now!” I am comforted that he, at least, has learned this after the death of Old Goriot.
(Find links to other posts for Paris in July, hosted by Emma at Words and Peace, here.)
Rastignac makes many appearances in Balzac's subsequent books, often just cameos. So you get to see see how his fight with Paris progresses.
ReplyDeleteI can’t tell you how much I have enjoyed Balzac’s writing. Again. So much more than Emile Zola’s The Belly of Paris which I began last night, and set aside because I couldn’t
Deleteread one more description of the food stalls….maybe I’ll pick it up again, but maybe I’ll return to Balzac. I’m
encouraged to hear Rastignac appears again.
SO interesting to hear Balzac's writing is more readable that Zola's.. I've been trying Zola for a few years now, and haven't yet finish one. Perhaps I'll put Balzac on my list.
DeleteI liked Zola’s novel, Nana, which I read years and years ago, but I just could not find interest in The Belly of Paris. Maybe it’s because I tried it right after Balzac? Sometimes it’s hard to enjoy an author after reading something which strikes you deeply…or, maybe we just like Balzac better.😉
DeleteOh, that quote by the dying Goriot is a tear-jerker on its own, so I can imagine that the whole thing is quite heart-wrenching. It sounds quite beautiful, though. I didn't know about this one but want to give it a try now.
ReplyDeleteAndrew, there are far more quotes as piercing, or more so, than the ones I included here. I’m touched that you were struck.by them as I was, I can’t recommend this book
Deleteenough. (Also, if this matters, it is not long at around 300 pages.)
I read Old Man Goriot for a literature course and really loved it. I have also read a trilogy (I think) of his: The Duchesse of Langeais: Ferragus, chef des Dévorants, and The Girl With the Golden Eyes which I also loved.
ReplyDeleteI visited Balzac's home in Paris when I was there last year. A beautiful setting. I wrote about it here: https://substack.com/home/post/p-165374752
Thanks for sharing Balzac on these early days in #parisinjuly2026! That's awesome. I read this a few decades ago, and really enjoyed Balzac.
ReplyDeleteMy favorites by him are The Lily of the Valley and The Wild Ass's Skin, but again, that was a long time ago. I really want to revisit Balzac for sure.