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| Photo by Lee Hubert |
Hidden away in the 16th
arrondissement near the end of the rue Raynouard, there is a charming house
with faded green shutters in the middle of a garden. This perfect Passy hideaway was where the prolific writer
Honoré Balzac took refuge for seven years (under a pseudonym). In spite of his constant writing, he was
always in debt. In this house he could sequester himself away from the hustle
and bustle of central Paris … and escape his creditors through a back exit into
the provincial rue Berton!
Author of realist and
psychological novels in the first half of the 19th century, he is
especially known for his archetype characters like Rastignac, Father Goriot and
Vautrin. In Passy, he corrected
and finished The Human Comedy,
his attempt to describe the habits and morals of every level of society.
He described his work
day in a letter to the Countess Hanska: “Working means getting up at midnight
every evening, writing until eight o’clock, having lunch in a quarter of an
hour, working to five o’clock, having dinner, going to bed, and starting over
again the next day.” And all
the while he drank pots and pots of coffee which contributed to his early death
at just 51.
Balzac Reflections:
"The more one judges, the less one loves."
"Reading brings us unknown friends."
"Solitude is fine, but you need someone to tell you solitude is fine."
If you're
interested in seeing this house and other interesting places in the 16th, join Lee Hubert on Tuesday, October 18th at 10:30 for her Paris by
Arrondissement walk. For more information click here.