Rare Books
Illusions perdues
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- Description
- Written between 1837 and 1843, Lost Illusions, the story of Lucien Chardon, a young poet from Angoulême who tries desperately to make a name for himself in Paris, is a brilliantly realistic and boldly satirical portrait of provincial manners and aristocratic life. Handsome and ambitious but naïve, Lucien is patronized by the beau monde as represented by Madame de Bargeton and her cousin, the formidable Marquise d'Espard, only to be duped by them. Denied the social rank he thought would be his, Lucien discards his poetic aspirations and turns to hack journalism; his descent into Parisian low life ultimately leads to his own death.
- Publication date
- 1892.
- Call number
- 644830
- Provenance
- Gift of Ann E. Hardham, John C. Hardham and Virginia B. Hardham, January 2012. From the library of Elizabeth von Arnim, later Countess Russell (1866-1941).
