Rabouilleuse

Rabouilleuse is a Romance written by Honore de Balzac in 1842. It belongs to the Scènes of the life of province of the Human Comedy . Initially partially published in the Press in 1840, frequently altered and entitled a household of boy , the work will appear under its final title: Rabouilleuse , with a text without corrections in the Furne edition of 1843.

Topic

The action is relatively spread out in time since that it begins in 1792 with the presentation from the father and grandfather of the main characters, Doctor Rouget living the town of Issoudun, and in 1830 finishes.

Doctor Rouget, malignant and tyrannical, knew to benefit from the French revolution to grow rich. He, moreover, married the elder one of the Descoings family, traders who grew rich thanks to the purchase by national goods, like many characters of the human Comedy (see Eugenie Grandet). With its death in 1805, it has a great fortune which it leaves in its near total with his son, Jean-Jacques, by disinheriting his Agathe daughter, emigrated in Paris.

This one married Bridau, civil servant just, honest, who dedicated his life with Napoleon. With died of her husband, Agathe only finds itself, with few resources to raise her two sons Philippe and Joseph. Its financial troubles will follow Napoleonean star.

Philippe, soldier in the heart, makes the happiness of his mother, while Joseph, the junior, future great painter, afflicts it. Alas, good with nothing out of the battle fields, Philippe will refuse to be used the Bourbons after the fall as Napoleon. A voyage to the the United States will return it violent one, drinker, liar and robber.

With most extremely from their money problems, they learn that their maternal uncle, Jean-Jacques, are under the influence of a young person and pretty country, Flore Brazier, collected by their father, and who calls himself Rabouilleuse (in regional French, a person which agitates and disorder water to frighten crayfish and to fish them more easily). Jean-Jacques not having children, Agathe and Joseph go to Issoudun to try to recover part of the fortune which is due for them. They will fail because of their naivety and their honesty and will flee Issoudun, Joseph having been marked wrongly attempted murder by the lover of Rabouilleuse.

Philippe, now scrambled with his mother, also tries his chance, with more success. He kills the lover of Flora and obliges his uncle to marry Rabouilleuse. His/her uncle dies quickly and Philippe marries Flore then. He kills it by wear and dependence with the Parisian defects. With the head of a considerable fortune after having been tramp, it succeeds in the world and changes name to give itself the title of count, without giving the least penny to save his sick mother. It cannot however anticipate the political changes and must leave in Algérie, where it is killed. The fortune of the Rouget father returns finally to Joseph, then recognized artist.

Rabouilleuse

Topic

Adaptations