"The Splendor and Misery of Courtesans" by Honoré de Balzac, summary Automatic translate

The novel "The Splendor and Misery of Courtesans," written between 1838 and 1847, is a socio-psychological drama with elements of adventure and detective fiction. Honoré de Balzac linked the high society of Restoration-era Paris with the criminal underworld. The book is a direct sequel to "Lost Illusions," concluding the tragic story of the young provincial poet Lucien de Rubempré.

The book is part of the epic "The Human Comedy," forming part of the sub-cycle "Scenes from Parisian Life." In 1975, French director Maurice Cazeneuve adapted the novel into a six-part television series of the same name, which meticulously recreated the events of the book.

The Masquerade Ball and Esther’s Secret Life

In 1824, the ambitious poet Lucien Chardon de Rubempré appears at the Opéra’s final masked ball. He behaves boldly toward his former enemies, the Comte du Châtelet and the Marquise d’Espard. Lucien is accompanied by a beautiful woman under a black mask. Journalists recognize the poet’s companion as the former courtesan Esther van Gobseck, nicknamed "Torpille." A stocky man in a domino costume constantly follows Lucien through the crowd. This is the escaped convict Jacques Collin, nicknamed "Death-Cheat." He escaped from prison, killed the Spanish priest Carlos Herrera, stole his documents, and became Lucien’s secret patron.

Several months earlier, Esther had attempted carbon monoxide poisoning in a squalid apartment on Rue Langlade, despairing of becoming a worthy lover for Lucien. Jacques Collin rescued the girl, placed her in a convent boarding school, and converted her to Catholicism. Collin later returned Esther to Lucien, confining her to the house on Rue Taitbout under the constant supervision of servants — Europe, Asia, and Paccard. Esther was allowed out only at night, concealing her face under a thick veil. Collin sought to elevate Lucien at any cost, marrying him to Clotilde de Grandlieu, the Duke’s daughter, and making him a diplomat.

The plot against Baron Nucingen

During a nighttime stroll in the Bois de Vincennes, the wealthy banker Baron de Nucingen accidentally spots Esther and falls madly in love with her. The banker spends large sums searching for the stranger, hiring private detectives Louchard, Contenson, and Pérade. Jacques Collin decides to enrich himself through this passion. He needs a million francs so Lucien can buy back the family estate of Rubempré and fulfill the Duc de Grandlieu’s conditions for their marriage.

Colline and Asie arrange a cunning deal. They convince Nucingen that Esther is being pursued by creditors due to the debts of her former lover, the swindler d’Estourny. The banker pays the fictitious bills, buys her a luxurious mansion on Rue Saint-Georges, and gifts her government bonds. Esther is forced to submit to Colline’s will for the sake of Lucien’s future. She accepts Nucingen’s advances, displaying coldness and extravagance.

The detectives’ struggle and Lucien’s exposure

Detectives Peyrade and Corentin uncover the mystery of Carlos Herrera. In response, Collin orders the kidnapping of Peyrade’s daughter, Lydia. Peyrade is poisoned during dinner at Madame du Val-Noble’s with a poison prepared by Asie. Before dying, Peyrade learns of Lydia’s rape, and the girl goes mad with grief. Corentin vows revenge on Collin and his ward.

Corentin travels to the province to visit Lucien’s sister, Eva Séchard. He discovers that the Séchard family has not provided Lucien with the money to purchase the Rubempré estate. The lawyer Derville relays this information to the Duke de Grandlieu. Lucien’s engagement to Clotilde falls apart, and the doors of the Grandlieu mansion are closed to the poet.

The tragedy on Rue Saint-Georges and the arrest

Esther categorically refuses to give herself to Nucingen. Having received securities from the banker for a rent of thirty thousand francs, she sells them through a broker. On the night after her housewarming party, May 13, 1830, Esther ingests a poisoned black berry. Only after her death is it discovered that she inherited seven million francs from her uncle, the moneylender Gobseck.

The servants, Europe and Paccard, steal seven hundred and fifty thousand francs in cash from under the dead woman’s pillow. Colline manages to forge a will for Esther in favor of Lucien. The police arrive to discover the poisoning and the missing money. On the roof of the mansion, Contenson attempts to seize Colline, but the convict throws the detective down. Suspicion for the theft and murder falls on Lucien. The poet is arrested in Fontainebleau, where he had gone to meet Clotilde. Colline is also taken into custody.

Interrogations at the Conciergerie and the death of the poet

Both defendants are transferred to the Conciergerie prison. The case is assigned to examining magistrate Camusot. During the initial interrogation, Jacques Collin steadfastly denies his guilt, posing as a Spanish priest. He claims Lucien is his illegitimate son.

Camusot easily breaks the weak-willed Lucien. The poet succumbs to the investigator’s tricks and confesses that Carlos Herrera is the escaped convict Jacques Collin. Lucien soon realizes the gravity of his betrayal. The Countess de Cérisy, who is in love with Lucien, enters the investigator’s office and burns the interrogation records. But the poet no longer sees a way out of his disgrace. In his cell, he writes a will, a letter retracting his confession, and hangs himself with his own tie.

Jacques Collin’s plea deal with the prosecutor’s office

Upon learning of Lucien’s death, Jacques Collin experiences profound despair. His ambitions are shattered, and his only purpose in life is revenge and the rescue of the young Corsican Théodore Calvi, sentenced to death for murder in Nanterre. At a meeting with Prosecutor General de Granville, Collin reveals his true identity and proposes a deal.

Collin holds incriminating letters from the Countess de Cérisy, the Duchess de Maufrigneuse, and Clotilde de Grandlieu. He promises to return these documents and save Madame de Cérisy’s sanity by showing her Lucien’s final farewell letter. Furthermore, Collin pledges to put the police on the trail of the real murderers from Nanterre and to return the four hundred and fifty thousand francs stolen from the Crottat house.

In exchange, Jacques Collin demands the abolition of the death penalty for Théodore Calvi and his appointment as chief of the secret police in place of Bibi-Lupin. The Attorney General agrees to these terms. Collin fulfills all his promises: he returns the letters, restores the Countess de Cérisy’s sanity, exposes the criminals, and delivers the money bequeathed by Lucien to Baron de Cérisy.

Jacques Collin attends Lucien’s funeral at Père Lachaise Cemetery, where the poet is buried next to Esther. Having been appointed chief of the secret police, Collin served in this post for nearly fifteen years, retiring around 1845.