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The Devil's Heir
25 pages, Kindle Edition
Published May 3, 2009
7 people want to read
About the author
Honoré de Balzac
9,590 books4,411 followersFrench writer Honoré de Balzac (born Honoré Balzac), a founder of the realist school of fiction, portrayed the panorama of society in a body of works, known collectively as
La comédie humaine
.
Honoré de Balzac authored 19th-century novels and plays. After the fall of Napoléon in 1815, his magnum opus, a sequence of almost a hundred novels and plays, entitled, presents life in the years.
Due to keen observation of fine detail and unfiltered representation, European literature regards Balzac. He features renowned multifaceted, even complex, morally ambiguous, full lesser characters. Character well imbues inanimate objects; the city of Paris, a backdrop, takes on many qualities. He influenced many famous authors, including the novelists Marcel Proust, Émile Zola, Charles John Huffam Dickens, Gustave Flaubert, Henry James, and Jack Kerouac as well as important philosophers, such as Friedrich Engels. Many works of Balzac, made into films, continue to inspire.
An enthusiastic reader and independent thinker as a child, Balzac adapted with trouble to the teaching style of his grammar. His willful nature caused trouble throughout his life and frustrated his ambitions to succeed in the world of business. Balzac finished, and people then apprenticed him as a legal clerk, but after wearying of banal routine, he turned his back on law. He attempted a publisher, printer, businessman, critic, and politician before and during his career. He failed in these efforts From his own experience, he reflects life difficulties and includes scenes.
Possibly due to his intense schedule and from health problems, Balzac suffered throughout his life. Financial and personal drama often strained his relationship with his family, and he lost more than one friend over critical reviews. In 1850, he married Ewelina Hańska, his longtime paramour; five months later, he passed away.
Honoré de Balzac authored 19th-century novels and plays. After the fall of Napoléon in 1815, his magnum opus, a sequence of almost a hundred novels and plays, entitled, presents life in the years.
Due to keen observation of fine detail and unfiltered representation, European literature regards Balzac. He features renowned multifaceted, even complex, morally ambiguous, full lesser characters. Character well imbues inanimate objects; the city of Paris, a backdrop, takes on many qualities. He influenced many famous authors, including the novelists Marcel Proust, Émile Zola, Charles John Huffam Dickens, Gustave Flaubert, Henry James, and Jack Kerouac as well as important philosophers, such as Friedrich Engels. Many works of Balzac, made into films, continue to inspire.
An enthusiastic reader and independent thinker as a child, Balzac adapted with trouble to the teaching style of his grammar. His willful nature caused trouble throughout his life and frustrated his ambitions to succeed in the world of business. Balzac finished, and people then apprenticed him as a legal clerk, but after wearying of banal routine, he turned his back on law. He attempted a publisher, printer, businessman, critic, and politician before and during his career. He failed in these efforts From his own experience, he reflects life difficulties and includes scenes.
Possibly due to his intense schedule and from health problems, Balzac suffered throughout his life. Financial and personal drama often strained his relationship with his family, and he lost more than one friend over critical reviews. In 1850, he married Ewelina Hańska, his longtime paramour; five months later, he passed away.
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
August 12, 2022
Balzac's "The Devil's Heir" is another short Droll story about greed among heirs and what length they will go to better their lot. Again in these Droll stories the religious are not so upright and the devil at an arm's length.
Story in short- The canon has three heirs but two are looking to get rid of their stupid peasant cousin.
➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖
Highlight (Yellow) | Location 200894
THERE ONCE WAS a good old canon of Notre Dame de Paris, who lived in a fine house of his own, near St. Pierre-aux-Boeufs, in the Parvis. This canon had come a simple priest to Paris, naked as a dagger without its sheath. But since he was found to be a handsome man, well furnished with everything, and so well constituted, that if necessary he was able to do the work of many, without
Highlight (Yellow) | Location 200898
doing himself much harm, he gave himself up earnestly to the confessing of ladies, giving to the melancholy a gentle absolution, to the sick a drachm of his balm, to all some little dainty. He was so well known for his discretion, his benevolence, and other ecclesiastical qualities, that he had customers at Court. Then in order not to awaken the jealousy of the officials, that of the husbands and others, in short, to endow with sanctity these good and profitable practices, the Lady Desquerdes gave him a bone of St. Victor, by virtue of
Highlight (Yellow) | Location 200901
which all the miracles were performed. And to the curious it was said, “He has a bone which will cure everything;” and to this, no one found anything to reply, because it was not seemly to suspect relics.
Highlight (Yellow) | Location 200907
Of all the benefices offered to him, he chose only a simple canon’s stall to keep the good profits of the confessional. But one day the courageous canon found himself weak in the back, seeing
Highlight (Yellow) | Location 200909
that he was all sixty-eight years old, and had held many confessionals. Then thinking over all his good works, he thought it about time to cease his apostolic labours, the more so, as he possessed about one hundred thousand crowns earned by the sweat of his body. From that day he only confessed ladies of high lineage, and did it very well. So that it was said at Court that in spite of the efforts of the best young clerks there was still no one but the Canon of St. Pierre-aux-Boeufs to properly bleach the soul of a lady of condition.
Highlight (Yellow) | Location 200915
Seeing the immobility of the aforesaid canon; seeing the stories of his evil life which for some time had circulated among the common people, always ignorant; seeing his dumb seclusion, his flourishing health, his young old age, and other things too numerous to mention — there were certain people who to do the marvellous and injure our holy religion, went about saying that the true canon was long since dead, and that for more than fifty years the devil had taken possession of the old priest’s body.
❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌spoiler alert
The three nephews are Pille-grue, Mau-cinge and Chiqion. Pille-grue is the advocate.
Mau-cinge is the warrior and Chiqion is the peasant. When Pille-grue and Mau-cinge have tried to wear their extremely old uncle to death, after not achieving this they had their cousin Chiqion to come to Paris to look after the cannon. They look to split it two ways and will kill Chiqion to obtain this. Chiqion is ignorant and enjoys looking after his uncle and he questions his uncle about God and the devil. Chiqion hears his cousins talking about drowning him as well as murdering him by blunt force. He then sees the light and remembers hearing stories from his cousins that he decides to take advantage. Pille-grue is having an affair with a jeweller's wife and fools him by hiding in a cabinet. Chiqion tells the husband about the trouble and his wanting the cabinet to throw in the river. The cabinet starts to talk but the two men disregard this a fling him to his death. Mau-cinge is then fooled by his cousin, he is told of an easy robbery and soon killed because Chiqion informed the homeowner. Chiqion finds his uncle who seems dead in flames and he is upset about this. He is soon surprised by his uncle returning home from church, there are two cannons it seems. It is clear the one on fire is the devil and he had helped in bringing down Chiqion's enemies, not for love but for causing death and evil ways.
Story in short- The canon has three heirs but two are looking to get rid of their stupid peasant cousin.
➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖➖
Highlight (Yellow) | Location 200894
THERE ONCE WAS a good old canon of Notre Dame de Paris, who lived in a fine house of his own, near St. Pierre-aux-Boeufs, in the Parvis. This canon had come a simple priest to Paris, naked as a dagger without its sheath. But since he was found to be a handsome man, well furnished with everything, and so well constituted, that if necessary he was able to do the work of many, without
Highlight (Yellow) | Location 200898
doing himself much harm, he gave himself up earnestly to the confessing of ladies, giving to the melancholy a gentle absolution, to the sick a drachm of his balm, to all some little dainty. He was so well known for his discretion, his benevolence, and other ecclesiastical qualities, that he had customers at Court. Then in order not to awaken the jealousy of the officials, that of the husbands and others, in short, to endow with sanctity these good and profitable practices, the Lady Desquerdes gave him a bone of St. Victor, by virtue of
Highlight (Yellow) | Location 200901
which all the miracles were performed. And to the curious it was said, “He has a bone which will cure everything;” and to this, no one found anything to reply, because it was not seemly to suspect relics.
Highlight (Yellow) | Location 200907
Of all the benefices offered to him, he chose only a simple canon’s stall to keep the good profits of the confessional. But one day the courageous canon found himself weak in the back, seeing
Highlight (Yellow) | Location 200909
that he was all sixty-eight years old, and had held many confessionals. Then thinking over all his good works, he thought it about time to cease his apostolic labours, the more so, as he possessed about one hundred thousand crowns earned by the sweat of his body. From that day he only confessed ladies of high lineage, and did it very well. So that it was said at Court that in spite of the efforts of the best young clerks there was still no one but the Canon of St. Pierre-aux-Boeufs to properly bleach the soul of a lady of condition.
Highlight (Yellow) | Location 200915
Seeing the immobility of the aforesaid canon; seeing the stories of his evil life which for some time had circulated among the common people, always ignorant; seeing his dumb seclusion, his flourishing health, his young old age, and other things too numerous to mention — there were certain people who to do the marvellous and injure our holy religion, went about saying that the true canon was long since dead, and that for more than fifty years the devil had taken possession of the old priest’s body.
❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌spoiler alert
The three nephews are Pille-grue, Mau-cinge and Chiqion. Pille-grue is the advocate.
Mau-cinge is the warrior and Chiqion is the peasant. When Pille-grue and Mau-cinge have tried to wear their extremely old uncle to death, after not achieving this they had their cousin Chiqion to come to Paris to look after the cannon. They look to split it two ways and will kill Chiqion to obtain this. Chiqion is ignorant and enjoys looking after his uncle and he questions his uncle about God and the devil. Chiqion hears his cousins talking about drowning him as well as murdering him by blunt force. He then sees the light and remembers hearing stories from his cousins that he decides to take advantage. Pille-grue is having an affair with a jeweller's wife and fools him by hiding in a cabinet. Chiqion tells the husband about the trouble and his wanting the cabinet to throw in the river. The cabinet starts to talk but the two men disregard this a fling him to his death. Mau-cinge is then fooled by his cousin, he is told of an easy robbery and soon killed because Chiqion informed the homeowner. Chiqion finds his uncle who seems dead in flames and he is upset about this. He is soon surprised by his uncle returning home from church, there are two cannons it seems. It is clear the one on fire is the devil and he had helped in bringing down Chiqion's enemies, not for love but for causing death and evil ways.
August 17, 2021
Balzac's sense of humour, dark and torrid, doesn't fail to make you smile despite the underlying violence throughout the story. Read Balzac after many years, and its no wonder, that his writings remain being classical for the studious reader.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews