Ένα πάθος στην έρημο

La Comédie Humaine #63

by Honoré de Balzac, Σοφία Διονυσοπούλου (Translator)

Το διήγημα αυτό του Μπαλζάκ δημοσιεύτηκε για πρώτη φορά στις 24 Δεκεμβρίου 1830 στη Revue de Paris και κατόπιν το 1837 στο τρίτο μέρος των Etudes philosophiques. Αποτελεί μια τελείως ξεχωριστή περίπτωση μέσα στο πληθωρικό μπαλζακικό έργο, τόσο ως προς τη μορφή όσο και ως προς το περιεχόμενο.
"Ακριβώς ένα μήνα μετά το Sarrasine, όπου παρουσίαζε τον έρωτα ενός γλύπτη για έναν καστράτο, ο Μπαλζάκ προσεγγίζει ένα θέμα επίσης σκανδαλώδες για μια κοινωνία που σημαδεύεται από τον πουριτανισμό, τον έρωτα ενός στρατιώτη και μιας λεοπάρδαλης. Χρησιμοποιεί ως αφετηρία ένα συμβάν από την επικαιρότητα : σε πρώτη παρουσίαση στην Ευρώπη, στα τέλη του χειμώνα του 1829 στο Παρίσι, ο θηριοδαμαστής Ανρί Μαρτέν επιδεικνύει στο κοινό τα εξημερωμένα του θηρία. Η τεχνική ήταν απλή και τολμηρή : ο θηριοδαμαστής εξασφάλιζε την αφοσίωση των ζώων μέσω περισσότερο ή λιγότερο προωθημένων σεξουαλικών αγγιγμάτων. Εκμεταλλευόμενος αυτό το περιστατικό, ο Μπαλζάκ θα χτίσει μια αφήγηση που ξεκινά με αντικειμενική χροιά και που υποτίθεται πως υποστηρίζει μια αξιοσέβαστη ηθικοπλαστική αντίληψη : "Πιστεύετε, λοιπόν, ότι τα ζώα δεν έχουν διόλου συναισθήματα ; […] Μάθετε πως μπορούμε να τους μεταδώσουμε όλες τις διαστροφές του πολιτισμού μας. […]". (απόσπασμα από το επίμετρο του Joel Gayraud που συνόδευε τη γαλλική έκδοση του διηγήματος στις εκδόσεις Mille et Une Nuits, 1994)

Απόσπασμα

[…]Το ζώο ήτανε θηλυκό. Το τρίχωμα της κοιλιάς και των μηρών άστραφτε από λευκότητα. Μικρές, βελούδινες κηλίδες σχημάτιζαν κομψά βραχιόλια γύρω από τα πέλματα. Η ουρά, μυώδης, ήταν επίσης λευκή, αλλά στο τελείωμα είχε μαύρα δαχτυλίδια. Το πάνω μέρος του φορέματός της ήταν κίτρινο χρυσοΰφαντο αλλά λείο και απαλό, μ' εκείνα τα χαρακτηριστικά σημάδια ποικίλων αποχρώσεων σε σχήμα ρόδων, που κάνουν τις λεοπαρδάλεις να ξεχωρίζουν, έναντι των άλλων αιλουροειδών. Τούτη η ήσυχη και επικίνδυνη οικοδέσποινα ροχάλιζε σε μια στάση τόσο χαριτωμένη, όσο και μιας γάτας πλαγιασμένης στο μαξιλάρι μιας οθωμανής. Τα αιμοχαρή της πέλματα, νευρώδη και άρτια εξοπλισμένα, στήριζαν, προεξέχοντας, την κεφαλή της που αναπαυόταν πάνω τους κι από την οποία ξεκινούσαν εκείνα τα σπάνια και ίσια μουστάκια, όμοια με αργυρές κλωστές. Αν την έβλεπε έτσι μέσα σε ένα κλουβί, ο Προβηγκιανός θα θαύμαζε οπωσδήποτε τη χάρη ετούτου του ζώου και τις γερές αντιθέσεις των έντονων χρωμάτων που προσέδιδαν στο ένδυμα μιαν αυτοκρατορική χροιά· αλλά εκείνη τη στιγμή αισθανόταν την όρασή του να σκοτεινιάζει από τούτο το θλιβερό θέαμα. Η παρουσία μιας λεοπάρδαλης, έστω και κοιμισμένης, τον έκανε να αισθάνεται -καθώς λένε- ό,τι και το αηδόνι εμπρός στα μαγνητικά μάτια των φιδιών. […]

Genres: Classics, Short Stories, Fiction, French Literature, France, Literature, 19th Century

32 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1830

About the author

French 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.

Reviews

[Το Άθχημο γατί του θενιόρ Γκουαναμίρου · Rating 5 out of 5]

During General Desaix's expedition to Upper Egypt, a soldier was captured by Arab warriors (les Maugrabins) and ended up crossing the Nile, until reaching the Desert. However, he managed to escape and eventually found refuge in a small oasis.

There, in this inhospitable environment, the Provençal soldier will be introduced to a wild animal. A leopard of the desert. Balzac was inspired to write this story after a discussion with lion tamer Henri Martin (1793 - 1882).

It seems that this story made a great sensation among the majority of readers - the paradoxical subject, the oriental atmosphere - which propelled the young author's popularity.

Στην έρημο υπάρχουν τα πάντα και το τίποτα... Ο θεός χωρίς την ανθρωπότητα.

Σε αυτήν τη σύντομη ιστορία του Balzac, δημοσιευμένη για πρώτη φορά στο λογοτεχνικό περιοδικό Η Επιθεώρηση των Παρισίων (Revue de Paris) στα 1830, η κεντρική αφήγηση παρουσιάζεται έμμεσα, με τη μορφή της μαρτυρίας ενός ανώνυμου άνδρα που διηγείται μια παράξενη ιστορία σε μια εξίσου ανώνυμη γυναίκα, όπως την άκουσε και την κατέγραψε από έναν ηλικιωμένο στρατιώτη που υπηρέτησε στην Αίγυπτο, στα χρόνια της εκστρατείας του Μ. Ναπολέοντα.

"Η όλη παράσταση ήταν φριχτή, αναφώνησε εκείνη βγαίνοντας από το θηριοτροφείο του κυρίου Martin. Είχε δει την επίδειξη του παράτολμου άνδρα με την ύαινά του -όπως αναφερόταν και στο πρόγραμμα της παράστασης.
-Με ποιον τρόπο, συνέχισε, κατάφερε να εξημερώσει αυτά τα ζώα σε σημείο που να είναι τόσο σίγουρος για την αγάπη τους...
- Αυτό που εσύ θεωρείς ως μυστήριο, στην πραγματικότητα είναι κάτι πολύ φυσικό, της απάντησα, διακόπτοντάς την.
-Ω! Είπε, κι ένα χαμόγελο δυσπιστίας φάνηκε στα χείλη της.
- Νομίζεις πως τα θηρία δεν έχουν πάθη; Τη ρώτησα. Ισχύει μάλλον το αντίθετο. Μπορούμε να τους περάσουμε όλα τα βίτσια που χαρακτηρίζουν τον δικό μας πολιτισμένο κόσμο.
Με κοίταξε παραξενεμένη".

Κάπως έτσι ο ανώνυμος αφηγητής της διηγείται την ιστορία του ηλικιωμένου στρατιώτη από την Προβηγκία, όπως εκείνος του τη διηγήθηκε κάποτε, μετά το τέλος μιας παρόμοιας παράστασης του θηριοδαμαστή Martin.

Κατά τη διάρκεια της εκστρατείας του στρατηγού Desaix στην Άνω Αίγυπτο, ο συγκεκριμένος στρατιώτης, αιχμαλωτίστηκε από άραβες πολεμιστές (les Maugrabins, όπως αναφέρονται στο πρωτότυπο) με τους οποίους κατέληξε πέρα από τους καταρράχτες του Νείλου, στα βάθη της ερήμου. Κατάφερε ωστόσο να δραπετεύσει και βρήκε τελικά καταφύγιο σε μια μικρή όαση:

"Όμως μόλις μέτρησε τους φοίνικες, έριξε το βλέμμα ολόγυρά του και η ψυχή του γέμισε από απελπισία. Μπροστά του ανοιγόταν ένας ατέλειωτος ωκεανός. Η μαύρη άμμος της ερήμου απλωνόταν ως εκεί που μπορούσε να φτάσει η ματιά του κι ακόμη παραπέρα, κι αστραποβολούσε σαν ατσάλι που λάμπει κάτω από το δυνατό φως. Σαν ένας τεράστιος καθρέφτης. Ένας ατμός έκανε το τοπίο να τρεμοπαίζει. Ο ουρανός έμοιαζε να φλέγεται με ανυπόφορη ένταση, πέρα από κάθε φαντασία. Ο ουρανός και η γη είχαν πάρει φωτιά.

Η σιωπή ήταν τρομερή μέσα σε όλο αυτό το άγριο και τρομερό μεγαλείο. Μια ατελείωτη απεραντοσύνη τον έζωνε από κάθε κατεύθυνση. Ούτε ένα σύννεφο στον ουρανό, ούτε μια πνοή αέρα, ούτε μια ριπή επάνω στην άμμο, όλα ήταν ακίνητα. Ο ορίζοντας χανόταν όπως στη θάλασσα, μια ηλιόλουστη μέρα, μια γραμμή φωτός καθαρή και αιχμηρή σαν τη λάμα ενός σπαθιού."

Εκεί, σε αυτό το αφιλόξενο περιβάλλον, θα συντελεστεί η γνωριμία του Προβηγκιανού στρατιώτη με ένα άγριο ζώο. Μια λεοπάρδαλη της ερήμου. Ένα θηλυκό, νεαρό ζώο που θα δεχτεί το χάδι του, θα ανταποδώσει την τρυφερότητά του και θα ελαφρύνει την αβάσταχτη μοναξιά του. Ο στρατιώτης θα την ονομάσει Μινιόν (Mignonne), το παρανόμι μιας παλιάς του αγαπημένης, η οποία ήταν εξαιρετικά επικίνδυνη, εξαιτίας της ζήλιας της. Το ζώο θα του σώσει τη ζωή, θα του επιτρέψει να την κατακτήσει. Ακριβώς σαν να ήταν μια ερωμένη. Και χάρη σε αυτό, ο στρατιώτης θα καταφέρει να διατηρήσει την ισορροπία του μέσα στην ερημιά, προκειμένου να επιβιώσει:

"Από εκείνη τη στιγμή η έρημος του φαινόταν πλέον κατοικημένη. Περιείχε ένα πλάσμα στο οποίο μπορούσε να μιλήσει, την αγριότητα του οποίου είχε καταφέρει να μετατρέψει σε τρυφερότητα, κι ας μην ήταν σε θέση να εξηγήσει την αιτία της παράξενης φιλίας τους".

Ωστόσο, δεδομένου πως ο Balzac είναι Balzac, μπορεί να φανταστεί κάποιος το τέλος της ιστορίας...

Ο συγγραφέας κάνει λόγο για μια παρεξήγηση. Αυτό που συχνά οδηγεί τις ανθρώπινες σχέσεις στην καταστροφή, είναι η έλλειψη εμπιστοσύνης, ο φόβος μιας προδοσίας. Αυτές είναι ιδιότητες ανθρώπινες. Αυτές είναι ανθρώπινες αδυναμίες...

Στη βιογραφία της Nadine Satiat (Μπαλζάκ ή η μανία της γραφής) αναφέρεται πως ο συγγραφέας εμπνεύστηκε την ιστορία του έπειτα από μια συζήτησή του με τον θηριοδαμαστή Henri Martin (1793 - 1882) - ο οποίος υπήρξε αληθινό πρόσωπο (σελ. 185). Φαίνεται πως η ιστορία έκανε ιδιαίτερη αίσθηση στο αναγνωστικό κοινό - το παράδοξο του θέματος, η ανατολίτικη ατμόσφαιρα - γεγονός που ανέβασε τις μετοχές του νεαρού δημιουργού.

Το συγκεκριμένο διήγημα κυκλοφόρησε επίσης στη συλλογή: Études philosophiques, par M. de Balzac, Delloye et Lecou, Paris,1837 στον τόμο αρ. 16, κι αργότερα μαζί με την έκδοση του Modeste Mignon στα 1845 (Modeste Mignon ou les trois amoureux, par H. de Balzac. τόμος αρ. 4, εκδ. Chlendowski, Paris 1845 - βλέπε ίδια εκδ. από Roux - Cassanet , Sovereign, Arnaude de Vresse) για να καταλήξει τελικά στην συνολική έκδοση του έργου υπό τον τίτλο Ανθρώπινη Κωμωδία μαζί με τους Σουάνους στο Scènes de la vie militaire.

[Λίνα Θωμάρεη · Rating 3 out of 5]

3,5 αστέρια

[Sketchbook · Rating 3 out of 5]

"In the desert, there is everything and nothing," writes
Balzac who never saw any desert. His short story of a
French soldier lost in the Sahara - "an ocean without limit" -
is not what we expect fr the creator of la Comedie humaine.
The soldier's sole companion is a magnificent (female)
panther w lustrous yellow eyes whose coat has an imperial
splendor.

In this parable of love-friendship, jealousy-misunderstanding,
the outcome means only one will survive. A provocative story
that misses the emotional punch of OWs "The Happy Prince"
or "The Birthday of the Infanta," hence this gem isn't well-known. But it's a must-read that skips the coy metaphors of Yann Martel's "Pi." Lacking sentiment, it explores human nature and how it deals w trust, fear -- and fear of domination.

[BAM doesn’t answer to her real name · Rating 2 out of 5]

This one was quite different from what I’ve read so far. Until the last paragraph then it makes its connection. Definitely not one of my favorites. I’m not a reflective personality. I can be quite impulsive, which I suppose may explain the action the lost soldier chooses, but all in all, he did nothing but think and appreciate. Im more just do it. But like i said this was written in a style that so,far I had not read by de Balzac.

[Drew Canole · Rating 3 out of 5]

A cool story about a man trapped in the dessert with a panther and they strike up a precarious friendship.

[Lana Barber · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this story one night because I couldn't go to sleep no matter how hard I tried. I was in a terrible mood that had something to do with my thoughts on how humans are all selfish and cannot relate to each other and that "affection," "love," "compassion," etc is all bullshit. I get into that state of mind sometime because I have a tendency to brood over things and slowly let my mind wander to making massive generalizations concerning all of humankind. I had no idea where Balzac was going with this story at first, I was just reading it out of a collection of short stories to keep myself occupied. When I finished it, though, I found it to be pure gold and just the thing to have read at that point. I don't know why I think this story is so great, but this quote sums up the reason for my love:

*SPOILER ALERT!*

"Ah, well! you see, they ended as all great passions do end--by a misunderstanding. For some reason one suspects the other of treason; they don't come to an explanation through pride, and quarrel and part from sheer obstinacy."

[Armin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Auf Napoleons Ägypten-Abenteuer gerät ein Soldat in Gefangenschaft, entflieht aber den Beduinen.
Während seines Versuchs zurück zur Truppe zu gelangen, findet er eine Oase, Dattelpalmen und Zuflucht in einer Höhle. Als die gescheckte Hausherrin zurück kehrt, beginnt ein Nerven aufreibendes Spiel mit einer eifersüchtigen Raubkatze.

[البندري · Rating 3 out of 5]

“'Oh! that can't be described, young man! Besides, I am not always regretting my palm trees and my panther. I should have to be very melancholy for that. In the desert, you see, there is everything and nothing.'
“'Yes, but explain—
“‘Well,' he said, with an impatient gesture,'
‘it is God without mankind.'"

Does the human spirit—or the Western ideal of it—exist only to control, dominate, and ultimately destroy? Balzac does not offer answers, only a haunting truth; left alone with himself, man may prove to be more savage and ruthless than the creature he seeks to tame.

[Elizabeth · Rating 1 out of 5]

This story tells of a man who, while stranded in the desert, befriends a jungle cat. And while the story is certainly interesting – I mean, who wouldn’t want a big man-eating kitten who’ll purr and follow people around and save them from danger? – the plot is not what’s really important. This is a story about human emotion, human affection, and human relationships, and it is made to work on a more allegorical level. It actually sort of reminds me of the cautionary tales that parents used to read to their children years and years ago.

This book is very difficult for me to rate. Balzac presents an interesting concept in a fairly original way, and the pacing and editing are great. Nothing drags, and nothing is boring. The writing itself is good, too, although I’m reading it in translation and cannot speak for the original French. On the other hand, there is nothing subtle at all about this story. It leaves little room for reader response, and its first few pages practically spell out what can be learned from the anecdote. Finally, even leaving aside any allegory or lesson, the plot itself is really depressing. On the whole, it’s too polished and artistic to merit less than three stars, yet too depressing and over-the-top unsubtle to deserve more than two. This mathematical possibility notwithstanding, I’m settling on a 2.5 star rating, which, for the purposes of Goodreads scoring, I’ll probably round down rather than up.

[হাসান মাহমুদ হক · Rating 5 out of 5]

Passion has no boundaries, no limits and no explanation. This story will make you think about that. Be passionate.

[mimi ⋆𐙚₊˚⊹♡ · Rating 2 out of 5]

i read this since i couldn’t sleep and it’s pretty short which is good. but this book is oddly weird the way the soldier was describing his fondness for the so called panther felt rather sensual; he named her after a past lover i presume and kept describing her grace as soft and delicate while she is a wild animal.

the writing didn’t disappoint at all,it was fast paced, and you could read it in one sitting smoothly.

[Giuliana Gramani · Rating 2 out of 5]

Nhe... Not my kind of thing.

[Rural Soul · Rating 5 out of 5]

(Another) teenage read. Read it in my elder sister's BA English book.

[Ray LaManna · Rating 5 out of 5]

This story, published over a hundred years earlier in 1830, reminds me of the Bengal tiger in The Life of Pi. Beautifully written as all of Balzac's stories are.

[VJ · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Atheist's Mass is my favorite story in this small volume, followed by A Passion in the Desert.

The writing is spare, yet rich. Not too much description of the environment, which usually bores me as I do not have an imagination that pictures scenes well. The characters are immediately available, allowing for climbing into their skins with ease.

Balzac's writing has been described as sentimental, but I did not find it so. Very straightforwardly, the characters of his stories tell their tales without leading the reader to feel any particular way other than however they are moved by the telling.

I see his impact on Mahfouz's writing and appreciate his guiding my reading.

This wee volume's a keeper.

[Sladjana Kovacevic · Rating 5 out of 5]

UNE PASSION DANS LE DESERT-BALZAC
✒️"– Vous croyez donc les bêtes entièrement dépourvues de passions ? lui demandai-je ;
apprenez que nous pouvons leur donner tous les vices dus à notre état de civilisation."
✒️"Enfin, la figure de cette reine solitaire révélait en ce moment une sorte de gaieté semblable à celle de Néron ivre : elle s’était désaltérée dans le sang et voulait jouer."
✒️"Le soldat attendit avec impatience l’heure de sa fuite, et, quand elle fut arrivée, il marcha rapidement dans la direction du Nil ; mais à peine eut-il fait un quart de lieue dans les sables, qu’il entendit la panthère bondissant derrière lui, et jetant par intervalles ce cri de scie, plus effrayant encore que le bruit lourd de ses bonds.
– Allons, se dit-il, elle m’a pris en amitié !
🐆Jedna kratka i zaista efektna priča.
🐆Vojnik se nekako našao odvojen od svojih saboraca usred pustinje. Potražio je sklonište,ali je prekasno shvatio da ga deli s jednom opasnom mačkom
🐆Ipak,između leoparda i vojnika se razvija neobično prijateljstvo
🐆Balzak se igra aluzijama na prethodnu,nezaboravnu,devojku mladog gospodina koja je izgleda imala i lepotu i osobine divlje mačke 😁
🐆Od strahopoštovanja,obožavanja,divljenja do jednog nesporazuma između čoveka i žovotinje,ovo je priča o snazi prijateljstva i pogubnosti nerazumevanja.
🥰😻🥰😻🥰😻🥰😻🤩🥰
#7sensesofabook #bookstagram #knjige #literature #readingaddict #balzac

[Ben · Rating 3 out of 5]

"'In the desert, you see, there is everything and nothing.’
‘Yes, but explain——’
‘Well,’ he said, with an impatient gesture, ‘it is God without mankind.’"

Historically "A Passion in the Desert" (one of Balzac's early works; 1830) belongs with works like Les Chouans and "An Episode Under the Terror," set in the Napoleonic period. Like "Sarrasine" and "Facino Cane" it is a frame story. And although we are removed from the dark side of Paris, there are even similarities between this and works like Le Père Goriot. In Goriot and elsewhere in the Human Comedy, man is compared with animals (not unlike one would find in films by Buñuel, who could have directed a fine adaptation of this story, which was adapted to film in 1998, with the very fine actor Michel Piccoli). But in Goriot man is compared to animals because of his savagery and his animalistic nature. In this a panther is compared to a female, albeit a jealous female, the sort of female who would become traitorous to her lover, like Marie in Les Chouans. It is indeed a fine line that separates man and beast, and perhaps beast is the kinder.

[diario_de_um_leitor_pjv · Rating 4 out of 5]

Balzac é um mestre em criar ambientes únicos que prendem o leitor. Os seus contos, em especial dois dos textos deste volume, são delícias às quais gosto de voltar, e que nos dão o melhor deste mestre do século XIX.

"Uma paixão no deserto" e "A obra prima desconhecida" são exemplos dessa destreza única de Balzac na construção de uma narrativa que envolve o leitor numa teia de encanto.

Neste volume da coleção "Essenciais da Literatura" da Book Cover Editora temos a publicação de três contos. Dois deles foram releituras, mas reler Balzac é sempre um imenso prazer.

O primeiro é um conto de aventuras, mas também pode ser uma alegoria sobre a ideia de humanidade. Partindo de uma (des)aventura de um soldado francês, perdido num deserto no Magrebe, e da sua intensa e estranha relação com uma pantera. Com um texto cheio de duplos sentidos Balzac questiona o sentido de humanidade a partir de um território de extremos como é o deserto, e da solidão daqueles que se aproximam da desumanização e da loucura.

Em "A obra prima desconhecida" Balzac problematiza o acto da criação artística partindo de uma reflexão sobre o carácter sublime da arte. Bem como questiona o papel da arte da reprodução/produção do real, o que coloca este conto como uma expressão do debate e produção estética do realismo.

Por fim "O Elixir da Longa Vida" (parte dos seus Contos Filosóficos) revisita a figura simbólica de Don Juan. A partir do interesse de Balzac pelo ocultismo e a sua obsessão pela temática da morte, o autor francês descreve uma fantástica história em torno da hipótese de beatificação e maldade. Uma história sobre o bem e o mal, ou da inutilidade desta dicotomia.

Assim este pequeno volume apresenta-nos três textos que mostram a maestria de Balzac, bem como, a sua importância na literatura ocidental.

[Katarina Popović · Rating 4 out of 5]

Elles ont fini comme finissent toutes les grandes passions, par un malentendu. On croit, de part et d'autre, à quelque trahison, l'on ne s'explique point par fierté, l'on se brouille par entêtement.

Dans le désert, voyez-vous, il y a tout, et il n’y a rien… c’est Dieu sans les hommes.

[Yomi Olufidipe · Rating 4 out of 5]

Balzac keeping it short, simple and just all around entertaining. What a guy 💖❤️💖. Hope everyone experiences a love as intense as the one shown here fr 😭😅🤓. With whoever and whatever (within legal reasons looooool)

[TheCrazyFanvergent · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ci sarà pure la zoofilia ma è comunque più bello di Candide

[myriam kisfaludi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beau et touchant

[Classic reverie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Balzac's "A Passion in the Desert" is a very short story that shows friendship between humans and animals, who also have souls. I did not read this edition but from a collection of his work which included the below comments. I heard an Old Time Radio version, which is drastically different, interesting nonetheless. In the radio version a soldier sees a woman in the desert while with his troops but nobody else sees her. The woman wants this soldier to take her away, which he would have to desert his company.

The Weird Circle November 7, 1943

"This short story was first published in 1830 in the Revue de Paris. Like many of Balzac’s tales, Une Passion dans le Dèsert employs a story within a story framework. On one level the narrator and a woman have been to see a show put on by a M. Martin, in which he works with animals. The woman wonders how he could have tamed the animals so much that he trusted them. The narrator explains that it is quite natural as beasts also have passions. He adds that the first time he saw one of M. Martin’s performances he thought the same as she does now. On another level, the story concerns a soldier from Provence that was captured by Arabs called Maugrabins, while travelling through the Egyptian desert."

"'What did you feel there?’ I asked him. “‘Oh! that can’t be described, young man! Besides, I am not always regretting my palm trees and my panther. I should have to be very melancholy for that. In the desert, you see, there is everything and nothing.’ “‘Yes, but explain — — ’ “‘Well,’ he said, with an impatient gesture, ‘it is God without mankind.’”

❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌spoiler alert❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌

A man explains the story how the trainer of wild animals can be trusted. A French soldier is captured by the Arabs in the desert and while they sleep the man escaped with a horse and provision. He finds the horse dead after working it too hard to find his Regiment. Alone he walks and taking shelter in a cave soon finds a panther. The soldier has a knife and gun but it is a risk to kill and overtime a friendship develops. He starts to call her Mignonne, after a former mistress and sees that the panther has a soul. Mignonne does not harm her friend but comes back after feasting, when the soldier tries to leave Mignonne follows him. She saves his life when he cries for her while he his sinking in quicksand. The panther exhibits jealousy when the soldier tries to befriend another animal. Suddenly the panther changes and bites the soldier's leg and he uses his knife and kills his friend. The soldier is soon found and in tears for he wishes the panther alive.

"He at once seized a rifle and a dagger, then taking the precautions to provide himself with a sack of dried dates, oats, and powder and shot, and to fasten a scimiter to his waist, he leaped on to a horse, and spurred on vigorously in the direction where he thought to find the French army. So impatient was he to see a bivouac again that he pressed on the already tired courser at such speed, that its flanks were lacerated with his spurs, and at last the poor animal died, leaving the Frenchman alone in the desert."

"Her blood-stained paws, nervous and well armed, were stretched out before her face, which rested upon them, and from which radiated her straight slender whiskers, like threads of silver. If she had been like that in a cage, the Provencal would doubtless have admired the grace of the animal, and the vigorous contrasts of vivid color which gave her robe an imperial splendor; but just then his sight was troubled by her sinister appearance."


“Ah!” he said, “then she’s taken a fancy to me, she has never met anyone before, and it is really quite flattering to have her first love.” That instant the man fell into one of those movable quicksands so terrible to travelers and from which it is impossible to save oneself. Feeling himself caught, he gave a shriek of alarm; the panther seized him with her teeth by the collar, and, springing vigorously backwards, drew him as if by magic out of the whirling sand. “Ah, Mignonne!” cried the soldier, caressing her enthusiastically; “we’re bound together for life and death but no jokes, mind!” and he retraced his steps"

"Ah! mademoiselle, you are a nice girl, aren’t you? Just look at that! So we like to be made much of, don’t we? Aren’t you ashamed of yourself? So you have been eating some Arab or other, have you? That doesn’t matter. They’re animals just the same as you are; but don’t you take to eating Frenchmen, or I shan’t like you any longer.”


"It’s horribly difficult, but you will understand, after what the old villain told me over his champagne. He said — ’I don’t know if I hurt her, but she turned round, as if enraged, and with her sharp teeth caught hold of my leg — gently, I daresay; but I, thinking she would devour me, plunged my dagger into her throat. She rolled over, giving a cry that froze my heart; and I saw her dying, still looking at me without anger. I would have given all the world — my cross even, which I had not got then — to have brought her to life again. It was as though I had murdered a real person; and the soldiers who had seen my flag, and were come to my assistance, found me in tears.’"




"PROVENCAL (Le), born in 1777, undoubtedly in the vicinity of Arles. A common soldier during the wars at the close of the eighteenth century, he took part in the expedition of General Desaix into upper Egypt. Having been taken prisoner by the Maugrabins he escaped only to lose himself in the desert, where he found nothing to eat but dates. Reduced to the dangerous friendship of a female panther, he tamed her, singularly enough, first by his thoughtless caresses, afterwards by premeditation. He ironically named her Mignonne, as he had previously called Virginie, one of his mistresses. Le Provencal finally killed his pet, not without regret, having been moved to great terror by the wild animal’s fierce love. About the same time the soldier was discoverd by some of his own company. Thirty years afterwards, an aged ruin of the Imperial wars, his right leg gone, he was one day visiting the menagerie of Martin the trainer, and recalled his adventure for the delectation of the young spectator. A Passion in the Desert."

[Sharon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Despite having been made into a dreadfully bad film, this short story is actually quite well done.

An unnamed Provencal soldier is relating a tale of his time during the Mameluk wars to the unnamed narrator (who, in turn, is telling it to his lady friend in order to impress her with his knowledge of animal training). The soldier gets lost in the desert and is befriended, for lack of a better term, by a female leopard. Their relationship is mutually dependent and, eventually, a little confusing for both.

This brief read is quite a good introduction to French literature for those who have not yet given it a try.

[Phil · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very pleasant and short little tale, read as part of a long-term run through Balzac's Human Comedy. A French soldier escapes capture in the Egyptian desert and befriends a panther, as you or I might befriend a stray cat. It's lovely - apart from its ending (which, as you might expect, is a little sad).

One thing I learnt from reading this, is that panthers and leopard are the same animal.

[Catherine Vamianaki · Rating 2 out of 5]

In the desert you see everything and nothing...
This is a very short story.

[Simão Pedro · Rating 4 out of 5]

Percorrendo o percurso em vida de Honoré de Balzac, apercebemo-nos da verdadeira essência da escrita e da vida de escritor, atividades que obrigam a privilégios como tempo e dinheiro. Como tantos outros conhecidos artistas, Honoré de Balzac acaba por desempenhar uma grande variedade de profissões e atividades renumeradas, a fim de garantir a tão difícil e almejada estabilidade financeira que a arte teimosamente recusava. No entanto, para escrever é preciso viver, e toda a imiscuição no quotidiano e no quid da sociedade francesa, tornaram Honoré numa das mais imponentes figuras do realismo francês e na suma inspiração de suntuosos escritores como Charles Dickens e Gustave Flaubert. O envolvimento na vida banal francesa, numa era pós-napoleónica e, portanto, distinta social e economicamente dos anos mais prósperos, incute no autor sentimentos de consciência social e a vontade de criar palavras capazes de se assumirem como uma interface integralmente transparente da sociedade de então. Ornamenta, assim, as suas narrativas de inúmeras e variadas personagens, das quais, juntamente com os espaços, tece pormenorizadas e detalhadas descrições, numa verdade tal que há quem considere o estilo de Balzac o naturalismo.
A presente edição contempla três contos que integram a magnum opus de Honoré de Balzac: “La Comédie humaine”. Este romance multivolume com nome inspirado na Divina Comédia de Dante assume-se como uma verdadeira obra de enlace entre a sociologia e a psicologia, numa esplêndida sinédoque, trazida ao leitor por personagens como o príncipe D.Juan e o soldado francês perdido no deserto, reflexo do descontentamento de Honoré face à sociedade em que vivia e, também, do Homem, refém das suas atitudes, comportamentos e da sua natureza.

[Francesca de Rochefort · Rating 3 out of 5]

Introducing myself to the world of Balzac and La Comedie Humaine with this short story, one of his earliest successes and a suitably small-scale tale that doesn't feel like ploughing headfirst into the thick of the universe. Une passion dans le désert is an interesting narrative about a French soldier in the Napoleonic wars, lost in the deserts of Egypt after escaping capture by Maghrebs and who soon finds his only companionship to be an unusual panther that soon becomes attached to him. For such a simple plot, Balzac manages to get a lot out of it and tease several interesting ideas and themes throughout that made this a really great appetizer for my future readings - the way the soldier projects feminine qualities onto the panther as well as the chasm of communication between humans and other animals and the strange idyll of such complete solitude are all among the things I noticed touched upon. Really excited to dig further into La Comedie Humaine and in knowing I have enough to keep me occupied for years.

______

Balzac is probably the most difficult writer I've read in French yet (the more tricky parts of Gautier + Rodenbach probably being my previous comparisons) and there's a real density to his prose and worldview that made this a little longer than I'd have expected as a read given it's so short. These will definitely be my "hard" practice for the foreseeable.

[Yuri Ghirighini · Rating 3 out of 5]

Dans le désert, voyez-vous, il y a tout, et il n’y a rien… — Mais encore expliquez-moi ? — Eh ! bien, reprit-il en laissant échapper un geste d’impatience, c’est Dieu sans les hommes

— Elle a une âme… dit-il en étudiant la tranquillité de cette reine des sables, dorée comme eux, blanche comme eux, solitaire et brûlante comme eux…

Il tema di questo racconto breve aveva un enorme potenziale mitico, simbolico e filosofico che Balzac, forse complice la brevità o la natura realista, non ha sfruttato fino in fondo; ma forse è proprio nella reticenza, nei non detti, nell'inesplorato lasciato al lettore che sta il fascino di un racconto
Rimane comunque una novella sulle tentazioni magiche, sireniche della solitudine, del miraggio, dell'orizzonte irraggiungibile, dei tramonti e dei cieli infiniti che solo il Mare e il deserto riescono a offrire
Per certi versi è legato a Lighea di Tomasi di Lampedusa (il mio libro preferito), in cui è citato direttamente: non ne raggiunge il livello di profondità e rivelazione, ma sono entrambi allegorie dei panici amori, scevri dei doppi fini di tante relazioni umane e mortali
Non mancano bei momenti di lirismo, resi più piacevoli dal francese elegante ma semplice di Balzac, che lo rende leggibile anche da chi, come me, non conosce perfettamente questa lingua

[Maggie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This short story is different from the previous ones I've read from the Human Comedy. It still features a French soldier during Napoleon's time, but instead of describing the relationship between people, it describes the relationship between a soldier and a panther.

Set during Napoleon's campaign in Egypt, the story is about a French soldier who is captured by Maugrabins, escapes, falls asleep, and wakes up next to a panther. Though afraid of the panther, he does not think he has the strength to attack and kill it, and ends up making friends with the panther. The panther develops a quick loyalty for him, and he gives her the name "Mignonne". The story ends tragically as, in a moment of misunderstanding, when the soldier thinks that the panther is about to attack him, he plunges his dagger into her throat and kills her.

It's a simple, poignant short story, very typically Balzac in theme, but with a nice variation in subject matter.