Stendhal: The Charterhouse of Parma

One of the most brilliant French authors of the 19th century, Henri Marie Beyle, who wrote under the pseudonym Stendhal, enjoyed neither critical acclaim nor popularity with the general reading public during his lifetime. Nevertheless, Mérimée, who was influenced by Stendhal—who later took his place in the pantheon of classic European literature—highly valued his work, and Goethe and Pushkin read his novel "The Red and the Black" with pleasure.

The plot of Stendhal's last novel, "The Charterhouse of Parma," which was enthusiastically received by Balzac, takes place in Italy, a country of intense passions and great culture. Its theme is the fate of a generation of Italians who entered life at the end of the 18th century, passionately dreaming of the independence of their homeland, only for the Battle of Waterloo to mark the collapse of their enthusiastic illusions. The intensity of the events (murders, imprisonment, escape, the uncovering of the secret of birth and death), the deep psychological experiences of the characters who, for the sake of love, commit betrayal and sacrifice what is most dear to them, and the impressive depiction of the historical events of that era turn the novel into an undoubted masterpiece of world literature.

Author: Stendhal

Translation: Natalya Nemchinova

Pages: 560 (newsprint). Paperback

Dimensions: 180x115x22 mm

Series: Azbooka Classics