eugenie grandet Author:honore de balzac Central to all of Balzac's novels is his passionate conviction that the circumstances surrounding a person's life - the people and the traditions of his area - combine to exert a powerful influence on the direction of his development. Nowhere is this belief better demonstrated than in Eugenie Grandet. Living under the suffocating shadow of her... more » rich but miserly father, whose consuming greed kept his family isolated, Eugenie's life choices were severely limited. The story of the needless waste and tragedy of this appealing young woman is told with great simplicity and intensity. Many consider Eugenie Grandet Balzac's most moving and compassionate novel.« less