The Red and the Black Author:Stendhal In December of 1827, Marie Henri Beyle read a newpaper account of the trial of a young man charged with the attempted murder of a married woman. With this as inspiration, Beyle-under the pen name Stendhal-set about writing what was to become one of the great psychological novels of all time, The Red and the Black. Set in a small provincial Frenc... more »h town, the book tells the story of Julien Sorel, a handsome and brilliant young tutor who is both hero and villain. Considered one of literature's most complex characters, Sorel is cold, opportunistic, and uncompromising with others-including his influential mistress-as he seeks to fulfill his lust for power and wealth; yet he is hopelessly victimized by his own romantic soul and by the military and religious forces-the "Red" and the "Black"-that prevail in all of France. The Red and the Black is at once a brilliant portrait of French society after the Revolution and a profound psychological study of a young man's determined struggle to cope with the opposing and often uncontrollable drives within himself.« less