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The Red and the Black: A Chronicle of the Nineteenth Century
The Red and the Black A Chronicle of the Nineteenth Century Author:Stendhal In December of 1827, Marie Henri Beyle read a newspaper 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 Fr... more »ench town, the book tells the story of Julien Sorel, a handsome and intelligent 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