Customer Reviews

The Chouans (Penguin Classics)

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4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(2)
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1 star:		(1)

 

 

This early novel is set in the civil war which followed the French Revolution, betweeen Republicanists and Royalists, called "chouans". These were guerrill-type bands sponsored by aristocrats, fighting to depose the new regime and reestablish the old one. In the plot, a Republican woman is sent to France to help with intelligence-gathering. But she falls in love with one of the chouan leaders. Another spy maneuvres to make her think her lover has betrayed her, and so she conspires against him. I don't share the other reviewers's opinion that it is a bad novel. It is just an average one by a great writer. I enjoyed it, though.

I don't find it dissapointing at all. I actually enjoyed reading it, although it started in a quite boring way. I love all books that reffer to the French Revolution or to the Napoleonic era, like War and Peace, Les Miserables etc. The style didn't look wonderful, but the plot was very interesting and the characters well drawn.

"Les Chouans is Honoré de Balzac's first "real" novel; he had previously published "pot boilers" under pseudonyms. It was published in 1829, following his multi-month stay the previous year, gathering background material, in Fougeres, in eastern Brittany. The novel is set in 1799, 10 years after the commencement of the French Revolution. It was the year that France, exhausted from the violence and excesses of the Revolution, embraced a "strong-man" savior, named Napoleon. But there was still not peace in the Brittany region, which contained strong Catholic and Royalist sentiment. The Vendée had been in revolt, and continued sporadic fighting since 1793. "Les Chouans" were followers of a rebel (i.e., anti-republican) leader, Jean Chouan, and they allied themselves with forces in the Vendée.

The two principal protagonists in this novel are Mlle. Marie de Verneuil and Marquis de Montauran, also known as "Le Gars." She is devastatingly beautiful, and as we learn much later, the "natural" daughter of an aristocrat. She is working for the Republican Chief of Police, Joseph Fouché (who would trump Machiavelli many fold in his devious and self-serving use of power), and has been sent to entrap Le Gars. In the process however - quelle suprise - she falls in (and out) of love with the man. There are a host of minor characters who plot and counterplot, cross, and double-cross each other, which seems to be the nature of war, particularly of the so-called "civil" variety, and also, alas, as the cynics would say, love too. Indeed, "hell hadth no fury like a woman scorned" is one of the themes also.

The first section of the book is entitled "L'embuscade." In it, Republican (Bleu) forces, who are leading a group of reluctant conscripts from Brittany to go fight in the wars against the other European countries which are trying to end the revolution, and are ambushed by Les Chouans, led by a youthful aristocrat. As an aside, I'd love to know if there is any evidence that Balzac inspired Faulkner, who commenced The Unvanquished: The Corrected Text with a chapter on an ambush, with similar themes of regional forces, in a losing game, trying to resist the stronger, central forces of the state. Comments are welcome.

For me, the strongest portions of the book are Balzac's evocative descriptions of the Brittany countryside, often enveloped in fog and mist. The author describes some walks in the woods that I'd love to repeat. Indeed, he has placed the "off the beaten path" town of Fougeres on the map as a "must-see" destination. He also describes effectively why the hedgerows of Brittany are ideal for "guerilla warfare." And by setting the novel in 1799 he helps illuminate a "cusp" period of French history, the transition from the Revolutionary period to the Napoleonic one. And Balzac had some "digs" at the political use of religion.

But lawdy, the downside to the novel is immense. The action resembles a poorly written "soap opera." The dialogue is all too often stilted and tedious. The characters seem to be made out of cardboard. Revealing the living conditions and attitudes of the Chouans, through the seemingly random wanderings of de Verneuil, during a time of insecurity in the countryside, was a mechanism riddled with implausibilites, particularly when she rescued the "miser," by scaring his torturers by feigning to be a ghost. And the owl, as a harbinger of misfortune, was likewise overplayed. Equally, the motivation of other characters for particular actions was either poorly explained, or non-existent. It was hard for me to believe this was written by the same man who produced the excellent Le Pere Goriot (Petits Classiques Larousse Texte Integral) (French Edition) and Eugénie Grandet: Scènes de la vie de Province. (French Edition). Fortunately for Balzac, as well as ourselves, there were many tomorrows after today, unlike the untimely demise of the protagonists, and I'd advise concentrating on his "tomorrows."

As for his first real novel, I found the almost 500 pages a thinly rewarding slog. 3-stars.

This is Balzac's first Human Comedy novel, I believe, and it shows. I should probably give it 3.5 stars, but since it's Balzac, I'll say 4. I actually found the story captivating enough to pull me all the way through (the 2nd attempt...). There are dry, and lenghty parts (only three chapter breaks), but it's a unique novel. The Chouans takes place during the Napoleonic, post Revolutionary period when there are continuing civil battles between the new Rupublicans and the ancien regime, Royalists (which include the northen province Chouans). There is a lot of historical value to this novel in how Balzac displays the sentiments of the two sides, and various military personalities' views on the direction of government, and France in particular. As with most history, some modern parallels may even be drawn (i.e. conservative vs. liberal views on how a country should be run; conscription, and occupied peoples).

I really liked how Balzac took this piece of French history, actually visited and lived in the locals used as background, and created an interesting (albeit a dated 19th century romance)story out of it all. It's all a matter of taste I suppose, but if you really want to get into Balzac (a worthy endeavor for any serious student of the novel, literature, and the history of the 19th century) than the Chouans is as good a starting point as any. It would've been interesting to see what other Scenes de la militaire Balzac might have come up with had he lived long enough.

All in all, there are great (and mediocre) character portraits, and I think Mlle. Verneuil is well done, actually. It's fun (in a colorfully "romantic" kind of way), mysterious, historical, and . . . well, it's BALZAC.

In places this novel reads as it were only a vulgar Romantic potboiler: the plot's chief-intrigue - the love affair between Mlle. Verneuil & the Royalist leader- is contrieved and somewhat mechanical. But one has to keep in mind this is the first time Balzac was trying his hand with serious novel-writing after a long spree of potboiler-writing under an assumed pen-name. And we still have already much of the future, serious - and at the same time ironic - Balzac in order to make the book enjoyable.

Les Chouans is one of Balzac's earlier works and is often referred to as the book that made him famous. Following the French Revolution of 1793, some of the citizens of Brittany, out of loyalty to the former monarchy and to their Catholic faith, refused to accept the secular Republican government and rose up in an attempt to overthrow it. These royalist rebels were known as the Chouans. This novel takes place in Brittany in 1799, mostly in the town of Fougères and its environs. The handsome young leader of the rebellion meets a beautiful, mysterious young woman. Over the course of having lunch together, the two fall in love to the point of being willing to risk their lives for one another, even though neither is ever certain where the other's loyalties lie. If you can suspend enough disbelief to get past that, then this book is a great ride. It's got guerrilla warfare, political intrigue, espionage, and a romance worthy of Shakespeare, all set within beautiful descriptions of the Breton countryside. Balzac's writing combines Emile Zola's attention to descriptive detail and keen insight into human nature with Alexandre Dumas' ability to construct an intricate plot peopled with an interesting collection of disparate characters. The book crawls a little bit in the middle, but the beginning and the end are fast-paced and suspenseful. The third act in particular is very skillfully written with a lot of twists and turns. Balzac keeps the reader guessing every step of the way as to what's going to happen next, right up to the very end.

The style is bad, the story is boring, the characters are unrealistic. I understand that "Les Chouans" is one of Balzac's first novels, but why is it one of its most famous ?