Repertory of The Comedie Humaine, Part 1

"Repertory of The Comedie Humaine, Part 1" by Cerfberr and Christophe is a reference work related to the literary universe created by Honoré de Balzac, compiled in the late 19th century. This volume serves as an alphabetical catalog of characters within Balzac's extensive narrative saga, known as "The Comedie Humaine," detailing their lives and relationships. The work is essential for readers seeking to understand the intricate web of characters that populate Balzac's novels, highlighting figures such as Eugène de Rastignac, who repeatedly emerges as a central character. The opening portion of this volume introduces the purpose and structure of the "Repertory," emphasizing its role as a comprehensive guide to the multitude of characters within Balzac's narratives. It explains that this reference will help readers who may encounter familiar names across different stories in the series, as Balzac often revisits his characters, weaving them into the fabric of multiple plots. The introductory sections also reflect on the ambitious nature of the work, acknowledging the contributions of the authors and their devotion to meticulously documenting the extensive character biographies that readers will find throughout this monumental literary canon. (This is an automatically generated summary.)

Anatole Cerfberr was a French journalist and author. Under various pseudonyms, among which were "Arthur Clary," "Antoine Cerlier," and "Fulgence Ridal," he contributed to numerous papers. He was an admirer of Honoré de Balzac and Victor Hugo, an ardent socialist, and well versed in matters concerning the stage. Cerfberr published many poems, biographies, studies, etc. Together with Jules François Christophe, he also published a work entitled Répertoire de la Comédie Humaine de H. de Balzac, which was crowned by the Académie française. The purpose of the Répertoire is to give in alphabetical sequence the names of all the characters of Balzac's Comédie Humaine, together with the salient points in their lives. Balzac made his characters appear again and again, thus creating out of his distinct novels a miniature world. The work of Cerfberr and Christophe is a guide to that world.