Another Study of Woman by Honoré de Balzac

Balzac's nested salon conversation structure is elegantly handled, and the portrait of de Marsay — a man who chose power over feeling after being wounded — is psychologically pointed and memorable. The paternalistic attitudes toward women are simply the air Balzac breathed, and readers who can hold that context will get more out of it. Short enough that it makes a fine introduction to the Comedie Humaine, but not the place to start if you are new to Balzac.