''Les Proscrits'' (sometimes translated into English as ''The Exiles'') is a French short story by Honoré de Balzac, published in 1831 by éditions Gosselin, then in 1846 by Furne, Dubochet, Hetzel in ''Études philosophiques''. He subtitled it an ''esquisse historique''. It forms part of the ''Livre Mystique'', as do ''

Louis Lambert Louis Lambert is a politician, lawyer, and teacher from Prairieville, Louisiana. He is best known for his campaign for the 1979 Louisiana gubernatorial election, which he lost to David Treen in one of the closest elections in recent memory. By ...

'' and ''

Séraphîta ''Séraphîta'' () is a French novel by Honoré de Balzac with themes of androgyny. It was published in the ''Revue de Paris'' in 1834. In contrast with the realism of most of the author's best known works, the story delves into the fantastic an ...

'', and shares several of the themes of ''Louis Lambert'' - doctor Sigier's theory that intelligence knows several avatars, from animal intelligence to angels' intelligence, and the idea that angels live among men, which often recurs in Balzacs' descriptions of women (Esther, the fallen angel in '' Splendeurs et misères des courtisanes'', looks like an angel and ends her life in a kind of angelic redemption).

Plot

At the start of the 14th century, sergeant Tirechair lives in a dark house near

Notre-Dame de Paris Notre-Dame de Paris (; meaning "Our Lady of Paris"), referred to simply as Notre-Dame, is a medieval Catholic cathedral on the Île de la Cité (an island in the Seine River), in the 4th arrondissement of Paris. The cathedral, dedicated to the ...

. He plays host to two strangers, who frighten him and who he believes can carry out sorcery. The eldest is a gentleman who attends the royal court, while the youngest, (Godefroy, count of

Gand Gand may refer to: * Ghent (French: Gand), a city in Belgium * Gand (''Star Wars''), a fictional planet and its resident species in the ''Star Wars'' franchise * Gand., the standard author abbreviation for Michel Gandoger * ', Old Norse word for ...

), is the son of countess Mahaut and is taken on as a servant in the Tirechairs's house. The sergeant is preparing to throw them out the very same evening as they assist in a course in mystical theology. Doctor Sigier is introduced, as is his theory on the mysteries of creation. The old gentleman, proscribed by his native land of Italy, is none other than the poet

Dante Alighieri Dante Alighieri (; – 14 September 1321), probably baptized Durante di Alighiero degli Alighieri and often referred to as Dante (, ), was an Italian poet, writer and philosopher. His ''Divine Comedy'', originally called (modern Italian: '' ...

. A knight arrives to tell Dante he has been allowed to return to

Florence Florence ( ; it, Firenze ) is a city in Central Italy and the capital city of the Tuscany region. It is the most populated city in Tuscany, with 383,083 inhabitants in 2016, and over 1,520,000 in its metropolitan area.Bilancio demografico an ...

, his native town. As for Godefroy, about to commit suicide to rejoin the angels, Dante saves him ''in extremis'' and Godefroy ends by re-assuming his position as a nobleman and rediscovering his mother. In his introduction to ''Études philosophiques'', Balzac stated:

Bibliography

''Les Proscrits'' on French Wikisource''The Exiles'' on Project Gutenberg
* Wayne Conner, « En marge des ''Proscrits'' : Vigny lecteur de Balzac », ''L'Année balzacienne'', 1974, p. 322-23. * Allan H. Pasco, « ''Les Proscrits'' et l’unité du ‘Livre mystique’ », ''L’Année balzacienne'', juil. 1999, n° 20 (1), p. 75-92. * Maxime Prévost, « Écrire la voyance : présence de

dans ''Les Proscrits'' de Balzac », ''Études Littéraires'', Printemps 2006, n° 37 (2), p. 87-98. Books of La Comédie humaine 1831 French novels Cultural depictions of Dante Alighieri Novels set in the 14th century Novels by Honoré de Balzac {{1830s-hist-novel-stub