Guy de Maupassant
French author considered one of the fathers of the modern short story. His nearly 300 stories depict Norman peasants, the Franco-Prussian War, and Parisian bourgeois life with unsparing realism and psychological acuity.
Works
- Bel-AmiNovel of ruthless journalist using seduction to climb through social ranks
- Pierre et JeanNovella depicting two brothers' rivalry over inheritance and the same woman
- A LifeNovella tracing married woman's slow deterioration through life's disappointments and suffering
- The HorlaNovella of mysterious creature haunting a man with psychological and supernatural terror
- Boule de SuifNovella depicting prostitute's sacrifice during Franco-Prussian War showing human compassion