Shagreen leather. “Shagreen skin” - a unique masterpiece of a genius What does shagreen skin mean?

History of creation

Balzac called this novel the “starting point” of his creative path.

Main characters

• Raphael de Valentin, young man.
• Emil, his friend.
• Pauline, daughter of Madame Godin.
• Countess Theodora, a secular woman.
• Rastignac, a young man who is Emile's friend.
• The owner of the antiquities shop.
• Taillefer, newspaper owner.
• Cardo, lawyer.
• Aquilina, courtesan.
• Euphrasinya, courtesan.
• Madame Gaudin, a ruined baroness.
• Jonathan, Raphael's old servant.
• Fino, publisher.
• Mr. Poriquet, former teacher Raphael.
• Mister Lavril, naturalist.
• Mister Tablet, mechanic.
• Spiggalter, mechanic.
• Baron Jafe, chemist.
• Horace Bianchon, a young doctor and friend of Raphael.
• Brisset, doctor.
• Cameristus, doctor.
• Mogredi, doctor.

Composition and plot

The novel consists of three chapters and an epilogue:

Mascot

The young man, Raphael de Valentin, is poor. Education brought him nothing. He wants to drown himself and, to pass the time until nightfall, he goes into an antiquities shop, where the old owner shows him an amazing talisman - shagreen leather. On the reverse side of the talisman there are signs in Sanskrit.; translation reads:

Possessing me, you will possess everything, but your life will belong to me. God wants it that way. Wish and your wishes will be fulfilled. However, balance your desires with your life. She is here. With every wish, I will decrease, as if your days. Do you want to own me? Take it. God will hear you. So be it!

Thus, any wish of Raphael will come true, but for this his life will also be shortened. Raphael agrees and plans to organize a bacchanalia.

He leaves the shop and meets friends. One of them, journalist Emil, calls on Raphael to head a wealthy newspaper and reports that he has been invited to a celebration of its establishment. Raphael sees this only as a coincidence, but not as a miracle. The feast truly fulfills all his desires. He admits to Emil that a few hours ago he was ready to throw himself into the Seine. Emil asks Rafael about what made him decide to commit suicide.

Woman without a heart

Rafael tells the story of his life.

He decides to live a quiet life in the attic of a miserable hotel in a remote quarter of Paris. The owner of the hotel, Madame Godin, in Russia, while crossing the Berezina, her baron husband went missing. She believes that someday he will return, fabulously rich. Polina, her daughter, falls in love with Rafael, but he has no idea about it. He completely devotes his life to working on two things: a comedy and a scientific treatise “The Theory of the Will”.

One day he meets young Rastignac on the street. He offers him a way to quickly get rich through marriage. There is one woman in the world - Theodora - fabulously beautiful and rich. But she doesn’t love anyone and doesn’t even want to hear about marriage. Rafael falls in love and begins to spend all his money on courtship. Theodora does not suspect his poverty. Rastignac introduces Raphael to Fino, a man who offers to write a forged memoir for his grandmother, offering a lot of money. Rafael agrees. He begins to lead a broken life: he leaves the hotel, rents and furnishes a house; every day he is in society... but he still loves Theodora. Deeply in debt, he goes to the gambling house where Rastignac was once lucky enough to win 27,000 francs, loses the last Napoleon and wants to drown himself.

This is where the story ends.

Raphael remembers the shagreen leather in his pocket. As a joke, to prove his power to Emile, he asks for six million francs. At the same time, he takes measurements - puts the skin on a napkin and traces the edges with ink. Everyone falls asleep. The next morning, the lawyer Cardo comes and announces that Raphael’s rich uncle, who had no other heirs, died in Calcutta. Raphael jumps up and checks his skin with the napkin. The skin shrank! He's terrified. Emil states that Raphael can make any wish come true. Everyone makes requests half seriously, half jokingly. Rafael doesn't listen to anyone. He is rich, but at the same time almost dead. The talisman works!

Agony

Beginning of December. Rafael lives in a luxurious house. Everything is arranged so that no words are spoken. Wish, Want etc. On the wall in front of him there is always a framed piece of shagreen, outlined in ink.

A former teacher, Mr. Porique, comes to Rafael, an influential man. He asks to secure a position for him as an inspector at a provincial college. Rafael accidentally says in a conversation: “I sincerely wish...”. The skin tightens and he screams furiously at Porika; his life hangs by a thread.

He goes to the theater and meets Polina there. She is rich - her father has returned, and with a large fortune. They meet in Madame Gaudin's former hotel, in that same old attic. Rafael is in love. Polina admits that she has always loved him. They decide to get married. Arriving home, Raphael finds a way to deal with the shagreen: he throws the skin into the well.

April. Rafael and Polina live together. One morning a gardener comes, having caught shagreen from the well. She became very small. Rafael is in despair. He goes to see the learned men, but everything is useless: the naturalist Lavril gives him a whole lecture on the origin of donkey skin, but he can’t stretch it; mechanic Tablet puts it in a hydraulic press, which breaks; the chemist Baron Jafe cannot break it down with any substances.

Polina notices signs of consumption in Rafael. He calls Horace Bianchon, his friend, a young doctor, who convenes a consultation. Each doctor expresses his own scientific theory, they all unanimously advise going to the water, placing leeches on your stomach and breathing fresh air. However, they cannot determine the cause of his illness. Raphael leaves for Aix, where he is treated poorly. They avoid him and declare almost to his face that “since a person is so sick, he should not go to the water.” A confrontation with the cruelty of secular treatment led to a duel with one of the brave brave men. Raphael killed his opponent, and the skin shrank again. Convinced that he is dying, he returns to Paris, where he continues to hide from Polina, putting himself into a state of artificial sleep in order to last longer, but she finds him. Burnt with desires at the sight of her, he dies.

Epilogue

In the epilogue, Balzac makes it clear that he does not want to describe Polina’s further earthly path. In a symbolic description, he calls her either a flower blooming in a flame, or an angel coming in a dream, or the ghost of a Lady, depicted by Antoine de la Salle. This ghost seems to want to protect his country from the invasion of modernity. Speaking about Theodora, Balzac notes that she is everywhere, as she personifies secular society.

Screen adaptations and productions

• Shagreen skin () - teleplay by Pavel Reznikov.
• Shagreen skin () - short film by Igor Apasyan
• Shagreen Bone () is a short pseudo-documentary feature film by Igor Bezrukov.
• Shagreen Skin (La peau de chagrin) () - feature film based on the novel by Honoré de Balzac, directed by Berliner Alain.
• Shagreen skin () - radio play by Arkady Abakumov.

Notes

Links

• Shagreen leather in the library of Maxim Moshkov
• Boris Griftsov - translator of the novel into Russian

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Shagreen leather

Shagreen leather
From French: Le peau chagrin.
The expression became popular after the publication of the novel of the same name (1830-1831) by the French writer Aupore de Balzac (1799-1850). The hero of the novel becomes the owner of a piece of magical shagreen leather, which, like a magic wand, fulfills his every will - gives wealth, youth, pleasure, etc. But after each wish fulfilled, the shagreen leather irreversibly decreases in size, and the capabilities of the hero of the novel decrease accordingly.
Shagreen leather in the truest sense of the word is well-processed leather made from goatskin (not goatskin), which is used in furrier production.
Allegorically: about something that is irreversibly and constantly decreasing, disappearing (time, resources, etc.).

Encyclopedic Dictionary winged words and expressions. - M.: “Locked-Press”. Vadim Serov. 2003.

See what “Shagreen leather” is in other dictionaries:

Leather - get an active Tehport coupon on Akademika or buy leather at a low price on sale at Tehport

- “SHAGREEN SKIN”, Russia, SPiEF (Lenfilm)/LENFILM, 1992, color, 39 min. Experimental fiction film. Cast: Olga Kondina, Andrei Khramtsov, Andrei Slavini, Natalya Fisson (see FISSON Natalya Vladimirovna), Sergei Shcherbin. Director: Igor... ... Encyclopedia of Cinema

This term has other meanings, see Shagreen skin (meanings). Shagreen leather La Peau de Chagrin The title of the novel cannot be accurately translated. In French, chagrin means both a type of leather and sadness. It could be translated as... Wikipedia

SHAGREEN LEATHER- 1992, 39 min., color, “Lenfilm”, PiEF. Genre: experimental film. dir. Igor Bezrukov, screenplay Igor Bezrukov, opera. Valery Revich, comp. Yuri Khanin. Cast: Olga Kondina, Andrei Khramtsov, Andrei Slavini, Natalia Fisson, Sergei Shcherbin... Lenfilm. Annotated Film Catalog (1918-2003)

Shagreen leather (French Peau de chagrin, chagrin): Shagreen leather (material), or shagreen (French chagrin) soft rough leather (goat, lamb, horse); also leather embossing technology, used in the processing of leather with... ... Wikipedia

Shagreen leather La Peau de Chagrin Genre: Romance

This term has other meanings, see Shagreen skin (meanings). Shagreen leather La peau de chagrin ... Wikipedia

- “Shagreen Bone” by Y. Khanon at the doors of the Mariinsky Theater Shagreen Bone ... Wikipedia

- “Shagreen Bone” by Y. Khanon at the doors of the Mariinsky Theater Shagreen Bone Genre avant-garde Director Igor Bezrukov Producer Alexey Grokhotov ... Wikipedia

- “Shagreen Bone” by Y. Khanon at the doors of the Mariinsky Theater ... Wikipedia

LEATHER, leather, women's 1. The outer cover of animal (sometimes plant) organisms. The skin was cracked from the cold. All the skin wrinkled. Snakes change their skin. Peel the skin from the apple. 2. Tanned animal skin, freed from wool. Pork suitcase... ... Dictionary Ushakova

Books

• Shagreen leather, Balzac Honore de. "Shagreen Skin" is one of the most striking works that make up the "Human Comedy". Open the book and you will see an unusual epigraph - a writhing black line. This is the line the hero drew...

"Shagreen skin"

Introduction........................................................ ........................................................ ...................3

General description Pebbled leather........................................................ ............................4

Conclusion8

List of sources used9

Introduction

The purpose of this work is to identify the essence of shagreen leather; to achieve this goal, it is necessary to solve the problem of determining the main applications of shagreen leather and to determine what shagreen leather is.

General description of shagreen leather

Shagreen leather (material), or shagreen (French chagrin) - soft rough leather (goat, lamb, horse); also leather embossing technology, used in the processing of leather with natural defects for the manufacture of shoes and certain types of clothing.

From French: Le peau chagrin.

The expression became popular after the publication of the novel of the same name (1830-1831) by the French writer Aupore de Balzac (1799-1850). The hero of the novel becomes the owner of a piece of magical shagreen leather, which, like a magic wand, fulfills his every will - gives wealth, youth, pleasure, etc. But after each wish fulfilled, the shagreen leather irreversibly decreases in size, and the capabilities of the hero of the novel decrease accordingly.

Nowadays, shagreen leather is most often associated with Balzac’s novel of the same name, and is used as part of the phraseology “shrink like shagreen leather.” What is shagreen and why does such skin shrink?

Any person who has read the above-mentioned Balzac work can answer the last question.

Shagreen is a type of untanned leather with an uneven surface, borrowed from the French chagrin, derived from the Turkish çagri - "rump". Originally, this was the name given to donkey skin, which was used for polishing due to its uneven surface. Lyutov stretches his neck to the side, his neck is long, sinewy, its skin is rough, like shagreen (M. Gorky). Nowadays, shagreen leather is a soft, rough leather made from goat, lamb, and other skins. The realist took at random one of the thick notebooks bound in shagreen and opened it (A. Kuprin).

It is interesting, by the way, that, in addition to skin, the French word chagrin means “sadness, chagrin, trouble” (the etymology of the homonym is unclear), and in light of this the title of the novel can be understood in two ways.

As far as I understood the concept of Shagreen skin from the work of Honore De Balzac, this is when the pleasures of the body prevail over the pleasures of the soul, just as when there is no desire to live in harmony with oneself... there are no forces of spiritual creativity...

Soft goat or sheep (donkey) skin with a characteristic pattern on an uneven surface turns into illusions... deceptive hopes...

Shagreen skin is a symbol of the devastation of the human soul... the loss of a person’s spiritual abilities... It wears out a person physically...

...The soul lies unbuttoned...

checked for value...

wall estimators,

according to the color of pleasures...

by the smell of mistakes...

by the quality of turmoil...

everything was accepted and approved...

...And I took off with ease...

removing the skin frame...

justified in the land of sins...

random creation...

(Svetlana Yantar. Shagreen skin)

Shagreen skin has magical properties. She is a magical talisman.

All the wishes of its owner are fulfilled, and with each wish fulfilled, the skin contracts. When there is nothing left of it, the owner leaves for another world.

Shagreen skin will fulfill all our desires, but will demand our life for it.

The fate of Raphael from “Shagreen Skin” by Honore de Balzac confirms this.

The young man lost money in a casino and decided to take his own life. He wandered around the city, waiting for the evening, and wandered into an antique shop. The owner of the shop, seeing the condition of the young man, offered him to purchase a talisman - a piece of shagreen leather with the Seal of Solomon.

The inscription in translation meant the following:

For every moment of joy a person pays with a piece of his life...

For the fulfillment of desires, we agree, like Raphael, to pay with many illusions...

We live without knowing the limits.

And we don’t always balance our Desires with our Life...

“...What remains of material possession? That's all I do.

How can one prefer the collapse of all... deceptive hopes to the high ability to create a universe in one’s soul” (Honoré de Balzac “Shagreen Skin”)

A person’s spirituality is his thoughts about Life.

Joy is what a person receives in response to Spiritual receipts; it is the result of a harmonious Union of Body and Spirit.

The joy of owning a sable coat or SHAGREEN SKIN is short-lived...

A person, having achieved a certain wealth, after some time again experiences dissatisfaction, dissatisfaction... spiritual emptiness...

The legend of shagreen leather came to us from the darkness of centuries. Its essence is that with each of our desires (a desire is a thought that generates an action), we spend a part of ourselves; This means that the more desires, the sooner our life decreases.

Reverse logic: the more measured and inactive we live, the more likely we are to live a long time.

This image is the fruit of worldly wisdom, and a typical case when the visible is taken for the real. After all, everything is so obvious! Youth is taken as the starting point - the time of the most violent and uncontrollable desires. The more you “allowed” yourself in your youth (burning the candle at both ends at once), the less remains for the rest of your life. And in all cases, life goes downhill, downhill.

If the same scheme is expanded wider - from birth to death - it becomes even more convincing. Starting his journey from practically nothing (well, what is a fertilized egg? Without a microscope it’s hard to even believe in it), a person develops, gains strength, reaches a peak in his youth - and then slowly slides down to turn into practically nothing in feeble old age.

"The first step of a child is the first step towards death."

True, this scheme contradicts the second law of thermodynamics, because it is not clear where the incredible growth energy comes from at the first stage. The child eats a lot, and yet the food energy is not enough to satisfy and compensate for growth. But today we see this contradiction, but before we simply did not notice it.

And the second contradiction is about the essence of desires. From the principle of shagreen skin it follows that one must avoid desires and strong feelings. Peace is an ideal. The less contacts with the outside world, the more balanced the inner world, the better...

But desire (we repeat) is a thought that gives rise to action! That action that alone can accumulate energy potential and create energy surplus value, and thereby maintain energy potential at the same level. Only by acting can we save ourselves. But with the condition (and you already know this too) that these actions should not go beyond the boundaries of what is permitted.

Let us recall one more circumstance: the energy potential of a newborn is so great that it is almost impossible to surpass it. This means we can take it as the maximum. Optimal maximum. The maximum is within the limits of what is permitted.

This is a measure. And a landmark. A guide for life.

So the task of each of us has become clear: to use our energy potential in such a way, to correct it with additional energy, so that its level does not deviate far from the original one. And since the energy potential is either consumed or accumulated, this line should resemble a sine wave. A sinusoid that rolls within the boundaries of what is permitted, each time with its peak trying to reach the standard - the level of the energy potential of a newborn. (And reaches out! - in moments of inspiration.)

Such a life schedule cannot but cause mistrust. How! And a newborn, a young man in the prime of life, and an old man have the same level of energy potential?..

Imagine - yes. Just energy potential in at different ages differently expresses himself. It provides growth to a newborn, the ability to act to transform the world to a young man, and wisdom to an old man. Intellectual effort is as energy-intensive as emotion young man. The height to which a young man soars in a burst of inspiration is also accessible to an old man who slowly climbs to it through the steps of reason. Of course, our old man should be practically healthy.

Shagreen leather

From French: Le peau chagrin.

The expression became popular after the publication of the novel of the same name (1830-1831) by a French writer Support de Balzac(1799-1850). The hero of the novel becomes the owner of a piece of magical shagreen leather, which, like a magic wand, fulfills his every will - gives wealth, youth, pleasure, etc. But after each wish fulfilled, the shagreen leather irreversibly decreases in size, and the capabilities of the hero of the novel decrease accordingly.

Shagreen leather in the truest sense of the word is well-processed leather made from goatskin (not goatskin), which is used in furrier production.

Allegorically about what is irreversibly and constantly decreasing, disappearing (time, resources, etc.).