Droll Stories — Complete

At the Council of Constance, young Philippe de Mala watches the great churchmen feast, flirt, and prosper—and wonders why he should be the only one left out. One night, desire finally carries him up the stairs of a house where the doors have just closed.

Honoré de Balzac sets these irreverent tales among the abbeys, towns, and courts of old France, where pious words and appetite rarely keep company for long. In the opening story, Philippe, a guileless priest from Touraine, arrives in Constance determined to behave worthily; instead, the spectacle of powerful men enjoying every indulgence sets his own longing alight. Poor, inexperienced, and willing to risk a soldier’s halberd, he has saved what little money he can and now slips into a house in pursuit of a glimpse of its beautiful mistress. What will Philippe find at the top of the stairs?

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