Bel-Ami

The classic novel of wealth, class, and power from one of France's greatest 19th century writers Young, attractive and very ambitious, George Duroy, known to his friends as Bel-Ami, is offered a job as a journalist on La Vie francaise and soon makes a great success of his new career. But he also comes face to face with the realities of the corrupt society in which he lives—the sleazy colleagues, the manipulative mistresses and wily financiers— and swiftly learns to become an arch-seducer, blackmailer and social climber in a world where love is only a means to an end. Written when Guy de Maupassant was at the height of his powers, Bel-Ami is a novel of great frankness and cynicism, but it is also infused with the sheer joy of life—depicting the scenes and characters of Paris in the belle epoque with wit, sensitivity and humanity. Penguin Classics is the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world, representing a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.