
Midnight has just struck, and the glittering salons of the enigmatic Countess Gamiani pulse with music, dancing couples, and the flash of silk and jewels. The narrator, a keen-eyed observer, is drawn into the lavish fête, noting the Countess’s effortless charm and the whispered rumors that swirl around her like perfume. He resolves to dissect the mystery of her character, probing the contradictions that make her both admired and inscrutable.
As the night deepens, a provocative remark about the Countess being a “tribade” shatters the polite veneer and ignites the narrator’s imagination. The suggestion of forbidden desire pulls him into a vortex of vivid fantasies and uneasy curiosity, blurring the line between observation and participation. The tale unfolds as a sensual study of excess, reputation, and the restless yearning that lurks behind the glittering façade of high society.
Language
fr
Duration
~1 hours (93K characters)
Publisher of text edition
Project Gutenberg
Release date
2008-10-07
Rights
Public domain in the USA.
Subjects

1810–1857
A brilliant voice of French Romanticism, his work moves easily from wit and elegance to heartbreak and regret. He is best known for lyrical poetry, vivid plays, and the deeply personal novel The Confession of a Child of the Century.
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