Reading Order
The Red and the BlackStendhal The Red and the Black Reading Order
Stendhal's The Red and the Black (1830) is the first great novel of ambition — Julien Sorel's attempt to rise from carpenter's son to the heights of French society through intelligence, calculation, and the seduction of powerful women. The novel's title is usually interpreted as the contrast between the military career (red of uniforms) that Napoleon made possible for talented young men of the lower classes, and the clerical career (black of priestly robes) that remained the only alternative after Napoleon's fall. Stendhal's great innovation was the depth and precision of his psychological analysis of Julien's interior life — the novel essentially invents the modern psychological novel's technique of showing us exactly what a character thinks and feels in every moment.
Where to start
The Red and the Black
Complete The Red and the Black Book List
- 1Buy
The Red and the Black
Stendhal·1830·The foundational novel of ambition — Julien Sorel rising through post-Napoleonic France; start here for the full arc of his rise and fall - 2Buy
The Charterhouse of Parma
Stendhal·1839·Stendhal's other great novel — Fabrizio del Dongo in Napoleonic Italy; written in 52 days and covering the same themes of ambition, love, and political intrigue from an aristocratic rather than plebeian perspective - 3Buy
Scarlet and Black
Stendhal·1830·Alternative translation title — some readers prefer the older Penguin translation by Margaret Shaw; the Oxford World's Classics translation by Roger Gard is also highly regarded
The Red and the Black — Frequently Asked Questions
What order should I read Stendhal in?
Start with The Red and the Black — it is Stendhal's masterpiece and the work that establishes the psychological techniques he uses throughout his fiction. Then read The Charterhouse of Parma, which takes the same concerns into a grander, more epic register with a completely different social class and setting.
Is The Red and the Black hard to read?
The Red and the Black is demanding in the sense that it asks you to follow extremely precise psychological analysis of a character who is often acting at multiple levels at once — being sincere, performing sincerity, and calculating the effect of his performance simultaneously. Modern readers often find Julien's psychology surprisingly recognizable.
What is The Red and the Black about?
The Red and the Black follows Julien Sorel, the son of a carpenter in a provincial French town, as he attempts to rise through post-Napoleonic French society through intelligence, ambition, and the seduction of women above his class. The novel is equally a psychological portrait of its protagonist and a satirical anatomy of the restored Bourbon monarchy.
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