The Lesser Bourgeoisie (The Middle Classes) (1830-40)

The story of a young lawyer trying to make a successful marriage for himself with a sizeable dowry by helping the godfather of the potential bride, a retired civil servant, succeed in politics, real estate, publishing,...in the midst of doing this he gets himself into some pretty hairy situations. Some shady con men get the lawyer started in this marriage strategem in exchange for signing some notes that put him in debt to them. The battle that the lawyer fights to get out of this debt is the most interesting part of the novel.

The novel fizzles out towards the end. One of two uncompleted novels that was completed by another author hired by Balzac's wife after his death, adding a conclusion that was "many times longer than the fragments left by Balzac." (Robb, 414) (Very Long, Les Petits Bourgeois, lsbrg10.txt)