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What obsession shapes the plot of Cousin Pons?
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Honoré de Balzac
The French novelist helped to establish the traditional form of the novel, and is considered one of the greatest novelists of all time.
The plot of Cousin Pons is shaped by the protagonist's monomaniacal obsession as an art collector.1
Sylvain Pons, a poor musician, possesses a valuable collection of art and antiques that he has spent his life assembling. This collection becomes the catalyst for the novel's central conflict: when his wealthy relatives discover the immense fortune hidden within his treasures, they proceed to swindle him. Balzac uses this obsession to illustrate how a ruling passion can blind an individual to reality and how, in a society driven solely by material values, those without means can be cruelly exploited and crushed.21