The Magic Skin

The Magic Skin appears to have a straightforward plot created by Honoré de Balzac who goes by the pen name Balzac. It tells the story of Raphael and how the miracle of his being saved by a mystical talisman in his most pitiful state actually turns out to be a terrifying curse of never-ending terror and contempt. The premise is straightforward but Balzac uses an abundance of character description along with a quick narrative arc to completely subdue the reader and take him through the entirety of a mans life experience including childhood the loss of innocence impossible love despair and the pains of old age. The author manages to be concise without sacrificing the in-depth and potent use of quality description in both the characters and the environment which is how this technique manages to be completely successful. The novel is a bit of a marvel on many levels and its hard to pin down the metaphor at any given point. On the one hand the skins influence seems to be a reactionary phenomenon that borders on the psychosomatic. Each supporting character in The magic skin takes on the attributes of their different professions metaphorically.