At a glance, Tolstoi, Balzac and Dickens are equally large, impressive authors, who each deal with social circumstances in the Nineteenth Century. However, in this essay, the Dutch author Henriëtte Roland Holst clearly demonstrates that first impressions deceive. Dickens' prose is analyzed as lacking in the theme of love, while mainly focusing on a caricature of social circumstances, leaving out many facets which would present a more realistic image. The work of Balzac, especially in his La Comédie Humaine series which aimed at providing a kaleidoscopic overview of humanity, actually mainly focuses on the French bourgeoisie. Thus, surprisingly, it is the aristocratic Tolstoi who is the most capable of the three great writers to picture man from all walks of life.

An interesting, though somewhat dated, essay with a singular focus. ( )