{"product_id":"seraphita-the-alkahest-classic-reprint","title":"Seraphita: The Alkahest (Classic Reprint)","description":"\"The digital edition of all books may be viewed on our website before purchase. \u003ci\u003eSeraphita\u003c\/i\u003e is was originally included as part of a larger collection of stories entitled \"La Comedie Humaine\" by Honoré De Balzac, a well known French novelist, philosopher, and playrwright.  Confident that this revolutionary departure from his normal style of realism was in fact capable of standing on its own, de Balzac released the book as a solitary work later in life.  Fraught with themes of mysticism and gender, \u003ci\u003eSeraphita\u003c\/i\u003e has weathered the storm of time well, with an established place in modern literary cannon.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe novel begins with two characters cross-country skiing up a mountain, surveying and passing unfathomable chasms. One of these characters is Minna Becker, daughter of a local pastor; the other  is a young man named Seraphitus who guides Minna up the slopes and towards and Alpine meadow.  Minna quickly falls in love with Seraphitus, whom she believes to be a man, and Seraphitus seemingly loves her in return.  Enter Wilfrid, a young gentleman also taken with love for Seraphitus who believes that he is actually a 'she' named Seraphita.  Ultimately is it revealed that  Seraphitus is a perfect androgyne, being neither male nor female according to the labels of society, with an inherited ability to transcend gender passed down from each of his parents.  Gender, therefore, becomes a mark of the labels of humanity, and by following the practices of Swedenborgen, one can rise above their gender and become pure and complete.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e While it is said that Balzac struggled with writing this, the text flows seamlessly, artfully playing stereotype and expectation against characters and fostering a curious sense of playful possibility within the reader.  \u003ci\u003eSeraphita\u003c\/i\u003e is an incredibly interesting read, particularly if you're curious about the topic of gender from a nineteenth century perspective.  This cutting edge text remains as culturally relevant today as it was when first published and rightfully deserves its place in the annals of literature.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAbout the Publisher\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eForgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThis book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works. This text has been digitally restored from a historical edition. Some errors may persist, however we consider it worth publishing due to the work's historical value.\u003cbr\u003eThe digital edition of all books may be viewed on our website before purchase.  \"","brand":"Forgotten Books","offers":[{"title":"Hardback","offer_id":39848083062829,"sku":"9780260769633","price":18.84,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":39849954770989,"sku":"9781330001448","price":12.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"url":"https:\/\/www.thegreatbritishbookshop.co.uk\/products\/seraphita-the-alkahest-classic-reprint","provider":"The Great British Bookshop","version":"1.0","type":"link"}