Le bal

Le bal

Le Bal is a short story about a German Jewish family living in Paris, published in 1930. Antoinette has just turned fourteen, she dreams of attending the ball organized by her parents, the Kampfs, to show off their recently acquired fortune. . But her mother, more in a hurry to finally enjoy this long-awaited opulence than to bring her daughter into the world, refuses to invite Antoinette to the ball.

… Tell me, Alfred, are we supposed to use their titles when we speak to them? I think we should, don’t you? Not Monsieur le Marquis like the servants, of course, but my dear Marquis, my dear Countess… If we don’t, the others won’t even notice we are receiving the aristocracy.’

Le bal