Depiction of the destructive power of money in the story "Gobsek" (based on the work of the same name by Honore de Balzac). Depiction of the destructive power of money in the story “Gobsek” (based on the work of the same name by Opore de Balzac)

25.04.2019

1. The theme of the power of money in the world and in the human soul.
2. Hoarding and waste.
3. Moral degradation of the individual.

Death awaits you - so spend your wealth without sparing;
But life is not over: take care of what is good.
Only that person is wise who, having comprehended both,
He saves good in moderation and spends it in moderation.
L. Samossky

One of the leading motives in O. de Balzac’s story “Gobsek” is the power of money over people. In Balzac's story this power is visibly embodied in the image of a moneylender with a telling surname: Gobsek means “live-lot” in Dutch. The topic that Balzac touched on in his work is one of eternal themes. Many writers have turned to the image of the miser, who is both comical and tragic at the same time. It should be noted that Balzac’s Gobsek is far from clear-cut. The author shows this character through the eyes of the young lawyer Derville, who at first met the main character could not understand what kind of person he was: “Did he have family, friends? Was he poor or rich? No one could answer these questions." Derville talks about “a tragicomic incident from the life of Gobsek: an old moneylender accidentally dropped a gold coin, and when it was handed to him, he resolutely declared that this money was not his: “But would I live like that if I were rich!”

The remark is very sensible - indeed, it is difficult to believe that a rich man would live the way Gobsek, the “automatic man”, “bill man”, lives. However, as it becomes clear from the subsequent narration, Gobsek’s exclamation is most likely a maneuver intended to divert attention. Like a typical miser, he fears that no one will find out about his wealth.

Gobsek's only interest is the acquisition of wealth - it should be noted that in this area the talents of this person are truly large-scale. Gobsek also has his own philosophy, in which money takes pride of place. As main life value, the concentration of all possibilities and aspirations is material wealth: “When you live with me, you will learn that of all earthly blessings there is only one, reliable enough for a person to pursue it. Is this gold. All the forces of humanity are concentrated in gold.”

So, here is the answer to Derville’s unspoken question: does Gobsek know about God, does he believe in Him? What religion is this person committed to? Gold is the only power that the old moneylender recognizes: “To fulfill our whims, it takes time, we need material opportunities or efforts. Well! In gold everything is contained in the germ, and it gives everything in reality.” Gobsek enjoys the consciousness of his power, which he has thanks to money. He sincerely believes that nothing in the world has power over himself. However, Gobsek's power in to a greater extent manifests itself in the realm of the speculative than in reality. Of course, the moneylender shakes out substantial money from his clients, but this is where the manifestations of his power end. Gobsek lives as if he does not have a huge fortune. To the old moneylender, like Pushkin's stingy knight, it’s enough to think that he could have everything he wants. But the worst thing is that the hero no longer wants anything except the money itself. Talking about their power, Gobsek almost becomes a poet for a few moments - this single topic inspires him so much.

“This wizened old man suddenly grew in my eyes, became a fantastic figure, the personification of the power of gold. Life and people filled me with horror at that moment.

“Does it really all come down to money?” - this is Derville’s reaction to Gobsek’s revelations. And yet, despite his millions, his power, Gobsek is at the same time pitiful. At least the young lawyer at one point looked at the moneylender as if he was “gravely ill.” And he is really sick - spiritually sick. He has no family, no children, he is old and weak. For whom is he amassing untold wealth? Why does he live like a poor man with millions? Nothing in the world has power over him except money, his idol. Gobsek enjoys the ghost of power that money has. Actually, he needs money not as a means of acquiring various things, but as a way to exercise power over others. Balzac, showing the power of money over people, did not limit himself to the traditional image of a miser-usurer. In the life of Countess Resto, money also plays an important role. It should be noted right away: the countess, unlike Gobsek, views money precisely as a means by which she maintains the external gloss of a society lady and keeps her lover, a vicious man with angelic appearance. The need for money, which her lover constantly demands, forces the Countess to turn to a moneylender. The fear that her husband will deprive her younger children of their inheritance pushes her to unworthy intrigues - the woman is ready to take advantage of her eldest son’s affection for her and his father, just to get her hands on the will of the dying count.

So, Balzac contrasts two ways of relating to money - the accumulation of wealth for its own sake and unbridled extravagance, clearly showing the inferiority of both positions. It is no coincidence that the author described and last days Gobsek's life. The old man is sick, lying in bed, he understands that his days are numbered - and yet the mechanism of enrichment continues to operate. Gobsek's stinginess reaches terrifying proportions and loses all logic. Clients brought him various gifts - food, silverware, which he sold to stores. But due to the reluctance of the stingy old man to sell the goods a little cheaper, the products spoil. Money and goods matter when they are used - that is the meaning of the picture of rotting food in the apartment of the late Gobsek. And who will his fortune go to? A prostitute, his distant relative. It can be assumed that this woman will most likely quickly spend her easy money and again slide into the usual abyss. “Yes, I have everything, and I have to part with everything. Well, well, daddy Gobsek, don’t be a coward, be true to yourself...” - these are last words old moneylender. No regrets about a joylessly spent life devoted to acquiring money, which he himself almost never used, no thoughts about his soul - nothing... And what is the soul for a person who recognizes gold as the only power in the world?

So, Balzac showed the power that money has over a person. But it is necessary to note the following: it is not money that makes a person a miser or a spendthrift. Only the person himself determines what is for him main value. While a person is alive, it is not too late to reconsider his position if following it negatively affects inner world And external life personality. After all, it was not money that destroyed the countess’s family and caused the death of her husband, but this woman’s lifestyle. Cause moral ruin Gobsek, which occurred long before his physical death, also lies not in money as such, but in the attitude towards it of this man, who, like the Jews brought out of slavery, bowed before the golden calf, forgetting about the eternal greatness and power of God.

The accuracy and breadth of the depiction of French reality is combined by Honore de Balzac with the depth of penetration into internal patterns public life. It reveals the class conflicts of the era, exposes the bourgeois character social development France after the revolution of 1789. In the images of merchants, moneylenders, bankers and entrepreneurs, Balzac captured the appearance of the new master of life - the bourgeoisie. He showed people who were greedy and cruel, without honor or conscience, making their fortunes through open and secret crimes.

The pernicious power of capital penetrates into all spheres human life. The bourgeoisie subjugates the state (“Dark Affair”, “Deputy from Arsi”), rules the countryside (“Peasants”), and extends its pernicious influence on the spiritual activity of people - on science and art (“Lost Illusions”). Destructive action financial principle” also affects privacy of people. Under the poisonous effect of calculation, the human personality degrades, disintegrates family ties, family, love and friendship are crumbling. Selfishness that develops on the basis of monetary relations becomes the cause of human suffering.

The harmful effects of money on human personality And human relations with a big artistic expression shown in the story “Gobsek”.

At the center of the story is the wealthy moneylender Gobsek. Despite his million-dollar fortune, he lives very modestly and secluded. Gobsek rents a room reminiscent of a monastic cell in a gloomy, damp house that was formerly a monastery hotel. The interior decoration of his home, his entire lifestyle bears the stamp of strict economy and moderation.

Gobsek is lonely. He has no family, no friends, he broke all ties with relatives, because he hated his heirs and “didn’t even think that anyone would take possession of his fortune, even after his death.” One single passion - the passion for accumulation - has absorbed all other feelings in his soul: he knows neither love, nor pity, nor compassion.

Balzac uses the details of the portrait to reveal the inner essence of his hero. In appearance Gobsek immobility, deadness, detachment from all earthly things, human passions combined with something predatory and sinister. Ash-yellow tones and comparisons with precious metals make it clear to the reader that it was the passion for gold that destroyed the human element in him, making him dead during his lifetime.

The story depicts the social environment in which Gobsek operates; the two opposite poles of his contemporary society are precisely outlined. On the one hand, the poor, honest workers, doomed to a dull existence (the seamstress Fanny Malvo, the lawyer Derville), on the other, a handful of rich people who spend their days in pursuit of luxury and pleasure (the young Comte de Tray, Countess de Resto), whose moral character presented in a sharply repulsive manner.

Possessing extensive practical experience and a penetrating mind, Gobsek deeply comprehended the inner essence of his contemporary society. He saw life in its nakedness, in its dramatic contrasts, and realized that in a society where there is a struggle between rich and poor, genuine driving force social life is money. Gobsek says: “What is life if not a machine that is set in motion by money,” “of all earthly goods there is only one, reliable enough for a person to chase after it. Is this gold". Gobsek's passion for hoarding is a natural product of the bourgeois system, a concentrated expression of its inner essence.

Using the example of Gobsek, Balzac shows that money not only kills the human personality, but also brings destruction to the life of the entire society. Gobsek, locked in his cell, is not at all as harmless as it might seem at first glance. His moral: “It’s better to push yourself than to let others push you.”

The destructive nature of Gobsek's hoarding is revealed with stunning force at the end of the story. Towards the end of his life, his greed turns into an insane mania. He becomes an insatiable “boa constrictor”, without a trace absorbing various gifts brought by clients. When, after Gobsek’s death, his storerooms were opened, it turned out that huge masses of goods lay rotting in them without any use.

The writer masterfully shows those destructive processes that take place both in the spiritual and in material spheres bourgeois society.

(No Ratings Yet)

Since the appearance of money in human society, it has acquired a power that is able to curb human thinking. Just like in the Middle Ages, today a person cannot do anything for the sake of money... Question...
THE IMAGE OF THE GOBSEC IN THE STORY OF THE SAME NAME BY HONORE DE BALZAC I own the world, but the world has no power over me. O. de Balzac Creativity French writer Honoré de Balzac was a significant milestone...
Balzac is a true master of creating colorful images. The heroes of his works are bright, unusual, and their actions make you think about the work you read. This is exactly the image of Gobsek from the story of the same name. Confirm that...
The plot centers on two girls-artists Sue and Jonesy. Young, ambitious, cheerful. Another artist, Berman, also lives in their house. A heavy, rude sixty-year-old man, whose body was at the same time a satire...
Cross-cutting themes Moral strength Soviet people during the Great Patriotic War. (Using the example of M. Sholokhov’s story “The Fate of Man” and V. Rasputin’s story “Live and Remember”) June twenty-second, nineteen hundred...
From the very first pages of the novel “The Idiot” the reader finds himself in a world where the main role is played by millionaires, capitalists, businessmen, moneylenders and adventurers. TO strong of the world First of all, of course, you can...
What is money? Just pieces of paper or a lot of possibilities? I guess it all depends on the people who use them. For some, money is something that can be exchanged for food, while for others...
Money is paper bill or great opportunities? It all depends on how people perceive this concept. Nowadays, by money, the average person understands a certain amount of paper endowed with individual characteristics. But...
Do you agree with the opinion of G. A. Byaly that “Bazarov’s strength in the face of death reaches the proportions of heroism”? When discussing the statement of G. A. Byaly, consider social, political, philosophical...
I believed these adults that nothing could surprise today’s youth. And we don’t strive for surprise, because we have enough of our own shockingness and coolness. One frosty day in February...
The plot of the tale is extremely simple. The emperor, having read about the nightingale, wanted to see and hear him. And he was very surprised to see a nondescript little gray bird, because he had imagined it completely different. And when...
THE ATTRACTIVE POWER OF A. BLOK'S POEMS The history of Russian literature knows many wonderful poets who were revered, appreciated, respected, proud and admired. But never, as the critic G.V. Adamovich argued, was there...
Friendship is a great power Great power- friendship. What is its strength, you ask? Firstly, a true friend will never let you down and will help you in difficult times. If I forgot at home...
To reveal to a person the depths of his soul - every writer achieves this to one degree or another. One of the main, perhaps the main goals of art is to reveal this secret. Especially this...
THE POWER OF DEVOTED LOVE AND FRIENDSHIP (according to the fairy tale by H. C. Andersen “ The Snow Queen") We get acquainted with the tales of the amazing Danish storyteller before we even learn to read. “The Steadfast Tin Soldier” and “The Ugly Duckling”, “Thumbelina”...
GREAT EARTHLY LOVE – THE DRIVING FORCE OF A. A. AKHMATOVA’S LYRICS A. Akhmatova is one of the brightest and most original poets of the turn of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. main topic her early works- subject...
“Russian man at rendez vous” (The hero of I. S. Turgenev’s story “Asya” in the assessment of N. G. Chernyshevsky) N. G. Chernyshevsky begins his article “Russian man at rendez vous” with a description of the impression...
In all ages, man has strived to know his “I”. One of the main, perhaps the main goals of art is to reveal this secret. To reveal to a person the depths of his soul, to make him better, stronger...
FOREIGN LITERATURE HONORE DE BALZAC (1799-1850) Born in ancient French city Ture. As a sixteen-year-old boy, Balzac came to Paris to study law. The young man could not study law for a long time: he realized his...
Alexander Blok dedicated his first cycle of poems to To the beautiful lady, the prototype of which was his future wife Lyubov Mendeleeva. Relations with her were very difficult, although the poet knew his chosen one...
THE STRENGTH OF FEMALE CHARACTER IN A. P. PLATONOV’S STORY “THE SANDY TEACHER” A. Platonov is one of the brightest and most original prose writers of the 20th century, his fate and the fate of his works was difficult...
We learn about the distant history of Rus' not only from chronicles, which dryly present specific events, but also from heartfelt epics and fairy tales, full of poetic invention. Warrior-heroes and...
The story “The Black Monk”, in my opinion, is one of best works A. Chekhov. It reflected the deep philosophy of the author, and also conveyed those feelings of anxiety and anxiety that, according to the memoirs of contemporaries,...
FICTION AND HISTORICAL TRUTH IN A. S. PUSHKIN’S STORY “THE CAPTAIN’S DAUGHTER” A. S. Pushkin had a powerful creative imagination and amazing instincts that helped him correctly guess events where they were not... Condemning the callousness and callousness of Bashmachkin’s colleagues who mocked him, and “ significant person”, who in fact turned out to be an immoral, insignificant cowardly type, the author uses the means of realism. This is the internal logic...
Master of the plot lyrical story on historical topic N. M. Karamzin showed himself in “Natalia, the Boyar’s Daughter,” which served as a transition from “Letters of a Russian Traveler” and “ Poor Lisa” to “History of the Russian State”. IN...
IN last years In Pushkin's life, the theme of the peasant uprising was one of the central ones in his work. In the 30s of the 19th century, the number of peasant riots and disturbances, directed primarily against...
The inner world of the “St. Petersburg dreamer” in the story “White Nights” by F. Dostoevsky Plan I. Features of the genre, composition of the story “White Nights” by F. Dostoevsky. II. The image of the narrator in the story. 1. Heart, full of love. 2....

The destructive power of money in O. de Balzac’s story “Gobsek”

money. It's amazing how money changes and enslaves people! “If the king himself owed me, Countess, and did not pay on time, I would sue him...” - this is what the moneylender Gobsek says to Countess de Resto, who is ruining her children for the sake of the scoundrel Maxime de Tray. The moneylender is entertained by the opportunity to look into the innermost depths of the human heart, into someone else's life without embellishment. An ingot of metal in the hands of a human automaton is equivalent to a human heart: “I only see hunted deer being chased by a whole pack lenders." The secret price of bills falling into the hands of a moneylender is despair, stupidity, rashness, love or compassion. Gobsek compares his clients to actors giving a theatrical performance for him, and himself to God, reading in their hearts. He loves to stain the carpets with his dirty shoes. luxury houses- not out of petty pride, but to make one feel the clawed paw of Inevitability.

Gobsek believes that there is nothing vicious on earth, there are only conventions, only the feeling invested by nature is unshakable - the instinct of self-preservation. Of all earthly goods, he singles out only one that is reliable enough to be worth pursuing - gold. And his only joy is vanity. Gold contains in embryo human vices and whims, material possibilities. Gobsek's gold owns the world, this is his happiness and joy, he has fun controlling the destinies of people and observing their passions. The moneylender claims that he is rich enough to buy the conscience of clients, to control all-powerful ministers. Gobsek is the ruler of the destinies of Parisians, quiet, unknown to anyone. For him, all life is a machine that is set in motion by money, gold is the spiritual essence of the whole society. But the moneylender hates his heirs and does not allow the thought that someone will become the owner of his fortune.

None of his neighbors know whether he is poor or rich, or whether he has relatives or friends. Due to excessive secrecy and caution, Gobsek refused his own gold coin, which fell out of his pocket and was kindly picked up by a neighbor. His wrinkles keep the secret of terrible trials, sudden terrible events, unexpected successes, wealth and ruin, mortal dangers. The moneylender tried every opportunity to get rich, even trying to find gold buried in America.

Over the years, Gobsek, who became rich, turned into a secret behind seven seals, into a golden idol, not knowing that in the world there is a woman’s love and happiness, feelings, there is God. For Gobsek, the world existed only in order to travel around it and rummage it, weigh it, evaluate it and rob it. But everything is, of course, relative. And Gobsek dies completely alone, and, as you know, you cannot take money and palaces with you to the grave.

1. The theme of the power of money in the world and in the human soul.
2. Hoarding and waste.
3. Moral degradation of the individual.

Death awaits you - so spend your wealth without sparing;
But life is not over: take care of what is good.
Only that person is wise who, having comprehended both,
He saves good in moderation and spends it in moderation.
L. Samossky

One of the leading motives in O. de Balzac’s story “Gobsek” is the power of money over people. In Balzac's story, this power is visibly embodied in the image of a moneylender with a telling surname: Gobsek, translated from Dutch, means “living lot.” The theme that Balzac touched on in his work is one of the eternal themes. Many writers have turned to the image of the miser, who is both comical and tragic at the same time. It should be noted that Balzac’s Gobsek is far from clear-cut. The author shows this character through the eyes of the young lawyer Derville, who at first met the main character could not understand what kind of person he was: “Did he have family, friends? Was he poor or rich? No one could answer these questions." Derville talks about “a tragicomic incident from the life of Gobsek: an old moneylender accidentally dropped a gold coin, and when it was handed to him, he resolutely declared that this money was not his: “But would I live like that if I were rich!”

The remark is very sensible - indeed, it is difficult to believe that a rich man would live the way Gobsek, the “automatic man”, “bill man” lives. However, as it becomes clear from the subsequent narration, Gobsek’s exclamation is most likely a maneuver intended to divert attention. Like a typical miser, he fears that no one will find out about his wealth.

Gobsek's only interest is the acquisition of wealth - it should be noted that in this area the talents of this person are truly large-scale. Gobsek also has his own philosophy, in which money takes pride of place. Material wealth acts as the main value in life, the concentration of all opportunities and aspirations: “When you live with me, you will learn that of all earthly blessings there is only one, reliable enough for a person to pursue it. Is this gold. All the forces of humanity are concentrated in gold.”

So, here is the answer to Derville’s unspoken question: does Gobsek know about God, does he believe in Him? What religion is this person committed to? Gold is the only power that the old moneylender recognizes: “To fulfill our whims, it takes time, we need material opportunities or efforts. Well! In gold everything is contained in the germ, and it gives everything in reality.” Gobsek enjoys the consciousness of his power, which he has thanks to money. He sincerely believes that nothing in the world has power over himself. However, Gobsek's power is manifested to a greater extent in the realm of the speculative than in reality. Of course, the moneylender shakes out substantial money from his clients, but this is where the manifestations of his power end. Gobsek lives as if he does not have a huge fortune. For the old moneylender, like Pushkin’s stingy knight, the thought that he could have everything he wants is enough. But the worst thing is that the hero no longer wants anything except the money itself. Talking about their power, Gobsek almost becomes a poet for a few moments - this single topic inspires him so much.

“This wizened old man suddenly grew in my eyes, became a fantastic figure, the personification of the power of gold. Life and people filled me with horror at that moment.

“Does it really all come down to money?” - this is Derville’s reaction to Gobsek’s revelations. And yet, despite his millions, his power, Gobsek is at the same time pitiful. At least the young lawyer at one point looked at the moneylender as if he was “gravely ill.” And he is really sick - spiritually sick. He has no family, no children, he is old and weak. For whom is he amassing untold wealth? Why does he live like a poor man with millions? Nothing in the world has power over him except money, his idol. Gobsek enjoys the ghost of power that money has. Actually, he needs money not as a means of acquiring various things, but as a way to exercise power over others. Balzac, showing the power of money over people, did not limit himself to the traditional image of a miser-usurer. In the life of Countess Resto, money also plays an important role. It should be noted right away: the Countess, unlike Gobsek, views money precisely as a means by which she maintains the external gloss of a society lady and retains her lover, a vicious man with an angelic appearance. The need for money, which her lover constantly demands, forces the Countess to turn to a moneylender. The fear that her husband will deprive her younger children of their inheritance pushes her to unworthy intrigues - the woman is ready to take advantage of her eldest son’s affection for her and his father, just to get her hands on the will of the dying count.

So, Balzac contrasts two ways of relating to money - the accumulation of wealth for its own sake and unbridled extravagance, clearly showing the inferiority of both positions. It is no coincidence that the author also described the last days of Gobsek’s life. The old man is sick, lying in bed, he understands that his days are numbered - and yet the mechanism of enrichment continues to operate. Gobsek's stinginess reaches terrifying proportions and loses all logic. Clients brought him various gifts - food, silverware, which he sold to stores. But due to the reluctance of the stingy old man to sell the goods a little cheaper, the products spoil. Money and goods matter when they are used - that is the meaning of the picture of rotting food in the apartment of the late Gobsek. And who will his fortune go to? A prostitute, his distant relative. It can be assumed that this woman will most likely quickly spend her easy money and again slide into the usual abyss. “Yes, I have everything, and I have to part with everything. Well, well, daddy Gobsek, don’t be a coward, be true to yourself...” - these are the last words of the old moneylender. No regrets about a joylessly spent life devoted to acquiring money, which he himself almost never used, no thoughts about his soul - nothing... And what is the soul for a person who recognizes gold as the only power in the world?

So, Balzac showed the power that money has over a person. But it is necessary to note the following: it is not money that makes a person a miser or a spendthrift. Only the person himself determines what is the main value for him. While a person is alive, it is not too late to reconsider his position if following it negatively affects the inner world and external life of the individual. After all, it was not money that destroyed the countess’s family and caused the death of her husband, but this woman’s lifestyle. The reason for Gobsek’s moral death, which occurred long before his physical death, also lies not in money as such, but in the attitude of this man towards it, who, like the Jews brought out of slavery, bowed before the golden calf, forgetting about the eternal greatness and power of God.

Each era has its own problems and priorities. In France in 1789, financial well-being came first. But the writer showed what destructive power gold can have. After all, by providing people with greater opportunities for well-being and achieving their goals, at the same time, the precious metal is placed on a pedestal material values. Society, in its race for wealth, forgets about the spiritual. The French bourgeoisie of those times: merchants, bankers, moneylenders, entrepreneurs - that’s new image master of life, the embodiment of success. But Honore de Balzac focused the attention of readers precisely on negative impact wealth, which turns a person into a greedy, cruel creature, ignorant of conscience and honor, ready to commit not only secret, but also overt crimes for the sake of his fortune.

The destructive power of capital creeps into all spheres of public and private life. Gold, like a poison, changes a person's personality. As a result, he degrades, his needs are reduced to the level of an animal. In such an atmosphere, family ties are not valued, there is no respect for family, friendship and love collapse. The rich have selfish natures and make those who are not under the destructive influence of money suffer.

The power of gold is very expressively shown by Balzac in the guise of Gobsek, a wealthy moneylender. He managed to become a millionaire, but this in no way affected his lifestyle. He is still closed and modest, does not have his own home, but rents a tiny room in a damp and gloomy house. He became a victim of his own unhealthy economy and regularity.

Wealth made Gobsek lonely. But it doesn't seem to bother him at all. He himself would not allow anyone to inherit all his savings after his death. Therefore, he has no friends and family, and he has cut off all family ties. Normal is alien to him human feelings: pity, sympathy, love and friendship. His only passion is to accumulate.

Honore de Balzac specifically details the portrait of the main character in such a way as to demonstrate his true essence as much as possible. His external deadness, immobility and detachment from everything earthly is transformed into sinister and predatory features. It was gold that made him dead during his lifetime and killed the human element in him.

Gobsek is presented in the work against the backdrop of a two-sided social environment. These are rich people who devoted their lives to pleasure and luxury. Their moral character is shown repulsively. On the other hand, they are poor, but at the same time honest workers. They are doomed to a miserable and dull existence, and sometimes even survival. Gobsek, seeing such a contrast in society, quickly decided which side he wanted to be on. He realized that main force V modern life is precisely money. The moneylender emphasizes that only financial well-being can be life goal. This is the reliable support that makes you confidently live the days allotted by fate.

Gobsek owes his passion for hoarding to the bourgeois system that divided society into rich and poor. And he had a choice: either they would crush him, or he himself would do it to others. Gobsek chose the latter, since no one wishes the worst for themselves.

It cannot be said that absolutely any relationship is alien to the main character. But again, the only ones that were in his life were of a business nature. It's about about the creditor-debtor relationship. True, in this role Gobsek is still devoid of any humanity. He is terrible at communicating with people. No one has yet managed to pity him. He profits from needs, vices, grief and absolutely does not feel remorse.

At the end of the story, the destructive power of gold is revealed to its full potential. Gobsek's greed and insatiability in old age develops into madness and mania for hoarding. After his death, a lot of damaged property was found in the storerooms. And no one regretted Gobsek’s death...

The destructive power of money is not the only thing Balzac wrote about:

Brief summary of Honore de Balzac's story "Gobsek"
“Gobsek”, artistic analysis of the story by Honore de Balzac
Essay based on Honore de Balzac's story "Gobsek"