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Today's featured article Le Père Goriot is an 1835 novel by French novelist and playwright Honoré de Balzac, included in the Scènes de la vie privée section of his novel sequence La Comédie humaine. Set in Paris in 1819, it follows the intertwined lives of three characters: the elderly doting Goriot; a mysterious criminal-in-hiding named Vautrin; and a naive law student named Eugène de Rastignac. Originally published in serial form during the winter of 1834–35, Le Père Goriot is widely considered as Balzac's most important novel. It marks the first serious use by the author of characters who had appeared in other books, a technique that distinguishes Balzac's fiction and makes La Comédie humaine unique among bodies of work. The novel is also noted as an example of his realist style, using minute details to create character and subtext. The novel takes place during the Bourbon Restoration, which brought about profound changes in French society; the struggle of individuals to secure upper-class status is ubiquitous in the book. The novel was released to mixed reviews. Some critics praised the author for his complex characters and attention to detail; others condemned him for his many depictions of corruption and greed. A favorite of Balzac's, the book quickly won widespread popularity and has often been adapted for film and the stage. (more...) Recently featured: Albert Kesselring – Icos – "The Thriving Cult of Greed and Power" Archive – By email – More featured articles... Did you know... From Wikipedia's newest articles: ... that mating in the marsh rice rat (pictured) results in relatively few ejaculations, partly because of female resistance? ... that Jesuit Donald Merrifield, the first president of Loyola Marymount University after its creation, worked as a consultant for NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory? ... that the Wisconsin State Firefighters Memorial was completely funded by donations? ... that Dashiell Hammett helped Lillian Hellman write the 1951 Broadway play The Autumn Garden? ... that Congregation B'nai Israel Synagogue in Fleischmanns, New York, is unique among Catskill synagogues in having an exposed truss ceiling in its sanctuary? ... that Hall of Fame tackle Harold Ballin was "the hardest-hitting player" ever faced by fellow Hall of Famer Charles Brickley and the last Princeton player to play without a helmet? ... that the Anglo-Dutch multinational Unilever has patented several antifreeze proteins produced by a species of kidney lichen, due to their ability to modify ice formation in frozen foods? ... that when a teenager tore up a photograph of Canadian Prime Minister St. Laurent as the PM spoke, the ensuing fracas was seen as a turning point in the 1957 Canadian election? Archive – Start a new article – Nominate an article

In the news A series of bomb attacks kills at least 72 people in Lahore, Pakistan. The Opening Ceremony (pictured) of the 2010 Winter Paralympics is held in Vancouver, Canada. Mykola Azarov is appointed Prime Minister of Ukraine, following the resignation of Yulia Tymoshenko. Carlos Slim becomes the first non-American to top Forbes’ list of billionaires since 1994. Muhammad Sayyid Tantawy, Grand Imam of al-Azhar Mosque in Cairo, dies at the age of 81 during a visit to Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. An earthquake kills 42 people and injures at least 74 others in Elâzığ Province, Turkey. The Hurt Locker wins six Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Director for Kathryn Bigelow, the first woman to win that award. Inter-religious attacks result in hundreds of deaths near Jos, Nigeria. Wikinews – Recent deaths – More current events... On this day... March 15: Ides of March; National Day in Hungary (1848); Hōnen Matsuri in Japan 1820 – Primarily due to its vulnerability to foreign invasions, the exclave of Massachusetts known as Maine was given its own U.S. statehood. 1877 – Cricketers representing England and Australia began the first match in Test cricket at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. 1906 – Charles Rolls and Henry Royce founded the British automobile manufacturing company Rolls-Royce. 1943 – World War II: German forces recaptured Kharkov after four days of house-to-house fighting against Soviet troops, ending the month-long Third Battle of Kharkov (German infantrymen pictured). 1972 – The Godfather, a gangster film based on the novel of the same name by Mario Puzo and directed by Francis Ford Coppola, was released. 1985 – The company Symbolics became the first ever entity, individual or party to register a .com top-level domain name: symbolics.com. More anniversaries: March 14 – March 15 – March 16 Archive – By email – List of historical anniversaries It is now March 15, 2010 (UTC) – Refresh this page

Today's featured picture A view across the Sahara with the Acacus Mountains, a mountain range in the desert of western Libya, in the distance. The Acacus Mountains have a large variation of landscapes, from differently coloured sand dunes to arches, gorges, isolated rocks and wadis. The petroglyphs found in the area led it to be declared a World Heritage Site in 1985. Photo credit: Luca Galuzzi Recently featured: Frontispiece to The Story of the Mikado – Breeder (cellular automaton) – Jean Desbouvrie's aviary Archive – More featured pictures...

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