"An Old Maid" by Honoré de Balzac is a novel written in 1836. Set in the provincial town of Alençon, this short and incisive work centers on Mademoiselle Cormon, an aging unmarried woman whose portrait stands as one of Balzac's most successful characterizations. The story unfolds with rapid succession of events, offering a nuanced analysis of the social, political, and financial affairs that define provincial life in post-Revolutionary France. The novel exemplifies Balzac's keen eye for human nature and small-town dynamics. (This is an automatically generated summary.)