"Massimilla Doni" by Honoré de Balzac is a short story published between 1837 and 1839. Set in Venice's opera world, it follows Prince Emilio Memmi's divided heart between the pure, platonic love he shares with the Duchess Massimilla Doni and his shameful attraction to the sensual singer Clara Tinti. Yet the love story serves merely as a framework for Balzac's passionate exploration of Rossini's music, the art of opera, and Venetian aristocratic life centered around La Fenice opera house. (This is an automatically generated summary.)