Seraphita

"Seraphita" by Honoré de Balzac is a novel published in 1834. In a Norwegian castle near a fjord, the mysterious Séraphitüs harbors an extraordinary secret. Minna loves Séraphitüs as a man, while Wilfrid loves this same being as a woman named Séraphîta. In reality, Séraphitüs-Séraphîta is a perfect androgyne, representing the ideal of humanity through the mystical doctrines of Emanuel Swedenborg. Unlike Balzac's realistic works, this story explores the fantastic and supernatural to illuminate profound philosophical themes.

Seraphita, by Honoré de Balzac. Republished by OpenStories from Project Gutenberg eBook #1432.