Honoré de Balzac attempts to represent the experience of urban capitalist modernity by offering
detailed descriptions of the material conditions under which his characters live, as well as by
presenting those characters in terms of their complex and often contradictory relations to one
another. By contrast, Charles Baudelaire attempts to represent that same experience allegorically
by expressing his desire for solitude, as well as by describing the purely contemplative and
detached attitude he adopts, reflecting his alienation from the other members of society. Which
of these two distinct attempts to represent modern life is more successful in your view?