Scholars from various French and Italian universities presented results of their studies on the works of prominent realistic and naturalistic French writers of the 19th century in their talks for the reviewed colloquium later published on the Fabula website. The main issues discussed are the balance of rational and emotional in depicting characters’ actions in novels, the main sources of motivation for these actions, some distinct features of narrative discourse and psychological approach in the works by Stendhal, Balzac, Flaubert and other novelists of this period.
