“Balzac's age” is a catch phrase, which is often given an ironic, humorous tone. Usually this phrase is applied to women between the ages of thirty and forty.
History of appearance
The expression "Balzac's age" became famous after the novel "Thirty Years Old" was born in 1831 - the famous work of the French writer, one of the founders of realism in French literature Honore de Balzac.
This novel is sometimes found as "Woman at Thirty" - a rarer translation of the title.
In the first years after the publication of the work, this expression was used in an ironic manner in relation to women who resemble the heroine of the novel or strive to become like her. Over time, this meaning was forgotten, and, speaking of the Balzac age, they began to imply only a certain age range - from thirty to forty years.
The expression "Balzac's age" is traditionally used only in relation to a woman. It is not accepted to designate the age of a man in this way.
Balzac woman
Together with the “Balzac age”, the expression “Balzac woman” came into wide use, which is used to describe both the ladies of Balzac's age and persons similar to the heroine of the novel by Honore de Balzac. She is a middle-aged or slightly older woman who has retained her attractiveness, enjoys success with the opposite sex and often takes the initiative when meeting.
Men should remember that behind the expression “Balzac's age” a humorous, humorous, ironic connotation of meaning is entrenched. Indeed, in the time of Honore de Balzac, ladies entered a period, so to speak, flourishing at about fourteen years old, and at thirty they preferred not to talk about their age anymore. Perhaps that is why there is now a misconception that the "balzac age" means the modern pre-retirement or retirement age of a woman. So this expression should be used with caution, not in the presence of ladies, and sometimes it is better to refuse it altogether.
There is another meaning of this expression, which has already appeared at the present time. Balzac age is also understood as a kind of transitional period in a woman's life, since the age after 30 is perceived by many as a milestone, after which one needs to sum up a little and move on to the next stage of one's life.
There is also a peculiar tendency - after 30 years, a crisis begins, based on the conviction that during these years a woman should already have a certain status, a certain experience, and the time of discoveries and external and spiritual flourishing is behind.
