Henri Barbusse
The Inferno
"The Inferno" by Henri Barbusse is a novel written in 1908. An unnamed, isolated narrator discovers a hole in his Paris boarding house wall, granting him a secret view into the neighboring room. Through this peephole, he witnesses a stark parade of human behavior—adultery, theft, death, and other intimate moments—while contemplating their deeper meaning. As his voyeurism intensifies, he must confront what his observations reveal about life, humanity, and his own existence.