"Thaïs" by Anatole France is a novel published in 1890. An ascetic hermit named Paphnuce travels from the Egyptian desert to Alexandria seeking Thaïs, a beautiful courtesan he once knew. He succeeds in converting her to Christianity, but as she retreats to a convent to repent, he becomes haunted by her former life and beauty. Their spiritual journeys take unexpected turns, leading to a profound reversal of faith and desire that questions the nature of salvation itself. (This is an automatically generated summary.)
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