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Set in Java at the height of Dutch colonial rule in the East Indies, Couperus's evocative and sensual narrative depicts the clash between Western rationalism, represented by the district commissioner Otto van Oudijck, and ancient indigenous mystical traditions upheld by the local native prince, Sunario. The behavior of Van Oudijck's promiscuous wife Léonie proves to be his Achilles heel, and his seemingly impregnable authority disintegrates.