Reading the Classics #70: Emile Zola
Welcome to Post #70 in my Reading the Classics series. Reaching 70 is another milestone in this series, that I am happy about. In fact, every one of then “tens” makes me grateful that I’ve made it through another 10 authors. #10 was Washington Irving, #20 was Edgar Allan Poe, #30 was Honore de Balzac, #40 was J.R.R. Tolkien, #50 was D.H. Lawrence, and #60 was Dante Alighieri. But enough about the past. Today, we will be looking at Emile Zola, a rather interesting author. He was born April 2, 1840 in Paris. His father died when Emile was only 7; as a result, he grew up rather poor, and was forced to work as a clerk to support himself and his mother. During this time, he began writing articles for journals and newspapers; his literary career, however, didn’t take off until 1867, when he published his first novel, Therese Raquin. After that he began writing more and more. Some of the more well-known writings from this time include Germinal, Nana, and Doctor Pascal. Out of the 50 or so novels Zola wrote, 20 of them became grouped together in a interconnected series entitled the Les Rougon-Macquart. In the year 1898, he became involved in the Dreyfus affair (If you don’t know about this, I suggest you look it up quickly). He published an article accusing the French government of lying to the people, and was brought to trial multiple times because of it. Zola died September 29, 1902 due to carbon monoxide poisoning (His chimney was blocked up or something like that). His body is interred next to other famed authors Victor Hugo and Alexandre Dumas, in the Pantheon in Paris.
But enough about his life. This post was written to explore the books. Unfortunately, I’ve only been able to read one of Emile Zola’s book. It’ll be enough, however, so don’t complain XD.
1. Germinal
Germinal is a French word that was used as the name for the 7th month of the French Republican Calender, and comes from the Latin word meaning “seed”. Part of the Les Rougon-Macquart series, Germinal is one of Zola’s most well-known novels, and was first published in 1885. Etienne Lantier is looking for work, and he finds himself at a mining town called Montsou. He quickly gets a job there, but he quickly realizes just how horrible the work is. Backbreaking labor, from early in the morning to late at night, in mines that could collapse at any moment. He keeps working there, however, and makes several friends in the community. One of these, an anarchist named Souvarine, starts a riot against the rich people in charge of the mines. Etienne joins in the riots, and gets almost all the miners involved in both riots and strikes. What happens next will keep you reading until the end. Zola’s descriptions throughout this novel are nothing but masterful. The poverty of the miners, the apathy of their supervisors, the horror of the mines themselves are portrayed amazingly. The characters are relatable, and the scenes gripping. I loved this book. I would absolutely recommend reading this.
I’m sorry I haven’t gotten to read more of Emile Zola’s books, and as a result have to conclude this post. I hope you were inspired to read Germinal, it really is worth your time. Remember that if you have authors you wish to see in the series, let me know, and I’ll see what I can do. Thank you for reading this post, and I’ll see you next time!
1831- The Hunchback of Notre Dame by Victor Hugo
1835- Pere Goriot by Honore de Balzac
1844- The Three Musketeers by Alexandre Dumas
1844-1845- Queen Margot by Alexandre Dumas
1845- The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas
1847- The Man in the Iron Mask by Alexandre Dumas
1862- Les Miserables by Victor Hugo
1864- Journey to the Center of the Earth by Jules Verne
1869-1870- Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea by Jules Verne
1871- The Blockade Runners by Jules Verne
1873- Around the World in Eighty Days by Jules Verne
1874- The Mysterious Island by Jules Verne
1885- Germinal by Emile Zola
1891- In the Year 2889 by Jules Verne
1895- The Floating Island by Jules Verne
1910- The Phantom of the Opera by Gaston Leroux
