Therese Raquin is a clinically observed, sinister
tale of adultery and murder among the lower orders in
nineteenth-century Paris. Zola's dispassionate
dissection of the motivations of his characters, mere
'human beasts' who kill in order to satisfy their lust,
is much more than an atmospheric Second Empire
period-piece. Many readers were scandalized by an
approach to character-drawing which seemed to undermine
not only the moral values of a deeply conservative
society, but also the whole code of psychological
description on which the realist novel was based.
Together with the important 'Preface to the Second
Edition' in which Zola defended himself against charges
of immorality, Therese Raquin stands as a key early
manifesto of the French Naturalist movement, of which
Zola was the founding father. Even today, this novel has
lost none of its power to shock. This new translation is
based on the second edition of 1868. The Introduction
situates the novel in the context of Naturalism,
medicine, and the scientific ideas of Zola's day. ABOUT
THE SERIES: For over 100 years Oxford World's Classics
has made available the widest range of literature from
around the globe.Each affordable volume reflects
Oxford's commitment to scholarship, providing the most
accurate text plus a wealth of other valuable features,
including expert introductions by leading authorities,
helpful notes to clarify the text, up-to-date
bibliographies for further study, and much more. |
|