''L'Assommoir'' , published as a serial in 1876, and in book form in 1877, is the seventh novel in
Émile Zola
Émile Édouard Charles Antoine Zola (, also , ; 2 April 184029 September 1902) was a French novelist, journalist, playwright, the best-known practitioner of the literary school of naturalism, and an important contributor to the development of ...
's twenty-volume series ''
Les Rougon-Macquart
''Les Rougon-Macquart'' is the collective title given to a cycle of twenty novels by French writer Émile Zola. Subtitled ''Histoire naturelle et sociale d'une famille sous le Second Empire'' (''Natural and social history of a family under the Se ...
''. Usually considered one of Zola's masterpieces, the novel — a study of
alcoholism
Alcoholism is, broadly, any drinking of alcohol that results in significant mental or physical health problems. Because there is disagreement on the definition of the word ''alcoholism'', it is not a recognized diagnostic entity. Predomi ...
and poverty in the working-class districts of Paris — was a huge commercial success and helped establish Zola's fame and reputation throughout France and the world.
Plot summary
The novel is principally the story of Gervaise Macquart, who is featured briefly in the first novel in the series, ''
La Fortune des Rougon
''La Fortune des Rougon'' ''(The Fortune of the Rougons)'', originally published in 1871, is the first novel in Émile Zola's monumental twenty-volume series ''Les Rougon-Macquart''. The novel is partly an origin story, with a large cast of charact ...
'', running away to Paris with her shiftless lover Lantier to work as a washerwoman in a hot, busy laundry in one of the seedier areas of the city.
''L'Assommoir'' begins with Gervaise and her two young sons being abandoned by Lantier, who takes off for parts unknown with another woman. Though at first she swears off men altogether, eventually she gives in to the advances of Coupeau, a
teetotal
Teetotalism is the practice or promotion of total personal abstinence from the psychoactive drug alcohol, specifically in alcoholic drinks. A person who practices (and possibly advocates) teetotalism is called a teetotaler or teetotaller, or is ...
roofer, and they are married. The marriage sequence is one of the most famous set-pieces of Zola's work; the account of the wedding party's impromptu and chaotic trip to the
Louvre
The Louvre ( ), or the Louvre Museum ( ), is the world's most-visited museum, and an historic landmark in Paris, France. It is the home of some of the best-known works of art, including the ''Mona Lisa'' and the ''Venus de Milo''. A central l ...
is one of the novelist's most famous passages. Through a combination of happy circumstances, Gervaise is able to realise her dream and raise enough money to open her own laundry. The couple's happiness appears to be complete with the birth of a daughter, Anna, nicknamed
Nana
Nana, Nanna, Na Na or NANA may refer to:
People and fictional characters
* Nana (given name), including a list of people and characters with the given name
* Nana (surname), including a list of people and characters with the surname
* Nana ( ...
(the protagonist of Zola's later novel of the same title).
However, later in the story, we witness the downward trajectory of Gervaise's life from this happy high point. Coupeau is injured in a fall from the roof of a new hospital he is working on, and during his lengthy convalescence he takes first to idleness, then to gluttony, and eventually to drink. In only a few years, Coupeau becomes a vindictive, wife-beating alcoholic, with no intention of trying to find more work. Gervaise struggles to keep her home together, but her excessive pride leads her to a number of embarrassing failures and before long everything is going downhill. Gervaise becomes infected by her husband’s newfound laziness and, in an effort to impress others, spends her money on lavish feasts and accumulates uncontrolled debt.
The home is further disrupted by the return of Lantier, who is warmly welcomed by Coupeau - by this point losing interest in both Gervaise and life itself, and becoming seriously ill. The ensuing chaos and financial strain is too much for Gervaise, who loses her laundry-shop and is sucked into a spiral of debt and despair. Eventually, she too finds solace in drink and, like Coupeau, slides into heavy alcoholism. All this prompts Nana - already suffering from the chaotic life at home and getting into trouble on a daily basis - to run away from her parents' home and become a casual prostitute.
Gervaise’s story is told against a backdrop of a rich array of other well-drawn characters with their own vices and idiosyncrasies. Notable amongst these being Goujet, a young blacksmith, who spends his life in unconsummated love for the hapless laundress.
Eventually, sunk by debt, hunger and alcohol, Coupeau and Gervaise both die. The latter’s corpse lies for two days in her unkempt hovel before it is noticed by her disdaining neighbors.
Themes and criticism
Zola spent an immense amount of time researching Parisian street argot for his most realistic novel to that date, using a large number of obscure contemporary slang words and curses to capture an authentic atmosphere. His shocking descriptions of conditions in working-class 19th-century Paris drew widespread admiration for his realism, as it still does. L'Assommoir was taken up by
temperance
Temperance may refer to:
Moderation
*Temperance movement, movement to reduce the amount of alcohol consumed
*Temperance (virtue), habitual moderation in the indulgence of a natural appetite or passion
Culture
*Temperance (group), Canadian danc ...
workers across the world as a tract against the dangers of alcoholism, though Zola always insisted there was considerably more to his novel than that. The novelist also drew criticism from some quarters for the depth of his reporting, either for being too coarse and vulgar or for portraying working-class people as shiftless drunkards. Zola rejected both these criticisms out of hand; his response was simply that he had presented a true picture of real life.
![Émile Zola's L'Assomoir by Augustin Daly](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/73/%C3%89mile_Zola%27s_L%27Assomoir_by_Augustin_Daly.jpg)
Translations
''L'Assommoir'' has often been translated, and there are several unexpurgated modern editions available. In 1884,
Henry Vizetelly
Henry Richard Vizetelly (30 July 18201 January 1894) was a British publisher and writer. He started the publications ''Pictorial Times'' and ''Illustrated Times'', wrote several books while working in Paris and Berlin as correspondent for the ''I ...
published an English-language translation of the novel with some edits designed not to offend the sensibilities of British audiences. However, the salacious nature of Zola's work (even in edited form) would see the Vizetellys vilified in parliament and later prosecuted for obscenity.
Translators have approached the title ''L'Assommoir'' in different ways. It is adapted from the French verb "assommer" meaning to stun or knock out. The noun is a colloquial term popular in late nineteenth-century Paris, referring to a shop selling cheap liquor distilled on the premises "where the working classes could drown their sorrows cheaply and drink themselves senseless". Perhaps the closest equivalent terms in English are the slang adjectives "
hammered" and "
plastered". English translators have rendered it as ''The Dram Shop'', ''The Gin Palace'', ''Drunkard'', ''The Drinking Den'' or simply ''The Assommoir''.
:* ''L'Assommoir'' (1879, tr. Mary Neal Sherwood, T.B. Peterson & Bros.)
:* ''Gervaise'' (1879, tr. E. Binsse, G. W. Carleton & Co.)
:* ''The ‘Assommoir’'' (1884, tr. unknown for
H. Vizetelly, Vizetelly & Co.)
:* ''L'Assommoir'' (1895, tr.
Arthur Symons, Lutetian Society); later reprinted as ''Drunkard'' (Elek, 1958)
:* ''The Dram Shop'' (1897, tr. unknown, edited by
E. A. Vizetelly, Chatto & Windus)
:* ''Drink'' (1903, tr. S.J.A. Fitzgerald, Greening & Co.)
:* ''The Dram Shop'' (1951, tr. Gerard Hopkins, Hamish Hamilton)
:* ''The Gin Palace'' (1952, tr. Buckner B. Trawick, Avon Publications)
:* ''L'Assommoir'' (1962, tr. Atwood H. Townsend, New American Library)
:* ''L'Assommoir'' (1970, tr. Leonard Tancock, Penguin Books)
:* ''L'Assommoir'' (1995, tr. Margaret Mauldon, Oxford University Press)
:* ''The Drinking Den'' (2000, tr. Robin Buss, Penguin Books)
:*''The Assommoir'' (2021, tr. Brian Nelson, Oxford University Press)
Adaptations
The French film ''
L'Assommoir
''L'Assommoir'' , published as a serial in 1876, and in book form in 1877, is the seventh novel in Émile Zola's twenty-volume series ''Les Rougon-Macquart''. Usually considered one of Zola's masterpieces, the novel — a study of alcoholism and po ...
'' (1909), directed by
Albert Capellani
Albert Capellani (23 August 1874 – 26 September 1931) was a French film director and screenwriter of the silent era. He directed films between 1905 and 1922. One of his brothers was the actor-sculptor Paul Capellani, and another, film dir ...
.
The French film ''L'Assommoir'' (1921), directed by
Maurice de Marsan and
Charles Maudru.
The American film ''
The Struggle'' (1931), directed by
D. W. Griffith, is a loose adaptation of the novel.
The French film ''L'Assommoir'' (1933), directed by
Gaston Roudès
Gaston Roudès (born 24 March 1878, Béziers, Hérault, France; d. 5 November 1958, Villejuif, Val-de-Marne
Val-de-Marne (, "Vale of the Marne") is a department of France located in the Île-de-France region. Named after the river Marne, it ...
.
The French film ''
Gervaise'' (1956), directed by
René Clément, is an adaptation of the novel.
''Gervaise''
at Ciné-Ressources. Retrieved 18 June 2020.
The Soviet film ''Zapadnia'' (Западня, 1972).
References
External links
''L'Assommoir''
available at Internet Archive
The Internet Archive is an American digital library with the stated mission of "universal access to all knowledge". It provides free public access to collections of digitized materials, including websites, software applications/games, music, ...
(English, illustrated scanned books)
(English, HTML and plain text)
(French, HTML and plain text)
*
''L'Assommoir'', audio version
''L'Assommoir''
in French with English translation
*
''Zapadnya'' (1972)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Assommoir
1877 French novels
Novels by Émile Zola
Books of Les Rougon-Macquart
French novels adapted into films
Novels set in Paris
Novels about alcoholism