''Thérèse Raquin'' is an 1868
novel
A novel is a relatively long work of narrative fiction, typically written in prose and published as a book. The present English word for a long work of prose fiction derives from the for "new", "news", or "short story of something new", itsel ...
by French writer
Émile Zola, first published in serial form in the literary magazine ''
L'Artiste
''L’Artiste'' was a weekly illustrated review published in Paris from 1831 to 1904, supplying "the richest single source of contemporary commentary on artists, exhibitions and trends from the Romantic era to the end of the nineteenth century."
...
'' in 1867. It was Zola's third novel, though the first to earn wide fame. The novel's adultery and murder were considered scandalous and famously described as "putrid" in a review in the newspaper ''
Le Figaro''.
''Thérèse Raquin'' tells the story of a young woman, unhappily married to her first cousin by an overbearing aunt, who may seem to be well-intentioned but in many ways is deeply selfish. Thérèse's husband, Camille, is sickly and egocentric and when the opportunity arises, Thérèse enters into a turbulent and sordidly passionate affair with one of Camille's friends, Laurent.
In his preface, Zola explains that his goal in this novel was to "study temperaments and not characters". Because of this detached and scientific approach, ''Thérèse Raquin'' is considered an example of
naturalism.
''Thérèse Raquin'' was first adapted for the stage as an 1873
play written by Zola himself. It has since then been adapted numerous times as films, TV mini-series, musicals and an opera, among others.
Plot summary
Thérèse Raquin is the daughter of a French sea-captain and an Algerian mother. After her mother's death, her father takes her to live with her aunt, Madame Raquin, and Camille, her