The Belly of Paris by Émile Zola (Book Analysis): Detailed Summary, Analysis and Reading Guide

By Bright Summaries

Unlock the more straightforward side of The Belly of Paris with this concise and insightful summary and analysis!

This engaging summary presents an analysis of The Belly of Paris by Émile Zola, a compelling account of the lives of the people selling their wares at the then-newly-constructed market of Les Halles in central Paris. Set at a time of significant political and social change, the novel depicts conspiracies, gossip and backstabbing in this working-class region of the capital and stands out in particular for Zola’s masterful use of description. The Belly of Paris forms part of Les Rougon-Macquart, an ambitious cycle of 20 novels which tells the story of one extended family under the Second French Empire. Émile Zola was the leading figure of the literary school of naturalism, as well as an influential social thinker, and is now regarded as one of France’s greatest novelists.

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• A complete plot summary
• Character studies
• Key themes and symbols
• Questions for further reflection

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• Language: English
• Publisher: BrightSummaries.com
• Release date: Sep 22, 2017
• ISBN: 9782806296320

Book preview

French writer and journalist

Born in Paris in 1840.

Died in Paris in 1902.

Notable works:

Nana (1880), novel

The Ladies’ Paradise (1883), novel

Germinal (1885), novel

Émile Zola was born in 1840 and died in 1902. He is considered to be one of the greatest French novelists of the 19th century. He was also the leading figure of naturalism, a movement which sought to apply the experimental scientific methods of the time to literature: after observing reality, Zola would put forward a hypothesis and test it through experimentation in his books. This aesthetic can be seen in particular in Les Rougon-Macquart, a cycle of 20 novels which constitutes his most important work and met with major success, in spite of many criticisms.

Zola was also famous for his social and political stances, which often provoked strong reactions. The best-known of these concerns the Dreyfus affair; his pamphlet J’accuse (I accuse) was a major contributing factor to the pardoning of the Jewish officer Alfred Dreyfus (1859-1935).

The story of Les Halles in Paris

Genre: novel

Reference edtion: Zola, É. (2009) The Belly of Paris. Trans. Nelson, B. Oxford: Oxford University Press.