His Excellency Eugène Rougon

What It's About

Eugène Rougon is one of the most powerful men in France's Second Empire — a close, trusted ally of the Emperor himself. When he falls from favour, he retreats from public life, but is soon drawn back into the political fray by Clorinde Balbi, a beautiful and ambitious young woman with schemes of her own. As Rougon works to reclaim his position, he surrounds himself with a circle of opportunists who expect him to repay their loyalty with favours, contracts, and appointments — and Clorinde proves to be both his most valuable ally and his most dangerous adversary.

Key Concepts

The novel is a study of political power: how it is won, exercised, and lost, and how the pursuit of it corrupts everyone drawn into its orbit. Zola is especially interested in the mechanics of patronage — the bribery, string-pulling, and empty rhetoric that keep a political machine running — and in how language itself is manipulated for political ends. Clorinde's situation also offers a pointed look at how a woman with political ambition in this world can only exercise power indirectly, through influence and manipulation, rather than office.

About the Author

Émile Zola (1840–1902) was a French novelist and the leading figure of the Naturalist movement, which sought to apply scientific objectivity to the depiction of ordinary and often harsh lives. He later became a prominent public figure for his open letter "J'Accuse…!", written in defence of Alfred Dreyfus.

About This Edition

This is an 1897 translation by Ernest Alfred Vizetelly.