Thérèse Raquin – Zola’s Putrid Exploration of Guilt and Punishment

Around 2002 I was working in Our Price. I would spend a lot of time talking to lots of people about music and films, but also books. It was in one of these conversations with a customer; I must’ve been talking about my love of French literature, around that time I was devouring all the Camus I could get my hands on. The customer recommended a book, and the next day came in with a copy which he gave to me. The book was Thérèse Raquin by Émile Zola.

It was, however, many years before I actually sat down to read it. But the customer’s enthusiasm was well founded. It is a great read.

Marriage

Thérèse Raquin follows the story of Thérèse, her husband Camille, her lover Laurent and her mother-in-law. After her mother’s death Thérèse moves in with her aunt and her sickly cousin. Because of his many ailments and constant ill health his mother dotes upon him and showers him with affection and preferential treatment, he is, therefore, spoiled, moody and useless.

Thérèse grows up in this household and then is married to her cousin by her aunt. Thérèse being meek and used to nursing and serving him through her childhood complies. The family move from the country (which Thérèse loves) to Paris so Camille can start a career. Thérèse and Madame Raquin start a small haberdashery shop and the family all live above in a small apartment.

Adultery and Murder

In Paris Camille meets an old friend Laurent. Laurent is a failing artist, lazy but also arrogant. Camille invites Laurent to the house and introduces him to Thérèse. Laurent is engaged to paint a portrait of Camille and while doing so has regular access to the house and family, he fantasizes about having an affair with Thérèse, principally because he is unable to any longer afford prostitutes rather than through any great affection.

The regular card games hosted in the house provide the opportunity for Laurent to initiate the connection and Thérèse and Laurent start a secret affair, meeting in her matrimonial bedroom while Madame Raquin minds the shop downstairs. Eventually Laurent’s boss will not allow him to leave early any more and the affair seems destined to stop.

The couple fantasize about murdering Camille so they can be together and on a picnic trip the opportunity occurs. The three of them are rowing a boat in the river and Laurent drags Camille overboard and drowns him, receiving a bite to the neck in the process.

Paranoia, Guilt and Self-Destruction

The remainder of the story plays out the murderous couples paranoia, guilt and self-destruction. They are consumed by visions of Camille and fear of discovery. Camille’s mother has a stroke and is disabled, she eventually finds out about the murder and plot but is unable to alert anyone. They lose all passion for one another as their visions of Camille’s ghost invades their bedroom and interrupts their sleep. Eventually Madame Raquin gets her final brutal satisfaction.

It is in the study of the guilt and paranoia in this final section that the story really comes alive. We see a descent into madness and despair. The couple, in pursuing their carnal desire follow a path of inevitable self-destruction.

Putrid

All the characters in Thérèse Raquin seem to be slightly clichéd, they are caricatures, devices for the study of the ideas. Even the very ancillary characters; their friends at the card games who encourage the couple to marry, are tropic. However, this does not detract from the power of Zola’s exploration of the ideas of guilt and punishment. Zola himself said the book was not supposed to be about characters but temperaments.

The book constantly uses devices pertaining to imprisonment and punishment, even in being freed from her husband Thérèse is only re-imprisoned by her guilt. Laurent’s freedom is languid, selfish and insipid before the murder and then his punishment begins in earnest. The shop is a ‘tomb’, the characters are ‘chained’ and ‘caged’. This connects with the descriptions of many of the characters with animalistic, or beastly qualities.

On release the book was seen as scandalous. Published in 1867 the book’s explicit adultery and murder were described as ‘putrid’, a description that Zola used to promote his work.

If a hopeless, depraved and ‘putrid’ book filled with murder, intrigue and psychological torture sounds like your sort of thing I would highly recommend Thérèse Raquin. It is dark and bleak but it is totally absorbing.

Darren Ellis is a teacher, creative and owner of Rotten Poetry. He reads classic literature, fantasy, sci-fi, literary fiction and history.