Thérèse Raquin
Encyclopedia
Thérèse Raquin is the title of a novel
Novel
A novel is a book of long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern romance and in the tradition of the novella. The latter supplied the present generic term in the late 18th century....

 (first published in 1867
1867 in literature
The year 1867 in literature involved some significant new books.-Events:* Three new American periodicals for children — Oliver Optic's Magazine, Frank Leslie's Boys' and Girls' Weekly, and the Riverside Magazine for Young People — all begin publishing.-New books:*Mary Elizabeth Braddon...

) and a play
Play (theatre)
A play is a form of literature written by a playwright, usually consisting of scripted dialogue between characters, intended for theatrical performance rather than just reading. There are rare dramatists, notably George Bernard Shaw, who have had little preference whether their plays were performed...

 (first performed in 1873) by the French writer Émile Zola
Émile Zola
Émile François Zola was a French writer, the most important exemplar of the literary school of naturalism and an important contributor to the development of theatrical naturalism...

. The novel was originally published in serial
Serial (literature)
In literature, a serial is a publishing format by which a single large work, most often a work of narrative fiction, is presented in contiguous installments—also known as numbers, parts, or fascicles—either issued as separate publications or appearing in sequential issues of a single periodical...

 format in the journal L'Artiste
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."...

and in book format in December of the same year.

Plot introduction

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. Therese'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" and he compares the novel to a scientific study. Because of this detached and scientific approach, Thérèse Raquin is considered an example of Naturalism
Naturalism (literature)
Naturalism was a literary movement taking place from the 1880s to 1940s that used detailed realism to suggest that social conditions, heredity, and environment had inescapable force in shaping human character...

.

Plot summary

Thérèse Raquin is the daughter of a French captain and an Algerian mother. After the death of her mother, her father brings her to live with her aunt, Madame Raquin, and her sickly son, Camille. Because her son is so ill, Madame Raquin dotes on Camille to the point where he is selfish and spoiled. Camille and Thérèse grow up side-by-side, and Madame Raquin marries them together when Thérèse is 21. Shortly thereafter, Camille decides that the family should move to Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...

 so he can pursue a career.

Thérèse and Madame Raquin set up shop in the Passage du Pont Neuf
Pont Neuf
The Pont Neuf is, despite its name, the oldest standing bridge across the river Seine in Paris, France. Its name, which was given to distinguish it from older bridges that were lined on both sides with houses, has remained....

 to support Camille while he searches for a job. Camille eventually begins working for the Orléans
Orléans
-Prehistory and Roman:Cenabum was a Gallic stronghold, one of the principal towns of the Carnutes tribe where the Druids held their annual assembly. It was conquered and destroyed by Julius Caesar in 52 BC, then rebuilt under the Roman Empire...

 Railroad Company, where he meets up with a childhood friend, Laurent. Laurent visits the Raquins and decides to take up an affair with the lonely Thérèse, mostly because he cannot afford prostitutes anymore. However, this soon turns into a torrid love affair.

Thérèse and Laurent conspire to drown Camille while out on a boat trip. This enables them to marry, but their guilt comes between them. They imagine they see the dead man in their bedroom every night, preventing them from touching each other and quickly driving them insane. Laurent, who is an artist, cannot paint a picture (even a landscape) which does not in some way resemble the dead man. They also have to look after Madame Raquin, who suffered a stroke after Camille's death. Madame Raquin suffers a second stroke and becomes completely paralyzed except for her eyes (as in locked-in syndrome
Locked-In syndrome
Locked-in syndrome is a condition in which a patient is aware and awake but cannot move or communicate verbally due to complete paralysis of nearly all voluntary muscles in the body except for the eyes. Total locked-in syndrome is a version of locked-in syndrome where the eyes are paralyzed as...

), after which Therese and Laurent accidentally reveal their guilt in her presence during an argument.

During an evening's game of dominoes with friends (an attempt to keep up a facade of normality) she manages to move her finger with an extreme effort of will to trace words on the table: "Thérèse et Laurent ont t..." The complete sentence was intended to be "Thérèse et Laurent ont tué Camille" (Thérèse and Laurent killed Camille). At this point her strength gives out, and the words are interpreted as "Thérèse and Laurent look after me very well".

Eventually, Thérèse and Laurent find life together intolerable and plot to kill each other. At the climax of the novel, the two are about to kill one another when each of them realizes the plans of the other. They each then break down sobbing and reflect upon their miserable lives. After having embraced one last time, they each commit suicide by taking poison, all in front of the watchful gaze of Madame Raquin.

Characters in "Thérèse Raquin"

  • Thérèse Raquin – the eponymous heroine, she is the orphaned daughter of Madame Raquin's brother and an unknown African woman
  • Camille Raquin – Thérèse's husband and first cousin.
  • Madame Raquin – Camille's mother and Thérèse's aunt. She works as a shopkeeper to support her family.
  • Laurent – a childhood friend and coworker of Camille who seduces Therese
  • Michaud – the police commissioner and friend of Madame Raquin
  • Olivier – Michaud's son who works at the police prefecture
  • Suzanne – Olivier's wife
  • Grivet – an elderly employee of the Orléans Railroad Company, where Camille works
  • François – the Raquins' cat

Punishment/Imprisonment

Throughout the book there are constant references to chains, cages, tombs, and pits. These motifs contribute to the fact that Laurent and Therese are always in a state of remorse and they are plagued by their guilt for killing Camille. The book mentions how Therese and Laurent are always clawing at the chains that bound them together trying to break free. Also, the store that Therese owns is compared to a tomb, where Therese watches the corpses walk by in the day, and she feels that she will never leave her tomb.

Temperaments

In his preface to the second edition, Zola writes that he intended to "study temperaments and not characters." To his main characters, he assigns various humors according to Galen's Four Temperaments: Thérèse is melancholic, Laurent is sanguine, and Camille is phlegmatic. For Zola, the interactions of these types of personalities could only have the result that plays out in his plot.

Human beast

Also in his preface, Zola calls both Thérèse and Laurent "human brutes," and the characters are often given animalistic tendencies. Zola would take up this idea again in his La Bête humaine
La Bête humaine
La Bête Humaine is an 1890 novel by Émile Zola. The story has been adapted for the cinema on several occasions. It is based around the railway between Paris and Le Havre in the 19th century and is a tense, psychological thriller....

of 1890
1890 in literature
The year 1890 in literature involved some significant new books.-Events:* Bram Stoker begins work on Dracula.*Arthur Morrison joins the staff of the Evening Globe newspaper.-New books:*Rolf Boldrewood - The Squatter's Dream...

.

Mechanical man

Similar to the human beast who acts based on instinct, the mechanical man acts like an "unthinking machine."

Literary significance and reception

Thérèse Raquin is generally considered to be Zola's first major work.

Upon its release in 1867, Thérèse Raquin was a commercial and artistic success for Zola; enough so that it was reprinted in book form in 1868
1868 in literature
The year 1868 in literature involved some significant new books.-Events:*First edition of the World Almanac is published.*Emile Zola defends his criticized first novel against charges of pornography and corruption of morals....

. It gained additional publicity when critic Louis Ulbach
Louis Ulbach
-Life:Ulbach was born at Troyes . He was encouraged to take up a literary career by Victor Hugo. He became dramatic critic of the Temps, and attracted attention by a series of satirical letters addressed to Le Figaro over the signature of “Ferragus,” and published separately in 1868...

 (pen name: Ferragus) called Thérèse Raquin "putrid" in a long diatribe, upon which Zola capitalized for publicity and to which he referred in his preface to the second edition.

Film, TV, radio or theatrical adaptations

Zola adapted the novel into a play which was first staged in 1873. The play did not receive its London première until 1891, under the auspices of the Independent Theatre Society
Independent Theatre Society
The Independent Theatre Society was a by-subscription-only organisation in London from 1891 to 1897, founded by Dutch drama critic Jacob Grein to give "special performances of plays which have a literary and artistic rather than a commercial value." The society was inspired by its continental...

 – as the Lord Chamberlain's Office
Lord Chamberlain's Office
The Lord Chamberlain's Office is a department within the British Royal Household. It is presently concerned with matters such as protocol, state visits, investitures, garden parties, the State Opening of Parliament, royal weddings and funerals. For example, in April 2005 it organised the wedding of...

 refused to licence the play.

Recent stage productions include:
  • 2006 for the Royal National Theatre
    Royal National Theatre
    The Royal National Theatre in London is one of the United Kingdom's two most prominent publicly funded theatre companies, alongside the Royal Shakespeare Company...

    , London
    London
    London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...

    , adaptation written by Nicholas Wright.
  • 2007 production of the Nicholas Wright adaptation by Quantum Theatre in Pittsburgh, PA.  Staged in the empty swimming pool of the Carnegie Library
    Carnegie library
    A Carnegie library is a library built with money donated by Scottish-American businessman and philanthropist Andrew Carnegie. 2,509 Carnegie libraries were built between 1883 and 1929, including some belonging to public and university library systems...

     in Braddock, PA.
  • 2008 production at Riverside Studios
    Riverside Studios
    Riverside Studios is a production studio, theatre and independent cinema on the banks of the River Thames in Hammersmith, London, England. It plays host to contemporary and international dramatic and dance performance, film, visual art exhibitions and television production.-History:In 1933, the...

    , London
    London
    London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...

    , adaptation by Pauline McLynn.
  • 2009 production at Edinburgh Fringe Festival performed by pupils of The Cheltenham Ladies' College (adapted by Fiona Ross)

The novel was made into several films, including:
  • A 1915 silent film
    Silent film
    A silent film is a film with no synchronized recorded sound, especially with no spoken dialogue. In silent films for entertainment the dialogue is transmitted through muted gestures, pantomime and title cards...

     adaptation, which was made in Italy
    Italy
    Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...

    . It was directed by Nino Martoglio.
  • A 1928 German silent film
    Thérèse Raquin (1928 film)
    Thérèse Raquin is a 1928 drama film directed by Jacques Feyder. It is the third silent film adaptation of the novel of the same name by Émile Zola. The film stars Gina Manès as Thérèse Raquin, Wolfgang Zilzer as Monsieur Raquin, and Jeanne Marie Laurent as Madame Raquin. The décors of the Paris...

  • A 1950 BBC
    BBC
    The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...

     adaptation starring Sonia Dresdel
    Sonia Dresdel
    Sonia Dresdel was an English actress, whose career ran between the 1940s and 1970s.She was born Lois Obee in Hornsea, East Riding of Yorkshire, England and was educated at Aberdeen High School for Girls....

     as Thérèse.
  • A 1953 French
    France
    The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...

     adaptation with Simone Signoret
    Simone Signoret
    Simone Signoret was a French cinema actress often hailed as one of France's greatest movie stars. She became the first French person to win an Academy Award, for her role in Room at the Top...

    .
  • A 1956
    1956 in television
    The year 1956 in television involved some significant events.Below is a list of television-related events in 1956.-Events:*January 28 – Elvis Presley makes his national television debut on CBS on Stage Show, the first of six appearances on the series....

     German
    Germany
    Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

     made-for-TV movie adaptation.
  • A 1965
    1965 in television
    The year 1965 in television involved some significant events.Below is a list of television-related events in 1965.For the American TV schedule, see: 1965-66 American network television schedule.-Events:...

     Swedish
    Sweden
    Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....

     made-for-TV movie adaptation.
  • A 1966
    1966 in television
    The year 1966 in television involved some significant events.Below is a list of television-related events in 1966.For the American TV schedule, see: 1966-67 American network television schedule.-Events:...

     German
    Germany
    Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

     made-for-TV movie adaptation.
  • A 1977
    1977 in television
    The year 1977 in television involved some significant events.Below is a list of television-related events in 1977.For the American TV schedule, see: 1977-78 American network television schedule.-Events:...

     Mexican
    Mexico
    The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...

     TV series adaptation.
  • A 1979
    1979 in television
    The year 1979 in television involved some significant events.Below is a list of television-related events in 1979.For the American TV schedule, see: 1979-80 American network television schedule.-Events:...

     Belgian
    Belgium
    Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...

     made-for-TV movie adaptation.
  • A 1980
    1980 in television
    The year 1980 in television involved some significant events.Below is a list of television-related events in 1980.For the American TV schedule, see: 1980-81 American network television schedule.-Events:...

     BBC
    BBC
    The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...

     serial adaptation starring Kate Nelligan
    Kate Nelligan
    Patricia Colleen "Kate" Nelligan is a Canadian BAFTA award winning stage, film and television actress.-Early life:Nelligan, the fourth of six children, was born in London, Ontario, the daughter of Josephine Alice , a schoolteacher, and Patrick Joseph Nelligan, a factory repairman and municipal...

     as Thérèse and Alan Rickman
    Alan Rickman
    Alan Sidney Patrick Rickman is an English actor and theatre director. He is a renowned stage actor in modern and classical productions and a former member of the Royal Shakespeare Company...

    .
  • A 1985
    1985 in television
    The year 1985 involved some significant events.Below is a list of television-related events in 1985.For the American TV schedule, see: 1985-86 United States network television schedule.-Events:*January 1 – VH1 launches in the United States....

     Italian
    Italy
    Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...

     mini-series adaptation.
  • A 1998
    1998 in radio
    The year 1998 in radio involved some significant events.-Events:*January 2 — A gunman shoots Antario Teodoro Filho, Brazilian politician and radio presenter, during a broadcast.*January 21 - Big 105 debuts playing its AC format...

     BBC Radio 4
    BBC Radio 4
    BBC Radio 4 is a British domestic radio station, operated and owned by the BBC, that broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes, including news, drama, comedy, science and history. It replaced the BBC Home Service in 1967. The station controller is currently Gwyneth Williams, and the...

     radio adaptation starring Anna Massey
    Anna Massey
    Anna Raymond Massey, CBE was an English actress. She won a BAFTA Award for the role of Edith Hope in the 1986 TV adaptation of Anita Brookner’s novel Hotel du Lac.-Early life:...

     as Thérèse.
  • A 2009
    2009 in radio
    The following events occurred in radio in 2009.- Events :* January 1: Kurdish TV starts broadcasting in Turkey.* January: Michael Smerconish, morning host at talk radio WPHT Philadelphia, begins syndication of his morning show to WHFS in Washington and WOR in New York City.* January 17: Two well...

     BBC Radio 4
    BBC Radio 4
    BBC Radio 4 is a British domestic radio station, operated and owned by the BBC, that broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes, including news, drama, comedy, science and history. It replaced the BBC Home Service in 1967. The station controller is currently Gwyneth Williams, and the...

     A "Classic Serial" adaptation in two parts starring Charlotte Riley
    Charlotte Riley
    Charlotte Riley is an English actress. She is best known for her role Sarah Hurst in Easy Virtue and as Catherine Earnshaw in ITV's adaptation of Wuthering Heights.-Personal life:...

     as Thérèse and Andrew Buchan
    Andrew Buchan
    -Early life:Buchan was born in Stockport, Greater Manchester, and brought up in the suburb of Lostock in Bolton. He attended the nearby Rivington and Blackrod High School in Horwich....

     as Laurent.
  • The 2009
    2009 in film
    The year 2009 saw the release of many films. Seven made the top 50 list of highest-grossing films, and the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced that as of this year, their Best Picture category would consist of ten nominees, rather than five .- Highest-grossing films :Please note...

     Korea
    Korea
    Korea ) is an East Asian geographic region that is currently divided into two separate sovereign states — North Korea and South Korea. Located on the Korean Peninsula, Korea is bordered by the People's Republic of China to the northwest, Russia to the northeast, and is separated from Japan to the...

    n horror film Thirst
    Thirst (2009 film)
    Thirst is a 2009 horror/drama film, written, produced and directed by Park Chan-wook. It is loosely based on the novel Thérèse Raquin by Émile Zola. The film tells the story of a priest—who is in love with his friend’s wife—turning into a vampire through a failed medical experiment. Park has...

    borrowed a number of plot elements from Thérèse Raquin.
  • The 2012
    2012 in film
    The following tables list films that are in production or have completed production and will be released in the United States and Canada at some point in 2012...

     English
    United States
    The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

     adaptation with Glenn Close
    Glenn Close
    Glenn Close is an American actress and singer of theatre and film, known for her roles as a femme fatale Glenn Close (born March 19, 1947) is an American actress and singer of theatre and film, known for her roles as a femme fatale Glenn Close (born March 19, 1947) is an American actress and...

     as Madame Raquin Elizabeth Olsen
    Elizabeth Olsen
    Elizabeth Chase Olsen is an American actress and is the younger sister of Mary-Kate Olsen, Ashley Olsen, and Trent Olsen...

     as Thérèse.


An opera based on the novel has been written by the composer Michael Finnissy
Michael Finnissy
Michael Finnissy is an English composer and pianist. His music is characterised by the range of extremes often found in his work; opposing binary structures are found commonly, often seen as juxtaposing textures, register and tempi...

.
Another opera Thérèse Raquin
Thérèse Raquin (opera)
Thérèse Raquin is an opera in two acts composed by Tobias Picker to a libretto by Gene Scheer based on the novel Thérèse Raquin by Emile Zola. It is Picker's third opera, following Emmeline and Fantastic Mr. Fox and was commissioned by the Dallas Opera, San Diego Opera, and the Opéra de Montréal...

by Tobias Picker
Tobias Picker
Tobias Picker is an American composer. Picker began composing at the age of eight and studied at the Manhattan School of Music, The Juilliard School and Princeton University, where his principal teachers were Charles Wuorinen, Elliott Carter and Milton Babbitt...

 opened in 2000.

The novel was also made into a Broadway musical entitled Thou Shalt Not
Thou Shalt Not (musical)
Thou Shalt Not is a musical based on Émile Zola's novel Thérèse Raquin with music and lyrics by Harry Connick, Jr. and an adapted book by David Thompson. The musical deals with the consequences involved in the breaking of several Commandments, namely the sixth and seventh...

, with music composition by Harry Connick, Jr.
Harry Connick, Jr.
Joseph Harry Fowler Connick, Jr. is an American singer, big-band leader/conductor, pianist, actor, and composer. He has sold over 25 million albums worldwide. Connick is ranked among the top 60 best-selling male artists in the United States by the Recording Industry Association of America, with...

.

The novel (rewritten in the style of James M. Cain) was the basis of the play "The Artificial Jungle" by Charles Ludlam.

Neal Bell adapted the novel into a play under the same title. The following represents a short production history of Bell's play. It was first produced at New York University by Playwrights Horizons Theatre School on December 3, 1991, directed by Edward Elefterion, with Katie Bainbridge as the title role. Its first professional production was at the Williamstown Theatre Festival on June 30, 1993, directed by Michael Greif, with Lynn Hawley as Thérèse. On July 10, 1994, Michael Greif, in conjunction with La Jolla Playhouse
La Jolla Playhouse
La Jolla Playhouse is a not-for-profit, professional theatre-in-residence on the campus of the University of California, San Diego. -Background:...

 in California, put up the West Coast premiere with Paul Giamatti in the role of Camille. Its professional New York premiere was on October 27, 1997, at the Classic Stage Company, directed by David Esbjornson, with Elizabeth Marvel as Thérèse Raquin. The Los Angeles premiere was directed by Charlie Stratton, with Leslie Hope
Leslie Hope
Leslie Ann Hope is a Canadian actress, best known for her role as Teri Bauer in the Fox show 24 where she played the wife of the main character Jack Bauer.-Life and career:...

as Thérèse

External links

(French) (Vizetelly's English translation)
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