La Terre

[The Earth]

By: Émile Zola

Narrated by: Leighton Pugh

Zola’s La Terre (The Earth) proved highly controversial on publication in 1887 and still retains the power to shock. It follows the fortunes of the Fouan family in the years leading up to the Franco-Prussian War. Old Fouan, the patriarch, draws up a legal contract to divide his farmland between his three children in exchange for an allowance that will support him and his wife through a comfortable retirement. Against a backdrop of rural deprivation, drunkenness, violence and sexual abuse, the Fouans’ greed, jealousy and power games cause both the contract and family ties to unravel with tragic consequences.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.

Public Domain (P)2022 Naxos AudioBooks UK Ltd.

Great Insight

For a look into how educated intellectuals actually regard work-a-day average Joes, Zola reveals how he and his like-minded confederates ostentatiously praise agrarian life, while in their hearts they despise us and portray all non-elites as hateful, villainous, oafs. For that insight, this book is worth your time.

Honest and realistic portrayal of agrarian life

Although it is uncomfortable for some to admit it, the events depicted in Zola's work are true to life. Except for the murders, I can recognize the actions and attitudes of the people in the novel in my fellow beings today, in 2023. Understandable that the public at the time were shocked, but they were shocked by Zola's courage in telling the truth, not by his desire to titillate.