Around 1868 Emile Zola had the idea of writing a series of novels that would be devoted to one family - Rougon-Macquart. The fates of the members of this family have been investigated for several generations. The first books from the series did not interest readers very much, but the seventh book L’Assommoir was a great success. The novel brought Zola so long wished glory and money. And all the subsequent novels of the series were met with great enthusiasm.
L’Assommoir was published in 1877 and was considered the most realistic novel of Zola. At first, it was accepted with critics, and Zola was accused of being too vulgar in his descriptions of poverty, drunkenness and misery. But L’Assommoir was destined to survive through all the objections and is now recognized as one of the masterpieces of French literature.
With the series of Les Rougon-Macquart, Zola became the perhaps the most notable realistic novelist to create a series of books about members of one family. By choosing such a structure. the writer wanted to demonstrate the operation of the laws of heredity.
In 1956 a film titled Gervaise was shot, directed by Rene Clement, a famous French filmmaker. The film was an adaptation of the Zola’s novel L’Assommoir.
