Le Ventre de Paris
Encyclopedia
Le Ventre de Paris is the third novel in Émile Zola
's twenty-volume series Les Rougon-Macquart
. It is set in and around Les Halles
, the enormous, busy central market of 19th Century Paris
. Les Halles, rebuilt in cast iron and glass during the Second Empire
was a landmark of modernity in the city, the wholesale and retail center of a thriving food industry. Le Ventre de Paris (translated into English under many variant titles but literally meaning The Belly of Paris) is Zola's first novel entirely on the working class
.
The protagonist is Florent, an escaped political prisoner
mistakenly arrested after the French coup of 1851
. He returns to his step-brother Quenu, a charcutier
and his wife Lisa Quenu (formerly Macquart), with whom he finds refuge. They get him a job in the market as a fish inspector. After getting mixed up in an ineffectual socialist
plot against the Empire, Florent is arrested and deported again.
Although Zola had yet to hone his mastery of working-class speech and idioms displayed to such good effect in L'Assommoir
, the novel conveys a powerful atmosphere of life in the great market halls and of working class suffering. There are a number of vivid descriptive passages, the most famous of which, his description of the olfactory sensations experienced upon entering a cheese
shop
, has become known as the "Cheese Symphony" due to its ingenious orchestral metaphors. Throughout the book, the painter Claude Lantier, a relative of the Macquarts and later the protagonist of L'Œuvre
(1886) - shows up to provide a semi-authorial commentary, playing the role of chorus
. It is an interesting and often powerful work, though not usually considered as being on a par with the novelist's greater achievements later in the Rougon-Macquart cycle.
Le ventre de Paris was originally translated into English by Henry Vizetelly
and published in 1888 under the title Fat and Thin. After Vizetelly's imprisonment for obscene libel
the novel was one of those revised and expurgated by his son, Ernest Alfred Vizetelly; this mutilated version entitled The Fat and the Thin appeared in 1896 and has been reprinted many times. Until 2007 this remained the only English version widely available. Henry's original full edition was afterward reprinted in Paris for adventurous English readers. The novel was newly translated in 1955 by David Hughes
and Marie-Jacqueline Mason for Elek Books under the title Savage Paris but this has long been out of print. Oxford World's Classics
published a new translation by Brian Nelson entitled The Belly of Paris in 2007 and Modern Library
published a new translation by Mark Kurlansky
in 2009.
) (English
) Le Ventre de Paris, audio version
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...
's twenty-volume series Les Rougon-Macquart
Les Rougon-Macquart
Les Rougon-Macquart is the collective title given to a cycle of twenty novels by French writer Émile Zola. Subtitled Histoire naturelle et sociale d'une famille sous le Second Empire , it follows the life of a fictional family living during the Second French Empire and is an example of French...
. It is set in and around Les Halles
Les Halles
Les Halles is an area of Paris, France, located in the 1er arrondissement, just south of the fashionable rue Montorgueil. It is named for the large central wholesale marketplace, which was demolished in 1971, to be replaced with an underground modern shopping precinct, the Forum des Halles...
, the enormous, busy central market of 19th Century 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...
. Les Halles, rebuilt in cast iron and glass during the Second Empire
Second French Empire
The Second French Empire or French Empire was the Imperial Bonapartist regime of Napoleon III from 1852 to 1870, between the Second Republic and the Third Republic, in France.-Rule of Napoleon III:...
was a landmark of modernity in the city, the wholesale and retail center of a thriving food industry. Le Ventre de Paris (translated into English under many variant titles but literally meaning The Belly of Paris) is Zola's first novel entirely on the working class
Working class
Working class is a term used in the social sciences and in ordinary conversation to describe those employed in lower tier jobs , often extending to those in unemployment or otherwise possessing below-average incomes...
.
The protagonist is Florent, an escaped political prisoner
Political prisoner
According to the Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English, a political prisoner is ‘someone who is in prison because they have opposed or criticized the government of their own country’....
mistakenly arrested after the French coup of 1851
French coup of 1851
The French coup d'état on 2 December 1851, staged by Prince Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte , ended in the successful dissolution of the French National Assembly, as well as the subsequent re-establishment of the French Empire the next year...
. He returns to his step-brother Quenu, a charcutier
Charcuterie
Charcuterie is the branch of cooking devoted to prepared meat products such as bacon, ham, sausage, terrines, galantines, pâtés, and confit, primarily from pork. Charcuterie is part of the garde manger chef's repertoire...
and his wife Lisa Quenu (formerly Macquart), with whom he finds refuge. They get him a job in the market as a fish inspector. After getting mixed up in an ineffectual socialist
Socialism
Socialism is an economic system characterized by social ownership of the means of production and cooperative management of the economy; or a political philosophy advocating such a system. "Social ownership" may refer to any one of, or a combination of, the following: cooperative enterprises,...
plot against the Empire, Florent is arrested and deported again.
Although Zola had yet to hone his mastery of working-class speech and idioms displayed to such good effect in L'Assommoir
L'Assommoir
L'Assommoir is the seventh novel in Émile Zola's twenty-volume series Les Rougon-Macquart. Usually considered one of Zola's masterpieces, the novel—a harsh and uncompromising study of alcoholism and poverty in the working-class districts of Paris—was a huge commercial success and established...
, the novel conveys a powerful atmosphere of life in the great market halls and of working class suffering. There are a number of vivid descriptive passages, the most famous of which, his description of the olfactory sensations experienced upon entering a cheese
Cheese
Cheese is a generic term for a diverse group of milk-based food products. Cheese is produced throughout the world in wide-ranging flavors, textures, and forms....
shop
Retailing
Retail consists of the sale of physical goods or merchandise from a fixed location, such as a department store, boutique or kiosk, or by mail, in small or individual lots for direct consumption by the purchaser. Retailing may include subordinated services, such as delivery. Purchasers may be...
, has become known as the "Cheese Symphony" due to its ingenious orchestral metaphors. Throughout the book, the painter Claude Lantier, a relative of the Macquarts and later the protagonist of L'Œuvre
L'Œuvre
L'œuvre is the fourteenth novel in the Rougon-Macquart series by Émile Zola. It was first serialized in the periodical Gil Blas beginning in December 1885 before being published in novel form by Charpentier in 1886....
(1886) - shows up to provide a semi-authorial commentary, playing the role of chorus
Choir
A choir, chorale or chorus is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform.A body of singers who perform together as a group is called a choir or chorus...
. It is an interesting and often powerful work, though not usually considered as being on a par with the novelist's greater achievements later in the Rougon-Macquart cycle.
Le ventre de Paris was originally translated into English by Henry Vizetelly
Henry Vizetelly
Henry Richard Vizetelly was an English publisher, the son of a printer. He was early apprenticed as a wood engraver, and one of his first blocks was a portrait of Old Parr....
and published in 1888 under the title Fat and Thin. After Vizetelly's imprisonment for obscene libel
Obscene libel
The publication of an obscene libel was an offence under the common law of England. Prior to the abolition by of the Criminal Law Act 1967 of the distinction between felony and misdemeanour, it was regarded as a misdemeanour...
the novel was one of those revised and expurgated by his son, Ernest Alfred Vizetelly; this mutilated version entitled The Fat and the Thin appeared in 1896 and has been reprinted many times. Until 2007 this remained the only English version widely available. Henry's original full edition was afterward reprinted in Paris for adventurous English readers. The novel was newly translated in 1955 by David Hughes
David Hughes
David Hughes may refer to:*David Hughes , interim president and CEO of Amtrak, 2005–2006*David Hughes , English astronomer specialising in comets*David Hughes , Swedish bass guitarist...
and Marie-Jacqueline Mason for Elek Books under the title Savage Paris but this has long been out of print. Oxford World's Classics
Oxford World's Classics
Oxford World's Classics is an imprint of Oxford University Press. First established in 1901 by Grant Richards and purchased by the Oxford University Press in 1906, this imprint publishes primarily dramatic and classic literature for students and the general public...
published a new translation by Brian Nelson entitled The Belly of Paris in 2007 and Modern Library
Modern Library
The Modern Library is a publishing company. Founded in 1917 by Albert Boni and Horace Liveright as an imprint of their publishing company Boni & Liveright, it was purchased in 1925 by Bennett Cerf and Donald Klopfer...
published a new translation by Mark Kurlansky
Mark Kurlansky
Mark Kurlansky is an American journalist and writer of general interest non-fiction. He is especially known for titles on eclectic topics, such as cod or salt....
in 2009.
External links
(FrenchFrench language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
) (English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
) Le Ventre de Paris, audio version