Emile Zola

Date of Birth: April 2, 1840

Zodiac Sign: Aries

Date of Death: September 29, 1902

Biography

Émile Édouard Charles Antoine Zola was a French novelist, playwright, journalist, and the best-known practitioner of the literary school of naturalism. Born on April 2, 1840, in Paris, France, Zola’s works had a profound influence on the development of French literature. He was instrumental in the political liberalization of France and famously involved himself in the Dreyfus Affair, advocating for the wrongful conviction of Alfred Dreyfus. Zola’s literary work includes a twenty-novel series known as “Les Rougon-Macquart,” which explores the lives of two branches of a fictional family during the Second French Empire. His strong adherence to the principles of naturalism, which emphasized observation and the scientific method in the depiction of life, earned him both acclaim and controversy. He passed away on September 29, 1902, due to carbon monoxide poisoning, suspected to be an accident.

5 Interesting Facts about Emile Zola

1. Zola’s first major success was the novel “Thérèse Raquin,” published in 1867.

2. He fled to England in 1898 to escape imprisonment after writing the famous open letter “J’accuse,” which defended Alfred Dreyfus.

3. Zola was nominated for the first and second Nobel Prize in Literature in 1901 and 1902.

4. He was a close friend of painter Paul Cézanne, although their friendship deteriorated later in life.

5. Zola’s death was mysterious, with some speculation that it might have been a political assassination rather than an accident.

5 Most Interesting Quotes from Emile Zola

1. “The artist is nothing without the gift, but the gift is nothing without work.”

2. “If you shut up truth, and bury it underground, it will but grow, and gather to itself such explosive power that the day it bursts through, it will blow up everything in its way.”

3. “Civilization will not attain to its perfection until the last stone from the last church falls on the last priest.”

4. “I am here to live out loud.”

5. “The fate of animals is of greater importance to me than the fear of appearing ridiculous.”

Highest Net Worth Achieved

At the peak of his career, Émile Zola’s net worth was estimated to be equivalent to several million dollars in today’s currency, derived from his prolific literary output and journalistic endeavors.