Zola, desiring bread, undertook the task, with results that might
have been anticipated.
_Therese Raquin_ is a work of another kind, for into it Zola put the
best that was in him, and elaborated the story with the greatest care.
It is a tale of Divine Justice, wherein a husband is murdered by his
wife and her lover, who, though safe from earthly consequence, are yet
separated by the horror of their deed, and come to hate each other for
the thing they have done. The book is one of remarkable power, and it is
interesting to note that in the preface to it Zola first made use of
the word _naturalisme_ as describing that form of fiction which he
was afterwards to uphold in and out of season. A violent attack in the
_Figaro_ gave opportunity for a vigorous reply, and the advertisement
so obtained assisted the sales of the book, which from the first was a
success. It was followed by _Madeleine Ferat_, which, however, was less
fortunate. The subject is unpleasant, and its treatment lacks the force
which made _Therese Raquin_ convincing.
Up to this time Zola's life had been a steady struggle against poverty.
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