The industrialization of Europe affected travel, medicine, communication, and more. Zola's oeuvre covers all of these; yet it is in Au Bonheur des Dames that he discusses fashion. To Zola, mode represents commercialism and excess. Denise, the novel's protagonist, comes to Paris from a small town looking for luxury, wealth, or at the very least, security. Instead, she witnesses firsthand the perils of industrialization. A saleswoman at the titular department store, she finds herself overworked to the point of being ...
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The industrialization of Europe affected travel, medicine, communication, and more. Zola's oeuvre covers all of these; yet it is in Au Bonheur des Dames that he discusses fashion. To Zola, mode represents commercialism and excess. Denise, the novel's protagonist, comes to Paris from a small town looking for luxury, wealth, or at the very least, security. Instead, she witnesses firsthand the perils of industrialization. A saleswoman at the titular department store, she finds herself overworked to the point of being dehumanized, becoming a machine in her own right. �mile Zola (1840 - 1902) was a French novelist and playwright. His most celebrated works of fiction include the novel Th�r�se Raquin and the Les Rougon-Macquart series. He is also known for his essay J'accuse...!, supporting Alfred Dreyfus and criticizing antisemitism in France.
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