About
French novelist and journalist known for being the leading thinker in the naturalist literary movement that was popular during the late 19th century. He is also remembered for having written the open letter known as "J'accuse," which accused the highest members of the French military of antisemitism and obstruction of justice during the Dreyfus Affair in 1898.
Before Fame
He began writing novels while working as a clerk and then in a sales department at the publisher Hachette. He also worked as a political journalist. His first published novel was La Confession de Claude in 1865 followed by Les Mystères de Marseille in 1867.
Trivia
After publishing "J'accuse" he was charged with libel and forced to flee to the United Kingdom as his trial proceeded and found him guilty. He died in 1902 due to carbon monoxide poisoning. Years after his death, investigations were conducted into whether or not his death was a suicide or an assassination. His most famous novels were in the 20 volume Rougon-Macquart series.
Family Life
He was born to François Zola and Émilie Aubert in Paris, France. He was married to Éléonore-Alexandrine Meley. He also had a mistress Jeanne Rozerot with whom he fathered two children, Jacques and Denis.
Associated With
He was childhood friends with the renowned painter Paul Cezanne. The two remained friends until they had a falling out after he negatively depicted a fictional version of Cezanne in one of his novels.
