Germinal

The thirteenth novel in Émile Zola’s great Rougon-Macquart sequence Germinal expresses outrage at the exploitation of the many by the few but also shows humanity’s capacity for compassion and hope.Etienne Lantier an unemployed railway worker is a clever but uneducated young man with a dangerous temper. Forced to take a back-breaking job at Le Voreux mine when he cannot get other work he discovers that his fellow miners are ill hungry in debt and unable to feed and clothe their families. When conditions in the mining community deteriorate even further Lantier finds himself leading a strike that could mean starvation or salvation for all.