Zemlja
The Country is a social novel published in 1887, part of the "Rougon-Macquart" cycle, in which Zola depicts the brutal reality of life among French peasants.
The story is set in the village of Beauce, where land and its ownership are the main life forces that drive the characters. The main character, Jean Macquart, a former soldier, moves to the village and begins working as a day laborer. He falls in love with Françoise, a hardworking and honest girl who is trying to protect her inheritance from her family's greed. Françoise's sister Lise, married to the peasant Buteau, and her husband are ready to do anything - including violence and crime - to keep as much land as possible.
The central theme of the novel is the dehumanization caused by greed for land. The peasants are depicted as brutal, selfish and unscrupulous, willing to sacrifice family ties and basic human values. In this harsh world, land is not only a means of survival, but also an object of desire and conflict.
Zola realistically and naturally depicts the difficult, often cruel life in the countryside, rejecting romantic notions of idyllic rural life. "Earth" shocked contemporary readers due to the rawness of its depiction, but today it is considered one of the finest achievements of naturalistic literature.
A copy is available as part of the book set "Svjetski klasici - francuska književnost"
Browse the set
1. Opasne veze
Dangerous Liaisons is an epistolary novel published in 1782, which shows through a series of letters the hypocrisy and manipulation of French aristocratic society on the eve of the French Revolution.
- Slight damage to the dust jacket
2. Mutivoda
Mutivoda is a novel from Balzac's great cycle "The Human Comedy" (La Comédie humaine). The action takes place in the small provincial town of Arcis-sur-Aube, where the election for a parliamentary representative is triggered by the arrival of a mysterious
3. Madam Bovari
Madame Bovary is a masterpiece by the famous French writer Gustave Flaubert and a classic of world literature. The novel, published in 1857, follows the tragic story of Emma Bovary, a woman dissatisfied with her life in the French countryside.
4. Čiča Gorio
Uncle Goriot is the story of the old war profiteer Goriot and his daughters, who, after robbing him to the point of being naked, leave him to die in the solitude and misery of the Vaquer boarding house. It is a story that can be read today on several leve
- Slight damage to the dust jacket
5. Dunda i druge novele
The story is set during the Franco-Prussian War (1870–1871), and begins with the escape of French citizens from Rouen, under Prussian occupation. Among them is Elizabeth Rousset, "Dunda", a girl of easy morals but a kind heart.
- Slight damage to the dust jacket
6. Karmen / Kolomba
Carmen is a story set in Spain and follows the tragic love between the gypsy temptress Carmen and the soldier Don José. Colomba is a story set in Corsica and tells a story of brotherhood, revenge and family honor.
7. Đavolja bara / Mala Fadeta / Nahoče Fransoa
The Devil's Pond depicts the life of humble peasants in the French province of Berry. Little Fadette is the story of a girl named Fadette, who is rejected by her community because of her appearance and behavior. Intentional François tells the story of an
8. Sirano de Beržerak
Cyrano de Bergerac is a romantic drama set in the 17th century, which follows the talented and witty poet, soldier, and swordsman Cyrano de Bergerac.
9. Zemlja
The Country is a social novel published in 1887, part of the "Rougon-Macquart" cycle, in which Zola depicts the brutal reality of life among French peasants.
10. Crveno i crno
Historical and psychological novel by Stendhal, published in 1830. The full title of the novel is "Red and Black, Chronicle of the 19th Century". The protagonist is Julien Sorel. The work is a bildungsroman that follows his upbringing and life path.
