The Kill

work by Zola

Also known as: “La Curée”

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June 30, 2026

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The Kill (original French title: La Curée) is a novel by Émile Zola, published in 1872. It is the second novel in his 20-volume series, the Rougon-Macquart cycle.12

The novel explores the rampant land speculation and financial dealings that characterized the renovation of Paris during the Second Empire under Napoleon III. It delves into the moral decay and greed that permeated society during this period, focusing on the destructive pursuit of wealth and status. The Kill examines how ambition and avarice lead to ruin for its characters.123

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Émile Zola
Les Rougon-Macquart
La Curée (1872; The Kill), for example, explores the land speculation and financial dealings that accompanied the renovation of Paris during the Second Empire. Le Ventre de Paris (1873; The Belly of Paris) examines the structure of the Halles, the vast central market-place of Paris, and its influence…
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La Curée (1872; The Kill), for example, explores the land speculation and financial dealings that accompanied the renovation of Paris during the Second Empire. Le Ventre de Paris (1873; The Belly of Paris) examines the structure of the Halles, the vast central market-place of Paris, and its influence…
Read More

French literature
Zola
…classes in La Curée (1872; The Kill) and Nana (1880; Eng. trans. Nana), and the ferocious attachment of the peasantry to their land in La Terre (1887; Earth). But there are countless examples of manipulation of facts, particularly in the chronology of the novels, which show that for Zola documentary…
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…classes in La Curée (1872; The Kill) and Nana (1880; Eng. trans. Nana), and the ferocious attachment of the peasantry to their land in La Terre (1887; Earth). But there are countless examples of manipulation of facts, particularly in the chronology of the novels, which show that for Zola documentary…
Read More

Rougon-Macquart cycle
La Curée (1872; The Kill), for example, explores the land speculation and financial dealings that accompanied the renovation of Paris during the Second Empire. Le Ventre de Paris (1873; Savage Paris; also translated as The Fat and the Thin) examines the structure of the Halles, the vast central…
Read More
La Curée (1872; The Kill), for example, explores the land speculation and financial dealings that accompanied the renovation of Paris during the Second Empire. Le Ventre de Paris (1873; Savage Paris; also translated as The Fat and the Thin) examines the structure of the Halles, the vast central…
Read More