The Sin of Abbé Mouret
Author | : Émile Zola |
Publisher | : Oxford University Press |
Total Pages | : 353 |
Release | : 2017 |
ISBN-10 | : 9780198736639 |
ISBN-13 | : 0198736630 |
Rating | : 4/5 (39 Downloads) |
Book excerpt: "The Sin of Abbé Mouret tells the compelling story of the young priest Serge Mouret. Striving after spiritual purity and sanctity, he lives a life of constant prayer, but his neglect of all physical needs leads to serious illness, followed by amnesia. No longer knowing he is a priest, he falls in love with his nurse Albine. Together, like a latter-day Adam and Eve, they roam through an Eden-like garden called the 'Paradou', seeking a forbidden tree in whose shade they will make love. Zola memorably shows their gradual awakening to sexuality, and his poetic descriptions of the luxuriant and beautiful Paradou create a lyrical celebration of Nature. When Serge regains his memory and recalls his priestly vows, anguish inevitably follows. The whole story, with its numerous biblical parallels, becomes a poetic reworking of the Fall of Man and a questioning of the very meaning of innocence and sin. Zola explores the conflict between Church and Nature, the sterility of the Church and the fertility of Nature. The edition includes a wide-ranging and helpful introduction and explanatory notes."--Page [4] of cover.