The Rougon Macquart Novels |
Character |
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André | A resident of Chavanoz. When Miette was young she used to climb his walnut trees. She boasted to Silvere of her prowess in this regard. |
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Alexandre | Friend of Claude Lantier and a member of Gavard's political group. He is about 22 years old. |
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M. Aubertot | A notary who had died by the start of the novel. He was Renée Saccard's uncle. Appears in: La Curée |
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Elizabeth Aubertot | 1800-1862 | She was the widow of Aubertot and sixty years old with a very friendly manner. She lived with her widowed brother, M. Beraud du Châtel, and helped bring up his daughters, Renée and Christine. It was her who negotiated the marriage with Saccard when Renée was pregnant. She was a constant knitter. Appears in: La Curée |
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Laure d'Aurigny | A high class prostitute. Initially kept by Aristide Saccard, she was despised by the society women as a whore. As with many of Zola's women she was well endowed! She moved regularly and appears at regular intervals throughout the book. She started to hold weekly parties which were attended by all the society men who saw her individually during the week. Appears in: La Curée |
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Balthazar | Horse belonging to Mme François Appears in: Le ventre de Paris |
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Baptiste | He was the manservant of Aristide Saccard. He was tall with the white face and neatly trimmed side whiskers of an English diplomat. Renée lives in fear of his austere appearance fearing he will tell Aristide of her misdemeanors. However, it transpires that Baptiste is gay and is dismissed for interfering with the stable boys. He ends up in the service of Baron Gouraud. |
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Baptistin | A clerk employed by Larsonneau who is described as a short, shifty eyed character with light coloured hair and red blotches all over his face. In an attempt to trick Saccard, Larsonneau has him pretend to be blackmailing them over some falsified ledgers. The trick fails. Appears in: La Curée |
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M. Béraud du Châtel | b.1794 | Renée Saccard's father whom we never see outside of his home on the Isle Saint-Louis. He was the last in a line of a bourgeois family that could trace its roots back to the 14 th century. He had been a stern magistrate but resigned in 1851 as he had no desire to take part in the trials of those who resisted Napoleon III's coup d'état. His wife had died giving birth to his second daughter, Christine. He was never close to his daughters and left them to the care of his sister and in Renée's case a boarding school. However, on Renée's death it was her father who cleared her debts. Appears in: La Curée |
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Christine Béraud du Châtel | b.1843 | She was the younger sister of Renée born eight years later. Her mother died giving birth to her and she was brought up by her aunt (Elizabeth Aubertot) who doted on her. She attended some of her sisters parties but led a much more stable life and married the son of a wealthy attorney. |
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M. de Bleriot | Prefect of the department around Plassans. He was marching with Colonel Masson to put down the insurrection. Appears in: The Fortune of the Rougons |
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Burget | A blacksmith and member of the insurgents. Appears in: The Fortune of the Rougons |
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Cadine | An orphan left in the rue St. Denis when she was two years old. She was taken in by Mere Chantemesse and brought up with Marjolin. She is two years younger than Marjolin. Appears in: Le ventre de Paris |
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Don Carlos | A member of society seen in the Bois de Boulogne. He was in mourning with antiquated livery. |
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Marquis de Carnavant | (b. 1773) | A nobleman of the Saint-Marc quarter. It was rumoured that he was very familiar with the mother of Félicité Puech and throughout the book there is always a question of whether or not he is the father of Félicité. He used to visit Pierre and Félicité and was a member of the yellow drawing room circle. |
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Cassoute | A wooden headed navvy who was left by Antoine Macquart at the house of Pierre Rougon at the time of the uprising. Antoine hoped to capture Pierre and thereby gain his revenge. |
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Catherine | A servant of Granoux at his house on the corner of the Place des Récollets. Appears in: The Fortune of the Rougons |
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Céleste | The chambermaid of Renée Saccard for eight years. She was very discreet and although aware of her mistress's affair never alluded to it in conversation. She remains unknown to Renée who cannot understand when she hands in her notice. Her sole purpose in working for her was to save FF5,000 and return to her home town of Lagache. |
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Chantegreil | Father of Miette who was sent to the galleys for shooting a gendarme whilst out poaching. In his defence he claimed that he only fired because the gendarme was pointing his gun at him. |
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Grandfather Chantegreil | (d. 1847 ) | Grandfather of Miette. She lived with him after her father was sent to the galleys. They lived on alms in the village of Chavenez until his death in 1847. |
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Marie Chantegreil | (b. 1838 d. 1851) | See Miette Appears in: The Fortune of the Rougons |
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Mere Chantemesse | She is a small stallholder in Les Halles. At the time of the story she is 72 but was nearer 60 when she adopted Cadine and Marjolin who she looked after. |
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Charles Chaplin | A real life painter who lived from 1825-1891. He had painted a cupid in Renée's bedroom at the Parc Monceau house. Find more about him here. |
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Charles | A waiter at the café Riche on the corner of the rue le Peletier who served Renée and Maxime on the night of their infamous meal. Appears in: La Curée |
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M. Charrier | Introduced in the opening chapter of La Curée, along with his partner Mignon, as a building contractor-newly wealthy bricklayers. They were at the ball clumping about in heavy boots and looking ridiculous in their frock coats. They had been invited, as Saccard was to complete some business with them that night. |
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Charvet | A teacher and a member of Gavard's political group. Put out by the arrival of Florent. Partner of Clémence |
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Compte de Chibray | An aide-de-campe to Napoleon III and Renée's lover for a short while before he was snatched away by the Duchess von Sternich. He was a vain and handsome man. Like many of the characters he appears in the opening and closing scenes of the book parading in his carriage around the Bois de Boulogne. Appears in: La Curée |
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Clémence | Common law wife of Charvet for the previous ten years, and a member of Gavard's political group. Appears in: Le ventre de Paris |
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Crayfish | A prostitute who only appears in a photo album that is being perused by Renée and Maxime Saccard. Appears in: La Curée |
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Mme. Daste | A socialite who makes her first appearance in the Bois de Boulogne with her “famous black steppers”. Her luxurious lifestyle was paid for by her lovers-along with many other women in society whose “prices were quoted in high society the way shares of stock are quoted on the Bourse”. She played the character of Cupid in the costume ball held at Saccard's mansion and appears with the rest of society in the final scene in the Bois de Boulogne. |
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Aunt Didé | See Adélaide Fouque Appears in: The Fortune of the Rougons |
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The Doctor | Served on the inspection committee investigating the indemnity given on Saccard's property in the place du Chateau d'Eau. He smoked cigars and showed little interest in the inspection. Appears in: La Curée |
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A pork butcher who discharged his gun in defence of the town, as described by Roudier. He was later killed by the republicans as part of an ambush set up by Pierre Rougon to gain control of the town. Appears in: The Fortune of the Rougons |
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Mme le marquise Adeline d'Espanet | A leading socialite and old schoolfriend of Renée Saccard's. Her family came from a fine estate in the Nivernais(an area of central France) and it was while staying with her after finishing at boarding school, that Renée was raped by a guest of the family. |
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M. d'Espanet | A marquis who scandalized the old nobility by embracing the imperial cause. He was an aide-de-camp to Napoleon III. He never joined his wife on social occasions. |
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Fine | See Joséphine Macquart Appears in: The Fortune of the Rougons |
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Florent | Florent is the main character in Le ventre de Paris. He is stepbrother of Quenu. |
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Mme François | Market trader from Nanterre who finds Florent on the road to Paris and gives him a lift to Les Halles. She hates Paris and invites Florent and Claude Lantier to spend time at her home in Nanterre. |
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Adélaide Fouque | (b. 1768 ) | The overarching figure of the Rougon-Macquart series she was the mother of both sides of the family. Both her parents were dead by the time she was 18. Her father died insane. She was always considered strange and became stranger as she grew older. She married a gardener called Rougon in 1786/7. Within a year of his death she took Macquart as her lover. She had one son by Rougon (Pierre) and two children by Macquart. (Antoine and Ursule). When Macquart was dead she went to live in his shack-helped on her way by Pierre. For a while her grandson Silvère Mouret lived with her. Also known as Aunt Didé. |
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M. Garçonnet | The mayor of Plassans at the time of the insurrection. He was a legitimist who detested the republicans but who was also opposed to the Bonapartists. The insurgents arrested him, along with Sicardot and Peirotte. |
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Joséphine Gavaudan | See Joséphine Macquart Appears in: The Fortune of the Rougons |
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Gavard | Gavard is in his late 50's by the time the novel starts. He used to run a charcuterie until his wife died in 1848. He is now a poulterer in Les Halles and lives in rooms in Rue de Cossonerie. He is believed to be very wealthy. |
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Baron Gouraud | A senator before whom everyone bowed and scraped. |
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Georges | Renée's first lover whom she met twice at Madame Sidonie's. He was a clerk who had followed her in the street. Appears in: La Curée |
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Gradelle | Gradelle ran the charcuterie at the centre of Le ventre de Paris. He was the uncle of Florent and Quenu and took Quenu into the shop. He died while Florent was away, collapsing across the counter. He left a fortune of FF84,000. |
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Isidore Granoux | An old almond dealer and a member of the municipal council in Plassans. He is a regular attendee of the yellow drawing room.
Eugène Rougon was delighted with his presence there as he knew he held sway over the rest of the council when the coup d'état took place. Physically, he was a large man with a hair lip. |
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Mme de Guende | A socialite whom Renée Saccard considered “stupid but admirably built”. She was rumoured to have three high ranking army officers as lovers, all at the same time. She was so stupid that she could not tell them apart because they all wore the same uniform. She was a regular attendee at the Saccard parties playing the part of one of The Three Graces in the tableau put on at the costumed ball. |
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Gustave | Maxime Saccard's barber. |
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M. Haffner | A wealthy industrialist from Colmar in Alsace. He had recently married Suzanne Haffner, a schoolfriend of Renée. He became chairman of a jury set up to settle indemnities on properties acquired in the rebuilding of Paris. Appears in: La Curée |
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Mme Suzanne Haffner | An old schoolfriend of Renée Saccard. She was married to M. Haffner but was in a long term lesbian relationship with Adeline d'Espanet. Since school days they had been known as “The two inseperables”. She was a blonde plump young women and a central part of the society circle in Paris. She rented a country house in Saint Germain with Adeline where they could meet for “lunch”. Appears in: La Curée |
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M. Hupel de la Noue | He is a prefect for the Nièvre who spends eight months a year in Paris. He managed to get himself caught up in a corruption scandal when attempting to get M. de Mareuil elected as a deputy, much to the annoyance of Eugène Rougon. |
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Jacques | Footman of Maxime Saccard's. Appears in: La Curée |
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M. Jules | Partner of La Sarriette. He came from Ménilmontant and worked as a porter in les Halles and did various tasks for Mme Lecoeur. |
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M. Lacaille | A greengrocer from Les Halles. Described by Mme François as a drunken sot. He was a member of Gavard's political group. Appears in: Le ventre de Paris |
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Auguste Landois | Charcuterie apprentice at Quenu-Gradelle. Cousin of Augustine whom he plans to marry and set up business with. He comes from Troyes and is 28 years old at the time of the novel. |
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Augustine Landois | Cousin of Auguste Landois. They both work at Quenu Gradelle's and plan to marry. Florent took over her room at the top of the house when he returned. Appears in: Le ventre de Paris |
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Lantier | (b. 1824- ) | A journeyman tanner and father of Gervaise Macquart's children. |
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Claude Lantier | (born 1842 ) | Claude was born in Plassans to his invalid mother Gervaise Macquart when she was fourteen. He was brought up at his grandmothers house on his fathers side with a brother who was born four years later. His father was a tanner and on Fine's death he took Gervaise and the children to Paris in order to avoid Antoine Macquart and his demands and abuse. |
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Larsonneau | Larsonneau was a crooked estate agent who had been dismissed from city hall because of snooping through the prefects' files. He had similar ideas to Saccard regarding making money from the rebuilding of Paris but did not have the capital to achieve it. Saccard used him as a front for many of his transactions. He became wealthy and dressed elegantly. As well as running a property business he also was a ruthless moneylender. For some time Larsonneau had a hold over Saccard by hanging on to some ledgers they had falsified together in order to inflate a property value. Saccard did retrieve this but still worked with Larsonneau to ensure that Renée was defrauded of her property. Appears in: La Curée |
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Lassouche | J-P Lassouche was a real life popular comedy actor during the second empire and Maxime does an impersonation of him. One of the places he played was Théâtre de l'Atelier, which still operates today. The theatre web site is in French but mentions Lassouche in its history. Appears in: La Curée |
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Mme de Lauwerens | A member of society who had very pretty eyes and acted as a quasi agent in placing younger society women with men on the look out for affairs. Appears in: La Curée |
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M. Lebigre | The landlord of the local wine shop on the corner of rue Pirouette. This is where Gavard's political gang meet. Lebigre is keen on La Normande but his advances are rejected until the end of the novel. |
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Mme Lebigre | See Louise Méhudin Appears in: Le ventre de Paris |
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Mme Lecoeur | Described as tall and thin. She is a butter merchant in Les Halles. She is a friend of Mmlle Saget and sister in law of Gavard. Appears in: Le ventre de Paris |
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Léon | Charcuterie apprentice at Quenu-Gradelle. Friendly with Marjolin and Cadine Appears in: Le ventre de Paris |
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Mme Léonce | She is the concierge at Gavard's place in the rue de la Cossonnerie and an admirer of his. Appears in: Le ventre de Paris |
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M. Liévin | Member of the town's bourgeoisie who took up arms to defend the town and stood with Dubruel. |
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M. Logre | Auctioneer in the fish market at Les Halles. A hunchback and a member of Gavard's political group Appears in: Le ventre de Paris |
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Macquart | (b. 1760-d.?) | The oldest character on the Macquart side of the family. He was Adélaide's lover. He was referred to by the citizens of Plassans as “that scoundrel Macquart”. He had two children with Adélaide, Antoine and Ursule both born within 2 years of them getting together. He used to drink and would beat Adélaide. |
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Antoine Macquart | (b.1790? | Son of Macquart. He took after his father in drunkenness and brutish savagery. He was manipulated by his stepbrother Pierre into military service. He despised his stepbrother and correctly suspected him of swindling him out of part of his inheritance. He learned the trade of basket making but drink meant he never made any money at this. He married Joséphine and used to beat her when they had both been drinking. She used to work hard when sober and kept them both until she died. They had three children, Lisa (see Lisa Quenu), Gervaise and Jean. Lisa went to Paris when she was young and Macquart lived off his other two children for as long as possible after his wife died. Appears in: La fortune des Rougons |
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Antoine Macquart's unnamed friend | Drunken acquaintance of Antoine Macquart's who acted as witness when Pierre Rougon gave Antoine 200 Francs and clothes to stop him demanding a share of the family fortune. Appears in: La fortune des Rougons |
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Gervaise Macquart | (b.1828- ) | The second daughter of Antoine Macquart and Fine. She was a cripple from birth. Her mother seeing her weakness tried to improve her condition by putting her on a course of aniseed. She became a mother at 14(1842) and had a second child by the same father (Lantier) in 1846. She continued to live with her parents. On the death of her mother in 1850 she ran away with Lantier to Paris.Appears in: La fortune des Rougons |
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Jean Macquart | (b.1831- ) | Youngest child of Antoine and Fine Macquart. He attended school and became an apprentice in a carpenter's shop where he worked very diligently. He ran away in 1950 to avoid his father's abuse. |
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Joséphine Macquart née Gavaudan. Aka Fine | (d. 1850 ) | Described as a tall strapping wench of 30 when she married Antoine Macquart. She was also very fond of liqueurs and in particular aniseed. She worked as a char woman and a chair mender. She was strong of arm and had a hairy face but a high squeaky voice. Antoine and her fought each other when drunk, which was often. They had three children, Lisa, Gervaise and Jean. She died from inflammation of the lungs. Appears in: La fortune des Rougons |
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Lisa Macquart | (b.1827 ) | See Lisa Quenu | |
Ursule Macquart | (b.1791?-d.1839) | Daughter of Macquart and Adélaide. She was physically and temperamentally like her mother. She married a journeyman hatter named Mouret and moved with him to Marseilles. They had three children François, Hélène and Silvère. She died of a slow consumption in 1839. Appears in: La fortune des Rougons |
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Manufacturer of Surgical Instruments | Served on the inspection committee investigating the indemnity given on Saccard's property in the place du Chateau d'Eau. He had formerly been a knife grinder on the streets and recognized his old room in one of the buildings that was being demolished as they walked by on their inspection. Appears in: La Curée |
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Marcel | Fruit merchant mentioned briefly selling to La Sarriette in Les Halles at the start of the book. Appears in: Le ventre de Paris |
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M Mareuil | A tall, handsome and healthy man who had been recently widowed with one daughter, Louise. He had started out as a sugar refiner in Le Havre where he had been called M. Bonnet. He made a lot of money and married a young noblewomen and assumed her name. He invested in newspapers and brought a lot of property in the Nièvre. His ambition was to be appointed a seat in the legislature. He cultivated a friendship with Saccard (who because of his daughters dowry of FF1m found it a useful alliance to have) because Saccard's brother(Eugène Rougon) was a minister who could help him achieve his aim. He does finally get elected deputy with the help of M. Hupel de la Noue but gets accused of corruption and nearly has the seat taken from him, only getting it after a rerun of the election takes place. |
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Mme Hélène de Mareuil | d. 1843 | Deceased wife of M. Mareuil, and mother of Louise. She was described as a big strong women in life but was rumoured to have died in the most shockingly dissolute excess and madness, memories of which were left with Louise in the womb. Appears in: La Curée |
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Louise Mareuil | 1843-1862 | Daughter of M. and Hélène Mareuil Dcd. Her mother died in giving birth to her. She was born with misshapen limbs and a diseased brain and was doomed to die young of a lung disease. |
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Marjolin | He is a simple man who was found under some cabbage leaves when he was two and thereafter adopted by Les Halles, eventually being taken in by Mere Chantemesse. In his late teens he worked for Gavard the poulterer and was notably knocked out and made “simpler” by a blow from Lisa. |
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M. Massicot | Member of the town's bourgeoisie who took up arms to defend the town and stood with Dubruel. Appears in: La fortune des Rougons |
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Colonel Masson | Commander of the troops sent from Marseille to put down the insurrection in 1851. |
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Claire Méhudin | Claire is about 30 years old and runs a freshwater fish stall in Les Halles. She is different to the other fishmongers and forms an unexpressed liking for Florent. She often locks herself in her room when he visits her sister and Nephew. Appears in: Le ventre de Paris |
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Louise Méhudin | Also known as La Belle Normande and late in the novel as Mme Lebigre. She is one of the major characters in the novel. She lives with her mother and sister and young son is Les Halles. She was due to marry a man who worked in the corn market but he broke his back. However, in the family she was treated as a widow and had his child seven months later. She used to share a house with Lisa Quenu in the rue Pirouette and prior to the novel was on friendly terms with her running a fish stall near the charcuterie. She is initially adversarial towards Florent and has a major conflict with Lisa. However, as Florent teaches her son Muche she becomes attracted to him. This feeling is not reciprocated. |
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Mere Méhudin | Known as Mere Méhudin she is the mother of Claire and Louise Méhudin . She is originally from Rouen. She claims to have come to Paris in a basket of eels and been in the fish trade ever since. She married a toll-gate keeper but was widowed shortly after her two daughters had been born. She is 65 at the time of the novel but was the original belle Normande. |
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Baroness von Meinhold | A society lady and a friend of Renée. Appears at all main social gatherings. Appears in: La Curée |
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M. Michelin | Head of the Bureau of Roads in Paris. He had worked his way up through the city hierarchy by using the charms of his wife. This fact was used by Saccard to make sure he got Michelin into a position of power he could make use of. |
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Mme. Michelin | A society lady and wife of the bureau of roads. Described as a pretty brunette and well endowed! Elsewhere described as strikingly beautiful she was not above using her body to advance her husband's career. For a while was the mistress of M. de Saffré (who gave her gifts of FF10, 000), and later Baron Gouraud through whom she wished to obtain a decoration for her husband-an objective she achieved. |
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Miette | (b. 1838 d. 1851) | Daughter of Chantegreil. After her father was sent to the galleys she lived first with her grandfather and then with her aunt and uncle Rébufat in Plassans. She worked hard on the land and met Silvère over the wall dividing her uncles property from Aunt Didé's. A central character in the novel, which tells the story of the awakening love between her and Silvère. She died carrying the flag of the insurgents. Appears in: The Fortune of the Rougons |
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M. Mignon | Introduced in the opening chapterof La Curée, along with his partner Charrier, as a building contractor-newly wealthy bricklayers. They were at the ball clumping about in heavy boots and looking ridiculous in their frock coats. They had been invited, as Saccard was to complete some business with them that night. |
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Mouret | (-d.1840) | A journeyman hatter who married Ursule Macquart. They had three children but after his wife died in 1839 he lost all interest in his business and all his money as well. Finally he hung himself. Appears in: The Fortune of the Rougons |
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François Mouret | (b.1816- ) | Son of Ursule Macquart. He received commercial training and worked as a clerk in Pierre Rougon's oil business. He married Marthe Rougon and had three children between 1840 and 1844. |
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Hélène Mouret | (b.1821- ) | Daughter of Ursule Macquart. She married a clerk. Appears in: The Fortune of the Rougons |
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Silvère Mouret | (b.1833-d.1851) | Youngest son of Ursule Macquart. He was a sickly child of six when his mother died. He was brought up by Adélaide who was by this time 75 years old. Silvère called her Aunt Didé. He was apprenticed to Vian as a wheelwright. He met and fell in love with Miette who lived over the wall from the shack his grandmother lived in. Encouraged by his uncle, Antoine Macquart, he took up the revolutionary cause. When he was 16 Antoine had him admitted to the secret society of the Montagnards. During the insurrection he took his grandfather's gun and marched with the insurgents (and Miette) to Orchères. Here he wounded the gendarme Rengade and this was eventually to cost him his life. Rengade had his revenge when the insurrection was put down and shot Silvère after he had been taken prisoner. He died still thinking of the recently killed Miette. Appears in: The Fortune of the Rougons |
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Ursule Mouret | See Ursule Macquart Appears in: The Fortune of the Rougons |
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Mourgue | A peasant from Poujols. He was a man of about 50 who was attached to Silvère Mouret when they were taken prisoner during the insurrection and was consequently shot by Rengade. Appears in: The Fortune of the Rougons |
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Mouton | Cat belonging to the Quenu family Appears in: Le ventre de Paris |
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Muche | Son of Louise Méhudin . He is about 7 years old and used to play with Pauline Quenu until stopped from doing so when their mothers fell out. Appears in: Le ventre de Paris |
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Blanche Muller | A high class prostitute. She throws a ball at one point which Renée Saccard forces Maxime to take her to in disguise so she can observe what happens. She is amazed by the way the ball mirrors one that could have been given in her own house. |
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M. de Mussy | A young man making his way in the diplomatic corp as an embassy attaché. He was Renée's third lover and she was bored of him by the time the story begins. He was an ex school friend of Maxime's and he tried to enlist his help in winning Renée back, to no avail. He was sent to the embassy in London and from there to Italy. Appears in: La Curée |
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