Карьера Ругонов. Добыча.

In the first novel of the series, Zola tells the beginning of the history of the Rougon and Macquart families against the background of historical events that mainly took place in France in the first half of the 19th century: the revolution of 1848 and the subsequent rise to power of Napoleon III. The scene of the work is the fictional town of Plassan, located in the south of the country, in Provence.

The writer reveals the origin of almost all the main members of the Rougon and Macquart families, focusing on Pierre Rougon and his half-brother Antoine Macquart. They are involved in a gamble to seize power in the city and confrontation with the Republican rebels. Initially, Antoine and Pierre act as adversaries, but at the climax of the book, they secretly collude.

A separate storyline is the tragic love story of their nephew Silver with the girl Mietta Chantegreil, ending in the death of teenagers.