L'Affaire Dreyfus: La Vérité en marche

by Émile Zola

Avouant être totalement ignorant de l’affaire Dreyfus, hésitant à propos de sa légitimité à intervenir, Zola se décide en moins de quinze jours, entre le 13 et le 25 novembre 1897, en partie poussé à bout par les violentes attaques dont est victime Scheurer-Kestner dans la presse. Le 25 novembre 1897, Zola écrit un premier article d’une série de trois. Il le conclut par la phrase prophétique, restée célèbre : « La vérité est en marche et rien ne l’arrêtera », qui va devenir le leitmotiv des Dreyfusards. Le véritable traître en lieu et place d’Alfred Dreyfus, le commandant Walsin Esterhazy, est dénoncé puis jugé par un Conseil de guerre à Paris le 10 janvier 1898. Il est acquitté le lendemain, à la suite d’un délibéré de trois minutes. Après la condamnation d’un innocent, c’est l’acquittement du coupable, ce qui amène Zola à la réaction. Elle fut extrêmement énergique.

Genres: History

254 pages, Mass Market Paperback

Published January 25, 1994

About the author

Émile Zola was a prominent French novelist, journalist, and playwright widely regarded as a key figure in the development of literary naturalism. His work profoundly influenced both literature and society through its commitment to depicting reality with scientific objectivity and exploring the impact of environment and heredity on human behavior. Born and raised in France, Zola experienced early personal hardship following the death of his father, which deeply affected his understanding of social and economic struggles—a theme that would later permeate his writings.
Zola began his literary career working as a clerk for a publishing house, where he developed his skills and cultivated a passion for literature. His early novels, such as Thérèse Raquin, gained recognition for their intense psychological insight and frank depiction of human desires and moral conflicts. However, it was his monumental twenty-volume series, Les Rougon-Macquart, that established his lasting reputation. This cycle of novels offered a sweeping examination of life under the Second French Empire, portraying the lives of a family across generations and illustrating how hereditary traits and social conditions shape individuals’ destinies. The series embodies the naturalist commitment to exploring human behavior through a lens informed by emerging scientific thought.
Beyond his literary achievements, Zola was a committed social and political activist. His involvement in the Dreyfus Affair is one of the most notable examples of his dedication to justice. When Captain Alfred Dreyfus was wrongfully accused and convicted of treason, Zola published his famous open letter, J’Accuse…!, which condemned the French military and government for corruption and anti-Semitism. This act of courage led to his prosecution and temporary exile but played a crucial role in eventual justice for Dreyfus and exposed deep divisions in French society.
Zola’s personal life was marked by both stability and complexity. He married Éléonore-Alexandrine Meley, who managed much of his household affairs, and later had a long-term relationship with Jeanne Rozerot, with whom he fathered two children. Throughout his life, Zola remained an incredibly prolific writer, producing not only novels but also essays, plays, and critical works that investigated the intersections between literature, science, and society.
His legacy continues to resonate for its profound impact on literature and for his fearless commitment to social justice. Zola’s work remains essential reading for its rich narrative detail, social critique, and pioneering approach to the realistic portrayal of human life. His role in the Dreyfus Affair stands as a powerful example of the intellectual’s responsibility to speak truth to power.

Reviews

[Lynn Beyrouthy · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Third Republic in France witnessed the conviction of officer Alfred Dreyfus in 1894 after he allegedly betrayed the French Army by providing the German enemy with military information and secrets. The turncoat of Jewish origins got deported to Devil's Island where he spent 5 years pleading his innocence but it all fell on deaf ears. The well-staged framing of a "Jewish bastard" went perfectly until evidence in 1896 identified French Army major Esterhazy as the real culprit. After a second court case acquitted Esterhazy, Emile Zola felt prompted to write an open letter to the President Felix Faure, pointing a finger of accusation on the deceitful injustice of military authorities and the loathsome antisemitism pervading the French population which will forever tarnish the history of France.

"J'accuse" is a poignant and (you gotta admit) very ballsy account of Emile Zola's militant devotion for justice and human rights in a century where discrimination and racial hatred were still the social norm.

[Nonethousand Oberrhein · Rating 4 out of 5]

Romancier vériste, vérité romantique
La récolte des articles et des lettres écrites par Zola entre 1898 et 1900 montre une facette inédite de l’auteur, lorsque le détachement vériste laisse la place à une passion acharnée pour la vérité. Utilisant toute son expérience (et son vocabulaire!) le romancier met en jeu sa réputation pour démanteler la narrative frauduleuse proposée par les pouvoirs forts, et y opposer celle naissant de ses déductions. L'édition permet, grâce à une chronologie synthétique et une riche introduction, de contextualiser les documents et de vivre une immersion totale le contexte socio-politique. Le “sacrifice social” de Zola (condamné et auto-exilé pendant onze mois) pour “blanchir” l'âme de sa Patrie devient enfin le geste le plus romantique d’une époque qu’on croyait désormais dépourvue de romantisme.

[GONZA · Rating 4 out of 5]

Basterebbe dire che secondo Zolá un paese che ha dei buoni scrittori ha un altro governo, noi infatti abbiamo Moccia e Volo, giusto cosí per capirsi....

[Trounin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Сборник “Истина шествует” состоит из четырнадцати статей, изначально публиковавшихся отдельно. В своей борьбе Золя не мог рассчитывать на поддержку, но он не хотел замалчивать положение справедливости, угнетаемой властями Франции. Европа была охвачена делом Дрейфуса, повсеместно находились сочувствующие и поддерживающие. Судебный процесс сразу вышел за рамки, став причиной социального напряжения. Золя взялся судить за других, считая своё слово весомым, иначе не быть ему столь громогласным. Пусть прошло время, поднятое тогда быстро забылось, заслуги Эмиля в тех событиях можно считать определяющими. Он не боялся за сказанное оказаться в тюрьме, либо быть изгнанным из страны.

(c) Trounin