- published: 07 Jul 2012
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Émile François Zola (French pronunciation: [e.mil zɔ.la]; 2 April 1840 – 29 September 1902) was a French writer, the most important exemplar of the literary school of naturalism and an important contributor to the development of theatrical naturalism. He was a major figure in the political liberalization of France and in the exoneration of the falsely accused and convicted army officer Alfred Dreyfus, which is encapsulated in the renowned newspaper headline J'Accuse.
Zola was born in Paris in 1840. His father, François Zola (originally Francesco Zolla), was an Italian engineer. With his French wife Émilie Aurélie Aubert, the family moved to Aix-en-Provence in the southeast, when Émile was three years old. Four years later in 1847, his father died leaving his mother on a meager pension. In 1858 the Zolas moved to Paris, where Émile's childhood friend Paul Cézanne soon joined him. Zola started to write in the romantic style. His widowed mother had planned a law career for Émile but he failed his Baccalauréat examination.
Aimlessly moving forward
Tripping backwards
Killing time
Woke up my appetite
For some more emptiness
As I starve
Climb back into my bubble
Safety cuts me
From my air supply
Glancing into the shadows
Of my actions
That keeps me inside
Bring me back to my knees
Where I was begging for my life
And take me back in your arms
As I lay dying for your love
Light up my useless matches
Desperate for a
Spark of light
Free me from my own cage