Index

Index ................................................................................................................................1
Introduction
1. Author's biography.........................................................................................................3
2. Current .......................................................................................................................4
2.1 Characteristics of the current..................................................................................4
3. Literary Genre............................................................................................................4
4. Topic..................................................................................................................................4
5. Synthesis of the argument...................................................................................................5
6. Historical Context..........................................................................................................7
7. Characters
7.1 Protagonist
7.2 Antagonist
7.3 Secondary Characters............................................................................................8
7.4 Characters Incidents
Conclusion
Personal appreciation.......................................................................................................11
Bibliografía......................................................................................................................12
Introduction
The following work presents the analysis of one of the works that marked an era and that

it gave renown to its author, Naná, which was chosen taking personal preferences into account,

recommendation from the teacher, and the desire to discover what surrounds the

famous and irreverent Naná.

This work will analyze points such as: author, literary genre, characters

principales, antagonistas, personajes secundarios, personajes incidentes, corriente

literary, and a direct analysis of the book summary will be made.

It is expected that with the following work, the reader can feel the longing to know about

It completes the work, as it combines themes from the era in which it was written (revolutions).

idealists and armed), about the division of classes, and about misfortune and luck together

in the same person, it also has a unique way of narrating things, without

no taboos or inhibitions in the words he uses. It is therefore expected that this work only

it was the beginning of the discovery of Naná, a work that undoubtedly changed the way of

to see the reality, which hides several secrets wanting to be deciphered, and is waiting for

he who finds everything that Zola wanted to express in his reading.

The following work contains direct quotes taken directly from the work (which more

further on your bibliography will be indicated) and notes from the person writing these paragraphs,

therefore, the reader is urged to pause at each of them to have a better

appreciation of the work itself.

1. Author's biography

Emilio Zolá (1840-1902)

French writer and creator of naturalism, born in Paris on April 2nd
1840, his father had an Italian civil engineer. When his father died, the family
lived immersed in poverty. Zola had her first job at a publishing house.
as an employee, so from 1865 he earned a living writing
poems, stories, and criticism of art and literature.
His first important novel, Thérèse Raquin (1867), is a detailed
psychological study of murder and passion. Later, inspired by the
scientific experiments on inheritance and the social environment, Zola decided
to write a novel that would delve into all aspects of human life,
that will document social ills, regardless of any sensitivity
politics. He assigned this new school of literary fiction the name of
naturalism with which he intended to make an analysis as scientific as those that
they had done Darwin and Marx, and wrote a series of twenty novels between
1871 and 1893, under the generic title of Les Rougon-Macquart, with the aim of
illustrate their theories through a family saga. After thorough research
it produced a surprising and complete portrait of French life, especially
the Parisian, at the end of the 19th century. However, it was deemed obscene and
criticized for exaggerating crime and behavior often
pathological of the most disadvantaged classes.
Some of the books that deal with the five generations of the family.
Rougon-Macquart achieved great popularity. Among the novels of this
The Tavern (1877), a study on alcoholism; Nana,
based on prostitution; Pot-bouille (1882), an analysis of the
aspirations of the middle class; Germinal (1885), a tale about the
living conditions of miners; The Human Beast (1890), a novel that
analyzes homicide trends; and The Disaster (1892), a story about the
fall of the Second Empire. His later works, written from 1893,
they are less objective, more evangelizing, and consequently, less successful
like novels. Among these is the series The Three Cities (3 volumes,
1894-1898), which includes Lourdes (1894), Rome (1896), and Paris (1898). Zola
he also wrote several books of literary criticism in which he attacks his
enemies, the romantic writers. The best of their critical writings is the
The experimental novel (1880) and the collection of essays The
naturalist novelists (1881).
In January 1898, Zola became involved in the Dreyfus case when he wrote
an open letter that was published in the Parisian newspaper L'Aurore. It is the famous
letter known as J'accuse ('I accuse'), in which Zola lashes out against
the French authorities for pursuing the Jewish artillery officer Alfred
Dreyfus, accused of treason. After the publication of this letter, Zola was
exiled to England for a year. He died in Paris on September 29
1902, poisoned by the carbon monoxide produced by a chimney in
bad condition.
2. Current
The work Naná belongs to the literary movement of Naturalism.

2.1 Characteristics of the current

1. The literary composition must be based on an objective representation and
empirical of the human being.

Naturalist writers believe that instinct, emotion, or the

social and economic conditions govern human behavior, rejecting the
free will and largely adopting biological determinism of
Charles Darwin and the economist Karl Marx.
3. It first emerges in the works of the French writers Edmond
Huot de Goncourt, his brother Jules Huot de Goncourt, and Émile Zola, in whose
essay 'The Experimental Novel' (1880) exposed his theory of naturalism
literary.
In South America, naturalism appears in the novel around 1880 in a
current that seeks above all to analyze ethnic and social problems
through the behavior of the characters.
5. The exponent of this current in Mexico was Federico Gamboa who
published in 1903, Santa, which gave him fame and made him known to the great
public.
Naturalism is based on meticulous descriptions throughout the work,
the main characters are always from the lowest class of society,
try to show reality as it is, without fear of repression.

3. Literary Genre
The work belongs to the literary genre of the Novel (extensive narration, generally in
prose, with characters and real or fictional situations, that involves a conflict and its
development that unfolds in a positive or negative way). Zola conceived the novel
like a sort of laboratory where the author experiments with real beings.

4. Theme
A prostitute who goes through various situations using her beauty and grace.
which lead her to know all the worldly pleasures that will later be her
destruction.
5. Synthesis of the argument
What does it say?

The story starts in the brothel where the play featuring Nana was presented, the
which is immediately crowded by all those who belonged to the upper class, the
the play begins and after seeing vulgar and boring acts, people start to get desperate, but
this ends when Naná comes on stage, who despite having an unpleasant
voice and little charm to perform on stage, manages to get ahead thanks to her
beauty. The next day Naná receives all her admirers at her house, who
Eager to see her, they cause the maid Zoé to be overwhelmed with all the people.
present in the house of the renowned Naná, who is resolving her own issues.
problems (related to a loan and a family situation with his aunt).
The fame of the new Parisian star goes beyond just a visit from admirers already.
that in the Muffat house the main topic of conversation is her, who has made the
invitation for a dinner hosted at your home, invitation that is accepted. Later in the
Naná's house has been assigned a steward along with Zoé so that the meeting is
carried out correctly. The time for the meeting arrives and after several situations
the meeting culminates when the guests consume the food and move to the living room,
where they commit shameless acts and provoke the host's anger.

After the events previously mentioned, another function takes place in the brothel where
Naná works, who surprisingly receives a visit from the prince, who is eager to see.
he brings the young woman with him regardless of the fact that a show is about to start, this visit
It ends with a toast in which the lady is the praised one.

Time passes and Naná takes different paths than she was used to, since
escape to a property in the French countryside, where one appreciates nature as
I had never done it without knowing that the Hugon and the Muffat lived together in the same place.
house, these last guests invited by the first ones, at this meeting was the count
Muffat and little Jorge, who were in love with the beautiful Naná and once
aware of the proximity of this house and theirs, they decide to pay a visit to the young woman,
who prefers the young man over the old Muffat. These visits make Naná decide to make
a trip to some ruins that later disappoint her and her
companions, who depart to a place where a woman is located
advancement in age.

Everything returns to the city of Paris where Muffat, in love with Nana, wanders through the
streets of this city, "Three months later, one night in December, Count Muffat
I walked through the Passage of the Panoramas...1, who after wandering for a time arrives at the
house of the one who has enchanted him with love and confesses what he feels for her, to the
Nana does not give it importance and throws him out of her house. Driven out of the house of his beloved,
Muffat meets Steiner, and they both decide to enter Naná's house, but
Fontan is found in Naná's bed, "The two men saw in the turbulent
"hechizo a Fontan."2 and he lets them know that if they want to win over the young woman, they must be

1 Hello, Emilio, Naná, united Mexican editors, Mexico, sixth edition, June 1985, pp. 265, page 119

Ibid. pp. 137

2
more patient and affectionate, but soon after they are also cast aside by Fontan
house.

The story unfolds and a new play emerges in the brothel of owner Bordenave, but
this time Naná only gets a role less than secondary, since her always rival
Rosa Mignon gets the leading role, so Naná along with Count Muffat
They pressure Bordenave to ensure that Naná has the leading role, which they achieve, and Rosa
she would carry out her revenge against Naná later. The revenge of
Rosa has an effect, as it causes Naná's audience to lose respect for her, to what
she is dedicated to living in a luxury hotel and spending her lover Muffat's fortune.i
During this time, Naná dedicates herself to adding names to the list of her lovers, spending
money in luxuries in that place where people came in and out in large numbers.

Continuing in the story, Naná attends along with all those who have always supported her.
accompaniediitowards a horse race in which Muffat and Vandeuvres bet their
luck for the horses, but the winner is Muffat thanks to a mare that is
she is named Naná for the similarity between the animal and the woman. This loss causes that
Vandeuvres commits suicide because he does not want to feel misfortune in life. The story of Nana
It unfolds and after an abortion and the suffering of an existential crisis, the spirit of the
woman declines to the point that the people close to her notice and feel concerned
for her.

Naná approaches what will be her last moments of happiness, since shortly after
little suffers money losses, then comes to his life the ruin of the Hugon family at
Felipe is arrested, and Jorge, who was one of his lovers, commits suicide.iii, but misfortune
Naná's story doesn't end there, as she has several quarrels with Muffat over his reckless spending.
from his fortune, but the count upon finding her in the arms of another man decides to leave her and
dedicating oneself to living their life.

The end of the star of Paris was approaching, as that woman loved by some and
hated by others, decides to go on a trip after having spent her life on consumption
insatiable for men, money, and in the dedication of time to the trivialities of her
time. Naná visits Cairo, Russia, and France, a destination where her life would come to an end,
the light of the Parisian star would go out, of the goddess who captivated all the bourgeois of
Paris, the Venus who needed no talent to touch the sky with her
vulgar fingers, Naná would die of smallpox in a grand hotel surrounded by the people who her
they had known, of those who had stood before the ethereal figure of a woman
who knew the best and the worst of Paris and now in front of his corpse, his feelings
they lost importance after the death of the prostitute Naná.

The story ends by describing the fiery mob that heads to protect France.
from the Prussian attack and with a cold and unconcerned phrase "To Berlin!, To Berlin!, To
Berlin!3

How does he/she say it?

In the work, an omniscient narrator can be perceived, as throughout the story it is

this one who describes to us the situations, scenes, environments, and feelings of the
characters, but the work also unfolds through dialogues among all the characters,
Ibíd. pp. 265
3
using a language suitable for the time. Time passes linearly,
since everything happens in its present.

One thing we can highlight is the use of the title, as it is only the name of the
protagonist, but if we start to analyze, we can discover that it influences a lot in
the reader, since seeing only a proper name as the title of the work encourages us to
discover what Naná is, a woman, a girl, what her profession is, what she looks like, and
many other issues that the author undoubtedly took into account when deciding to name the
work with the name of its protagonist.

Why does he say it like that?

An important element in this section is the way it refers to certain

situations or descriptions, even of the characters, since it uses very provocative words,
indecent and somewhat vulgar, which are directly related to the
main theme of the work, prostitution, as the use of words like sly or
including swear words, it places you directly in the environment in which it is developing.
main story. The work does not have many metaphors in itself, rather it uses very terms.
sensual and with a sexual background to make everything fit together in the work.

6. Historical Context
The story takes place in Paris in the mid-19th century, a time when high society
it mixes with the lower class and various social revolutions take place, both in the
ideological way as armed. In this era, a struggle against Prussia arises.
and the ideals obtained in the past revolution, which causes the people to
Rally in the streets for a strong patriotic feeling.

7. Characters
7.1 Protagonist
Moral Characteristics
Naná:
Características Físicas: Alta, rubia, blanca, de 18, años, bien desarrollada,
Red lips, blue eyes. "Nana very tall and excessively developed.
for her happy eighteen years... her long blonde hair...4"Naná"
she kept smiling, showing her little red mouth and her huge blue eyes.5
Moral Characteristics: Cheerful, mischievous, promiscuous, whimsical,
liar.

Ibid. pp. 18
4

Ibíd. pp. 19
5
 7.2 Antagonist
Count Muffat:
Características Físicas: canoso, alto, delgado, de grande frente
Moral characteristics: calculating, obsessive, protective depressive of a
woman who mistreats him and cannot understand him
Jorge Hugon:
Physical Characteristics: thin, blonde, with innocent eyes, with hair
curly, young.
Moral Characteristics: innocent, kind, lovestruck.

7.3 Supporting Characters

Javier Vandeuvres
Physical Characteristics: tall, thin.
Moral Characteristics: emotional, proud.
Héctor Feuchery:
Physical Characteristics: young, with a gaunt face.
Moral characteristics: dreamer, intuitive.
The Faloise
Physical Characteristics: young (older than Hector), small in stature
black mustache. "...inquired the older one, a young man with a small mustache.
black.6
Moral Characteristics: Social, flirtatious.

7.4 Characters Incidents

Lucy Stewart:
Características Físicas: fea, de cuarenta años, cuello demasiado largo,
a twisted and stretched face, thick lips. "...a little ugly woman, about
forty years old, with a neck too long, a gaunt face and
stretched, thick lips...7.
Moral characteristics: pleasant, lively.
Maiden Zoe:
Physical Characteristics: maid with brown skin, black hair and hairstyle
curly, black eyes, big mouth and flat nose. "Zoé was a woman
brunette, with a long face like a dog's snout, she styled her hair with great care
curly... 8, "...a flat varicose, two swollen lips and two eyes
blacks...9.
Moral Characteristics: kind, helpful.

Mignon Rose
Physical Characteristics: slim build, dark complexion, little
beautiful. "she was thin and dark-skinned, with the adorable ugliness of the classic
Parisian little boy10
Moral characteristics: vindictive, competitive, manipulative.

6
Ibid. pp. 9
7
Ibid. p. 13
8
Ibíd. pp 29
9
Ibid. pp 30
10
Ibíd. pp 17
Bordenave
Physical Characteristics: tall, sturdy, with a beard.
Moral Characteristics: vulgar, rude.
Banker Steiner:
Physical Characteristics: elderly, gray-haired.
Moral Characteristics: materialistic, egotistical.
Conclusion
At the end of this book, it is expected that the reader will be able to try to read the work on their own.

complete from Zolá, or even more so that may be interested in the entire compendium of the works

from this author, since as is well known, Naná is only one of several volumes that Zola

did.

Naná is one of the best works I have read, and this analysis aimed to show that.

an overview of the book, as it can still be analyzed in many ways, for

contains material of social, psychological, historical, literary, philosophical study, many

more than undoubtedly enrich the work and allow more readers from different

careers can take it as a study document.

This book challenges the reader to have an open mind during its reading, as those

what you think you will find is a conservative and cultured book, what you will actually find is

a liberal and very uninhibited book in everything it shows around its reading.
Personal appreciation

I personally liked this book a lot, as naturalism has always been my

favorite literary current, and as I read this work, I reaffirm my taste for both the

naturalism as seen in Zola's writing style, and this author wrote about that

what she wanted, she did not stop for anyone or anything. Naná is now one of my works

favorites as it takes the theme of prostitution and combines it with themes like love,

sadness, lust, and many others that make the work quite interesting, as it makes you

It keeps in suspense what will happen with each of the characters.

Something I really liked is the detailed description of each character.

Is it true that by looking at the descriptions you can feel the smell of Naná's white skin or

to see the reflection of Jorge's sweet and innocent gaze.

A dramatic and sensual work at the same time, a novel that does not attempt to disguise reality.

with concepts that beautify it and position it as a utopian world in which not

it doesn't matter, an original work that changed everything established in its time, that broke

schemes and showed reality as it is to those who did not dare to see it as such.

how is it.

With a tragic and somewhat cold ending, it leaves you reflecting that life offers you

many things, but you must decide well what you are going to enjoy from it, if you want

to love yourself or if you want to surrender your being to the wicked world that corrupts with its

promises of joy, with their obscene and destructive pleasures, with everything that we

it seems good but it ends up destroying our innocence like fragile pink glass.
Bibliography
Hello, Emilio, Naná, united Mexican editors, Mexico, sixth edition, June 1985
pp. 265.
i
Where she had found a lover, a protector, who fulfilled any whim she had.
ii
The people from the theater, the Mignon, Bordenave, and the other women from the brothel.
iii
He commits suicide upon finding out that Naná has only used him as a distraction.