What is the experimental method in Zola's conception of the novel?
AFiction should avoid any resemblance to science or systematic investigation
BThe novel should be a controlled investigation of human nature under varying conditions of heredity and environment
CNovels should be purely imaginative with no basis in observation
DScientific methods are irrelevant to literary analysis
Zola argued that the novelist could be like a laboratory scientist: setting up conditions and investigating how character responds. By varying conditions of heredity and environment, the novelist investigates the laws governing human nature.
Question 2 Multiple Choice
How did Zola's naturalist approach affect the subjects novels could address?
AIt restricted novels to pleasant, morally approved subjects
BIt encouraged examination of scandalous, previously taboo subjects as legitimate scientific investigation
CIt eliminated all social commentary from fiction
DIt required novels to avoid depicting lower classes
Because Zola treated the novel as scientific investigation, previously scandalous or taboo subjects became legitimate: poverty, sexuality, disease, crime. These were not sensationalism but scientific observation of human nature under stress.
Question 3 True / False
In Zola's theory, the novelist's role is similar to a scientist conducting controlled investigation into human nature.
TTrue
FFalse
Answer: True
Zola explicitly compared the novelist to an experimental scientist. The novelist sets up conditions (heredity, environment, circumstances) and investigates how characters respond, discovering laws governing human nature.
Question 4 True / False
Zola believed the novel could serve social reform by scientifically documenting social problems.
TTrue
FFalse
Answer: True
By investigating social conditions scientifically—documenting poverty, exploitation, disease—the novel could expose injustice and motivate reform. Scientific investigation was inseparable from social advocacy.
Question 5 Short Answer
How does treating the novel as 'experimental' change what subjects and methods are available to fiction?
Think about your answer, then reveal below.
Model answer:
If the novel is a form of scientific investigation, then any subject becomes legitimate if it reveals truth about human nature. Poverty, disease, sexual desire, crime—these are not sensational but phenomena to be investigated. The novelist's method becomes observational: recording details of how people actually live under certain conditions, documenting speech and behavior with scientific precision. This legitimates unprecedented realism and access to previously taboo subjects. It also implies that the novelist has a social responsibility: to conduct this investigation carefully and accurately, and to make findings available to society so reform can be undertaken.