Since there's so much lust in this book, we expect there to be at least a little sex. And boy does Thérèse Raquin deliver. The novel contains several saucy scenes between the adulterous couple, Thérèse and Laurent. And while these sex scenes may strike us modern readers as relatively tame, they caused quite a stir when the book was first published. Critics of Thérèse Raquin felt that these scenes were pornographic in content, but Zola insisted that he wanted to present sex merely as a researcher or a doctor would—in an objective and non-judgmental way. It's up to us to decide whether we believe the guy or not.
Questions About Sex
- What is the sexual relationship like between Camille and Thérèse? Why is their sexual relationship so important to the main themes of the novel?
- Why does Thérèse enjoy having sex with Laurent more than with Camille?
- What causes Thérèse and Laurent to stop having sex after they murder Camille?
- After she marries Laurent, why does Thérèse start sleeping with strangers?
Chew on This
The sex scenes in Thérèse Raquin should not be read as pornographic, but as "scientific studies" of human interactions.
Sex is nothing more than a biological process, like breathing or sleeping.