Émile Zola's Germinal, the 13th book in the Generational Saga Les Rougon-Macquart, tells the story of the young idealist Étienne who is looking for work in an impoverished mining village and decides to try to rouse the oppressed workers to rebellion. A famous work of naturalism and considered to be one of Zola's best novels, it focuses on human relationships struggling against the constraints of working class life and society, and its position on the Sliding Scale of Idealism Versus Cynicism is pretty debatable.
As Étienne organises a mass strike, he finds himself enjoying power and knowledge which he feels are above his class, and struggles with his vanity and superiority. Meanwhile, he tries and fails repeatedly to begin a relationship with the haulage girl Catherine, whose family slides deeper and deeper into poverty as she gets roped into a reluctant relationship with the brutish Chaval. As the strike drags on and the workers slowly starve to death, the Company who control the mines watch on and try to recoup their losses with little thought for the lives of the workers. There is a lot of death, but a belief in the goodness of humanity prevails.
Got adapted into several movies, in 1913, 1963 and 1993. The 1993 version is the best known and acclaimed by far and stars French singer Renaud as Étienne, Gérard Depardieu as Maheu (the worker hosting Étienne) and Frédéric van den Driessche as Paul Négrel.
Germinal provides examples of the following tropes:
- Apron Matron: Most of the adult female working class, but especially Maheude and widow Désir.
- Badass Bookworm: Deconstructed with Étienne, who doesn't understand most of the political texts he reads but still fancies himself a famous orator.
- Children Are Innocent: Played straight, subverted, deconstructed, and generally messed with. Étienne is shocked at young Jeanlin's criminality because he thinks children are innocent. Meanwhile, he romantically pursues pre-pubescent Catherine who's resigned to submitting herself in marriage to her rapist, and the kids Lydie and Bébert attempt to engage in a sexual relationship.
- Clingy Jealous Girl: Mouquette gets like this to Étienne, although in her dying moments she is pleased to see him with Catherine.
- Corrupt Corporate Executive: The working class believe that most all of those who control the mines are these, but while many apparent examples turn out to be subversions, the faceless members of the Company certainly fit.
- Kill the Poor: Exactly who thinks this about whom is up for debate. Étienne, as he becomes more "educated" and more disgusted with the poverty surrounding him, definitely starts to harbour this sentiment.
- Rich in Dollars, Poor in Sense: Yes, the starving, impoverished workers are just having a little shout and will soon get it out of their systems and go back to work. Just keep the curtains closed and everything will blow over.
- Working-Class Hero: Étienne, although the extent of his heroism is up for debate. He'll gladly put his life on the line when it matters, though. Most of the working class characters count to some extent.
