Doctor Pascal: Analysis of Major Characters
"Doctor Pascal" delves into the complex interplay of familial relationships and individual aspirations through its major characters, primarily focusing on Pascal Rougon, a dedicated physician with a passion for heredity. Pascal is depicted as selfless yet conflicted, navigating the challenges posed by his family's disapproval and their attempts to undermine his scientific work. His relationship with Clotilde, his niece, adds a layer of emotional depth, as she grapples with her growing faith and her complex feelings toward Pascal. Clotilde's desire to persuade Pascal to abandon his research reflects her internal struggle between love and moral conviction. The narrative also highlights the influence of Pascal's mother, Félicité Rougon, whose shame and fear regarding her son’s pursuits lead her to take drastic actions against his legacy. Supporting characters like Martine, the housekeeper, and Dr. Ramond, a friend and Clotilde's suitor, contribute to the overarching themes of loyalty, ambition, and the consequences of familial loyalty. The story ultimately presents a poignant exploration of the tension between personal desire and social expectations, culminating in a tragic end that leaves Pascal's work vulnerable to erasure.
Doctor Pascal: Analysis of Major Characters
Author: Émile Zola
First published: Le Docteur Pascal, 1893 (English translation, 1893)
Genre: Novel
Locale: The south of France
Plot: Naturalism
Time: Late nineteenth century
Pascal Rougon (pahs-KAHL rew-GOHN), a dedicated and selfless doctor interested in heredity. Using experimental methods, he is, to his mother's dismay, using the members of his family as the field for his investigations. Feeling betrayed by the family's efforts to destroy his files, Dr. Pascal fails in health. He is temporarily restored by a love affair with Clotilde but later suffers a heart attack and dies, after which the records of his research are destroyed.
Clotilde (kloh-TEELD), Pascal Rougon's niece. Living in quiet happiness with Dr. Pascal and Martine, a growing religious conviction causes her to try to persuade Pascal to destroy his files on heredity. Urged by Dr. Ramond to marry him, she realizes that Pascal is the one she loves, and she becomes his mistress. She bears his child after his death.
Félicité Rougon (fay-lee-see-TAY), Dr. Pascal's mother. Ashamed because her son is not the kind of successful physician she wishes him to be, and terrified lest his papers on heredity fall into the hands of strangers, she continually seeks ways to destroy his files. She succeeds in this design immediately after Dr. Pascal's death.
Martine (mahr-TEEN), Dr. Pascal's devoted housekeeper.
Dr. Ramond (reh-MOHN), Dr. Pascal's friend and Clotilde's suitor.
Maxime (mahk-SEEM), Clotilde's dissolute brother.