Nana by Émile Zola follows Nana Coupeau, a stunningly beautiful young woman who rises from Paris's streets to become the most celebrated courtesan of the Second Empire. Through her irresistible charm, she ensnares and destroys a succession of wealthy, powerful men—ruining their fortunes, shattering their families, and driving several to despair and suicide. Zola presents Nana as a "golden fly," born from the working class yet poisoning the entire aristocracy with her corruption. As her decadent reign reaches its height, her fall comes swiftly: she dies horribly of smallpox just as war engulfs France, symbolizing the moral rot and imminent collapse of the empire itself.
