Germinie Lacerteux, published in 1865, is a tragic novel by the Goncourt brothers that explores the hidden life of a seemingly respectable domestic servant. Drawing on real events, the novel reveals Germinie’s secret struggles with desire, addiction, and emotional vulnerability. Written with intense psychological detail and social realism, the book critiques bourgeois hypocrisy and sheds light on the interior world of a woman at the margins of society. It marked a significant development in the French realist tradition and influenced later naturalist writers like Zola.
