Mysteries of Paris — Volume 02

"Mysteries of Paris — Volume 02" by Eugène Sue is a serialized novel that was likely written in the early 19th century. The narrative is centered around the struggles of the jeweled artisan Jerome Morel and his family, whom the evil bailiffs threaten with imprisonment due to their financial woes. The story reveals a harsh portrayal of societal injustices, depicting the desperate situations faced by the lower classes in Paris. The opening of the volume introduces a distressing scene in Morel's garret, where he and his family face the arrival of two bailiffs, Malicorne and Bourdin. They are there to arrest him for a debt, leaving Morel distraught as he grapples with the implications of being imprisoned and the potential collapse of his family. The death of his daughter Adele during this turmoil amplifies their despair, and while Morel yearns to protect his remaining family, the bailiffs remain callous. The involvement of a benefactor, Rudolph, offers a glimmer of hope for the family in their dire circumstances, but the chapter ends with a foreboding sense of the ongoing struggles they must face, setting the stage for further developments in the narrative. (This is an automatically generated summary.)

Marie-Joseph "Eugène" Sue was a French novelist. He was one of several authors who popularized the genre of the serial novel in France with his very popular and widely imitated The Mysteries of Paris, which was published in a newspaper from 1842 to 1843.