Exploitation of Women in the Nineteenth-Century French Department Store: Labor, Advertisements, and Surveillance in Émile Zola’s Au Bonheur des Dames

This paper investigates the exploitation of women which became increasingly prevalent with the rise of newer models of commerce and the introduction of department stores in society. Émile Zola’s 1883 novel Au Bonheur des Dames focuses on key themes about capitalism, the mistreatment of lower class workers, and the inherent sexism women faced in nineteenth-century France. By focusing on the new modes of retail shopping that emerged in the late 1800s, Zola presents problems created by a consumer-focused society. The introduction of women into the job market established more boundaries for them to overcome, as women were no longer just competing with men in the workplace, but were also directly competing with each other due to low base salaries and commission-based bonuses. However, a theme that has not been analyzed by scholars of Zola is the prominence of surveillance as a theme in the novel. Department store owners crafted brand-new advertising campaigns specifically targeting women. The use of male workers as a way to deter shoplifting, and the avoidance of police intervention when faced with thefts presented a new argument: that women are exploited not only for their labor but also for their money as consumers. This analysis shows that the development of modern commerce and capitalism furthered the harm that women faced as both workers and consumers.