The Wandering Jew (Sue novel)
Title page of an 1851 edition | |
| Author | Eugène Sue |
|---|---|
| Original title | Le Juif errant |
| Language | French |
Publication date | 1844 |
| Publication place | France |
| Media type | |
The Wandering Jew (French: Le Juif errant) is an 1844 novel by the French writer Eugène Sue.
It tells the story of the descendants of a persecuted Huguenot whose fortune had been entrusted to a Jewish banker for 150 years. Scattered across the globe, they have inherited medals instructing them to reunite in Paris on 13 February 1832 to claim the fortune. While the Jesuit Order manipulates events and places obstacles in their paths, they are protected by the Wandering Jew and his sister, who are cursed to ensure the family's survival.
Combining adventure, mystery and social criticism, The Wandering Jew was one of the greatest literary successes of France at the time and helped establish the popularity of the feuilleton genre. Sue's second serial novel after The Mysteries of Paris, it was originally published from June 1844 to August 1845 in Le Constitutionnel and subsequently released in volumes. The left-leaning newspaper greatly benefited from the novel's instant success, with a readership rising from 3,600 to 23,600.