“Rimbaud was intoxicated while Zola was a critic of intoxication”. Is this a fair description of Rimbaud powers and Drinking Den? First draft 15 May 2014 Intoxication is defined as “the condition of being drunk” in the Merriam Webster Dictionary. Intoxication and specially alcohol and drinking is the main theme in Drinking Den by Emile Zola and many poems of Arthur Rimbaud. However , love, dirt, debt and many other types of intoxications have had great impact on both writers. While, Rimbaud was completely aware of his intoxication and his reasons, Zola tried to show the consequences and the impact of drinking in the society. Rimbaud’s theory was the “disorganization of all of the senses” (116, Rimbaud) to explore more and to “attain the unknown” but still completely aware of his actions and consequences. On the other hand according to Hanson’s article, in 1970s France became to produce and consume wine and beer more than anytime in the history and by 1975 “French absynthe drinkers downed approximately 185,000 gallons of the stuff; by 1910, that figure had increased to an astonishing 9,500 gallons” (Hanson). Thus, Zola, disagreeing with the drinking situation in the society, criticises drinking and intoxication through all of the characters in his novel. YES, indeed Rimbaud was intoxicated but for the better understanding of his feelings and exploring the world while Zola was a critic of intoxication because of the social circumstances in his time. The most critical type intoxication in Rimbaud’s poems and Zola’s novel is drinking alcohol; Rimbaud declares to be intoxicated by alcohol in most of his early poems and Zola tries to show the impact of drinking specially through Coupeau. Rimbaud mentions wine and Champagne in many of his poems when he gets intoxicated by them and he feels the happiness and being gay through his early poems while falling in love with his soundings. On the other hand, Coupeau becomes the main reason on Gervaise’s downfall and the reason she starts drinking. At first, he drinks because he feels useless and unworthy. Nevertheless, he gets t