[1] Henri Troppmann goes from his sick-bed in Paris to Barcelona before the Spanish Civil War in time to witness a Catalan general strike.

One of them, Lazare, is a Marxist Jew and political activist, who is preparing herself for prospective torture and martyrdom at the hand of General Francisco Franco's troops if she is captured.

Troppmann has to choose between the abject Dirty and her associations of sex, disease, excrement and decay; the politically engaged Lazare and her ethical values of commitment, resistance and endurance; and Xénie, who has outlived her usefulness.

While looking at Lazare beneath a tree, Troppmann realises that he respects her for her social conscience, but also sees her as a rat, and chooses Dirty instead, whilst sending Xénie off with a friend, who is subsequently killed in the street.

The book can be seen briefly in the music video of French singer Alain Bashung's song "Résidents de la République".