This article explores the figure of the engineer in the Rougon-Macquart. The profession of engineer is a peculiar one in nineteenth-century France as it refers to a variety of activities. For Zola, the engineer stands at the crossroads of technology, science and progress, thus serving as the perfect embodiment of modernity. Yet, an analysis of the various representations of the engineer in Zola’s novels reveals a great complexity emerging from multiple influences – socio-historical and personal, conscious and unconscious. As a result, this analysis raises the question: in the end, was Zola technophobic or technophile?