Madame Bovary - themes, characters, quotes, summary, free pdf

Contents

1. About Gustave Flaubert
2. About Madame Bovary
3. Madame Bovary Themes
4. Madame Bovary Characters
5. Madame Bovary Summary
6. Madame Bovary Quotes
7. Article Summary
8. Madame Bovary PDF Download

Madame Bovary Novel

Madame Bovary - themes, characters, quotes, summary, free pdf

About Gustave Flaubert

Gustave Flaubert is a French novelist, born on December 12th, 1821 in the French city of Rouen and passed away on May 8th, 1880. Flaubert is considered the main driving force behind the realistic school of French literature, and his novel "Madame Bovary," published in 1857, is a literary masterpiece and one of his most famous works, offering a realistic portrayal of bourgeois life. Flaubert began his literary career at school in 1837 and enrolled in law school in Paris in 1841. He was later diagnosed with a neurological disease, a form of epilepsy, despite the absence of primary symptoms, which led him to abandon his law studies and devote himself entirely to literature. This article will explore Flaubert's novel "Madame Bovary" and some of his other works.

About Madame Bovary

"Madame Bovary," written by Gustave Flaubert and published in 1857, is considered one of the great French novels. The story follows Emma Bovary, who is dissatisfied and bored with her ordinary married life in 19th century France. She longs for excitement, adventure, and romance. Emma attempts to escape her dull reality through literature and music but eventually begins an affair in search of happiness and freedom. The novel traces Emma's journey and pursuit of fulfillment, ending tragically for the main characters.

"Madame Bovary" is notable for its distinctive narrative style and precise portrayal of French social life during that era. The novel provides a realistic depiction of middle-class existence in the mid-1800s.

Madame Bovary Themes

"Madame Bovary" explores various themes and ideas that shed light on the human condition and social norms. These are some of the main themes of Madame Bovary:

1. Romance and Idealism: The novel criticizes the romantic ideals and unrealistic expectations of the protagonist, Emma Bovary. Dissatisfied with her ordinary life, she seeks passion and excitement through extramarital affairs and material possessions. Flaubert describes the consequences of living in a world ruled by unrealistic romantic fantasies.
2. Disillusionment and Boredom: Emma Bovary's dissatisfaction with her everyday life and her constant search for fulfillment lead to disillusionment. She becomes increasingly bored and frustrated with her marriage, social obligations, and the limitations of her provincial environment. The novel explores the consequences of escaping reality and the dangers of unfulfilled desires.
3. Social Conformity and Hypocrisy: Flaubert criticizes the social norms and expectations of 19th-century French society. He exposes the hypocrisy and shallowness of the bourgeoisie, portraying them as more concerned with appearance and social status than with emotions and genuine values. Emma Bovary's desire to conform to societal expectations ultimately leads to her downfall.
4. Gender Roles and the Oppression of Women: "Madame Bovary" explores the restrictive gender roles imposed on women in 19th-century France. Trapped in a loveless marriage, Emma Bovary is deprived of opportunities for personal and intellectual growth. Flaubert emphasizes the limited possibilities for women at that time and the consequences of social constraints on their lives.
5. Materialism and Consumerism: The novel examines the allure and dangers of materialism and consumer culture. Emma Bovary seeks happiness and fulfillment through material possessions, extravagant spending, and the pursuit of a lavish lifestyle. However, her materialistic desires lead to debt and further dissatisfaction.
6. Illusion vs. Reality: Flaubert contrasts the illusions and fantasies created by Emma Bovary with the harsh reality of her life. Emma's romantic notions collide with the everyday aspects of her existence, leading to a tragic ending. The novel questions the consequences of living in a world of illusions and the importance of facing reality.
7. Love and Passion: Madame Bovary explores different forms of love and passion. Emma Bovary seeks passionate love and excitement outside of marriage, but her affairs don't bring her the satisfaction she desires. The novel portrays the complexities and consequences of the pursuit of love and passion without regard for the consequences.

Madame Bovary Characters

1. Emma Bovary: A beautiful but modest woman who longs to live an elegant and emotional life away from the countryside.   
2. Charles Bovary: Her husband, a gentle and peaceful rural doctor, who dreams of having a happy married life.      
3. Rudolphe Boulanger: A relatively wealthy landowner with whom Emma falls in love because she thinks he will be the gateway to the wealth she aspires to.
4. Leon Dubois: Emma's second lover, an ambitious but easily bored writer who speaks mysteriously about literature and music.   
5. Mr. Homais: A pharmacist and ambitious but deceitful man who likes to talk about rationality, progress and religion. He is a family friend of the Bovarys.
6. Mr. Lheureux: A businessman who slowly leads the Bovary family into financial ruin.
7. Charles' Mother: A neurotic, demanding woman whose marriage was unhappy.
8. Bertha Bovary: Emma and Charles' sweet and kind young daughter whom Emma neglects and treats cruelly, while Charles cares for her.  
9. Emma's Father: A quiet but lonely man whose wife died when Emma was a child.
10. Hippolyte: A quiet but hardworking young man who suffers from a club foot deformity.

Madame Bovary Summary

Madame Bovary is a novel set in a rural area in northern France near the town of Rouen in Normandy. The story begins with Charles Bovary, a shy teenager who wears strange clothes, arriving at a new school where he is ridiculed by his new classmates. Charles struggles to obtain a second-class medical degree and marries a wealthy, annoying widow chosen for him by his mother. During one of Charles' visits to a local farm to treat the owner's broken leg, he meets Emma, the beautiful and cultured daughter of the patient.

Emma finds herself trapped in a dull and uninspiring married life after marrying Charles, and she longs for the luxury and romance she has read about in popular novels. Emma meets a clever young man named Leon, and she is strongly attracted to him as they share literary and musical interests, which reignites what she has lost with her husband. Emma hides her contempt for Charles to maintain her image as a loyal wife and mother.

Emma experiences a huge shock after a love affair with a wealthy man and contracts a fatal illness, which leads her to turn to religion for a brief period of time. After her recovery, Emma meets Leon again, and they begin a romantic relationship, which she keeps secret from Charles.

The novel ends with the deaths of Emma and Charles.

Madame Bovary Quotes

1. "She thought for a moment the splendours of life concealed from her must needs be beautiful, and her heart leaped with desire."
2. "Love, she thought, must come suddenly, with great outbursts and lightnings - a hurricane from heaven that falls upon life."
3. "When they were alone at night in their bedroom, Emma would push the bolsters against Charles's shoulders and then get up and stand beside him."
4. "Her beauty shone forth in all its splendor like a conqueror, and it filled her with pride to feel this man possessed by her, body and soul."
5. "She would come home loaded with presents for Berthe - dolls, necklaces, rings - and the child's wardrobe was replenished like the trousseau of a princess."
6. "For part of winter they lived in their little country house. She took up gardening, did chores around the house, looked after the workers."
7. "The very fact of having harbored an impossible dream had left deep traces of sadness within her."
8. "Emma tried everything from sulking to being charming, from caresses to coldness, from jealousy to indifference."
9. "These things shredded her health and accelerated the onset of her end."
10. "Emma felt an icy chill creep over her whole body while great, imperceptible laceration tore at her heart."
11. "So, it came that she hated Charles and wanted to vanish or die."
12. "Emma felt herself dying slowly from no relief, like one bled to death, and she did not even have the consolation of hating anyone."
13. "Emma wept - weeping was the one delight left her now."
14. "She thought she had discovered in adultery all the delights of passion, but fidelity had not entered into her plans, nor sacrifice, nor unselfish torture."
15. "Emma's lover's memory with all her dreams was fading away at the breath of an even more impossible happiness."
16. "Emma died in the dusk of a winter's day, during an icy dampness that chilled the black paint of the parquet floor."
17. "Her feelings, like leaves fallen to the ground, withered before even coming to bloom."
18. "Life seemed delightful to her once more; she felt herself reborn, floating in a supreme bliss."
19. "She remained motionless on the bed with her dry eyes and clenched teeth, clutching the curtains behind her."
20. "She wanted to die but also wanted to live in a different way."

Article Summary

The novel Madame Bovary, authored by Gustave Flaubert, was initially released in 1856. The plot revolves around Emma Bovary, a young woman who aspires to a life above her social standing. Married to Charles Bovary, a country doctor, Emma becomes disillusioned with her everyday life and seeks thrills through extramarital affairs with two men, Rodolphe Boulanger and Leon Dupuis.

The novel takes place in the town of Yonville, where Emma and Charles live. Yonville is a small rural community where social class plays an important role. Madame Homais, the wife of the local pharmacist, and Monsieur Homais, the pharmacist himself, are prominent figures in the town, and their opinions carry weight with the other residents.

Madame Bovary is often associated with the Realism literary movement, which sought to depict the daily lives and struggles of ordinary people. Flaubert's writing is influenced by the Romantic movement, which emphasized emotion and individualism, and this is evident in Emma's character and her desire for an exciting and fulfilling life.

Throughout the novel, Flaubert employs literary techniques such as irony and symbolism to convey deeper meanings. Emma's disappointment and the gap between her fantasies and the reality of her life are central themes in the novel. The blind beggar and the bridal bouquet are examples of symbols that emphasize these themes.

In short, Madame Bovary is a complex and nuanced novel that deals with themes of social class, adultery, disillusionment, and the human condition. Flaubert's use of literary techniques and his interpretation of the character of Emma make the novel a timeless classic of French literature.

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