Gustave Flaubert’s Madame Bovary is a classic 19th-century novel that explores the life of a bored and dissatisfied woman, Emma Bovary, who yearns for the romantic and wealthy life she reads about in books. Though written over 150 years ago, this story of an unhappy woman in a loveless marriage still greatly resonates with readers today.
Set in the early 1800s, in the rural town of Yonville, Madame Bovary tells the story of a young doctor, Charles Bovary, who marries the dreamy and beautiful Emma Rouault. Originally from a working-class family, Emma has aspirations of a life far grander than that of a small-town doctor’s wife. Despite Charles’ best efforts to make their marriage better, with lavish gifts and grand gestures, Emma continues to be disappointed with her life.
Dissatisfied with her marriage, Emma channels her frustrations into a series of romantic affairs, beginning with the dashing and seemingly wealthy Rodolphe Boulanger. As their affair progresses, Emma finds that his wealth is not quite what she imagined, ultimately leading to disappointment. After ending the relationship with Rodolphe, Emma continues to search for romantic satisfaction, engaging in an affair with the charming yet unscrupulous clerk Léon Dupuis. Though her affairs provide a much-needed distraction from her loveless marriage, in the end, leave Emma more lost than ever.
Eventually, Emma’s affairs, coupled with her compulsive spending, lead her down a path of financial ruin. In order to pay off her debts, she takes drastic measures and turns to her friend Monsieur Lheureux and borrows money at an exorbitant rate of interest. Unable to offer her creditors true financial relief, it becomes clear that the only way Emma can pay back the debt is through her death.
The novel’s origin story dates all the way back to 1856, when Flaubert secured a loan and moved to Croisset where he completed the manuscript of the novel in a mere five months. Prior to its release, the novel was subjected to multiple controversial government charges. Upon its release in France, Madame Bovary cemented Flaubert’s debut as a literary success.
Inspired by Virginia Woolf’s “A Room of One’s Own”, Flaubert’s Madame Bovary deliver insight into a woman’s struggle with feelings of unspoken dissatisfaction, and her quest for autonomy. Through the prism of Emma’s life, the novel clarifies the lack of freedoms available to women at that time and the limited options available as prescribed by society. Despite the criticism Madame Bovary received upon its release, it has since become an iconic work of literature, an almost-canonical representation of the 19th century woman.
To this day, readers identify and sympathize with these characters and plot points, providing insight into a societal set of rules which still very much follows us today, particularly that a woman should not dare think bigger than her conformist roles. Although written over a century and a half ago, Madame Bovary offers readers a timeless insight into a woman’s search for identity and autonomy, while ultimately providing an enduring message of how societal expectations can prevent people from being their true selves.
