Madame Bovary & The Trial of Gustave Flaubert

Madame Bovary & The Trial of Gustave Flaubert | Literary Lemon

After five years of writing and re-writing, Flaubert had finally finished Madame Bovary. Today, Madame Bovary is considered a major work of literary realism. The novel is praised for its intricate exploration of the psychology of its characters and its beautiful prose. After postponing publication of the first instalment of Madame Bovary due to two prior warnings from the government, Gustave Flaubert appeared in Court at the Palais de Justice in Paris and was charged with immorality for publishing Madame Bovary in the Revue de Paris.

SOURCES:

Music:

Sergei Lyapunov - Reverie du soir

Franz Schubert - Piano Trio in E Flat, Op. 100

[Mr.BMTA]

✒️ Fabulous video. The hardships that Flaubert faced on an almost daily rate are mind blowing. Imagine, he spent five (5) years writing and rewriting this novel, and he still faced the full wrath of the French State and the Establishment. Thanks for the video. My book club "The Papyrus Society", which meets on the last day of every month, is looking forward to your next video. 😉

[kerryhorwitz]

I think the work was morally sound because it shows the terrible end that her selfish behaviour caused.

Another interesting aspect of the book involved the popular discussions around whether the novels of the day contributed to the corruption of women, which is an important factor that correlates with today. The novel is now being replaced by television programmes aimed at women.

I think it began with-_Sex and the City_ where the women depicted as cool modern women spend loads of money on designer clothes and accessories. The women were all shown to have jobs, but these were seen as "toy jobs." The characters were never seen slaving away at work. They were hardly working but just had lots of disposable income.

At the same time, credit to women was extended. It was easy for women to buy beauty items by plastic shop or credit cards. Most women didn't understand the interest rates. They thought what they were buying was free because they didn't actually pay for it. Women were no longer restrained by men who were able to teach them to behave responsibly. Many women went under with crippling debts.

The weaknesses of women being exploited by the powers-that-be.

The moral centre is the good she gained from her convent education. It is the struggle to stay on the right path represented by the convent and the corruption of her nature by greed that resulted in ruinous debt, and the obvious se*ual immorality. The novels of the day were said to have a hand in creating unrealistic expectations about life. She could have what she wants simply because she wants it. There is no engagement with reason. If you want something in this world, you have to work hard and make sacrifices.

Or, just take out credit and spend spend spend. This reinforces the idea that she could have whatever she wanted without consequence.

I think Madam Bovary is one of the most unpleasant characters in literature, but there is a sad truth to her. And a sharp warning.

[ecollen]

Interesting, thanks. But don't include music in the sound track. It's distracting and makes it difficult to hear what is being said.