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3.51 AVERAGE
3.51 AVERAGE
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
funny
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I can see why this novel is so well praised. It is somehow at the same time satirical, realistic and tragic. It is great that a man of that time was able to write such an interesting female character and I can see why it would have caused controversy. Flaubert also perfectly captured small town rural attitudes and practices in such a humorous and heartfelt way. This all makes the book still very readable to a modern audience.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Infidelity, Medical content
Moderate: Suicide
dark
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Emma - Madame Bovary, is a complex woman, trapped in a life & a marriage she hates. She’s a dreamer, an idealist, a romantic who yearns for overzealous passions. She’s also naive, selfish, greedy, hateful & dishonest.
Her husband, Charles, in comparison, adores her. She can commit no wrongs in his eyes, he’s eternally faithful, loving & loyal to her. He’s also completely blind to her wretchedness toward him & her unhappiness within their marriage.
In context, women in the 19th century had so little autonomy & even less opportunities. I emphathised with Emma on that level. It’s clear she was a tortured soul, who was doomed to a life of unfulfillment & misery. She seemed to suffer from chronic depressions & mood disorders that weren’t understood back then. Driven by a desire to find a love so intense, that even her daughter was pushed aside. Yet, right under her nose, unwanted, were the 2 people who loved her endlessly.
Cruelly, a part of me felt irritated Emma escaped the long term repercussions of her salacious & egocentric actions. Instead, Berthe was left alone in the world, destitute & unloved.
It’s one that will stick with me, but it’s a sad story with a tragic ending. It must have been a scandalous read for its time filled with debauchery, infidelities, lust & betrayal.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Infidelity, Panic attacks/disorders, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Antisemitism, Grief, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, Suicide attempt, Schizophrenia/Psychosis
I received a copy of this book for free from the publisher (Canterbury Classics) for promotional purposes.
What a tragic yet captivating tale!
I added this book to my “To Read” shelf on Goodreads way back in March of 2015. Now 9 years later I finally read it and I’m so glad I did.
There is nothing happy about this story, but it’s beautiful and intriguing in its own way. Immediately upon starting, I was pulled right into the story.
Madame Bovary is such a fascinating character. She’s not particularly likable, and that’s precisely why I liked her. She’s a complicated woman who makes numerous questionable decisions, but I find that makes for the most interesting of characters. I found myself constantly thinking about her and what I would do if I were in her shoes.
For a classic, the writing style is easy to read and follow but still elegant. I didn’t have trouble understanding what was going on. The chapters are fairly short which also helps.
I originally was going to give this book 4 stars, but after a few days of reflection, I decided I had to give it 5 stars. This is a story that will stick with me for a while.
Overall, I loved this story and I can’t believe it took me this long to read it. It was well worth the wait!
The timelessness of Flaubert's Madame Bovary astounds me. While this type of French is difficult it is definitely worth it to read in the original language, if only to better grasp the beauty of Flaubert's writing.
The tragedy of Emma is only more distressing because she never does find happiness.
Sincerely loved this book and I find myself terribly saddened by the ending (even though I knew what would happen).
The tragedy of Emma is only more distressing because she never does find happiness.
Sincerely loved this book and I find myself terribly saddened by the ending (even though I knew what would happen).
The book was wonderful, except for the fact that that this version of the novel only has the first and second parts, it does not have the third part for some reason. So five stars for Madame Bovary, but one star for the fact that I had to find another copy of the novel to see how it all turns out.
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Ho recuperato solo adesso questo classico, ma penso sia arrivato proprio al momento giusto.
Emma è tutti noi: perennemente insoddisfatta della vita che la circonda. Perennemente avvolta nelle sue fantasie. Dobbiamo solo cambiare il finale.
Emma è tutti noi: perennemente insoddisfatta della vita che la circonda. Perennemente avvolta nelle sue fantasie. Dobbiamo solo cambiare il finale.
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
én pár helyen nagyon éreztem, hogy ezt egy férfi írta.