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A review by gaby27
A Simple Soul by Gustave Flaubert
Gustave Flaubert’s A Simple Soul tells the story of a religious housemaid name Félicité. She did not have a good upbringing, did not get to marry her lover, and later travels to a town where she finds work. Madame Aubain is her employer. Félicité loves Madame Aubain’s children, Virginia and Paul, as if they were her own. Throughout her life, many people died. That is when she finds comfort in her parrot, Loulou, who sadly passes away too.
Félicité’s life is filled with hardship. First came her parents’ death. This incident separates her from her siblings and makes her grow up in an abusive household. Later in life, she finds love. However, this quick spark of happiness she very well deserves dies when her lover marries another woman to save him from conscription. Virginia’s death hits her the hardest, this is due to how much she was attached to Virginia and how Félicité lived through Virginia, “When Virginia’s turn came, Félicité leaned forward to watch her, and through that imagination which springs from true affection, she at once became the child, whose face and dress became hers, whose heartbeat in her bosom, and when Virginia opened her mouth and close her lids, she did likewise and came very near fainting” (Flaubert 13.) Yet, Félicité thought very little of herself, “For years, this occurrence was a topic of conversation in Pont-l’Eveque. But Félicité took no credit to herself, and probably never knew she had been heroic” (Flaubert 7) She fought a bull to protect those she loved the most. Everyone around her was impressed, in contrast, she did not give the situation much thought. It shows that her self-esteem was low, and she did not consider herself to be important.
Félicité is a strong yet weak character. She does not take herself as seriously as she should. Her way of living said so. At the end of the novel, she lives in a place that was about to fall apart. She never asked for anything to be repaired, since she did not want to annoy anyone. But also, the setting of the house explains her character and how happy she is. At the beginning of her time with Madame Aubain, she never complained or even mentioned her living situation. She was happy taking care of the Aubain family. She was needed, which is what she craved the most. After Virginia and her nephew Victor’s death, she got sad, and her surroundings became dark and depressing. If the setting of A Simple Soul were different, I think Félicité would have still been sad after the deaths of her loved ones. She yearns for her family’s love and attention, something that they could not possibly give her if they were no longer alive. Perhaps, if the story was set in a city Félicité could have a greater distraction from her sadness. Furthermore, her ending would have not been as somber, the grief would weigh heavily on her, however, she had the possibility of concentrating her emotions on new activities and discoveries.
A Simple Soul is not something I would ever pick up. However, I enjoyed it more than I thought I would. I enjoy Félicité’s journey, and I found a little of myself in her. This story was easy to follow, and the writing was not complicated in one bit. All the characters had their virtues and imperfections. They were so well executed that made me like and dislike them at the same time. Additionally, I enjoyed that the book and chapters were short, I could read a lot of chapters in one sitting without getting bored or thinking that some chapters were unnecessary. After researching where I could purchase A Simple Soul, I had two options. First, I could purchase a paperback copy at Barnes and Noble for $21.99. Second, I could get it through my Kindle eReader for free, which is the option I chose. However, the next time I find myself in a bookstore, I will definitely ask if they have a copy of it because I would love to have one
Félicité’s life is filled with hardship. First came her parents’ death. This incident separates her from her siblings and makes her grow up in an abusive household. Later in life, she finds love. However, this quick spark of happiness she very well deserves dies when her lover marries another woman to save him from conscription. Virginia’s death hits her the hardest, this is due to how much she was attached to Virginia and how Félicité lived through Virginia, “When Virginia’s turn came, Félicité leaned forward to watch her, and through that imagination which springs from true affection, she at once became the child, whose face and dress became hers, whose heartbeat in her bosom, and when Virginia opened her mouth and close her lids, she did likewise and came very near fainting” (Flaubert 13.) Yet, Félicité thought very little of herself, “For years, this occurrence was a topic of conversation in Pont-l’Eveque. But Félicité took no credit to herself, and probably never knew she had been heroic” (Flaubert 7) She fought a bull to protect those she loved the most. Everyone around her was impressed, in contrast, she did not give the situation much thought. It shows that her self-esteem was low, and she did not consider herself to be important.
Félicité is a strong yet weak character. She does not take herself as seriously as she should. Her way of living said so. At the end of the novel, she lives in a place that was about to fall apart. She never asked for anything to be repaired, since she did not want to annoy anyone. But also, the setting of the house explains her character and how happy she is. At the beginning of her time with Madame Aubain, she never complained or even mentioned her living situation. She was happy taking care of the Aubain family. She was needed, which is what she craved the most. After Virginia and her nephew Victor’s death, she got sad, and her surroundings became dark and depressing. If the setting of A Simple Soul were different, I think Félicité would have still been sad after the deaths of her loved ones. She yearns for her family’s love and attention, something that they could not possibly give her if they were no longer alive. Perhaps, if the story was set in a city Félicité could have a greater distraction from her sadness. Furthermore, her ending would have not been as somber, the grief would weigh heavily on her, however, she had the possibility of concentrating her emotions on new activities and discoveries.
A Simple Soul is not something I would ever pick up. However, I enjoyed it more than I thought I would. I enjoy Félicité’s journey, and I found a little of myself in her. This story was easy to follow, and the writing was not complicated in one bit. All the characters had their virtues and imperfections. They were so well executed that made me like and dislike them at the same time. Additionally, I enjoyed that the book and chapters were short, I could read a lot of chapters in one sitting without getting bored or thinking that some chapters were unnecessary. After researching where I could purchase A Simple Soul, I had two options. First, I could purchase a paperback copy at Barnes and Noble for $21.99. Second, I could get it through my Kindle eReader for free, which is the option I chose. However, the next time I find myself in a bookstore, I will definitely ask if they have a copy of it because I would love to have one