Madame Bovary is a novel by Gustave Flaubert published in 1857. Emma, a farmer's daughter married to a dull country doctor in Normandy, dreams of the passion and luxury she has read about in novels. Her search for escape leads her into adultery and debt. The novel's precise style made it a model of literary realism.
The story
Emma Rouault marries Charles Bovary, a well-meaning but mediocre doctor. Bored in the small towns of Tostes and Yonville, she longs for romance.
She has affairs with Rodolphe, a landowner, and Léon, a young clerk, and falls deep into debt to the merchant Lheureux. Her story ends tragically.
Style and realism
Flaubert worked for nearly five years on the novel, rewriting each sentence many times to achieve the exact word and rhythm.
He describes provincial life with ironic precision, notably in the famous scene of the agricultural fair.
The trial
After its serialization in the Revue de Paris in 1856, Flaubert was prosecuted for offending public morals. He was acquitted in February 1857.
The translation by Eleanor Marx-Aveling, daughter of Karl Marx, appeared in 1886 and long remained the standard English version.
Anecdotes
A real case
Flaubert drew in part on the story of Delphine Delamare, the wife of a health officer in Normandy, who died in 1848 after debts and affairs.
Bovarysme
The novel gave the French language the word bovarysme, for the habit of escaping into a dream of oneself that does not match reality.
Frequently asked questions
Who is Emma Bovary?
A young woman who dreams of romance and escapes into adultery and debt.
When was the novel published?
In 1857.
Who translated it into English?
Eleanor Marx-Aveling, among others, in 1886.