Madame Bovary

Gustave Flaubert

Prepared by:Ringgit Espiritu Aguilar

BSEd-III English

Gustave Flaubert• Born December 12, 1821

• Died May 08, 1880(age 58)• Began writing at age 16

• Studied law, but failed the exam

• Devoted life to writing after suffering a nervous breakdown from failed law

exam

Type of Novel• Collective Novel• Psychological Novel

Setting• France (Yonville, Tostes, Rouen)• October 1827 and ends in

August 1846• This is the time of the "July

Monarchy", or the rule of King Louis Philippe.

Characters• Emma Bovary: Madame Bovary, the

protagonist

• Charles Bovary: Emma’s dull, trusting husband

who finds her faultless

• Rodolphe Boulanger Emma’s first affair (wealthy man)

• Leon Dupuis: Emma’s second affair ( law student, full of

himself )

• Monsieur Lheureux: Merchant causing Emma’s financial ruin

• Monsieur Homais: Atheist pharmacist

Plot• Exposition

Charles Bovary, the only son of a middle-class family, became a doctor and set up his practice in a rural village. He made a marriage of convenience with a woman older than himself.

• Rising ActionOne night, he receives a call to set a man’s broken leg. During his visit, Charles is enchanted by the man’s daughter, a beautiful, elegant girl named Emma. Not long after, Charles’s wife dies of a nervous ailment, and within a year Charles and Emma are married. Charles adores his new wife, but Emma is soon bored and disappointed. She does not feel anything like the love described in her favorite romance novels, and she blames Charles’s bad looks and dull conversation.

• ClimaxEmma had an adulterous affair with Rodolphe, a local landowner. When he abandoned her, she became seriously ill. After her recovery Emma encountered Leon in Rouen and began to carry on an affair with him. In order to afford weekly trips to the city to see Leon and to satisfy her other whims, Emma spent her husband's money freely and incurred many debts.

• Falling Action  Eventually her unpaid bills went

long overdue and a judgment was obtained against her by her creditors. She owed a vast sum of money, and the sheriff's officers arrived to confiscate the family property. Emma tried frantically to raise the money and finally turned to both Rodolphe and Leon, but neither was willing or able to help. Out of shame and despair, she poisoned herself.

• Ending   Charles cannot pay these

debts. He becomes bankrupt and eventually withdraws from social life. One night he discovers proof of his wife's infidelity, but he is not angry. He spends time with his daughter, whom he loves. It is she who finds him dead in the garden one day. And Berthe is sent off to work in a cotton mill.

Conflict• Man Vs. Himself• Man Vs. Society

Point of View• First Person • Third Person Omniscient

Theme • Powerlessness of women* > Seemingly only men have the power to change

Emma’s life > Emma wishes for a male child because “ a woman is always hampered” *

• Failure of the bourgeoisie ( middle class) * > The middle class has dissatisfaction with material

things and aspirations for “more” in life > Mockery is made of middle class pretense and

knowledge

Moral/Lesson• Be Contented of What you have.

• Lessen your Fantasies.• Learn to go back into reality.

Images/Symbol• The blind Beggar

• Dried Flowers

• The Lathe

Sourceshttp://www.google.com/imageshttp://www.sparknotes.com/lit/bovary/summary.htmlhttp://www.wikipedia.org/wik/Madame_Bovaryhttp://pinkmonkey.comhttp://www.cliffsnotes.comhttp://www.shmoop.com