This exquisite novel tells the story of one of the most compelling heroines in modern literature--Emma Bovary. Unhappily married to a devoted but clumsy and hopelessly provincial doctor, Emma revolts against the boredom and monotony of her life to pursue romantic dreams of sexual passion and love. Her relentless pursuit however, leads only to her downfall. Set in the stifling atmosphere of nineteenth century bourgeois France, Madame Bovary is both an unsparing depiction of Emma's gradual corruption, and a savage indictment of society's hypocrisy and insensitivity. Generally considered one of the best and most important novels ever written, Madame Bovary is both a masterpiece of realism and a revealing psychological study of a suffering and doomed spirit.
Editorial Reviews
"Possibly the most beautifully written book ever composed; undoubtedly the most beautifully written novel..a book that invites superlatives...the most important novel of the century." --Frank O'Connor
"Madame Bovary is like the railroad stations erected in its epoch: graceful, even floral, but cast of iron." --John Updike
About the Author
Hailed as the originator of the modern novel, Gustave Flaubert (1821–1880) was a pioneer of literary realism. He was painstaking in his creative process, spending as much as an entire week on a single page. Flaubert's masterpiece, Madame Bovary, was five years in the writing; upon its 1857 publication, the author was charged with obscenity. With his acquittal, Madame Bovary became a bestseller, and it remains among the most frequently taught works of French literature.
