"Madame Bovary" may have scandalised French society in the 19th Century with its account of the married life of serial adulterer Emma Bovary, but it is tame by today's standards and now lacks any kind of shock appeal . Emma comes across as a Princess Diana type figure ; a glamourous, flirty hedonist with a fondness for spending large sums of money on trendy clothes and bored with the mundane responsibilities of conservative bourgeois life. However her husband ,Charles, is unlike Princess Diana's Charles; he is totally devoted to Emma ,attentive and indulgent and unsuspectful of any marital infidelity on her part. In fact towards the end of the book it is hard to believe that he still hasn't cottoned on to his wife's fairly blatant Ugandan activites. However apart from the selfish and callous deceptions on her husband by Madame Bovary, there isn't a lot of substance to the novel. Most of the supporting characters are one-dimensional creations and are not particularly sympathetic while the writing style is often ponderous ,verging on the turgid.

There are certainly a lot more Madame Bovary's around today than there was in Flaubert's time ; you could almost say that the majority of women today possess her characteristics and morals. This novel highlights the downside of marriage ; the tragedy and heartache that occurs when one or other spouse succumbs to temptation and corruption and the subsequent deceptions that arise from that. Reading about Mr Bovary's sufferings in this novel would be enough to make any young man think twice about marrying a woman.


In Praise of a Great Novel   April 28, 2005
 12 out of 13 found this review helpful

Anyone who feels compelled to label this novel as boring, trashy, romantic etc. has failed to comprehend the subtleties of this fine novel. It is actually an anti-romance, offering a tragic portrayl of a doomed love affair. In fact, it subverts all of the usual rules of the romance narrative, and in doing so provides a novel of huge significance and cultural importance. As readers we are invited to share in Flaubert's highly perceptive (and at the time, hugely original) account of the human condition. We are not supposed to judge and damn Emma as selfish, irrational, immoral etc., rather her character articulates the great complexity of the human experience. The novel is unique in dealing sensitively with human emotion without resorting to romantic cliches. Emma Bovary is so significant a text in pushing the boundaries of "classic" literature, and has been central to so much critical debate that it is astonishing that anyone could find it boring. I guess some people might be disappointed that the novel isn't as sexually explicit as they might have anticipated, and lacks an ending that matches the romantic ideal.


in defence of madame bovary...   February 25, 2005
 10 out of 10 found this review helpful

I was somewhat surprised upon reading the mostly negative reviews for this book. I recently borrowed it from a friend and wanted to purchase my own copy because I enjoyed the book so much.

The character of Emma is incredibly well drawn and very easy to emphasise with. The reader can judge her behaviour to be wrong on occasion but the reader can also see why she is behaving in such a way. The prose is sharp and clear and repeatedly manages to boil seemingly complicated ideas down into single sentences.

The description at the beginning sets up the story, and I would certainly not dismiss this book as just another romance novel. There is a lot of food for thought within the book and upon reading it was evident to me why it is so well known. I would recommend it highly and encourage people not to be put off by others describing it as boring. In my opinion it is far from it.