Madame Bovary (World Literature Library)

Author: [French] Gustave Flaubert translated by Luo Guolin
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2005-06-02
Features: In a certain sense, this book is a reckoning with Romanticism and the romantic novel. Through Emma's tragic journey of marriage—destruction—death, it realistically portrays the provincial customs of 19th-century France. It extinguishes the unrealistic halo of fantasy, revealing the somber truth beneath. Without any inclination to dream, what you receive is a more authentic and harsh reality. The severe realism strictly obeys reality; it does not create elevation or beautify everything into romantic poetry. It transfers the essence of reality onto the page, arranging it in a harmonious and orderly manner. Within this harmony, the true face of life is laid bare. More rigorous, solid, and moving than reality itself. This book is the masterpiece of the French realist master Gustave Flaubert. The rural girl Emma, unwilling to accept a mediocre family life, yearns for unrealistic love and makes mistakes again and again, being played with by others. She not only fails to find happiness but also incurs debts through reckless spending, ultimately taking her own life by poison out of desperation. Through Emma's tragic journey of marriage—destruction—death, the novel realistically portrays the provincial customs of 19th-century France. Madame Bovary is Flaubert's breakthrough work and masterpiece. Through Emma's tragic journey of marriage—destruction—death, it realistically portrays the provincial customs of 19th-century France. It extinguishes the unrealistic halo of fantasy, revealing the somber truth beneath. Without any inclination to dream, what you receive is a more authentic and harsh reality. The severe realism strictly obeys reality; it does not create elevation or beautify everything into romantic poetry. It transfers the essence of reality onto the page, arranging it in a harmonious and orderly manner. Within this harmony, the true face of life is laid bare. More rigorous, solid, and moving than reality itself. It is an artistically perfect and exquisite masterpiece of French, a successor to The Red and the Black and The Human Comedy as another great work of 19th-century critical realism. One of the 37 world literary masterpieces recommended by Mao Dun for Chinese readers to read.