Gustave Flaubert was born on December 12, 1821 in the family of a famous surgeon; he spent his entire childhood and youth at the hospital where his father’s apartment was located. From an early age, Flaubert himself thought that he was destined for a different career, although he began writing in his teens. Interest in life, but more than death, which largely determined the semantic core of future works, arose here, within the walls of the Rouen hospital, when as a very boy, secretly from his parents, Gustave made his way into the autopsy room and observed bodies disfigured by death.
Having received his initial education at the Royal College of Rouen, in 1840 Flaubert went to Paris to study law. This decision was not dictated by the heart: jurisprudence did not interest the young man at all. In the most romantic capital of the world, he lives more than alone; he has practically no friends.
After studying for three years at the Sorbonne, Flaubert failed to pass the transfer exam. In the same year, he was diagnosed with a disease whose symptoms resembled epilepsy. Doctors strongly recommend that Gustave lead a sedentary lifestyle, and constant seizures, from which he saw salvation only in taking hot baths, plague him. To find salvation from the disease, the future writer goes to Italy.
The year 1845 radically changes his life vector: his father dies, and then his beloved sister, Caroline. Flaubert takes care of his sister's daughter and her husband, and also decides to return home to his mother in order to overcome the pain of loss with her. Together with her, they settle in a small, picturesque estate in Croisset, near Rouen. From now on, Flaubert's whole life will be connected with this place, which he left for a long time only twice.
The inheritance he received allowed Flaubert not to know about material worries, without having an official job, he worked daily and painstakingly on his works.
In line with the then dominant romanticism in literature, his first stories were written: “Memoirs of a Madman” (1838) and “November” (1842). But in the novel “Education of Sentiments,” which never saw the light of day, work on which lasted from 1843 to 1845, notes of realism are clearly visible.
The beginning of his relationship with Louise Colet, a fairly well-known writer in those days, whom he met in Paris, dates back to 1846. This eight-year affair was the longest affair in Flaubert's life. Due to the fact that the writer was very afraid of passing on his illness by inheritance, he, not wanting to continue his family, did not propose marriage to anyone, although he was invariably popular with women.
Fame fell upon Flaubert when, in 1856, his first novel, Madame Bovary, which is the writer’s calling card, was published in the Revue de Paris magazine. Painstakingly, day after day, for five years, thinking about every word he wrote, Flaubert wrote a book about how illusion can destroy reality. The plot is simple: an unremarkable, more than ordinary bourgeois woman, in order to add color to her life, starts two affairs, not noticing that the loving person has always been nearby.
The novel, which ended with the suicide of the heroine, caused a lot of noise. The author and editors of the magazine were put on trial for immorality. The sensational trial ended in an acquittal. But in 1864, the Vatican added Madame Bovary to the Index of Prohibited Books.
The subtlest psychology in revealing the image of the main character became a real discovery in literature and largely determined the path of development of the entire European novel.
In 1858, Flaubert travels to Africa, bringing back from the voyage not only impressions, but also his second novel, Salammbô, the action of which takes the reader to ancient Carthage, making him a witness to the love of the daughter of a military commander and the leader of the barbarians. Historical accuracy and careful attention to every detail of the story allowed this book to take its rightful place among historical novels.
The writer’s third novel, “An Education of Sentiments,” is dedicated to the theme of the “lost generation.”
Gustave Flaubert. The novel Madame Bovary was first published in 1856.
Do not consider this post about a scandalous novel, which was once considered frankly shameless, to be a heretical act. About times, about morals, you know. But Madame Bovary herself decides where and when to come. If she decided to visit on Christmas Eve, so be it.
As always, I answer the reader’s question - why read this book? Maybe because this book is included in the curriculum of your educational institution? Not a bad reason to read.
But it’s better to read Madame Bovary if you are dreamers and visionaries. If you have always felt that you are a stranger in your family. I wanted to run away from my disgusting native places to where my eyes were looking. I dreamed of great and pure love, and the most that they could offer you was to come to the hayloft in the evening...
If you didn’t want to be entangled in a network of loans and debt obligations, then it would be better to learn from the example of poor Emma how one falls into the traps of moneylenders.
And if you ever want to end this life, please do not choose arsenic as your poison. Monstrous suffering is inevitable. Madame Bovary has already sacrificed herself for the sake of our knowledge. Repetition is unnecessary.
Finally, if you are interested in the impeccable beauty of the style, the originality and intricacy of the plot of one of the masterpieces of world literature, read the novel “Madame Bovary.”
P.S. Of course, such perfection does not come easily. Flaubert wrote the novel slowly, painfully, literally living her difficult life with the heroine. Therefore, his famous phrase is not surprising: “Madame Bovary is me, gentlemen.”
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Finding myself
A very cynical novel. There are no good characters in this book. But the author does not express his attitude towards the characters. At least I didn't find them. What is this book about? About love, of course. There is both pure love in her (Julien’s love) and carnal love in Rodolphe. Emma searched for love throughout the novel. She left me with a feeling of being empty, yearning for a beautiful life. And her husband matches her - he is narrow-minded. However, after a while she becomes disillusioned with her marriage, she begins to miss her husband’s company and dream of a prince. Her dreams begin to torment her more and more. Love leads Emma to the brink. She is active, not just dreamy. And he cannot sit idle. The novel makes you think about life and love.
The novel is very multifaceted; many images from the novel are found in our lives.
Looking for true love. On the road to self-destruction.
Gustave Flaubert's Madame Bovary is considered a masterpiece of world literature. Most reviews of the book are positive. My review will be no exception. However…
My friends, recommending the book for reading, unanimously repeated: “A book about a strong woman!”
May my friends and comrades forgive me, but, in my opinion, the main character is not as strong as she wanted to seem. Inspired by novels about love, Emma Bovary begins to live in dreams and is burdened by family life. Even the birth of a child does not bring her joy. The scene where Emma pushes her daughter struck me with the emotional dryness of the heroine, which runs counter to her general emotional attitude towards life. The fact that Emma was able to do what she considered right and took actions, regardless of the laws of honor, spirituality and common sense, does not speak of the strength of her character, but, on the contrary, emphasizes her weakness.
It would seem that everything is as it should be: a devoted loving husband, a home, a family... What was she missing? Why did the soul demand passions, extramarital sinful relationships? Or was the temptation too strong?
It is not clear: why did Emma choose this path: in an endless search for thrills and her own debauchery, she ruined her family? Tired of provincial life? Reality, mundaneness and unromanticism of everyday life? Maybe. However, all this did not give a reason to “fall into the abyss” of hopelessness and self-destruction.
One got the impression that the heroine is not tormented by special pangs of conscience, but selfishly does what she wants. At the same time, I don’t want to judge her or comment on her actions in any way. I just feel sorry for her. My whole life has been spent searching for something real: real feelings, real relationships, true love. But was she the real one in all this? While the life of her husband and her daughter passed next to her. What was the point of this search for the present?
The plot of the work is extremely simple and predictable. At the same time, the author very accurately selects the right words in every sentence, in the description of every detail, in order to most fully describe what is happening in the lives of the characters. For its time, the work is, of course, provocative and scandalous. And indeed, to some extent, it is also relevant for the present.
The main emotion that arose after reading the book was regret. The regret is not from the time spent reading, but from the events described in the work, from the fact that nothing can be changed, and the time of the characters cannot be turned back.
But there is something special in this novel that makes you want to read it to the end.
Strong woman
A magnificent work by the classic Gustave Flaubert that makes you think.
Young Emma Bovary wants to love and fly, but her worries do not give her the opportunity: her father breaks his leg, she studies at a church school. But fate gives her a chance: meeting the doctor Charles, feelings and wedding. The girl dreams of being happy and loved in marriage, imagines family life, but in reality everything is completely different from her dreams: Charles’s mother constantly reproaches her daughter-in-law, her husband is not able to earn a decent living, and Emma sits at home all the time and reads women’s books. novels. She wanted her husband to have something strong and heroic, but her husband is weak.
Later, Emma and her husband move to a small town because the woman was pregnant. A daughter is born, but the girl will not save the marriage: there are more and more conflicts: the mother-in-law accuses the daughter-in-law of wastefulness, the husband increasingly irritates Emma and it becomes clear that marriage is a mistake. A woman meets a young man in the town, younger than herself, but the relationship is not turned out: perhaps the main character did not have enough love, sympathy, so she was looking for them on the side. Leon leaves to study, and in order to drown out the pain, the time of shopping from the shopkeeper begins: on bail, on a mortgage, etc. Leray was a clever, flattering and cunning man. He had long ago guessed Emma's passion for beautiful things and constantly sent cuts, lace, carpets, and scarves. Gradually, Emma found herself in a considerable debt to the shopkeeper, which her husband did not suspect.
Emma's second love ended even more tragically - illness and grief. Rodolphe, whom she met, was not adapted to life: he demanded decisions from her, and she decided, borrowed, gave gifts and lived from meeting to meeting. The woman dreamed of loving and being loved, living with Rodolphe and leaving her husband. But the more attached Emma became, the more Rodolphe cooled off towards her. Once upon a time he missed three dates in a row, and even... didn't apologize. At that moment, the self-esteem of the woman in love was hurt, even thoughts of loving her husband arise, but Charles did not understand her feelings.
Soon an escape plan with Rudolf is prepared and everything is ready to escape, but the lover refuses at the last moment and sends a basket of apricots. With despair comes inflammation of the brain. When the wife is sick, the husband borrows money from the shopkeeper. Soon, the illness recedes and in the theater she meets her first lover, Leon, on whom she has to spend a lot in order to deceive her husband. She pays for the hotel and gives him gifts, but the cunning Lere began to persistently remind him of his debts. A huge amount has accumulated on the signed bills and she faces an inventory of the property. Unable to withstand the test, she drinks arsenic and dies.
What led to a terrible tragedy: firstly, the weakness of the husband, who was not able to solve problems, who borrowed money when Emma was sick, and told her that he had agreed on everything; but it turns out that she paid for everything herself: secondly, young lovers who lived at her expense and could not solve the problems. She had to be strong all the time, but her soul could not stand it, which led to suicide.
FLAUBERT, GUSTAVE(Flaubert, Gustav) (1821–1880), French writer, often called the creator of the modern novel. Born on December 12, 1821 in Rouen, where his father was the chief physician of one of the local hospitals. From 1823 to 1840, Flaubert studied at the Royal College of Rouen, where he did not achieve much success, but showed an interest in history and a great love for literature. He read not only the romantics who were fashionable at that time, but also Cervantes and Shakespeare. At school he met the future poet L. Buyer (1822–1869), who became his faithful friend for life.
In 1840, Flaubert was sent to Paris to study law. After studying for three years, he failed to pass the exams, but made friends with the writer and journalist M. Du Cane (1822–1894), who became his travel companion. In 1843, Flaubert was diagnosed with a nervous disease similar to epilepsy, and he was prescribed a sedentary lifestyle. After the death of his father in 1846, he returned to the Croisset estate near Rouen, took care of his mother and was mainly engaged in literature. Fortunately, he had a fortune that freed him from the need to earn a living by pen or other means. Likewise, he was able to fulfill his dream of travel and devote many years to writing a single novel. He perfected his style with utmost attention, distracted only by professional conversations with the Goncourt brothers, I. Taine, E. Zola, G. Maupassant and I. S. Turgenev. Even his celebrated love affair was with the poet Louise Colet, and literary issues were a major theme in their extensive correspondence.
Flaubert was brought up on the works of F. Chateaubriand and V. Hugo and gravitated towards the romantic way of depiction. All his life he sought to suppress the lyrical-romantic beginning in himself for the sake of the most objective depiction of everyday reality. Having started writing early, he soon realized in himself a conflict between his goal and the inclinations of his nature. The first of his published novels was Madame Bovary (Madame Bovary, 1857.
Great creation of literature, Madame Bovary marked a turning point in the development of the modern novel. Flaubert worked on every sentence in search of the famous "right word" ("mot juste"). His interest in the form of the novel, successfully realized in a unique structure Madame Bovary, had a strong influence on subsequent writers who set as their goal the creation of new forms and techniques - G. James, J. Conrad, J. Joyce, M. Proust and many others.
The main topic Madame Bovary became the eternal conflict between illusion and reality, between imagined and real life. To explore this theme, Flaubert used not the heroic impulses of a noble personality, but the pitiful dreams of an ordinary bourgeois woman. Flaubert gave his narrow-minded characters a sublime and universal meaning. Madame Bovary was first published in the Revue de Paris magazine in 1856, however, despite the fact that the alarmed M. Du Cane and M. Pichat made serious amendments and cuts, the author and editors of the magazine were brought to court for insulting public morals. After a sensational trial - one of the most famous literary battles in the legal field - Flaubert was acquitted, and in 1857 the novel was published as a separate book without any cuts.
Flaubert's second novel Salammbo (Salammbô, 1862), was the result of a trip to Africa in 1858, as well as serious historical and archaeological studies. The author's desire to renounce everyday life is obvious, creating an epic canvas on themes of hoary antiquity. The action takes place in Carthage after the 1st Punic War, when mercenaries led by Mato rebelled against the Carthaginians led by Hamilcar.
In the third novel, Education of feelings (L'éducation sentimentale, 1859; rus. translation 1870 entitled Sentimental education), Flaubert writes the history of his generation, confused by romanticism and generous promises of theorists of a humane social order, but forced to come down to earth after the catastrophe of 1848 and the collapse of idealism. Education of feelings is a hard-hitting portrait of a lost generation.
Started long before Madame Bovary and, on the advice of Bouyer and Du Cane, set aside Temptation of Saint Anthony (La Tentation de Saint-Antoine, 1874) owes its origin to the painting of Pieter Bruegel the Elder, which Flaubert saw in Genoa in 1845. The idea of exposing the temptations that beset the saint occupied Flaubert for the rest of his life, and its embodiment in the dialogue novel is an attempt to show all conceivable sins, heresies, religion and philosophy.
Three stories (Trois Contes, 1877) include plots of two types - deliberately ordinary and flowery-historical. A short and powerful story about the life of a village maid ( simple heart – Uncoeur simple) all consists of a chain of losses, which at the end of her life left her with only a stuffed parrot, to which she becomes attached to such an extent that she unconsciously begins to treat him as the Holy Spirit. IN The Legend of Saint Julian the Stranger (La Legende de Saint-Jullien l"Hospitalier) a medieval righteous man, having repented of the sins of his youth, is subjected to the last supreme test: a leper turns to him with a request for a kiss. Having fulfilled his wish, Julian finds himself face to face with Jesus, who has taken him to heaven. Herodias (Herodias) tells the story of Salome demanding the head of John the Baptist.
Flaubert devoted the last eight years of his life to his favorite brainchild - the novel Bouvard and Pécuchet (Bouvard et Pecuchet, 1881; rus. translation 1881), which remained unfinished. In the story of two small employees who decide to devote their leisure time and small income to the study of all branches of human knowledge, the main target is the follies and inescapable stupidity of the human race. Flaubert takes a grim delight in classifying all examples of this kind, forcing his heroes to devote their lives to creating an anthology of the absurdities they discover.
One of Flaubert's greatest creations, which continues to arouse keen interest, was his Letters (Correspondence, publ. 1887–1893). In casual conversations with friends, he pours out his thoughts on paper, without worrying about style, thereby providing a unique opportunity to see an artist analyzing his work in the process of daily creation and formulating his ideas about the nature of literature. Along with a vivid self-portrait of Flaubert himself, the correspondence contains insightful observations about the people and customs of the Second Empire.
In the last years of Flaubert's life, misfortunes plagued him: the death of his friend Bouyer in 1869, the occupation of the estate by the advancing enemy army during the Franco-Prussian War, and finally, serious financial difficulties. He did not experience commercial success when publishing his books, which for a long time caused rejection among critics. Flaubert died in Croisset on May 8, 1880.
The 19th century in the field of culture was rightly considered the century of the novel. The novel was for the educated classes what serials are now. Both entertainment and learning. Gorky’s call “Love the book - the source of knowledge!” legs are growing precisely from that era when the novelist not only entertained the audience with the plot, but also instilled in it a lot of useful information. Victor Hugo will always be an example for us in this.
What about Victor Hugo! He's not the only one! The 19th century is the century of glory of the French novel. It was then that literature in France became a source of decent income for many, very diverse, writers and journalists. The circle of literature consumers, those who could read and enjoyed it, grew exponentially. For which we should say special thanks to the public education system and the industrial revolution. The “production” of novels has also become a kind of entertainment industry. But not only. Literature and journalism shaped the national consciousness and the French language itself.
And if we talk about language and style, the main successes in this area were achieved by Gustave Flaubert (1821 - 1880). He is sometimes called the creator of the modern novel.
“Flaubert’s Norman Mustache” is remembered by everyone who listened to and fell in love with D. Tukhmanov’s 1975 album “In the Wave of My Memory.” What is true is true, Gustave Flaubert had a luxurious mustache. And yes, he was a native of Normandy.
Gustave Flaubert was born in the “capital” of Normandy, Rouen. His father was the chief physician of the local hospital. Studying at the Royal College of Rouen made the boy fall in love with history and literature. Moreover, not only French. Gustave read both Cervantes and Shakespeare. Here, in college, he acquired a faithful friend for life, the future poet L. Buyer.
Now from Paris to Rouen it takes two hours by train. At the beginning of the 19th century, this was also not very far away, so Gustave Flaubert went to continue his studies in Paris. At the Sorbonne he studied law. After three years of study, he failed the exams and said goodbye to the idea of becoming a lawyer. But he became eager to become a writer.
In 1846, his father died. After him, the family left enough wealth for Gustave to be able to return to the Croisset estate near Rouen, which belonged to their family. Here he lived, caring for his mother and pursuing literature. From here he sometimes traveled to Paris, where he met with famous colleagues E. Zola, G. Maupassant, the Goncourt brothers and I. S. Turgenev. By the way, the Russian writer had a considerable influence on all of the listed French writers. And no translation was required for communication. Turgenev spoke excellent French.
Flaubert's life is not particularly eventful. Although there were also travels in it. For example, to Tunisia, which recently became a French colony, and to the Middle East. But still, he locked himself in the provinces and focused entirely on literature. There was no pressure hanging over him to constantly earn a living by writing. Therefore, he could hone each phrase at his leisure in search of the “right word” (“mot juste”). In the already mentioned song from the disc “In the Wave of My Memory,” written based on a poem by M. Voloshin, the Goncourt brothers are called “chasers.” Perhaps this nickname would be more suitable for the great perfectionist Flaubert. In short, G. Flaubert became famous as an outstanding stylist.
Throughout his creative life, Flaubert published five books. His first novel, Madame Bovary, was published in 1857. The release of the novel was accompanied by a scandal, which attracted additional attention to it.
The main theme of this work is the conflict between imagined life and real life. The heroine of the novel is not a heroic person at all. Moreover, the unforgettable M.S. Panikovsky would call Madame Bovary a pitiful and insignificant person. An ordinary bourgeois woman from a small town near Rouen (province, so to speak), in search of adventure and “high” (in her understanding) love, squanders her husband’s money and ultimately commits suicide. At the same time, she is poisoned with arsenic. Who knows - not the most aesthetic way to commit suicide. A long and painful death, black vomit... And all this was carefully described by G. Flaubert. And in general, Flaubert’s work created a sensation with its realism. Before that, not a single French writer had described in detail how the heroine of his novel was fucked in a carriage circling around the city. Ah, the morality of the French nation was terribly traumatized by this! The author and editors of the magazine in which the novel was published were brought to court for insulting public morals
The trial by the writer and journalists was won. In 1857, the novel Madame Bovary was published as a separate book. Completely, without cuts. And critics stuck a label on G. Flaubert: realist. However, the realism of the French writer has little relation to the critical realism that flourished in pre-revolutionary Russia, and even more so to the socialist realism, which frightened philology students in the Soviet Union for seventy years.
G. Flaubert's second book was published five years later. It was the historical novel "Salammbô". The action took place in Carthage after the first Punic War. That is, long before our era. Exotic, though. The writer’s impressions of the trip to Tunisia had an impact. Carthage was located in these parts. By the way, the novel was and remains a very fascinating read. It contains a lot of erotica, which at that time could be considered pornography too.
The third novel, “Education of Sentiments” (“L"éducation sentimentale”) was published in 1859. This is a story about a young man who lives in the difficult times of the next French Revolution. The young man was raised in a romantic spirit, but was faced with real life. Honestly speaking, this is a phenomenon that occurs with every generation of young men at any, even not very revolutionary, time. So the novel may seem interesting to many boys of the 1990s. (There was also a turbulent time in the modern history of Russia) And yes, in this The story also has a sexual twist - the love of a young man and an adult woman, fifteen years older than him.
In 1874, a book was published that Flaubert had been writing for almost twenty years, “The Temptation of Saint Anthony” (“La Tentation de Saint-Antoine”). Flaubert not so much describes the feat of the saint as he broadly and generously, in Bruegelian style, depicts all existing and conceivable heresies, religions, philosophies and sins. It’s interesting to write about sins, and it’s not boring to read.
All of the above novels are still interesting to read. Flaubert is not a boring writer. Not Emile Zola, who fired up the furnace of his creative imagination into the full-length book series “Rougon-Macquart” (21 “production” novels - no joke!). In terms of subject matter, it is closer to Maupassant, whose books were not given out to schoolchildren in the library during my adolescence. The only difference is that Flaubert wrote one novel on a topic about which Maupassant wrote a dozen short stories. So if someone has not read Flaubert, we can advise you to fill this gap. At least you won’t regret the time spent on this. And the translations into Russian are good, giving you a sense of the skill of the great stylist.
It is difficult to talk about the life that G. Flaubert lived in his last years. No adventures, no love affairs. True, they say that he had love with Guy de Maupassant’s mother. Death began to approach friends and relatives; in 1869, his friend the poet Buie died. During the Franco-Prussian War, the Croisset estate was occupied by the Germans. Critics viewed his novels with some suspicion. Both the plots and the language of his novels caused rejection. So the publication of Flaubert’s novels did not bring commercial success. And maintaining the estate required more and more money, but income did not increase.
Flaubert died at his Croisset estate on May 8, 1880. No one denied his influence on the development of the French novel by that time. And since French literature at the end of the 19th century was exemplary for all writers of the enlightened community, it can be said without exaggeration: the work of Gustave Flaubert influenced all world literature. Including Russian. One way or another, Leo Tolstoy wrote with an eye on the French. And “Anna Karenina” is, in a sense, a Russian version of the story of Madame Bovary, a bad woman who chased the so-called “love”.
The influence of French literature on Soviet literature is even stronger and not at all beneficial. The fact is that the Union of Soviet Writers was created by people for whom Flaubert, Maupassant, Zola were stars of the first magnitude. And, having begun to lead the Union, they, willingly or unwillingly, shoved the seething literature of the Soviet 1920s into the already established and therefore boring frame of realism, cobbled together by the great French novelists. At the same time, they understood realism quite differently from the great French. Therefore, this frame was significantly narrowed, wrapped in red and called socialist realism. And since the leadership of the Union was united, and food came from the same hands, practically none of the writers who declared themselves Soviet could resist the pressure. The more talented ones sculpted epics about modern life as best they could, inlaid them with pearls and diamonds to the best of their talent and nonconformity. The untalented also achieved some success in writing according to the rules of the greats. They were published in mass quantities, but it was difficult to read this brew. Masochists can revere Babaevsky, and suicides can revere M. Bubenov. Some of the sovpis already in the 1970s brought to life what they gossiped about A. Dumas the Father a hundred years before. Huge “opupeias” like “The Eternal Call” were written by “literary slaves.” And how multinational Soviet literature was created is a separate cry.
However, Gustave Flaubert is not at all to blame for these “excesses on the ground.”
fr. Gustave Flaubert
French realist prose writer, considered one of the greatest European writers of the 19th century
short biography
The famous French novelist, one of the creators of the modern novel genre, was a native of the city of Rouen, where he was born on December 12, 1821. His father was a famous doctor, his mother was a representative of an old Norman family. During 1823-1840. Gustave was a student at the city's Royal College. He did not excel in his studies, but already in those years his great love for literature and passion for history became apparent.
In 1840, Flaubert became a law student at the Paris Sorbonne. In 1743, he was diagnosed with a disease of the nervous system, reminiscent of epilepsy and requiring a decrease in motor activity. The illness forced him to stop studying at the university in 1844. When his father died in 1846, Gustave moved to the Croisset estate near Rouen to live with his mother, and his entire subsequent biography was connected with this place. Flaubert led a secluded life and left here for relatively long periods of time only twice in his life, and in both cases his companion was Maxime Ducamp, his best friend.
The inheritance they inherited from their father allowed him and his mother not to think about their daily bread; Flaubert could completely devote himself to literary work. His first stories - “Memoirs of a Madman” (1838), “November” (1842) - were written in the spirit of French romanticism, but already in the first edition of the novel “Education of Sentiments” (1843 -1845, remained unpublished) a transition to realistic positions was noticeable.
In 1848-1851, the period after the defeat of the revolution, Flaubert, for ideological reasons, did not participate in public life, the Paris Commune was not understood and accepted by him. He lived in a completely different world, adhering to the concept of isolation and elitism of literature.
In 1856, a work was published that became a masterpiece of world literature and a new stage in the development of the modern novel - “Madame Bovary. Provincial morals." The novel appeared on the pages of the Revue de Paris magazine with editorial notes, however, even this did not save the book from being accused of immorality and its author being brought to trial. After the acquittal, the novel was released in its entirety in 1857 as a separate edition.
In 1858, Flaubert undertook a trip to Tunisia and Algeria, where he collected factual material for his second novel, Salammbô (published in 1862). In 1863, the third novel, “Education of Sentiments,” was published; in 1874, “The Temptation of St. Anthony,” a dramatic poem in prose with philosophical content, was published. The crowning achievement of Flaubert’s creative biography was “Three Stories” published in 1877 and the remaining unfinished novel “Bouvard and Pécuchet.”
Flaubert's last ten years turned out to be unhappy: illness deprived him of strength and optimism, the estate was occupied by an alien army during the Franco-Prussian War, his mother and good friend Buyer died, and his friendship with Maxime Dukan was interrupted. Finally, he experienced financial difficulties, because... He donated most of his fortune to less wealthy relatives, and the publication of books did not bring in much money: critics did not favor his works. However, Flaubert was not completely alone; he was friends with George Sand, was the mentor of Guy de Maupassant, and his niece took care of him. The writer's body was severely exhausted, and he died on May 8, 1880 from a stroke.
Flaubert's work had a significant influence not only on national but also world literature. In addition, thanks to his mentorship, a number of talented writers came to literature.
Biography from Wikipedia
Gustave Flaubert(French Gustave Flaubert; December 12, 1821, Rouen - May 8, 1880, Croisset) - French realist prose writer, considered one of the largest European writers of the 19th century. He worked a lot on the style of his works, putting forward the theory of the “exact word” ( le mot juste). He is best known as the author of the novel Madame Bovary (1856).
Gustave Flaubert was born on December 12, 1821 in the city of Rouen into a petty bourgeois family. His father was a surgeon at the Rouen hospital, and his mother was the daughter of a doctor. He was the youngest child in the family. In addition to Gustave, the family had two children: an older sister and a brother. Two other children did not survive. The writer spent his childhood joylessly in the dark apartment of a doctor.
From 1832 he studied at the Royal College and Lyceum in Rouen, where he and a friend (Ernest Chevalier) organized the handwritten magazine “Art and Progress” in 1834. His first public text appeared in this magazine.
In 1836 he met Eliza Schlesinger, who had a profound influence on the writer. He carried his silent, unrequited passion throughout his life and depicted it in the novel “An Education of Sentiments.”
The writer's youth is connected with the provincial cities of France, which he repeatedly described in his work. In 1840, Flaubert entered the Faculty of Law in Paris. There he led a bohemian life, met many famous people, and wrote a lot. He dropped out of school in 1843 after his first epileptic seizure. In 1844, the writer settled on the banks of the Seine, near Rouen. Flaubert's lifestyle was characterized by isolation and a desire for self-isolation. He tried to devote his time and energy to literary creativity.
In 1846, his father died, and some time later his sister. His father left him a substantial inheritance on which he could live comfortably.
Flaubert returned to Paris in 1848 to take part in the Revolution. From 1848 to 1852 he traveled to the East. He visited Egypt and Jerusalem, via Constantinople and Italy. He recorded his impressions and used them in his works.
Since 1855, in Paris, Flaubert visited many writers, including the Goncourt brothers, Baudelaire, and also met with Turgenev.
In July 1869 he was greatly shocked by the death of his friend Louis Bouyer. There is information that Flaubert had a love affair with Guy de Maupassant's mother, which is why they had friendly relations.
During the occupation of France by Prussia, Flaubert, along with his mother and niece, hid in Rouen. His mother died in 1872 and at that time the writer already began to have problems with money. Health problems also begin. He sells his property and leaves his apartment in Paris. He publishes his works one after another.
The last years of the writer's life were marred by financial problems, health problems and betrayal by friends.
Gustave Flaubert died on May 8, 1880 as a result of a stroke. Many writers attended the funeral, including Emile Zola, Alphonse Daudet, Edmond Goncourt and others.
Creation
In 1849, he completed the first edition of The Temptation of St. Anthony, a philosophical drama on which he subsequently worked all his life. In terms of worldview, it is imbued with ideas of disappointment in the possibilities of knowledge, which is illustrated by the clash of different religious movements and corresponding doctrines.
First edition of the novel Madame Bovary, 1857. Title
Flaubert became famous due to the publication in the magazine of the novel Madame Bovary (1856), work on which began in the fall of 1851. The writer tried to make his novel realistic and psychological. Soon after, Flaubert and the editor of the Revue de Paris magazine were prosecuted for “outrage of morality.” The novel turned out to be one of the most important harbingers of literary naturalism, but it clearly expresses the author’s skepticism in relation not only to modern society, but also to man in general. As B.A. Kuzmin noted,
in his work itself, Flaubert seems to be ashamed to show his sympathy for people who are not worth this sympathy, and at the same time considers it beneath his dignity to show his hatred for them. As the resultant of this potential love and very real hatred of people, Flaubert’s pose of dispassion arises.
Some formal features of the novel noted by literary scholars are a very long exposition and the absence of a traditional positive hero. The transfer of action to the province (with its sharply negative portrayal) puts Flaubert among the writers in whose work the anti-provincial theme was one of the main ones.
Gaston Bussiere. Salammbo. 1907
The acquittal allowed the novel to be published as a separate edition (1857). The preparatory period of work on the novel “Salambo” required a trip to the East and North Africa. So the novel appeared in 1862. This is a historical novel that tells the story of the revolt in Carthage in the third century BC. e.
Two years later, in September 1864, Flaubert completed work on the final version of the novel Sentimental Education. The third novel, Sentimental Education (1869), was full of social problems. In particular, the novel describes the European events of 1848. The novel also includes the author’s own life events, such as his first love. The novel received a cold reception and only a few hundred copies were printed.
In 1877, he published in magazines the stories “A Simple Heart”, “Herodias” and “The Legend of Saint Julian the Merciful”, written in between work on the last novel “Bouvard and Pécuchet”, which remained unfinished, although we can judge its ending from the surviving author's sketches, quite detailed.
From 1877 to 1880 he edited the novel Bouvard and Pécuchet. This is a satirical work that was published after the writer's death in 1881.
A brilliant stylist who carefully honed the style of his works, Flaubert had a huge influence on all subsequent literature, bringing to it a number of talented authors, among whom were Guy de Maupassant and Edmond Abou.
Flaubert's works were well known in Russia, and Russian criticism wrote sympathetically about them. His works were translated by I. S. Turgenev, who had a close friendship with Flaubert; M. P. Mussorgsky created an opera based on “Salambo”.
Major works
Gustave Flaubert, a contemporary of Charles Baudelaire, occupies a leading role in 19th-century literature. He was accused of immorality and admired, but today he is recognized as one of the leading writers. He became famous for his novels Madame Bovary and Sentimental Education. His style combines elements of both psychologism and naturalism. Flaubert himself considered himself a realist.
Gustave Flaubert began working on the novel Madame Bovary in 1851 and worked for five years. The novel was published in the magazine Revue de Paris. The style of the novel is similar to the works of Balzac. The plot tells the story of a young man named Charles Bovary, who recently completed his studies at a provincial lyceum and received a position as a doctor in a small settlement. He marries a young girl, the daughter of a rich farmer. But the girl dreams of a beautiful life, she reproaches her husband for his inability to provide such a life and takes a lover.
The novel "Salammbô" was published after the novel "Madame Bovary". Flaubert began working on it in 1857. He spent three months in Tunisia studying historical sources. When it appeared in 1862, it was received with great enthusiasm. The novel begins with the mercenaries celebrating victory in the war in the gardens of their general. Angry at the general's absence and remembering their grievances, they destroy his property. Salammbo, the general's daughter, comes to calm the soldiers. Two mercenary leaders fall in love with this girl. The freed slave advises one of them to conquer Carthage in order to get the girl.
Work on the novel “Education of Sentiments” began in September 1864 and ended in 1869. The work is autobiographical. The novel tells the story of a young provincial who goes to study in Paris. There he learns friendship, art, politics and cannot make a choice between a monarchy, a republic and an empire. Many women appear in his life, but none of them are comparable to Marie Arnoux, the merchant's wife, who was his first love.
The idea for the novel “Bouvard and Pécuchet” appeared in 1872. The author wanted to write about the vanity of his contemporaries. Later he tried to understand human nature itself. The novel tells how, on a hot summer day, two men, Bouvard and Pécuchet, meet by chance and become acquainted. Later it turns out that they have the same profession (copier) and even common interests. If they could, they would live outside the city. But, having received an inheritance, they still buy a farm and engage in agriculture. Later, their inability to do this work becomes clear. They try themselves in the field of medicine, chemistry, geology, politics, but with the same result. Thus, they return to their profession as copyists.
Essays
- “Memoirs of a Madman” / fr. Mémoires d'un fou, 1838
- "November" / fr. November, 1842
- "Madame Bovary. Provincial morals" / fr. Madame Bovary, 1857
- "Salambo" / fr. Salammbô, 1862
- “Education of feelings” / fr. L'Éducation sentimentale, 1869
- "The Temptation of Saint Anthony" / fr. La Tentation de saint Antoine, 1874
- “Three stories” / fr. Trois contes, 1877
- "Bouvard and Pécuchet", 1881
Film adaptations
- Madame Bovary, (dir. Jean Renoir), France, 1933
- Madame Bovary (dir. Vincente Minnelli), 1949
- Education of the Senses (dir. Marcel Cravennes), France, 1973
- Save and Preserve (dir. Alexander Sokurov), USSR, 1989
- Madame Bovary (dir. Claude Chabrol), France, 1991
- Madame Maya (Maya Memsaab), (dir. Ketan Mehta), 1992, (based on the novel “Madame Bovary”)
- Madame Bovary (dir. Tim Fivell), 2000
- Night after night / All the nights (Toutes les nuits), (dir. Eugene Green), (based on), 2001
- A simple soul (Un coeur simple), (dir. Marion Lane), 2008
- Madame Bovary (dir. Sophie Barthez), 2014
Music
- opera "Madame Bovary" / Madame Bovary (1955, Naples), composer Guido Pannain.