So, the first book of the newly formed "Book Club"(tm) has been read and dissected by our inquiring minds. I have something of a history with this novel. I first read it in French as part of my MA in French for the final exam. My theme for this exam was, roughly translated, "depictions of the self through French literature." The base of my reading list was "The Confessions" by St. Augustine, and I ended with "Nausea" By Jean-Paul Sartre (A novel I loathe with every inch of my soul). "Madame Bovary" was in the 19th century part of the list. It was there because Flaubert so famously said, "Madame Bovary, c'est moi!"
In a way I understand Flaubert's thought. I found the character of Emma Bovary as bovine as her name implies, narrow minded and thoughtlessly selfish. Yet, as a person who spends a lot portion of his life in books, I sympathized with her life. Her desire for Romance...Adventure...Passion! All of us want these things but I guess for me I realized that life is not a never ending orgiastic experience, but I can understand her desire for such a life. Someone in the "Book Club"(tm) pointed out that Emma was probably only 16-17 years old when she married Charles. I had never remarked that before, but it makes her ennui make even more sense.
In the end this is a novel I recommend to anyone. It makes you think, what is the good life? Is reading dangerous? How so? The prose is wonderful and the character compelling.
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