Querube Barber - Madame Bovary

Is a materialistic society something new?

Madame Bovary is a novel written by the French Gustave Flaubert. When reading this novel, you may experience different feelings, such as anger, perplexity, confusion and pity. Even though it was written over a hundred years ago, you may notice similarities to our society today.

The novel starts with the story of a shy and not so smart boy named Charles. He grows up and, somehow, manages to become a doctor. His mother is controlling and arranges for him to marry a rich widow. Charles submits to his mother without any protest and marries the rich widow.

One time while Charles was visiting a patient, he meets Emma. He falls in love with her. But Charles’ wife finds out about his love for Emma and quickly puts a stop to that. After Charles’ wife dies, he marries Emma. Now Emma becomes the main character of the novel.

At the beginning of Charles and Emma’s marriage, things go well since Emma was poor and Charles could give her a better life than she had. Because Charles is a doctor, Emma is invited to balls and parties by rich people. Even though Charles gives Emma all that he can afford, and certainly this is more than she ever had, Emma becomes an extremely materialistic person. She starts noticing all the beautiful furniture, drapes and clothes the rich ladies have. She wants to have what they have. Her marriage becomes very dull. So her husband decides to move to another town. This still does not help their relationship.

Emma gets pregnant and gives birth to a daughter. Both Charles and Emma think that the daughter will help their relationship. It does not! Emma starts noticing other men and even falls in love with them. Emma begins to lie to her Charles. For example, she tells him that she is taking piano lessons, but instead, she goes to meet with a lover. All the time, Charles does not have a clue of what is going on. Emma borrows huge amounts of money. When the creditors start asking for their money, she asks one of her lovers for money. However, Emma can not get the money she needs to pay back her debts. She decides to end her life by taking arsenic. This is very devastating for Charles who really loves his wife but did not know how to be a husband.

This novel is a typical example of a materialistic society where people put their hopes and trust on things instead of God. Can you identify with any of these characters, or do you recognize others in the characters?