The host of this April Madame Bovary read-along are Juliana at Cedar Station and C.J. at ebookclassics. | Another catching up post for the Madame Bovary Read-Along from April. I didn't finish part three until a few weeks ago, but I did finally make it. As with my Part Two update, I will concentrate on answering the questions put forth by Cedar Stations to keep moving forward on getting things back on some reasonable track. Discussion Questions from Cedar Stations post for Part 3: 1. Now that you’ve finished the book, how do you feel about Madame Bovary as a whole? Do you think the book’s ending was appropriate? If not, how would you have preferred to see the novel end? Overall as a novel, the story was well written and I did find myself still wanting to read to find out what debacle Emma would land herself in next. I can't say I loved the book as I didn't really find myself rooting for any character, with the exception of their poor daughter, but she played such an insignificant part in the story. |
As for the ending, I think Emma took the easy way out and I would have actually rather seen her truly pay for her actions by losing all her fine shiny baubles and living with the despair she created for the family. Charles was a poor casualty who seemed to have truly died of a broken heart, just gave up because he wasn't ambitious enough to keep fighting. It would have been nice to have Charles rise to the occasion and pull up his boot straps and raise his daughter to become a fine young woman. When Charles exits the picture those with a hand in Emma's spiral should have stepped up and provided some sort of financial security for the poor daughter. Even though she was not theirs, they had a helping hand in the child becoming an orphan.
2. What are your feelings toward Emma Bovary, now that you know how her story ends? Do you find yourself feeling more sympathetic toward her situation — or less?
I started out thinking I wasn't going to care much for Emma and her "poor me" attitude and she lived up to that feeling. She just kept digging a bigger and bigger hole for herself and spiraling farther and farther out of control. To go so far with her deceit, you think she could have at least visited the piano teacher one or twice, especially after the encounter with Charles where she showed receipts to prove she had been seeing the woman that Charles ran into and claimed she had never met Emma. M. Heureux did take advantage of her, but she always would let herself be talked back into the same situation or present one to him herself. The topper was her easy way out, I'll just remove myself from life and let everyone else pick up the pieces.
3. Do you think Flaubert had an ultimate “message” for readers of his book? If so, what do you think it was? What message(s) did you, personally, pull away from the book?
It is likely possible the Flauber had a message, but I have never been good at picking those out from between the weeds. If you have moral for me, spell it out in simpler terms, my brain function sometimes fails me when I read late into the night, missing key points. That being said, with a little help from my Norton Critical Edition the following is made light of.
[Flaubert] fleshed out the misogynistic commonplace across the rise of the novel that women were overly sensitive readers stimulated by fiction to neglect their duties for romantic delusions. Madame Bovary offers the type of the silly lady reader who ruins herself and her family |
Perhaps I am wrong, but in danger of stereotyping, I would suspect that women do have a higher propensity to get ourselves wrapped up in a fairy tale dream from stories. The inability of Emma to realize that all can't be as picture perfect as laid out in the next text of a story is what led to her downfall. She always dreamed (romantized) over the life style she read about. Of course I wouldn't mind Brownies to visit my house in the middle of the night and cook, clean and repair things, however, I am aware of the simple reality that no matter how much I long for such a thing, it just won't be happening.
I believe our human nature is to dream and fantasize about things, it is part of what helps one better themselves as they strive for something in life. It is a healthy part of our development, so long as we are able to maintain a line between reality and fantasy. Which begs the question, was Emma mentally disturbed? Did she suffer from a disability that hindered her ability to see the right from the wrong in her fairy land?
I believe our human nature is to dream and fantasize about things, it is part of what helps one better themselves as they strive for something in life. It is a healthy part of our development, so long as we are able to maintain a line between reality and fantasy. Which begs the question, was Emma mentally disturbed? Did she suffer from a disability that hindered her ability to see the right from the wrong in her fairy land?
Twitter Users - Don’t forget to use the hashtag #MadameBovary2014 throughout this event to help other participants find your posts and for informal chats about the book.
Please visit the blogs of your fellow read-along participants and say hello. The master post will keep an updated list.
Previous Post: Part 2; Part 1: Sign-Up
Reading Edition: Madame Bovary, by Gustave Flaubert, Translated by Eleanor Marx Aveling and Paul de Man, Edited by Margaret Cohen
Publisher: W.W. Norton & Company, Inc. (2005)
Source: Public Library
Format Read: Paperback - ISBN: 978-0-393-97917-6
Genres: Classic, French Literature, Romance
[Notice: Original posting 2014-06-28 at Plethora of Books Blog: http://bookchallenges.weebly.com]
Tags: Read-Alongs; Madame Bovary
Please visit the blogs of your fellow read-along participants and say hello. The master post will keep an updated list.
Previous Post: Part 2; Part 1: Sign-Up
Reading Edition: Madame Bovary, by Gustave Flaubert, Translated by Eleanor Marx Aveling and Paul de Man, Edited by Margaret Cohen
Publisher: W.W. Norton & Company, Inc. (2005)
Source: Public Library
Format Read: Paperback - ISBN: 978-0-393-97917-6
Genres: Classic, French Literature, Romance
[Notice: Original posting 2014-06-28 at Plethora of Books Blog: http://bookchallenges.weebly.com]
Tags: Read-Alongs; Madame Bovary