Tuesday, May 25, 2010

The different guises of Emma Bovary

In Gustave Flaubert’s Madame Bovary it is possible to see the various manners in which women, especially the main character, Emma, are treated by different men and also the may in which they are portrayed. From the beginning of the novel almost every man has a different idea of Emma.

Charles thinks of her as a virtuous, caring and loving wife but does not seem to care about her as much as to make her wishes such as having a honeymoon in the alps come true, and finds out about her unfaithfulness only at the end.

Rodolphe portrays Emma differently, caused by his experienced nature, from the beginning of his relationship with Emma his image of her is of yet another romantic conquest, and has an affair with her for as long as his interest in her continues.

Leon is somewhat of a foil to Rodolphe. Emma and Leon both shares view of an idealistic romance and seem to love each other very much, even though he begins to think of her as annoying in the last couple of times they meet. He also seems to have no problem in moving on after she dies and marries soon.

Emma’s relationship with Lhereux portrays an Emma that is foolish and easily trick. Her desires are passed on as vain and she eventually leads her family into bankruptcy.

Considering a wider view of the novel it seems as if Emma was as woman from later centuries to come trapped in the 1800s. She forces herself to play the role of caring and virtuous wife but meanwhile is also very independent and goes after for what she desires.

1 comment:

  1. I think I’ve mentioned this in one of my blogs, but I totally agree with you! Everybody at first falls in love with Catherine I, because she’s gorgeous and blablabla. But later she’s also unfaithful to Linton, especially during her final moments. I’ve also mentioned that woman are at once pure and innocent, and then they’re corrupted by the society. It seems to me that Emma is somewhat of an exception – at least to me, it seems that she was “born corrupted”, because she as soon as she was introduced into society she already had a definite idea of what she wanted – unlike Catherine, who entered society, and then realized what she wanted – it seems that Emma entered the society with the purpose of marrying a rich man already. (am I being clear? I have a feeling I just word vomited. Oh well)
    I can see a clear difference between Emma and Catherine. While Emma is easily deceived, I believe that Catherine I, on the other hand, is the deceiver. She manipulated people in order to get what she wanted, and even though she didn’t marry Heathcliff in the end, he buried himself beside her, and she still manage to have somewhat an affair with him, and maintain her social status. So in regard to the “leader and follower” aspect, Emma and Catherine seem to be foils.

    -dri

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