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Characters · 14
Abbé Bournisien
Abbé Bournisien serves as the parish priest of Yonville and stands out as one of Flaubert's sharpest satirical critiques of institutional religion.
character
Berthe Bovary
Berthe Bovary is the only child of Emma and Charles, born into a household already plagued by debt, disillusionment in love, and emotional neglect.
character
Charles Bovary
Charles Bovary is the novel's tragic anchor, a country doctor with limited imagination whose unconditional love for Emma forms the emotional core of Flaubert's critique of bourgeois mediocrity.
character
Emma Bovary
Emma Bovary is the tragic main character in Gustave Flaubert's novel.
character
Félicité
Félicité is the live-in maid for the Bovarys in Yonville.
character
Héloïse Dubuc
Héloïse Dubuc is Charles Bovary's first wife and plays a minor yet crucial role in Gustave Flaubert's Madame Bovary.
character
Justin
Justin is the teenage apprentice and errand-boy for the pharmacist Homais, playing a minor yet significant role in Madame Bovary.
character
Léon Dupuis
Léon Dupuis is a young law clerk who becomes Emma Bovary's second lover and represents the clash between romantic idealism and bourgeois hesitance.
character
Madame Bovary (Senior)
Madame Bovary Senior — Charles's mother — is a formidable and frugal matriarch in their provincial town.
character
Monsieur Binet
Monsieur Binet serves as the tax collector in Yonville and stands out as one of Flaubert's most clearly defined minor characters — a symbol of the rigid, mechanical life of provincial bourgeois society.
character
Monsieur Homais
Monsieur Homais is the pompous pharmacist of Yonville-l'Abbaye and one of Flaubert's most biting satirical characters.
character
Monsieur Lheureux
Monsieur Lheureux is the silk merchant and moneylender in Yonville whose patient yet predatory financial schemes drive the story towards material downfall.
character
Père Rouault
Père Rouault is Emma's widowed father, a humble farmer from Les Bertaux in Normandy.
character
Rodolphe Boulanger
Rodolphe Boulanger is a rich, cynical landowner who becomes Emma Bovary's first lover and one of the novel's most calculating antagonists.
character
Key quotes · 12
“Axiom: a pharmacist who respects himself must at all times behave with perfect propriety in public.”
This self-important declaration comes from Homais, the pompous village pharmacist in Gustave Flaubert's Madame Bovary (1857).
Homais
“Homais reappeared; he was carrying one of those showy punch-bowls that are found in pharmacies, and he offered it to Léon as a parting gift.”
This passage appears in Gustave Flaubert's Madame Bovary (1857) during the scene when Léon Dupuis is leaving Yonville-l'Abbaye for Paris to pursue his law studies.
Narrator (Gustave Flaubert) · Part II, Chapter 5
“Human speech is like a cracked kettle on which we tap crude rhythms for bears to dance to, while we long to make music that will melt the stars.”
This melancholic reflection appears in Gustave Flaubert's Madame Bovary (1857) and is voiced by the narrator, who shares Charles's viewpoint but resonates more deeply with Emma Bovary's inner thoughts.
Narrator (free indirect discourse, aligned with Emma Bovary) · Part II, Chapter 12
“She wanted to die, but she also wanted to live in Paris.”
This line captures the essence of Emma Bovary's troubled inner life in Gustave Flaubert's Madame Bovary (1857).
Narrator (free indirect discourse reflecting Emma Bovary) · Part Two
“The blind man! She could not tear her gaze from him. She saw his face in the eternal darkness, like a vision of horror.”
This passage comes toward the end of Gustave Flaubert's Madame Bovary (1857), during Emma Bovary's painful death scene in Part Three.
Narrator (free indirect discourse / Emma Bovary's perspective) · Part Three, Chapter VIII
“One mustn't touch one's dreams — it spoils them.”
This poignant line is delivered by Rodolphe Boulanger, the alluring lover of Emma Bovary, in Gustave Flaubert's Madame Bovary (1857).
Rodolphe Boulanger · Part II, Chapter 9
“She had loved him after all; but perhaps she had been seeking something that did not exist.”
This reflective line appears in Gustave Flaubert's Madame Bovary (1857) as a narratorial observation about Emma Bovary, likely towards the end of the novel when her romantic fantasies crumble under the burden of debt, betrayal, and disillusionment.
Narrator (free indirect discourse / Emma Bovary) · Part III (approximate)
“Never touch your idols: the gilding will stick to your fingers.”
This memorable line comes from Gustave Flaubert's Madame Bovary (1857) and is spoken by the novel's ironic narrator rather than by any specific character.
Narrator (Gustave Flaubert) · Part II
“She was the lover in every novel, the heroine of every play, the vague 'she' of every volume of verse.”
This line comes from Gustave Flaubert's Madame Bovary (1857) and is presented by the narrator in an early part of the novel, as it explores Emma Bovary's inner thoughts while she indulges in the romantic novels and sentimental stories she has consumed since her convent school days.
Narrator (free indirect discourse reflecting Emma Bovary's perspective) · Part I, Chapter 6
“She had that indefinable beauty that comes from happiness, enthusiasm, success — a beauty that is nothing more or less than a harmony of temperament and circumstances.”
This line is narrated by Gustave Flaubert in Madame Bovary (1857), capturing Emma Bovary during a moment of romantic bliss—likely early in her affair with Rodolphe, when she briefly tastes the passionate love she has long dreamed of.
Narrator (Gustave Flaubert) · Part II, Chapter IX
“He had no curiosity, no ambition, no desire. To be a country doctor seemed to him the finest thing in the world.”
This passage occurs in the early chapters of Gustave Flaubert's Madame Bovary (1857) and portrays Charles Bovary's inner life—or more accurately, his shocking lack of one.
Narrator (free indirect discourse reflecting Charles Bovary) · Part One, Chapter 1–2
“What exasperated her was that Charles had no suspicion that she was in agony. His conviction that he was making her happy seemed to her an imbecile insult.”
This sharp observation appears in Gustave Flaubert's Madame Bovary (1857), presented in the narrator's close third-person voice as he conveys Emma Bovary's inner turmoil.
Narrator (free indirect discourse / Emma Bovary's perspective) · Part II
Symbols · 6
Arsenic / Poison
In Gustave Flaubert's Madame Bovary, arsenic symbolizes the devastating effects of romantic fantasies and escapism.
Binet's Lathe
In Madame Bovary, Binet's lathe symbolizes the dull routine of provincial bourgeois life—the very life Emma Bovary is desperate to flee.
Emma's Greyhound (Djali)
In Madame Bovary, Emma's greyhound Djali represents her constant desire for freedom, elegance, and a life outside the stifling limits of provincial living.
The Blind Beggar
In Gustave Flaubert's Madame Bovary, the blind beggar who lingers on the roads near Yonville symbolizes Emma's decline, both morally and physically.
The Vicomte's Cigar Case
In Gustave Flaubert's Madame Bovary, the Vicomte's cigar case symbolizes Emma's unending desire for an aristocratic lifestyle that remains just out of reach.
The Wedding Bouquet
In Madame Bovary, Emma's dried wedding bouquet symbolizes the end of her romantic dreams and the oppressive nature of a marriage that failed to live up to her hopes.
Literary devices · 9
Motif
In Madame Bovary, Flaubert uses windows as a motif to illustrate Emma's ongoing dissatisfaction and her yearning for a life that seems just out of reach.
Satire
Flaubert uses satire not as a broad caricature but as a sharp, unyielding tool targeting bourgeois provincialism, Romantic clichés, and institutional complacency.
Irony
Irony is the structural oxygen of Madame Bovary, present in nearly every narrative breath that Flaubert takes.
Juxtaposition
Flaubert uses juxtaposition as both a structural and moral tool throughout Madame Bovary, forcing together conflicting realities so that neither can be seen innocently again.
Imagery
Flaubert uses imagery in Madame Bovary as the key tool for depicting Emma's inner life and its clash with the reality of provincial life.
Metaphor
In Madame Bovary, Flaubert uses metaphor not just as decoration but as the core of Emma's self-deception.
Pathetic Fallacy
In Madame Bovary, Flaubert uses pathetic fallacy not just for romantic effect but as a sharp contrast, allowing the outside world to reflect — and subtly mock — Emma's feelings.
Foreshadowing
Flaubert weaves foreshadowing into Madame Bovary so subtly that its significance only becomes clear in hindsight.
Symbolism
In Madame Bovary, Flaubert uses symbolism with subtlety, letting objects and settings reflect Emma's inner turmoil without imposing his own voice.
Vocabulary · 25
kepi
A French military-style cap with a flat circular top and a horizontal peak, worn as part of a school uniform; here it marks Charles as an awkward outsider on his first day.
noun · Chapter 1
fatuity
Smug, self-satisfied stupidity; the quality of being complacently foolish without any awareness of it.
noun · Chapter 1
usurer
A moneylender who charges extremely high or illegal rates of interest; in this novel a figure who traps people in debt.
noun · Chapter 2
dowry
Money, property, or goods that a bride's family gives to the groom or his family at the time of marriage, often a key motive for marriage in 19th-century France.
noun · Chapter 2
trousseau
The collection of clothing, linen, and other personal belongings assembled by a bride before her wedding and brought into the marriage.
noun · Chapter 4
ennui
A deep, listless boredom and dissatisfaction arising from a sense that life lacks meaning or excitement; Emma's defining emotional state throughout the novel.
noun · Chapter 8
convent
A religious community of nuns; here the boarding school run by nuns where Emma received her education and developed her romantic fantasies.
noun · Chapter 6
clavichord
An early keyboard instrument, quieter than a piano, whose strings are struck by small brass tangents; Emma plays one as part of her genteel accomplishments.
noun · Chapter 6
fête
A grand outdoor festival or celebration, often with entertainment and dancing; used here for the elaborate ball or public festivities the characters attend.
noun · Chapter 7
viscountess
The wife or widow of a viscount, a rank of the French and British nobility; for Emma, such figures embody the glamorous aristocratic world she longs to enter.
noun · Chapter 7
pharmacist
A licensed dispenser of medicines; in 19th-century provincial France the pharmacist also acted as a local intellectual and social commentator, as Homais does throughout.
noun · Chapter 9
platitude
A dull, overused remark stated as though it were original or meaningful; the novel uses the word to expose the emptiness of conventional conversation.
noun · Chapter 10
comices agricoles
The French term for an agricultural show or county fair at which farmers compete for prizes; the backdrop for Rodolphe's seduction of Emma in the famous ironic scene.
phrase · Chapter 14
clubfoot
A congenital deformity in which the foot is twisted inward and downward; Charles attempts a fashionable corrective operation on the stable-boy Hippolyte with disastrous results.
noun · Chapter 16
gangrene
The death and decay of body tissue, usually caused by loss of blood supply or infection; it sets in after Charles's botched surgery and forces amputation.
noun · Chapter 16
promissory note
A signed written promise to pay a specified sum of money on a fixed date or on demand; Lheureux uses a chain of these to ensnare Emma in escalating debt.
phrase · Chapter 20
bailiff
A court officer authorised to seize property or carry out evictions when debts are unpaid; his arrival at the Bovary house signals the collapse of Emma's financial schemes.
noun · Chapter 20
notary
A legally qualified official who draws up contracts, wills, and financial documents; Emma visits one hoping he can help her escape her debts, but he misreads her visit as a proposition.
noun · Chapter 21
arsenic
A toxic chemical element used in 19th-century France as rat poison; Emma steals and swallows it from Homais's pharmacy to kill herself.
noun · Chapter 22
extreme unction
The Roman Catholic sacrament administered to a person who is dying, involving anointing with holy oil; its performance over Emma is a solemn and ironic moment given her faithless life.
phrase · Chapter 22
sexton
A church official responsible for the maintenance of the building and churchyard, and for digging graves; he appears at the time of Emma's death and burial.
noun · Chapter 22
prie-dieu
A small kneeling bench with a shelf for a book or hands, designed for private prayer; its presence in a domestic scene signals religious observance or its performance.
noun · Chapter 6
lorgnette
A pair of eyeglasses or opera glasses mounted on a handle, held up to the eyes rather than worn; a fashionable accessory that signals the aristocratic world Emma envies.
noun · Chapter 7
cabriolet
A light two-wheeled horse-drawn carriage with a folding hood, typically seating two people; used for private travel in 19th-century France.
noun · Chapter 15
coup de grâce
A final blow that ends suffering or decisively finishes something already failing; used figuratively in the novel for the act or event that destroys what little remains.
phrase · Chapter 17