The British critic James Wood writes: 'Flaubert established, for good or ill, what most readers think of as modern realist narration, and his influence is almost too familiar to be visible.' A seminal work of literary realism, the novel is now considered Flaubert's masterpiece, and one of the most influential literary works in history. After Flaubert's acquittal on 7 February 1857, Madame Bovary became a bestseller in April 1857 when it was published as a single volume. The resulting trial in January 1857 made the story notorious.

When the novel was first serialized in La Revue de Paris between 1 October 1856 and 15 December 1856, public prosecutors attacked the novel for obscenity. The story focuses on a doctor's wife, Emma Bovary, who has adulterous affairs and lives beyond her means in order to escape the banalities and emptiness of provincial life. Each affordable volume reflects Oxford's commitment to scholarship, providing the most accurate text plus a wealth of other valuable features, including expert introductions by leading authorities, helpful notes to clarify the text, up-to-date bibliographies for further study, and much more.Madame Bovary is the debut novel of French writer Gustave Flaubert. In this new translation Margaret Mauldon perfectly captures the tone that makes Flaubert's style so distinct and admired.ĪBOUT THE SERIES: For over 100 years Oxford World's Classics has made available the widest range of literature from around the globe. In her quest to realize her dreams she takes a lover, and begins a devastating spiral into deceit and despair.įlaubert's novel scandalized its readers when it was first published in 1857, and it remains unsurpassed in its unveiling of character and society. But Charles is a dull country doctor, and provincial life is very different from the romantic excitement for which she yearns. When Emma Rouault marries Charles Bovary she imagines she will pass into the life of luxury and passion that she reads about in sentimental novels and women's magazines. 'Would this misery go on forever? Was there no escape? And yet she was every bit as good as all those other women who led happy lives!' Oxford Research Encyclopedias: Global Public Health.The European Society of Cardiology Series.Oxford Commentaries on International Law.

Madame bovary