Madame Bovary
by Gustave Flaubert
Flaubert's masterpiece of provincial unhappiness. Translated by Eleanor Marx (Karl Marx's daughter). The first great novel of disillusionment.
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We were in the schoolroom when the headmaster came in, followed by a new boy, not in school uniform, and a school servant carrying a large desk.Gustave Flaubert, Madame BovaryRead 11 hand-picked quotes from Madame Bovary, with meaning →3 Madame Bovary memes, decoded →
Madame Bovary: study guide
Everything you need to follow Madame Bovary: what happens, who it happens to, what it means, and the words worth learning along the way. The links at the top of the page jump straight to any part of it.
Madame Bovary summary
Madame Bovary follows the life of Emma Bovary, a woman who seeks to escape the monotony of her provincial life through romantic fantasies and extramarital affairs. Her pursuit of passion leads to financial ruin and personal tragedy.
Setting: The novel is set in the mid-19th century in the provincial towns of Tostes, Yonville, and Rouen in Normandy, France.
Show the full summary↓
Contains spoilers, including the ending.
The novel begins with Charles Bovary, a simple and kind-hearted country doctor, who marries Emma, the daughter of a patient. Emma, who has been raised on romantic novels, soon becomes disillusioned with her mundane married life and dreams of a more glamorous existence.
Emma seeks excitement through extramarital affairs, first with Rodolphe, a local landowner, and later with Léon, a young law clerk. These relationships provide her with temporary happiness but ultimately lead to deeper dissatisfaction and guilt.
In an attempt to maintain her lifestyle and keep her affairs hidden, Emma accumulates massive debts. Her financial recklessness, coupled with her emotional turmoil, leads to a downward spiral.
Emma's desperation grows as her debts become unmanageable, and her affairs fall apart. In a state of despair, she takes her own life by ingesting arsenic.
After Emma's death, Charles is devastated and discovers her infidelities. He struggles to cope with the loss and the betrayal, leading to his own decline.
The novel ends with Charles's death and the scattering of their daughter, Berthe, to a life of poverty, while the townspeople move on with their lives, largely unaffected by the Bovarys' tragedy.
Madame Bovary characters
The main characters of Madame Bovary, who they are and what they do in the story.
Emma Bovary
protagonistEmma Bovary is a romantic and dissatisfied woman who seeks to escape her mundane life through affairs and luxury. Her unrealistic desires and financial irresponsibility lead to her tragic downfall.
Charles Bovary
supportingCharles is Emma's husband, a simple and devoted country doctor. He is oblivious to Emma's affairs and is devastated by her death and the subsequent discovery of her infidelities.
Rodolphe Boulanger
antagonistRodolphe is a wealthy landowner who becomes Emma's first lover. He is charming but ultimately self-serving, abandoning Emma when their affair becomes inconvenient.
Léon Dupuis
supportingLéon is a young law clerk who becomes Emma's second lover. Initially infatuated with Emma, he eventually grows weary of their affair and leaves for Paris.
Monsieur Homais
supportingHomais is the local pharmacist in Yonville and a symbol of bourgeois mediocrity. He is ambitious and self-serving, often meddling in others' affairs.
Monsieur Lheureux
antagonistLheureux is a merchant and moneylender who exploits Emma's desire for luxury, leading her into financial ruin.
Berthe Bovary
supportingBerthe is the daughter of Charles and Emma. After her parents' deaths, she is sent to live with relatives and ends up working in a cotton factory.
Monsieur Rouault
supportingMonsieur Rouault is Emma's father, a farmer who initially introduces Charles to Emma. He is kind but largely unaware of Emma's struggles.
Madame Bovary Senior
supportingCharles's mother, who is controlling and disapproves of Emma. She is practical and often meddles in Charles's life.
Justin
supportingJustin is Homais's assistant who becomes infatuated with Emma. He unwittingly facilitates her access to the arsenic she uses to end her life.
Themes in Madame Bovary
The major themes of Madame Bovary and what each one means in the story.
Romanticism vs. Reality
The novel explores the conflict between romantic ideals and the harsh realities of life. Emma's fantasies clash with her mundane existence, leading to her disillusionment.
The Constraints of Social Class
Flaubert examines the limitations imposed by social class, as Emma's desires for a more glamorous life are thwarted by her middle-class status.
The Role of Women
Madame Bovary critiques the limited roles available to women in 19th-century society, highlighting Emma's struggle for autonomy and fulfillment.
The Dangers of Materialism
Emma's obsession with luxury and material possessions contributes to her financial ruin and ultimate downfall.
Hypocrisy of the Bourgeoisie
The novel exposes the hypocrisy and mediocrity of the bourgeois class, particularly through characters like Homais and Lheureux.
Madame Bovary vocabulary
24 useful words from Madame Bovary, from easier to harder. Each has a simple meaning and an example sentence, so you learn words you can actually use, not just recognise. While you read here, tapping any word does the same thing.
- uniformnoun
a special set of clothes worn by members of an organization
“The students wore a blue uniform to school.”
- desknoun
a piece of furniture with a flat surface for writing or working
“She placed her books on the desk.”
- pupilnoun
a student in school
“The pupil answered the teacher's question.”
- carenoun
the process of protecting or looking after someone or something
“She took great care of her garden.”
- conductnoun
the manner in which a person behaves
“His conduct in class was excellent.”
- cornernoun
the point where two lines or surfaces meet
“The cat hid in the corner of the room.”
- attentionnoun
the act of focusing the mind on something
“The teacher asked for the students' attention.”
- bellnoun
a hollow instrument that makes a ringing sound when struck
“The church bell rang at noon.”
- habitnoun
a regular practice or routine
“He has a habit of reading before bed.”
- lessonnoun
a period of learning or teaching
“Today's lesson is about history.”
- tricknoun
a cunning or skillful act or scheme intended to deceive or outwit someone
“He played a trick on his friend.”
- dareverb
to have the courage to do something
“She didn't dare to speak in front of the crowd.”
- helmetnoun
a protective head covering
“He wore a helmet while riding his bike.”
- laughverb
to make sounds with the voice that show amusement
“The joke made everyone laugh.”
- voicenoun
the sound produced in a person's throat
“She has a beautiful singing voice.”
- examplenoun
a representative form or pattern
“This is an example of a good essay.”
- conjugateverb
to give the different forms of a verb according to tense, mood, etc.
“Can you conjugate the verb 'to be'?”
- motionlessadjective
not moving; still
“The statue stood motionless in the park.”
- dictionarynoun
a book or electronic resource that lists words of a language and gives their meaning
“He used a dictionary to find the meaning of the word.”
- compositionnoun
a written work, especially a school exercise in writing
“She wrote a composition about her summer vacation.”
- fortunenoun
a large amount of money or assets
“He made a fortune in the stock market.”
- devotionnoun
love, loyalty, or enthusiasm for a person or activity
“Her devotion to her family is admirable.”
- furniturenoun
large movable equipment used to make a house, office, or other space suitable for living or working
“They bought new furniture for the living room.”
- resolutionnoun
a firm decision to do or not to do something
“She made a resolution to exercise more.”
How readClassicly reads Madame Bovary
Madame Bovary is book 11 of 12 in our free year-long classics reading plan. At our daily pace of 8 pages, the book takes around 6 weeks to finish.
You log pages as you go in a private dashboard. When you finish, a short quiz unlocks the next book in the sequence. No deadlines, no summaries pretending to be reading.
Don't want to follow the order? You don't have to. Members can start with any of the twelve books, and the plan just nudges you back to the recommended path if you fall behind.
Why we picked it
The great French novel of provincial dissatisfaction. Flaubert was put on trial for it. Translated by Eleanor Marx.
Suitable for 16+. Level B2-C1, which means readers comfortable with upper-intermediate English will follow it without a dictionary; lower-intermediate readers can read with light support.
Madame Bovary: reading level & FAQ
What reading level is Madame Bovary?↓
Madame Bovary is rated B2-C1 on the CEFR scale and is suitable for ages 16+. It is a good fit for readers building toward or reading comfortably at that level.
Can I read Madame Bovary online for free?↓
Yes. Madame Bovary is in the public domain and free to read online at readClassicly, with a reading tracker and a short quiz. No account is needed to read it.
What is Madame Bovary about?↓
Madame Bovary follows the life of Emma Bovary, a woman who seeks to escape the monotony of her provincial life through romantic fantasies and extramarital affairs. Her pursuit of passion leads to financial ruin and personal tragedy.
How does Madame Bovary end?↓
The novel ends with Charles's death and the scattering of their daughter, Berthe, to a life of poverty, while the townspeople move on with their lives, largely unaffected by the Bovarys' tragedy.
Wondering how long it takes? Madame Bovary is 115,561 words, about 8 hours, broken down by reading speed and by how many minutes a day you give it.
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