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Flaubert 1821 - 1880 (59)

Be regular and orderly in your life, so that you may be violent and original in your work.


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Madam Bovary

Gustave Flaubert (1821-1880) was a French writer, best known for his novel Madame Bovary, which was a major scandal of his time. Gustave was born on December 12, 1821, in Rouen, Normandy, his father was a chief surgeon at the city hospital. He was a child of poor health and he spent a lot of time in the hospital, some doctors had said he would not reach adulthood. His older brother was their father's favorite, the one who excelled at school and became a doctor, while Gustave had a closer relationship with his younger sister and from an early age showed an appeal to literature. At the age of 15 he fell in love with an older woman and began writing stories inspired by her. Years later, based on these stories, the work "Romantic Education" would be published. In 1841 he began studying law in Paris but in 1844 he abandoned it as he was diagnosed with epilepsy. In 1845 his father died and in the same year and his beloved sister died, shortly after she had given birth. Flaubert lived with his mother and niece.

In 1846 he became involved with the poet Louise Cole, after a relationship of 9 years, he divorced her, believing that a marriage would distract him from writing. Louise wrote a vengeful short story entitled "He" that had become a big topic in their time. Flaubert, lived his life writing, -he never did any other work-, traveling, frequenting in literary salons and concluding ephemeral relationships. In 1857 "Madame Bovary" was published, in which he described realistically and in detail the society, manners and hypocrisy of his time. This novel, which is considered one of the best in the world, came into conflict with conservative and religious prejudices as the protagonist, wanting to get out of the routine and to live the passion for which she reads in romantic novels, finds love outside her marriage.

In 1870 during the Franco-Prussian War, he served as a nurse and lieutenant in the National Guard. In 1872 his mother, with whom he had always lived together, died; in 1875 he sold his property to help his niece who was in need. Flaubert was generous throughout his life and after 1875 he faced financial problems. He died of cerebral hemorrhage, famous but poor, on May 8, 1880, at the house where he lived with his niece, who cared for him as he had long been in poor health.