First LoT book club discussion: Madame Bovary

[wendybeth]

I don't think Emma was bored- she was more depressed than anything. Charles was boring, but quite happy with his lot in life, and why shouldn't he be? Beautiful wife, respect of the town that he really didn't deserve, and a mommy who loved her boy to the point of suffocation. Early on Flaubert illustrates the expectations a girl had in life, particularily one who reads, and Emma was disappointed with reality. The provincial life and attitude has been portrayed many times in print and on film, and it is boring- so much so that people create their own drama just to escape the damned ennui. I think perhaps we're so jaded by soap operas and action flicks that we loose the value of subtlety and equate it with boredom. There is a reason this book is often at the top of 'best ever' lists- because it's beautifully written and to many the finest example of the novel form.