When I first titled this blog in September I knew little about Madame Bovary, the novel or the main character. But that quickly changed. I couldn't wait to read Flaubert's masterpiece, so I didn't. I read it right away. After finishing the novel in late September, I watched the Masterpiece Theatre performance from 1974. My opinion of Emma hasn't changed. It didn't change the first time I read the novel, not during this second time, not even during the film. (Actually I may have become MORE sympathetic after watching the movie.)
I have always sympathized with Emma. I can't help it. I know what it is like to long for something more. While I do not condone her actions, I understand the drive that eventually landed her in the grave. While expressing my sympathy for Emma throughout the novel, Dr. Patterson reminded me of my blog title...
Which leads me to my title question:
Is Emma Bovary a slut?
I say yes.. and no.
There is nothing pretty about adultery. I in no way agree with Emma's affairs and I don't think that the affairs are what make her a "slut". (While I think that many people would hear of the affairs and be sold) I think she feels cheated in the beginning. As Dr. Patterson brought up in class, life was hard for women at this time. She was miserable with Charles and there was no true way out of her situation. She was in love with the men she was with, when she was with them. Because of that "love", Emma cannot be a slut.
However...
My opinion changed towards the end of the novel, and the end of Emma's life. It changed because Emma changed. Her bad decisions landed her in a sticky situation and in her mind the only way out was her sexuality. Since, I feel that love making is only appropriate when love is involved, I found her actions repulsive and tragic. She had clearly lost it. And when she used her sensuality to persuade Justin to give her the poison I decided she was a lost cause.
Madame Bovary was and was not a slut. She had to be, in her mind, towards the end of the novel to save what little she had left.. and when that didn't work she used her womanly charms one more time to end her suffering.
My question to you all is, do you think Madame Bovary is a shady lady?
She is, unquestionably and without making excuses, without honor. Emma is barely married before she seeks congress outside the confines of her dedicated relationship, to which she never dedicated herself outside the confines of her husband's wallet. She married, knowing full well that the respect and salary afforded a doctor was that on par with a plumber in a time when even the wealthiest of the bourgoisie shat in an enamelware basin. It is not about knowing one's place, or being obedient: simply put, Madame Bovary exemplifies everything that can possibly be undesirable about a woman under thirty.
ReplyDelete