Gustave Flaubert
A French novelist who tortured sentences into perfection, defining literary realism with the scandalous tragedy of 'Madame Bovary.'
1821–1880 (age 59)·French novelist·Birthday: December 12
Biography
Gustave Flaubert approached writing as a form of ascetic suffering, famously spending days agonizing over the rhythm of a single paragraph. Born into a family of doctors in Rouen, he initially studied law before a nervous breakdown led him to dedicate his life to literature. He was a man of private means, which allowed him the luxury of a painstaking, almost obsessive creative process. His first published novel, 'Madame Bovary,' caused an immediate sensation and a public obscenity trial for its unflinching portrait of a provincial doctor's wife and her destructive romantic fantasies. Flaubert's doctrine of 'le mot juste'—the perfectly precise word—and his commitment to authorial impartiality elevated the novel's form, influencing generations of writers from Maupassant to modernism. He lived a reclusive life, his later works like 'Sentimental Education' meeting with public indifference, but his relentless pursuit of stylistic purity cemented his place as a cornerstone of modern fiction.
#1 When Gustave Was Born
The biggest hits of 1821
Gustave's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1821Born
1826Started school
1834Became a teenager
1837Could drive
1839Could vote
1842Turned 21
1851Turned 30
1861Turned 40
President: Abraham Lincoln
1871Turned 50
President: Ulysses S. Grant
1880Died at 59
Edison patents the incandescent light bulb
President: Rutherford B. Hayes
Key Achievements
- Published 'Madame Bovary' (1857), a landmark novel of literary realism that led to a famous trial for obscenity.
- Perfected a doctrine of stylistic precision and authorial impersonality that fundamentally influenced modern narrative techniques.
- Mentored the young Guy de Maupassant, who would become a master of the short story form.
- Completed the historical novel 'Salammbô,' a meticulously researched work set in ancient Carthage.
Did You Know?
He wrote in a loud, booming voice in his study at Croisset, which he called 'les gueuloirs' (the shouting places), to test the cadence of his sentences.
Flaubert had a lifelong friendship with the poet Louise Colet, with whom he conducted a passionate and tumultuous correspondence.
He suffered from epilepsy, a condition that deeply affected his life and contributed to his decision to abandon law.
His novel 'Bouvard et Pécuchet' was left unfinished at his death and published posthumously.
“Madame Bovary, c'est moi. (Madame Bovary is me.)”
