Free English Literature Essays - Discuss the treatment of social class in one or more of the following literary texts:
Madame Bovary by Flaubert
Sentimental Education by Flaubert
Nana by Zola
During the latter half of the nineteenth century France was undergoing immense social upheaval, resulting in the rise of a new middle class - the bourgeoisie. The bourgeoisie gained their fortunes through commercial endeavours rather than inheritance and as a class, were largely characterised by a gaudy materialism. Flaubert found their moral conservatism and unsophisticated tastes appalling and in Madame Bovary used the form of the novel to bring attention to bourgeois mediocrity. The characteristics and effects of social class on the individual are evident throughout the novel, the stifling nature of middle class life eventually contributing to the downfall of the protagonist, Emma Bovary.
The character of Homais embodies all that Flaubert dislikes about the middle class: he is an obnoxious, self-righteous know-it-all. As one of the main characters he spends much time centre stage, each time reaffirming the fact that his garrulous nature is rarely able to hide his lack of knowledge and his speeches are ridden with clichés. Although the narrative voice of the novel is consistently detached, the reactions of others and the use of free indirect discourse elaborate on Flaubert’s portrayal of the pharmacist as a pompous speechmaker and tiresome bore. He has an opinion on everything despite having little comprehension of the science, technology and faith that he lectures on. Although he knows little of agriculture he insists on claiming experience by ridiculously and irrelevantly linking the trades of farming and pharmacy: ‘Take the composition of manures, the fermentation of liquids, the analysis of gases, the effects of noxious effluvia – what’s all that, I ask you, if it isn’t chemistry in the strictest sense of the word.’ If the characterisation of Homais were to stop here, we would perhaps not link his actions so implicitly to his social class. However, Flaubert proceeds to suggest an element of danger in the pretentious attitudes that individuals like Homais hold. The debacle of the clubfoot operation is testament to the menacing threat this can pose to society; Charles Bovary is influenced and encouraged principally by Homais, to attempt a radical new technique for correcting the abnormality of a clubfoot. Even though Charles’s inadequate medical skills may contribute to the failure of the operation, it is Homais’s enthusiasm and determination that leave the unfortunate Hippolyte with a mid-thigh leg amputation. Although superficially Homais is ‘allocated the role of the comic buffoon, ridiculous to the point of absurdity’ his beliefs and attitude ultimately have the power to inflict serious damage. His trademark display of pomp also takes effect in the aftermath of Emma’s suicide attempt, where his ostentatious demeanor prevents him from taking the swiftest and most practical action of inducing her to vomit.
Flaubert is rarely sarcastic in his descriptions of the bourgeoisie, preferring to portray the class through example or a less intrusive irony. This narrative technique can be seen in the presentation of Binet’s hobby of making napkin rings; it is not inferred that this is a useless activity, but by providing no valid reason for a man to need so many, we conclude ourselves that this is ridiculous behaviour. While we understand that the production of napkin rings for ornament purposes implies that there is little actual use for the tastes of this particular bourgeois, Flaubert is not condemning such actions outright. Comedy is often present where the negative aspects of the middle class are being conveyed, even in the case of bourgeois churchgoers. Throughout Madame Bovary religious followers are shown to be primarily concerned with the superficial, showy side of their faith, and actually demonstrate little genuine piety. The character of Bournisien the local priest of Yonville illustrates this point most lucidly with his treatment of Emma in her hour of most need. Having turned to the priest for spiritual guidance she finds him preoccupied with trivial matters and therefore, completely unable to help. In fact he misses her meaning entirely and is mistakenly believes she is suffering from the heat rather than any emotional or spiritual ailment. Ironically, he references his role as a person who is required to take care of the soul, but it seems his words are merely lip service to the true meaning and aims of the church, ‘“He takes care of the bodies,” he added, with a heavy sigh, “and I look after the souls.”’ The inadequacy of religion is again brought to our attention when Emma moves straight the interior of a different church into an elicit affair with Leon; the reader cannot help but ponder if she would have made this decision had the church guide provided her with more spiritual direction rather than a tour of its physicality.
Class distinctions in Madame Bovary are proven to be of vital importance, often illustrated by the nature and quantity of food. Charles’s atrocious eating habits show his lack of sophistication and highlight Emma’s disgust of her husband and her desire for social refinement. In contrast to Charles, the table manners of the nobles at the ball are highly dignified and the foods exotic, showing that how a person eats and what they eat can be seen as an indicator of their social class. No character places greater significance on social class than Emma Bovary herself. She reflects Flaubert’s opinions of the middle class in many ways: she is bored by Homais’s lengthy speeches and is generally dissatisfied with the attitudes of those in her class. However, Flaubert’s use of a detached narrator and variation between character points of view, allows us to observe the protagonist critically. After all, Emma is also a member of the bourgeoisie. With regard to religion, she too is drawn to sensation rather than piety, as illustrated by her fascination with the sounds of religious words and the pictures in her prayer book during her time at the convent. It seems that Emma’s original attraction to religion is not dissimilar to the superficial nature of the Church that she meets later in the novel.
Emma’s attitudes to her own class offer a valuable insight into the character of the bourgeois class. She feels stifled by the confines of middle class society, and as a result becomes trapped in a self-destructive cycle; she moves from romantic indulgence to disappointment, followed by illness and subsequent new moral determination - only to begin the cycle again with a new romantic indulgence. Her disgust towards her class is summed up by the content of a conversation with Rodolphe: ‘And they talked about the mediocrity of provincial life, so suffocating, so fatal to all noble dreams.’ Emma blames the trappings of a bourgeois life on her husband, whose incompetence and laziness prevent him from improving in his career. As a result, he is unable to gain higher social status and Emma continues to feel dissatisfied with life. She cannot accept the world as it is but neither does she have the power to change her lot. This makes it very easy for her to romanticize the lives of the upper classes, believing that Rodolphe could not possibly evoke pity as he is both free and rich.
In Flaubert’s time, women did not posses the power to transcend their social class. Although Leon and Emma have similar romantic fantasies, only Leon is able to escape to the city and Emma must remain in Yonville to fulfill her role as wife and mother. Emma’s only opportunity to escape lies in the hands of men, thus making her desires entirely reliant on others. Emma is aware of this control in relation to Charles, ‘wasn’t he the obstacle to every kind of happiness, the cause of all her wretchedness,’ but fails to recognise that the likes of Leon and Rodolphe could inflict the same feeling of wretchedness. As a result she constantly risks disappointment with her lovers. Rodolphe has the power to whisk her away and provide the lifestyle she wishes for, but he chooses to abandon her. In this respect, nineteenth century society forces women to be spectators of their own lives, with no control over the progression of their social status aside from that which their husband grants. The only command Emma has over her future is by means of exercising sexual power, a course of action that leads her to commit adultery but still fails to free her from her middle class confinement. The use of sexual power returns to mock her when Guillaumin tries to use her body as currency, thus degrading and reclaiming her sexual power as his own, as Orr suggests: ‘Guillaumin represents the raw reality of patriarchal power, its impregnable strength and intransigence, covered by a civilised veneer.’
Emma Bovary, trapped by her sex and a middle class, incompetent husband is frequently pictured gazing out of a window. Such acts are symbolic of her desire to escape, but inability to become a part of what she craves. Rousset notes that ‘the window is a favourite place for certain Flaubert characters who, though unable to move by themselves, are nevertheless swept away by the current of events.’ This use of window imagery emphasises the role of women as spectators, ‘Madame Bovary had opened her window that gave on to the garden, and was watching the clouds.’ Not only do windows provide an outlet for Emma’s speculation on experience outside of her social sphere, they can also create feelings of despair as she remembers her past or ponders on her confinement. At the other end of the scale, closed windows and drawn windows can often suggest quite the opposite, implying contentment with reality rather than an obsession with fantasy. This can be seen in the scene where Emma and Leon make love in the carriage with the curtains drawn; suggesting a movement away from fantastical aspirations on Emma’s part.
As a realist novelist Flaubert is notorious for providing intricate details and in doing so we are provided with the particulars of society as a whole, ranging from the guests of a village wedding to the nobles attending a ball. This use of peripheral characters often contrasts Emma’s station in life and succeeds in making us aware of her life as part of the bourgeoisie. Rodolphe and the Marquis d’Andervillier’s ball provide us with examples of the wealthy and noble classes, while Berthe’s wet nurse, the club-footed Hippolyte and the blind beggar represent the poor, lower classes. This helps to provide a context and a perspective with which to regard Emma’s situation from. Although she is unhappy with her lot, there are many who are content with much less, a point illustrated by Catherine Lhereux who is awarded a medal for fifty-four years of service on the same farm – she is portrayed as a woman happy to accept her lot and is successful in doing so. Ironically, at this moment in the novel Emma is intertwining fingers with Rodolphe as she moves towards the act of adultery. Emma concept of love is based on her romantic fantasies of noblemen who can sweep her off her feet and provide her with a lavish lifestyle. She appears to reject the notion that she could find love in her everyday life, despite the fact that her husband is far nobler than the objects of her affection.
Despite Emma’s aspirations and attempts at sophistications she is often betrayed by her roots; she adores the opera but plays it down to Leon in order to look better educated. And she is eventually degraded to the role of beggar when she finds herself in deep financial strive. Whatever Emma is doing, her past remains in the background and is sometimes pulled to the fore within the narration of the present. This can be seen in Chapter VI of Part I where Flaubert inserts a recollection of Emma’s past as she enters into her new life with Charles, ‘She had read Paul and Virginia, and had dreamed of the bamboo cabin.’ This serves to remind us that she can never fully escape her origins. Should we need any further clarification, a window is broken at the ball which allows her to view the peasants peering in from outside and forces her to remember her simple country life as a girl.
Flaubert concentrates on portraying the somewhat negative aspects of the bourgeoisie and in this respect the ending is read as ironic and frustrating. The protagonist is absent from the conclusion of the novel, with the focus on Homais who receives the cross of the Legion of Honour, ‘the devil himself doesn’t have a greater following than the pharmacist.’ This ending suggests the unfair nature of reward and retribution; it is the embodiment of all that is wrong with the bourgeois class – the mediocre and the selfish – that receive praise and ultimately fare better than those who either live passionately or humbly. This seems a fair conclusion in light of Flaubert’s position as a realist novelist.
Bibliography
Critical Essays on Gustave Flaubert, Laurence M Porter (G.K Hall and Co, 1986)
Madame Bovary, Gustave Flaubert (David Campbell, 1993)
Madame Bovary, Representations of the Masculine, Mary Orr (Peter Lang, 1999)
The Greatness of Flaubert, Maurice Nadeau (Alcove Press, 1972)
