Renewal of the Amorous Encounter Stereotype in Gustave Flaubert's Sentimental Education
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Gustave Flaubert, Sentimental Education, romantic encounter, parody, idealization, Madame Arnoux, Frederic Moreau, literary analysis, Nineteenth century French literature
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Abstract
Gustave Flaubert's Sentimental Education, published in 1869, is a novel of learning that follows the journey of Frédéric Moreau, a young man disillusioned by the bourgeois society he aspires to join. The story begins with a pivotal scene: Frédéric's first encounter with Madame Arnoux, a married woman. Flaubert masterfully subverts the stereotype of the amorous encounter, presenting it as both an extraordinary apparition and a parody of romantic clichés. Through Frédéric's idealization of Madame Arnoux and the prosaic reality of her situation, Flaubert skillfully contrasts the romantic and the mundane. The scene is characterized by Frédéric's clumsy and ridiculous behavior, while Madame Arnoux is portrayed as a figure of mystery and subtlety. As Frédéric's imagination runs wild, Flaubert's writing renews the codes of the amorous topos, creating a singular and captivating narrative that explores the complexities of love, reality, and disillusionment. Discover how Flaubert's innovative writing transforms the classic romantic encounter in this timeless literary masterpiece.
Extract
[...] The hyperbole reinforces the ridiculous side of Frédéric. We should also note that there is an important contrast between the intensity of the encounter experienced by Frédéric and the banality or even flatness of what is sometimes described as the 'basket of work ». We therefore see that Frédéric is prey to a total idealization with regard to this young woman. The parody of the romantic side of this encounter is also carried out through the situation itself of Madame Arnoux, who is both married and the mother of a seven-year-old child. [...]
[...] The very detailed physical description of the young woman shows all of Frédéric's attention to observe her. Frédéric goes to approach her 'he made several turns to the right and to the left then he planted himself'. Thus the young man is in motion while the young woman remains in a fixed position. These numerous movements of the young man like the passage 'At the same time as he passed, she raised her head » will give the scene a dramatized character. [...]
[...] For the latter, it is a real thunderbolt. We will see in which Gustave Flaubert renews by his writing the stereotype of the amorous encounter In a first movement, we will examine in what way this encounter is exceptional through the appearance of the woman, her portrait and the dramatic character of the encounter. In a second movement, we will analyze how Flaubert makes a parody of the romantic encounter, through the ridiculous character of the character of Frédéric and the situation of the idealized woman. [...]
[...] This scene of first encounter is thus totally renewed by Flaubert who revisits the codes of the amorous topos by using very marked contrasts between the idealization of Frédéric taken in romantic clichés and the more prosaic reality of Madame Arnoux's situation. He makes this scene a true parody. We are far from the attitude of the Duke of Nemours when the first encounter between him and the Princess of Clèves takes place. Flaubert skillfully detours the codes of the amorous encounter while describing a strong literary scene of amorous encounter. [...]
[...] The apparition is reinforced by the expression couldn't distinguish anyone, in the dazzlement that his eyes sent him ». Thus in addition to the religious term, the author adds the lexical field of light and thus gives this woman a dimension almost supernatural. Frédéric can only see her; he can indeed not see what is happening around him, struck by 'the dazzlement' of this vision, which is similar to a real lightning strike. The portrait of the woman, initially exclusively physical, reveals itself in a second time particularly sensual. [...]
