Skip to main content

Bovarysme

I just finished reading Madame Bovary which has been cited as one of the best modern novels ever written. I was thinking a lot about Emma and about her delusions throughout the novel. She truly suffers from Bovarysme, which was of course named after her. She dreams for something that is completely unattainable, some glamorous life that doesn't exist in real life.
However, I think that while Emma's actions in the novel were completely contemptable especially in her treatment of Charles I feel as if everyone has these sorts of delusions in their life.
For example, why do romance novels sell thousands of copies of books that are not even a truly good quality: because women love the beautiful idea of true love and passion. Sweetest Day and Valentine's day make intense amounts of money because romanticism and the idea that a woman can be "swept off her feet" and Emma prescribes to this theory throughout the novel looking for a handsome young man who she could be passionate about instead of staying with Charles whose devotion to her would have been any other woman's dream.
And I really feel like so many people have this in real life. Women prescribe to this "prince charming" phenomenon and never see what is actually right in front of them. Why do women continue to go on in this theory? Why is it so impossible to see what's right in front of you? Could Emma have been saved if she would have felt less like this?

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Your Blog: Resume Boost or Liability?

I have recently read two different blogs that have both touched on the same topic. How your blog affects your resume and/or job search. The first was an interview with Sasha Halima, one of my favorite bloggers, at PR Breakfast Club. You can read it here. The second is on Brand Yourself, Your Blog is Your Extended Resume . Brand Yourself argues just what the title says that a blog is an extended resume and that when a potential employer searches for you and finds a blog full of fabulous content, they'll hire you. And while I couldn't agree more that I AGONIZED over the fact that potential employers were most likely Googling me and getting results for some person in Seattle or a Blues Singer in New York the interview with Sasha Halima said something that also struck a chord with me. Your blog can be a "liability." That is the scariest word that any potential employer could ever say because, if you're a liability to them, odds are other potential employers

Shoes

Shoes Shania Twain Tell me about it... Ooh! Men. Have you ever tried to figure them out? Huh, me too, but I ain't got no clue How 'bout you? Men are like shoes Made to confuse Yeah, there's so many of 'em I don't know which ones to choose (yeah, yeah, yeah) Ah, sing it to me If you agree There's the kind made for runnin' The sneakers and the low down heels The kind that will keep you on your toes And every girl knows how that feels (yeah, yeah, yeah) Ouch, ah, sing it with me Chorus: You've got your kickers and your ropers Your everyday loafers, some that you can never find You've got your slippers and your zippers Your grabbers and your grippers Man, don't ya hate that kind? Some you wear in, some you wear out Some you wanna leave behind Sometimes you hate 'em And sometimes you love 'em I guess it all depends on which way you rub 'em But a girl can never have too many of 'em It's amazing what a little polish will do... Men ar

Julie & Julia

Today Megan (my cousin) took me to Julie & Julia (we got in free because she works there). It was a really good movie, which made me happy because I had heard some people hadn't liked it and thought it was a slow movie, but I loved it. If you haven't seen the movie the basic premise is that Julie (Powell, the author of the book the movie is based from) works her way through Julia (Childs, the world renowned cook) cookbook. She gives herself 365 days and there were 540-ish recipes in the cookbook. She then wrote a blog about it, which became really famous, she was offered book deals, etc. But the point of the movie was that she decided to do something, gave herself a deadline, accomplished it, and it changed her life. So, when I came home I was 1. Hungry (I can't watch food and not want to eat...its the reason I can't watch the food network) 2. Inspired...I decided to cook something...experimentally too. I made soup that I used canned chicken noodle soup and s