Flaubert biography. Who is Gustave Flaubert? In search of true love. On the way to self-destruction

French writer often referred to as a creator modern novel. Born December 12, 1821 in Rouen, where his father was the chief physician of one of the local hospitals. From 1823 to 1840 Flaubert studied at the Royal College of Rouen, where he did not achieve much success, but showed an interest in history and a great love of literature. He read not only the romantics fashionable at that time, but also Cervantes and Shakespeare. At school, he met the future poet L. Buie (1822-1869), who became his true friend for life.

In 1840 Flaubert was sent to Paris to study law. After studying for three years, he failed to pass the exams, but made friends with the writer and journalist M. Du Can (1822-1894), who became his travel companion. In 1843, Flaubert was diagnosed with a nervous disease similar to epilepsy, and he was prescribed a sedentary lifestyle.
After the death of his father in 1846, he returned to the estate of Croisset near Rouen, took care of his mother and was mainly engaged in literature. Fortunately, he had a fortune that saved him from the need to earn a living with a pen or in other ways. In the same way, he was able to fulfill his dream of travel and devote many years to writing a single novel. He perfected his style with the utmost attention, being distracted only by professional conversations with the Goncourt brothers, I. Taine, E. Zola, G. Maupassant and I. S. Turgenev. Even his illustrious love story associated with the poetess Louise Colet, and in their extensive correspondence main theme there were literary problems.

Flaubert was brought up on the works of F. Chateaubriand and V. Hugo and gravitated toward the romantic way of depicting. All his life he sought to suppress the lyric-romantic beginning in himself for the sake of the most objective image of everyday reality. Early in writing, he soon became aware of the conflict between his goal and the inclinations of his nature. The first of his published novels is Madame Bovary (1857).

A great work of literature, Madame Bovary marked a turning point in the development of the modern novel. Flaubert worked through each sentence in search of the famous "right word". His interest in the form of the novel, successfully realized in the unique structure of Madame Bovary, had a strong influence on subsequent writers who set as their goal the creation of new forms and techniques - G. James, J. Conrad, J. Joyce, M. Proust and many others.

In 1862 appeared historical novel Flaubert's "Salambo", in 1869 - the novel of manners "Education of the Senses", in 1874 - "The Temptation of St. Anthony", in 1877 - "Three Tales"; then Flaubert began to work hard on his long-conceived favorite work, the novel Bouvard and Pécuchet, but did not have time to finish it; of the proposed two volumes, Flaubert wrote only one, and that does not have the completeness of Flaubert's other works. The end of Flaubert's life was sad: he suffered from a severe nervous illness, was gloomy and irritable, broke off relations with his best friend, Maxime Ducan; his mother died, his financial situation worsened, since he ceded a significant part of his fortune to poor relatives. Flaubert did not experience complete loneliness in his old age, thanks to the tender cares of his niece, Mme Commanville, as well as friendship with George Sand; Guy de Maupassant, the son of one of his childhood friends, also gave him great consolation; Flaubert took care of the development of his young talent and was for him a strict and attentive teacher. Illness and heavy literary work exhausted Flaubert's strength early; he died of apoplexy. In 1890, a monument was erected to him in Rouen, the work of the famous sculptor Chapu.

Gustave Flaubert (fr. Gustave Flaubert). Born December 12, 1821 in Rouen - died May 8, 1880 in Croisset. French realist prose writer, considered one of the greatest European writers of the 19th century. He worked a lot on the style of his works, putting forward the theory of the "exact word" (le mot juste). He is best known as the author of Madame Bovary (1856).

Gustave Flaubert was born on December 12, 1821 in the city of Rouen into a petty bourgeois family. His father was a surgeon in the hospital of Rouen, and his mother was the daughter of a doctor. He was youngest child in family. In addition to Gustave, the family had two children: an older sister and brother. Two other children did not survive. The writer spent his childhood bleakly in the doctor's dark apartment.

The writer studied at the Royal College and Lyceum in Rouen, starting in 1832. There he met Ernest Chevalier, with whom he founded Art et Progress in 1834. In this edition, he first printed his first public text.

In 1836 he met Eliza Schlesinger, who had a profound influence on the writer. He carried his silent passion through his whole life and displayed it in the novel "Education of the Senses".

The youth of the writer is associated with provincial cities France, which he repeatedly described in his work. In 1840 Flaubert entered the faculty of law in Paris. There he led a bohemian life, met with many famous people, wrote a lot. He dropped out of school in 1843 after his first epileptic stroke. In 1844, the writer settled on the banks of the Seine, not far from Rouen. Flaubert's lifestyle was characterized by isolation, the desire for self-isolation. He tried to devote time and energy to literary creativity.

In 1846 his father died, and after some time his sister. His father left him a solid inheritance on which he could live comfortably.

Flaubert returned to Paris in 1848 to take part in the Revolution. From 1848 to 1852 he traveled to the East. He visited Egypt and Jerusalem, through Constantinople and Italy. He wrote down his impressions and used them in his works.

Since 1855, in Paris, Flaubert has been visiting many writers, including the Goncourt brothers, Baudelaire, and also meets with.

In July 1869 he was greatly shocked by the death of his friend Louis Boulay. There is evidence that Flaubert had love affairs with his mother, which is why they had friendly relations.

During the occupation of France by Prussia, Flaubert hid in Rouen with his mother and niece. His mother died in 1872 and at that time the writer had already started having problems with money. There are health problems as well. He sells his property, leaves an apartment in Paris. He publishes his works one after another.

The last years of the writer's life were overshadowed by financial problems, health problems and the betrayal of friends.

Gustave Flaubert died on May 8, 1880 as a result of a stroke. Many writers attended the funeral, including Alphonse Daudet, Edmond Goncourt and others.

Flaubert's writings:

"Memoirs of a Madman" / fr. Memoires d "un fou, 1838
"November" / fr. Novembre, 1842
"Education of the senses", 1843-1845
"Madam Bovary. Provincial manners” / fr. Madame Bovary, 1857
"Salambo" / fr. Salammbô, 1862
"Education of the senses" / fr. L "Education sentimentale, 1869
"The Temptation of Saint Anthony" / fr. La Tentation de Saint Antoine, 1874
"Three stories" / fr. Trois contes, 1877
Bouvard and Pécuchet, 1881

Film adaptations of Flaubert:

Madame Bovary (dir. Jean Renoir), France, 1933
Madame Bovary (dir. Vincente Minnelli), 1949
Education of the Senses (dir. Marcel Cravenne), France, 1973
Save and Save (dir. A. Sokurov), USSR, 1989
Madame Bovary (dir. Claude Chabrol), France, 1991
Lady Maya (Maya Memsaab), (dir. Ketan Mehta), 1992, (based on the novel "Madame Bovary")
Madame Bovary (dir. Tim Fievell), 2000
Night after night / All nights (Toutes les nuits), (dir. Eugene Green), (based on), 2001
Simple soul (Un coeur simple), (dir. Marion Lane), 2008
Madame Bovary (dir. Sophie Barthez), 2014

(1821-12-12 )

The youth of the writer is associated with the provincial cities of France, which he repeatedly described in his work. In the year Flaubert entered the Faculty of Law in Paris, but dropped out of school.

Flaubert's personal life was not easy. Not wanting to put his offspring at risk (he was diagnosed with epilepsy in childhood), he did not marry and did not continue his family, although he had several mistresses. After all, despite his average height, Flaubert made an impression on women who liked his green eyes and slightly curly hair. He was known as an athlete, fond of swimming, canoeing and horseback riding.

V last years Flaubert's life was plagued by misfortune: the death of his friend Bouillet in 1869, the occupation of the estate by the advancing enemy army during the Franco-Prussian War, and finally serious financial difficulties. He did not experience commercial success when publishing his books, which for a long time caused rejection by critics. Gustave Flaubert died on May 8 of the year as a result of a stroke.

Bibliography

Compositions:

• Sobr. cit.: in 8 volumes - M., 1933-1938;
• Sobr. cit.: in 5 volumes - M., 1956;
• Literature, art, writing. Letters. Articles: in 2 volumes - M., .

Critical Literature:

• Trenchekova V.D.- "Cinematic potential in Flaubert's Madame Bovary"
• Dezhurov A.S. Objective novel by G. Flaubert "Madame Bovary" // Foreign literature of the XIX century. Workshop for students, graduate students, philologists and high school students of humanitarian schools. M., . - S. 304-319.
• Ivashchenko A.F. Gustave Flaubert. From the history of realism in France. - M.,;
• Morua A. Literary portraits. - M., . - S. 175-190;
• Puzikov. Ideological and artistic views of Flaubert // Puzikov. Five portraits. - M., . - S. 68-124;
• Reizov B. G. Flaubert's work. - M.,;
• Khrapovitskaya G. N. Gustave Flaubert // History foreign literature XIX century. - Part 2. - M.,. - S. 215-223.

Links

• Russian site of Gustave Flaubert Biography, bibliography, texts of works, letters, gallery, forum.
• Library of French Literature - novels in Russian and French; Maurois, Nabokov on Madame Bovary
• Collected works in French - apparently the most complete collection of Flaubert on the Internet
• "The Temptation of St. Anthony", Letters - version of 1856, translated by M. Petrovsky, Correspondence 1830-1880

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Gustave Flaubert was born on December 12, 1821 in the family of a famous surgeon, spent all his childhood and youth at the hospital where his father's apartment was located. Flaubert himself thought from an early age that he was destined for a different career, although he began to write already in his teens. Interest in life, but more than death, which largely determined the semantic core of future works, was born here, within the walls of the Rouen hospital, when, as a boy, secretly from his parents, Gustave made his way into the autopsy room and watched the bodies disfigured by death.

After receiving his initial education at the Royal College of Rouen, in 1840 Flaubert went to Paris to study law. This decision was not dictated by the heart: jurisprudence did not in the least interest the young man. In the most romantic capital of the world, he lives more than secluded, he has practically no comrades.

After studying for three years at the Sorbonne, Flaubert failed to pass the translation exam. In the same year, he was diagnosed with a disease that resembled epilepsy in symptoms. Doctors strongly recommend Gustave to lead a sedentary lifestyle, and constant seizures, from which he saw salvation only in taking hot baths, plague him. To find salvation from sickness future writer goes to Italy.

The year 1845 radically changes his life vector: his father dies, and then his beloved sister, Carolina. Flaubert takes care of the daughter of her sister and her husband, and also decides to return home to his mother in order to overcome the pain of loss with her. Together with her, they settled on a small, picturesque estate in Croisset, near Rouen. From now on, Flaubert's whole life will be connected with this place, which he left for a long time only twice.

The inheritance received allowed Flaubert not to know material worries, having no official service, he daily and painstakingly worked on his works.

In line with the then dominant romanticism in literature, his first stories were written: Memoirs of a Madman (1838) and November (1842). But in the novel "Education of the Senses", which did not see the light of day, work on which lasted from 1843 to 1845, the notes of realism are clearly traced.

By 1846, the beginning of his relationship with Louise Colet, a well-known writer in those days, whom he met in Paris, dates back. This affair, lasting eight years, was the longest affection in Flaubert's life. Due to the fact that the writer was very afraid to pass on his illness by inheritance, he, not wanting to continue his family, did not propose to anyone, although he was always popular with women.

Glory fell on Flaubert when, in 1856, his first novel Madame Bovary, which is the writer's hallmark, was published in the Revue de Paris magazine. Painstakingly, day after day, for five years, thinking over every written word, Flaubert wrote a book about how illusion can destroy reality. The plot is simple: an unremarkable, more than ordinary bourgeois woman, in order to add color to her life, starts two intrigues, not noticing that loving person was always there.

The novel, which ended in the suicide of the heroine, made a lot of noise. The author and editors of the magazine were sued for immorality. The sensational trial ended in an acquittal. But in 1864, the Vatican listed Madame Bovary on the Index of Forbidden Books.

The subtlest psychology in revealing the image main character became a real discovery in literature and largely determined the path of development of the entire European novel.

In 1858, Flaubert travels to Africa, bringing not only impressions from the voyage, but also his second novel Salammbo, the action of which takes the reader to ancient Carthage, making him a witness to the love of the daughter of a commander and leader of the barbarians. Historical accuracy and careful attitude to every detail of the story allowed this book to take its rightful place in a number of historical novels.

The third novel of the writer "Education of feelings" is devoted to the theme of the "lost generation".

Gustave Flaubert is one of the most prominent figures in the French literature XIX century. He was called a master of the "exact word", a recluse of the "ivory tower", a "martyr and fanatic of style". He was admired, he was quoted, they learned from him, he was accused of immorality, he was taken to court and yet justified, because no one could doubt Flaubert's talent as a writer and his devotion to the art of the word.

Unlike contemporary writers, Gustave Flaubert never used the laurels that fame gives. He lived as a recluse on his estate in Croisset, avoiding bohemian evenings and public performances, he did not chase circulation, did not bother publishers, and therefore did not make a fortune on his masterpieces. Like a fanatic in love, he had no idea how to commercialize literature, believing that art should not bring money. The source of inspiration for him was work - everyday painstaking work, that's all.

Many resort to dubious sources of inspiration - alcohol, drug intoxication, women, whom they call muses. Flaubert called all this the tricks of charlatans and excuses of lazy people. “I lead a harsh life, devoid of any external joy, and the only support for me is the constant inner rage ... I love my work with a frantic and perverted love, like an ascetic sackcloth scratching his body.”

Gustave was the third child in the family of a Rouen doctor named Flaubert. The boy was born on December 12, 1821. The scenery of his childhood was a meager bourgeois apartment and his father's operating room. In the surgical procedures performed by Father Flaubert, little Gustave found some special poetics. He was not afraid of the sight of blood, on the contrary, he liked to peep through a crack or a cloudy hospital glass at the progress of the operation. From childhood, the younger Flaubert had a passion for all kinds of anomalies, deformities, deviations, diseases. This shaped his future literary style - meticulous attention to detail and naturalism. Well, Flaubert made a masterful metaphor of illnesses, transferring them from the physical to the spiritual plane. Since then, the writer began to depict the moral ailments of mankind.

At the age of 12, Flaubert was sent to the Royal College of Rouen. Gustave went to receive higher education in Paris. Unlike most young provincials, Flaubert was not impressed by the capital. He didn't like the rhythm big city, street bustle, depravity and idleness of youth. He does not indulge in unbridled fun, attending only a few bohemian circles. To jurisprudence, which the young man chose as a future profession, he almost immediately lost interest.

The best moments of study

The main achievement of his studies was friendship. So, at college, Flaubert met Buje, the future poet, and at the university - with the writer, journalist Du Can. Gustave carried friendship with these people throughout his life.

In the third year, Flaubert had an epileptic attack, the doctors diagnosed a severe nervous disease and forbade the patient to moral and mental stress. The university had to and Paris had to leave. Flaubert did not grieve for either. With a light heart, he left the hated capital for the family estate, which was located in the town of Croisset. Here he lived almost without a break until his death, only a few times leaving the family nest to travel to the East.

Madame Bovary: the birth of a masterpiece

When Gustave was diagnosed with epilepsy, Flaubert's father died. He left his son a substantial fortune. Gustave no longer needed to worry about tomorrow, and therefore he lived quietly in Croisset, doing his favorite thing - literature.

Flaubert wrote from a young age. The first attempts at writing were an imitation of the romantics fashionable at that time. However, demanding of himself, Flaubert did not publish a single line. He did not want to blush in front of the public for discordant attempts at writing, his literary debut should be perfect.

In 1851, Flaubert set to work on Madame Bovary. For five years, he painstakingly writes out line after line. Sometimes the writer sits for days on one page, making endless edits, and finally, in 1856, "Madame Bovary" appears on the shelves of bookstores. The work created a huge public outcry. Flaubert was criticized, accused of immorality, even a lawsuit was initiated against him, but no one could doubt the literary skill of the author. Gustave Flaubert immediately became the most famous French writer.

The author called Emma Bovary his alter ego (note that there is no positive hero characteristic of the romantic tradition). The main similarity between Flaubert and his Bovary was the passion to dream of an ideal fake life. Faced with reality, Flaubert realized that sweet dreams kill like slow-acting poison. Anyone who is unable to part with them is doomed to death.

"Salambo", "Education of the Senses", "Buvard and Pécuchet"

Flaubert's second novel came out five years later in 1862. "Salambo" is the result of the writer's journey through Africa and the East. The historical background of the work was the uprising of mercenaries in ancient Carthage. The events described date back to the 3rd century BC. e. As a true perfectionist, Flaubert painstakingly studies numerous sources about Carthage. As a result, critics accused the author of being too attentive to historical details, due to which the work lost its spirituality, and the images lost their psychologism and artistic depth. The public, however, was delighted with the second novel by the author of Madame Bovary, whose fame had already thundered far beyond the borders of France. "Salambo" successfully survived the second publication, and French ladies began to appear more and more in public in fashionable Punic-style dresses.

The third novel, "Education of the Senses", published in 1869, was greeted coolly, interest in it was revived only after the death of the writer. But the last work "Bouvard and Pécuchet" Flaubert called his favorite. Alas, the author failed to complete the work. The novel, which dissects human stupidity, was published after the writer's death in 1881.

When, after the successful publication of Madame Bovary, Flaubert woke up famous, he was not intoxicated by the frenzied fame. At first, the author defended his literary brainchild in court, and after the acquittal, he said goodbye to the enthusiastic public and locked himself in his mother's house in Croisset.

At the same time, Flaubert breaks off relations with the fashionable French poetess Louise Colet (nee Revoile). Her poems were very popular in the best Parisian salons. As the wife of a professor at the conservatory, Hippolyte Cole, she had affairs with celebrities without a twinge of conscience. Her attention was not spared by the popular writers of Chateaubriand, Beranger, Sainte-Beuve, who gladly wrote their authoritative reviews on the first pages of her poetry collections.

Roman Flaubert and Colet was passionate, impulsive, vicious. The lovers quarreled and parted in order to reconcile and get back together. Breaking with his illusions, Flaubert mercilessly debunks the romanticized image of Colet, created by his sentimental imagination. “Oh, better love art than me,” writes Flaubert in his farewell letter, “I love the idea…”

After breaking up with Colet, Flaubert finds an outlet in communication with the widow Maupassant and her young son Guy. The venerable writer became a teacher for the boy, an inspirer, escorted into the world of great literature. The student did not deceive the expectations of his great teacher, climbing to the same level with him. Unfortunately, Flaubert did not live to see the triumph of Maupassant as a writer, did not share the joy of the success of the short story "Dumbnut", which he personally approved for publication, did not hold the fresh volumes of "Dear Friend" and "Life" in his hands.

In the last years of his life, Flaubert was ill a lot and was in extremely tight financial circumstances (the inheritance began to come to an end, and the writer's novels were not commercially successful). Gustave Flaubert died at the age of 59 from a stroke at his home in Croisset.