Classic Authors: Gustave Flaubert

Gustave Flaubert was born on December 12, 1821, in Rouen, France. The child entered a family of doctors; his father served as the chief surgeon at the Rouen municipal hospital and his maternal grandfather worked as a physician. Gustave had two siblings: a brother, nine years his senior, to whom he was never close; and a sister, whom he adored. The children spent most of their days under the care of a nurse named Julie, who worked for the family until her death in 1883. As a young boy, Gustave suffered from illness and delicate health, a condition which seemed to plague him throughout his life.

Gustave’s education began with lessons from his mother. When he was 9 years old, he entered the College Royal de Rouen, a strict, military-like institution. Throughout his school years, Gustave displayed an interest in writing books and plays. Between the ages of 11 and 14, he composed many works. At 14, he began writing philosophical tales. In 1842, Gustave began to study law. Two years later, however, his father withdrew him from law school due to further illness. Epilepsy was the official diagnosis.

In 1846, Gustave’s father died, leaving the young man an inheritance which enabled him to not only keep the family estate at Croisset, but also to write full-time. The death of his sister pained Gustave deeply, but it also proved fortuitous to his love life. A sculptor had been hired to create a portrait bust of his sister; when Gustave brought her death mask to the artist, he met Louise Colet, a beautiful poet who was posing for the sculptor. The young couple plunged into an ill-starred affair, which ended in 1855. Louise hardly represented the end of Gustave’s romantic life; he was known to have taken many, many mistresses and a good number of prostitutes as well.

Between 1849 and 1851, Gustave traveled with writer Maxime du Camp to North Africa, Syria, Turkey, Greece and Italy. He also began working on his first novel, Madame Bovary(1856). The novel, generally considered to be his masterpiece, told the story of Emma Bovary and her revolt against her middle-class life. The story slams the lifestyle of the bourgeois, which Flaubert despised. The book’s frank discussion of adultery got Gustave into legal trouble; he was prosecuted because of his story’s immorality, but he was acquitted in 1857.

Gustave Flaubert continued to write, producing such books as Salammbo(1862), Sentimental Education(1869), and The Temptation of Saint Anthony (1874). He demanded perfection in his writing and spent many hours writing and re-writing scenes until they met his own exacting standards. His skill earned him the reputation of a great writer and intellect, and he enjoyed much success as such in Napoleon III’s court.

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