Gustave Flaubert

"A man, at least, is free; he can explore every passion, every land, overcome obstacles, taste the most distant pleasures. But a woman is continually thwarted. Inert and pliant at the same time, she must struggle against both the softness of her flesh and subjection to the law. Her will, like the veil tied to her hat by a string, flutters with every breeze; there is always some desire luring her on, some convention holding her back."

15 likes

Source: Gustave Flaubert (2010). “Madame Bovary: (Penguin Classics Deluxe Edition)”, p.92, Penguin

About the author

Gustave Flaubert

Gustave Flaubert

Novelist

Gustave Flaubert was a French novelist known for his meticulous style and his influential work, 'Madame Bovary,' which critiques romanticism and explores human emotions.

All quotes by Gustave Flaubert →

Same author

More quotes by Gustave Flaubert

See all →
Gustave Flaubert Novelist

"I will cover you with love when next I see you, with caresses, with ecstasy. I want to gorge you with all the joys of the flesh, so that you faint and die. I want you to be amazed by me, and to confess to yourself that you had never even dreamed of such transports.... When you are old, I want you to recall those few hours, I want your dry bones to quiver with joy when you think of them."

Read quote