The Tragic Love Triangle of Madame Bovary by Gustave FlubertGustave Flubert's masterpiece, Madame Bovary, was first published in 1857. The novel shocked many of his readers and it caused a chain reaction that spread across France and ultimately called for the prosecution of the perpetrator. Since that time, however, Madame Bovary has been recognized by literary critics as the model of the current literary period, the period of the realistic novel. It is now considered a novel of great value and which contains an important and moving plot. Furthermore, it provides a standard against which to compare the works of writers to follow. It is almost impossible to truly understand modern European and American fiction without reading Madame Bovary. Charles Bovary, the only son of a middle-class family, became a doctor and opened his practice in a rural village. Then he married a woman who was much older than him. He was unhappily married to her saying that "her clothes barely hung from her bony body", this was right before her death. Upon his wife's death, Charles married an attractive young woman named Emma Roualt, the daughter of one of his patients. Emma married Charles with overwhelming expectations. He thought the wedding would be filled with three things: “bliss, passion and ecstasy.” Emma had a 1) dissatisfied 2) adulterous and 3) prodigal character. For a while she was excited and satisfied with her marriage, but overwhelmed by her new life, she quickly became dissatisfied. Due to his dissatisfaction he became mentally ill. For health reasons the Bovaries moved to a new town, Yonville, where their daughter was born. Emma's unhappiness continued and she began to have romantic feelings towards Leon, a young law clerk. After Leon left town to attend law school. Emma's boredom and frustration became more intense after Leon left. She began to forget her role as a wife and mother. Charles tried many times to please her, but none of his efforts were successful, and she neither appreciated nor understood Charles' love for her. Emma eventually had an adulterous affair with Rodolphe, a local