Homais et le journal
In Madame Bovary the figure of Homais is inseparable from the newspaper, a marker that specifies him. This article aims to show that this double novelistic existence is subjected to the same logic of invalidity by the novelist: the chemist is the typical character whom Flaubert despises, provincial...
Saved in:
| Main Author: | |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | fra |
| Published: |
Institut des Textes & Manuscrits Modernes (ITEM)
2017-06-01
|
| Series: | Flaubert: Revue Critique et Génétique |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://journals.openedition.org/flaubert/2743 |
| Tags: |
Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
|
| Summary: | In Madame Bovary the figure of Homais is inseparable from the newspaper, a marker that specifies him. This article aims to show that this double novelistic existence is subjected to the same logic of invalidity by the novelist: the chemist is the typical character whom Flaubert despises, provincial bourgeoisie, the language of stupidity… As for the press - this writing of haste, ephemeral, industrial, commercial -, it is totally opposed to the ideal of the artist’s writing, slow, ripened, stylistically elaborated, striving for eternity. For Homais the daily paper is the source of his conversation, his culture, making him interesting so he can play a role in the small town of Yonville and in the novel. He is its reader, its repeater, but journalist as well, and it is by this means that he displays his self-glorious personality. The newspaper not only permits the construction of his ethos, but its articles also play a dramatic role, for they rhythm the events of the novel while raising ethical issues. Last, the specificity of his style that projects his personality is subject to an esthetic reflection and a critical questioning by the novelist in this century when language is undergoing a crisis. |
|---|---|
| ISSN: | 1969-6191 |