Critical Insights

Considered a prolific pioneer of literary realism and one of the founders of modern fiction, French author Gustave Flaubert is known for his strong sense of style and obsession with le mot juste (the right word). This volume examines Flaubert's quest for literary perfection, his extensive correspondence with such contemporaries as Ivan Turgenev and Guy de Maupassant, and his most famous work, Madame Bovary.