Reflective Statement (307 words)
In Madame Bovary, class structure is a very important and relevant to both the plot and understanding the characters and the choices they make. During the interactive oral, class structure was explained and we dove into the book and how it relates. Most obviously involved with social class is Emma Bovary, the girl who grew up on a farm and found her way into a more fanciful and civilized life. The farm setting was anything but pleasant for Emma, and we understand that she will do anything to move up a class. That comes in the form of Charles, a lowly doctor with only a slightly more elegant life than her. The point was brought up that Emma married Charles to escape the life of a farm girl and to obtain the high status life she so greatly desired. The irony of the situation is that Charles is anything but rich, even though he is a doctor. I brought up the fact that even if his job is a generally high paying one, Charles does not care enough about the money or the job to work hard enough for the large pay Emma desires.
The nest thing we talked about was Emma and her affairs with Leon and Rudolfo. The main cause behind her looking for another man was her lack of satisfaction with Charles. Emma wanted a rich and fanciful life that Charles couldn’t provide for. Leon and Rudolfo were an interest for Emma because they were in the upper middle class as opposed to the lower middle class. Even if the two men weren’t the richest of the rich or lived in palaces, Leon was still going to Paris. Although they had to work for what they had and were not bourgeoisie, Emma still saw them as a stepping stone to the greater things in life, something she had never had before.
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