Full disclosure: I haven't read Madame Bovary (yet).
Context: I was watching a documentary about Gustave Flaubert, and they were talking about his major works, so, of course, Madame Bovary came up.
Basically Emma Bovary is trying to find love through men/relationships but is never satisfied because 1) she can't find the perfect person 2) she doesn't know it but she's actually not looking for love, she's looking for happiness, but society has persuaded her that she would find it through love because a) woman and b) bienseance/expectations/…
My friend is exactly the same. She is addicted to Tinder because she wants "true love" but is never satisfied because there is always better available on the app. And of course she will never find the perfect partner because he doesn't exist! So she makes herself unhappy (and is also a bit annoying because for some reason she thinks I'm unhappy being single…)
I'm debating gifting it to her because she's not very interested in reading (but often says she would like to read more) and it's not a very "easy" read. Plus I'm not sure if this is too subtle/not subtle enough.
Thoughts? I know my comparison is probably lacking any nuance, but do you think it holds? Who do you think the modern Emma Bovary would be? (Is Flaubert screaming right now)
by dirac37