Madame Bovary Week One

 3. Why does Emma find the ball at La Vaubyésssard so important? Notice the way others treat her – does she belong to this society? Why or why not?

From a very early age, Emma becomes obsessed with social status.  This could be a lot to do with the fact that she never really received attention in her childhood and so she seeks attention through society as an adult.  Either way, Emma is so consumed by this ball because for her this will represent her social status and then she will be accepted as an important figure in her community.  The main problem with this is that Emma clearly does not belong to this higher society and they make note of this by treating her like a child or fool.  Emma does not belong to this society simply because she is just that: a child.  She is extremely naive and she does not understand the responsibility of being a part of this society.  Emma has an idealized image of this society as being beautiful and having lots of glamorous balls which is why she will never belong because she does not see beyond that.   

 5. Discuss Emma’s pregnancy. Who in truth “carries” the pregnancy? Emma? Why or why not? What does the novel say about maternity?

Emma's pregnancy is really just a tactic for Emma to be pampered and have all of the attention on her for the time being.  The person who really "carried" the pregnancy is the midwife.  It was very common during this time period for the mother to carry the baby and give birth to the child, then once the baby was born, they would take a period of time to rest while a midwife cared for the newborn infant.  Therefore, Emma really did not do anything during her pregnancy, it was those around her who really took care of the pregnancy.  What this says about maternity is that it really does not exist at least not during this time period.  Emma's mother was not close to Emma, and in return, Emma is not very close with her daughter.  Ultimately, maternity means giving birth to the child and that is it.  The actual cannot be bothered with little tasks such as changing the baby because it is important for them to regain their strength so they can stay beautiful.  Therefore, maternity is very false at this time especially with Emma.