Gustave Flaubert's Madame Bovary and its modern parallels

The 1856 French novel Madame Bovary by Gustave Flaubert faced legal charges for obscenity and insulting religion due to its intimate portrayal of an adulterous protagonist. Although Flaubert was eventually cleared of these charges, the book became a global bestseller.

Literary critics note that the character of Emma Bovary embodies a form of romanticism where her intellectual and moral life is detached from reality. This detachment is increasingly compared to the modern, atomized self, which is characterized by a dependency on digital technologies and smartphones that can impact cognitive performance and attention.