Similarities between Madame Bovary and L'ÉveilCenturies ago, in France, Gustave Flaubert wrote Madame Bovary. In 1899, Kate Chopin wrote L'Eveil. Years cannot separate the books, nor can the obvious similarities the two show. Madame Bovary is the story of a woman who is not satisfied with her life and is looking for ways to escape the torture she experiences on a daily basis. The Awakening, like Bovary, features a woman unhappy with her life and wanting to experience new adventures. The two books have very strong similarities and the plots are almost exactly the same, although there are some subtle differences. Set in two old towns in France, Emma Bovary, the main character of the first book, is not content with her life. She lives in a small town with a wealthy doctor husband. However, she is not like many other women; Early in her life, her father sent her to a convent-type school so that she could receive an education away from other, less desirable parts of society. She is completely safe in this sacred world. The only glimpse of the world outside the walls of the church is that which she experiences through romance novels. These books disillusioned her and distorted her view of the world. She believes that life should be a continuous fantasy in which she spends her life in constant ecstasy, like the women in her novels. "Why couldn't she lean on the balcony of a Swiss chalet with a husband dressed in a black velvet suit with long ponytails, soft boots, a pointed hat and elegant cuffs." (60) She is so dissatisfied with her life that she does not see that she could have happiness, if only she tried to contribute to it. On the other side of the coin, Edna, from The Awake...... middle of paper ......ssics. The question can never be asked of the authors; the similarities can only be debated. Works cited and consulted: Auerbach, Eric “Madame Bovary”. In BF Bart (ed.), Madame Bovary and the critics (pp 132-143). New York: New York University Press. 1966.Brombert, Victor. The novels of Gustav Flaubert: a study of themes and techniques. Princeton: Princeton University Press. 1966Chopin, Kate. Awakening. Ed. Margo Culley. New York: WW Norton, 1994. Flaubert, Gustav. Madame Bovary (Lowell Bair, trans.). New York: Bantam Books 1996Seyersted, Per and Emily Toth, eds. A mix of Kate Chopin. Natchitoches: Northwestern State University Press, 1979. Tillett, Margaret. “By reading Madame Bovary.” In BF Bart (ed.), Madame Bovary and the critics (pp 1-25). New York: New York University Press. 1966