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94 Notable Quotes By Gustave Flaubert, The Exponent Of Literary Realism

Famous As: French Author Best Known for His Novels: ‘Madame Bovary’, ‘Sentimental Education’, ‘Salammbô’ and ‘Three Tales’
Born On: December 12, 1821
Died On: May 8, 1880
Born In: Rouen, France
Died At Age: 58

Gustave Flaubert was a French novelist who is rightfully included among the greatest literary figures to have ever existed. He is credited for laying the foundations of the branch of literature which is popularly known as literary realism. Writing was Flaubert’s hobby right from the time when he was a child and even though he enrolled to study law in Paris, it was literature that eventually became his career. Flaubert’s decision to become an author was vindicated when his 1857 novel ‘Madame Bovary’ went on to become a huge hit. It is considered among one of the greatest novels ever written. Some of his other major works include ‘Memoirs of a Madman’, ‘Sentimental Education’, ‘Dictionary of Received Ideas’, ‘Three Tales’, ‘Salammbo’ and ‘The Temptation of Saint  Anthony’ among others. Flaubert’s novels became an inspiration for generations of writers and more importantly, one of the greatest short story writers in history, Guy de Maupassant was guided by him in his literary journey. Flaubert was without doubt one of the leading intellectuals of his time, whose novels reflected a sense of reality that was not normally found in novels of that time. The below collection of Gustave Flaubert most famous quotes have been excerpted from his writings, novels and thoughts. We bring to you some of the best quotes, sayings and thoughts from the life and works of Gustave Flaubert.

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Do not read, as children do, to amuse yourself, or like the ambitious, for the purpose of instruction. No, read in order to live.

Do not read, as children do, to amuse yourself, or like the ambitious, for the purpose of instruction. No, read in order to live.

Gustave Flaubert
Do not read as children do to enjoy themselves, or, as the ambitious do to educate themselves. No, read to live.

Do not read as children do to enjoy themselves, or, as the ambitious do to educate themselves. No, read to live.

Gustave Flaubert
Be steady and well-ordered in your life so that you can be fierce and original in your work.

Be steady and well-ordered in your life so that you can be fierce and original in your work.

Gustave Flaubert
Be regular and orderly in your life, so that you may be violent and original in your work.

Be regular and orderly in your life, so that you may be violent and original in your work.

Gustave Flaubert
There is not a particle of life which does not bear poetry within it

There is not a particle of life which does not bear poetry within it

Gustave Flaubert
Human speech is like a cracked kettle on which we tap crude rhythms for bears to dance to, while we long to make music that will melt the stars.

Human speech is like a cracked kettle on which we tap crude rhythms for bears to dance to, while we long to make music that will melt the stars.

Gustave Flaubert
Travel makes one modest. You see what a tiny place you occupy in the world.

Travel makes one modest. You see what a tiny place you occupy in the world.

Gustave Flaubert
One can be the master of what one does, but never of what one feels.

One can be the master of what one does, but never of what one feels.

Gustave Flaubert
It’s hard to communicate anything exactly and that’s why perfect relationships between people are difficult to find.

It’s hard to communicate anything exactly and that’s why perfect relationships between people are difficult to find.

Gustave Flaubert
Doubt … is an illness that comes from knowledge and leads to madness.

Doubt … is an illness that comes from knowledge and leads to madness.

Gustave Flaubert
She wanted to die, but she also wanted to live in Paris.

She wanted to die, but she also wanted to live in Paris.

Gustave Flaubert
Never touch your idols: the gilding will stick to your fingers.

Never touch your idols: the gilding will stick to your fingers." (Il ne faut pas toucher aux idoles: la dorure en reste aux mains.)

Gustave Flaubert
I am irritated by my own writing. I am like a violinist whose ear is true, but whose fingers refuse to reproduce precisely the sound he hears within.

I am irritated by my own writing. I am like a violinist whose ear is true, but whose fingers refuse to reproduce precisely the sound he hears within.

Gustave Flaubert
The art of writing is the art of discovering what you believe.

The art of writing is the art of discovering what you believe.

Gustave Flaubert
An infinity of passion can be contained in one minute, like a crowd in a small space.

An infinity of passion can be contained in one minute, like a crowd in a small space.

Gustave Flaubert
To be stupid, selfish, and have good health are three requirements for happiness, though if stupidity is lacking, all is lost.

To be stupid, selfish, and have good health are three requirements for happiness, though if stupidity is lacking, all is lost.

Gustave Flaubert
It is always sad to leave a place to which one knows one will never return. Such are the melancolies du voyage: perhaps they are one of the most rewarding things about traveling.

It is always sad to leave a place to which one knows one will never return. Such are the melancolies du voyage: perhaps they are one of the most rewarding things about traveling.

Gustave Flaubert
The one way of tolerating existence is to lose oneself in literature as in a perpetual orgy.

The one way of tolerating existence is to lose oneself in literature as in a perpetual orgy.

Gustave Flaubert
You don’t make art out of good intentions.

You don’t make art out of good intentions.

Gustave Flaubert
Pleasure is found first in anticipation, later in memory.

Pleasure is found first in anticipation, later in memory.

Gustave Flaubert
There is no truth. There is only perception.

There is no truth. There is only perception.

Gustave Flaubert
One's duty is to feel what is great, cherish the beautiful, and to not accept the conventions of society with the ignominy that it imposes upon us.

One's duty is to feel what is great, cherish the beautiful, and to not accept the conventions of society with the ignominy that it imposes upon us.

Gustave Flaubert
There are two infinities that confuse me: the one in my soul devours me; the one around me will crush me

There are two infinities that confuse me: the one in my soul devours me; the one around me will crush me

Gustave Flaubert
Everything, even herself, was now unbearable to her. She wished that, taking wing like a bird, she could fly somewhere, far away to regions of purity, and there grow young again.

Everything, even herself, was now unbearable to her. She wished that, taking wing like a bird, she could fly somewhere, far away to regions of purity, and there grow young again.

Gustave Flaubert
I don't believe that happiness is possible, but I think tranquility is.

I don't believe that happiness is possible, but I think tranquility is.

Gustave Flaubert
Stupidity lies in wanting to draw conclusions.

Stupidity lies in wanting to draw conclusions.

Gustave Flaubert
You must write for yourself, above all. That is your only hope of creating something beautiful.

You must write for yourself, above all. That is your only hope of creating something beautiful.

Gustave Flaubert
The public wants work which flatters its illusions.

The public wants work which flatters its illusions.

Gustave Flaubert
Writing is a dog’s life, but the only one worth living.

Writing is a dog’s life, but the only one worth living.

Gustave Flaubert
He had the vanity to believe men did not like him – while men simply did not know him.

He had the vanity to believe men did not like him – while men simply did not know him.

Gustave Flaubert
But, in her life, nothing was going to happen. Such was the will of God! The future was a dark corridor, and at the far end the door was bolted.

But, in her life, nothing was going to happen. Such was the will of God! The future was a dark corridor, and at the far end the door was bolted.

Gustave Flaubert
We must laugh and cry, enjoy and suffer, in a word, vibrate to our full capacity … I think that’s what being really human means.

We must laugh and cry, enjoy and suffer, in a word, vibrate to our full capacity … I think that’s what being really human means.

Gustave Flaubert
I tried to discover, in the rumor of forests and waves, words that other men could not hear, and I pricked up my ears to listen to the revelation of their harmony.

I tried to discover, in the rumor of forests and waves, words that other men could not hear, and I pricked up my ears to listen to the revelation of their harmony.

Gustave Flaubert
Sadness is a vice.

Sadness is a vice.

Gustave Flaubert
She would have liked not to be alive, or to be always asleep.

She would have liked not to be alive, or to be always asleep.

Gustave Flaubert
The denigration of those we love always detaches us from them in some degree. Never touch your idols: the gilding will stick to your fingers.

The denigration of those we love always detaches us from them in some degree. Never touch your idols: the gilding will stick to your fingers.

Gustave Flaubert
An author in his book must be like God in the universe, present everywhere and visible nowhere.

An author in his book must be like God in the universe, present everywhere and visible nowhere.

Gustave Flaubert
Haven't you ever happened to come across in a book some vague notion that you've had, some obscure idea that returns from afar and that seems to express completely your most subtle feelings?

Haven't you ever happened to come across in a book some vague notion that you've had, some obscure idea that returns from afar and that seems to express completely your most subtle feelings?

Gustave Flaubert
Of all the icy blasts that blow on love, a request for money is the most chilling.

Of all the icy blasts that blow on love, a request for money is the most chilling.

Gustave Flaubert
He had carefully avoided her out of the natural cowardice that characterizes the stronger sex.

He had carefully avoided her out of the natural cowardice that characterizes the stronger sex.

Gustave Flaubert
You need a high degree of corruption or a very big heart to love absolutely everything

You need a high degree of corruption or a very big heart to love absolutely everything

Gustave Flaubert
The more you approach infinity, the deeper you penetrate terror

The more you approach infinity, the deeper you penetrate terror

Gustave Flaubert
Talent is a long patience, and originality an effort of will and intense observation.

Talent is a long patience, and originality an effort of will and intense observation.

Gustave Flaubert
What wretched poverty of language! To compare stars to diamonds!

What wretched poverty of language! To compare stars to diamonds!

Gustave Flaubert
By trying to understand everything, everything makes me dream

By trying to understand everything, everything makes me dream

Gustave Flaubert
And she felt as though she had been there, on that bench, for an eternity. For an infinity of passion can be contained in one minute, like a crowd in a small space.

And she felt as though she had been there, on that bench, for an eternity. For an infinity of passion can be contained in one minute, like a crowd in a small space.

Gustave Flaubert
She was the amoureuse of all the novels, the heroine of all the plays, the vague “she” of all the poetry books.

She was the amoureuse of all the novels, the heroine of all the plays, the vague “she” of all the poetry books.

Gustave Flaubert
What baffled him was that there should be all this fuss about something so simple as love.

What baffled him was that there should be all this fuss about something so simple as love.

Gustave Flaubert
Be regular and orderly in your life like a bourgeois, so that you may be violent and original in your work.

Be regular and orderly in your life like a bourgeois, so that you may be violent and original in your work.

Gustave Flaubert
After the pain of this disappointment her heart once more stood empty, and the succession of identical days began again.

After the pain of this disappointment her heart once more stood empty, and the succession of identical days began again.

Gustave Flaubert
Love art. Of all lies, it is the least untrue.

Love art. Of all lies, it is the least untrue.

Gustave Flaubert
And he beholds the moon; like a rounded fragment of ice filled with motionless light.

And he beholds the moon; like a rounded fragment of ice filled with motionless light.

Gustave Flaubert
The whole dream of democracy is to raise the proletariat to the level of stupidity attained by the bourgeoisie.

The whole dream of democracy is to raise the proletariat to the level of stupidity attained by the bourgeoisie.

Gustave Flaubert
Isn’t ‘not to be bored’ one of the principal goals of life?

Isn’t ‘not to be bored’ one of the principal goals of life?

Gustave Flaubert
Maybe happiness too is a metaphor invented on a day of boredom

Maybe happiness too is a metaphor invented on a day of boredom

Gustave Flaubert
For him the universe did not extend beyond the circumference of her petticoat.

For him the universe did not extend beyond the circumference of her petticoat.

Gustave Flaubert
Everything measurable passes, everything that can be counted has an end. Only three things are infinite: the sky in its stars, the sea in its drops of water, and the heart in its tears.

Everything measurable passes, everything that can be counted has an end. Only three things are infinite: the sky in its stars, the sea in its drops of water, and the heart in its tears.

Gustave Flaubert
Anything becomes interesting if you look at it long enough.

Anything becomes interesting if you look at it long enough.

Gustave Flaubert
Years passed; and he endured the idleness of his intelligence and the inertia of his heart.

Years passed; and he endured the idleness of his intelligence and the inertia of his heart.

Gustave Flaubert
Sentences must stir in a book like leaves in a forest, each distinct from each despite their resemblance.

Sentences must stir in a book like leaves in a forest, each distinct from each despite their resemblance.

Gustave Flaubert
Love, to her, was something hat comes suddenly, like a blinding flash of lightening - a heaven-sent storm hurled into life, uprooting it, sweeping every will before it like a leaf, engulfing all feelings.

Love, to her, was something hat comes suddenly, like a blinding flash of lightening - a heaven-sent storm hurled into life, uprooting it, sweeping every will before it like a leaf, engulfing all feelings.

Gustave Flaubert
To be simple is no small matter.

To be simple is no small matter.

Gustave Flaubert
Thought is the greatest of pleasures —pleasure itself is only imagination—have you ever enjoyed anything more than your dreams?

Thought is the greatest of pleasures —pleasure itself is only imagination—have you ever enjoyed anything more than your dreams?

Gustave Flaubert
Read in order to live.

Read in order to live.

Gustave Flaubert
When you reduce a woman to writing, she makes you think of a thousand other women

When you reduce a woman to writing, she makes you think of a thousand other women

Gustave Flaubert
In my view, the novelist has no right to express his opinions on the things of this world. In creating, he must imitate God: do his job and then shut up.

In my view, the novelist has no right to express his opinions on the things of this world. In creating, he must imitate God: do his job and then shut up.

Gustave Flaubert
She did not believe that things could remain the same in different places, and since the portion of her life that lay behind her had been bad, no doubt that which remained to be lived would be better.

She did not believe that things could remain the same in different places, and since the portion of her life that lay behind her had been bad, no doubt that which remained to be lived would be better.

Gustave Flaubert
One day, I shall explode like an artillery shell and all my bits will be found on the writing table.

One day, I shall explode like an artillery shell and all my bits will be found on the writing table.

Gustave Flaubert
It is an excellent habit to look at things as so many symbols.

It is an excellent habit to look at things as so many symbols.

Gustave Flaubert
She was as sated with him as he was tired of her. Emma had rediscovered in adultery all the banality of marriage.

She was as sated with him as he was tired of her. Emma had rediscovered in adultery all the banality of marriage.

Gustave Flaubert
(Egypt) is a great place for contrasts: splendid things gleam in the dust.

(Egypt) is a great place for contrasts: splendid things gleam in the dust.

Gustave Flaubert
I have always tried to live in an ivory tower, but a tide of shit is beating at its walls, threatening to undermine it.

I have always tried to live in an ivory tower, but a tide of shit is beating at its walls, threatening to undermine it.

Gustave Flaubert
For her, life was as cold as an attic with a window looking to the north, and ennui, like a spider, was silently spinning its shadowy web in every cranny of her heart.

For her, life was as cold as an attic with a window looking to the north, and ennui, like a spider, was silently spinning its shadowy web in every cranny of her heart.

Gustave Flaubert
God is in the details.

God is in the details.

Gustave Flaubert
Emma was no asleep, she was pretending to be asleep; and, while he was dozing off at her side, she lay awake, dreaming other dreams.

Emma was no asleep, she was pretending to be asleep; and, while he was dozing off at her side, she lay awake, dreaming other dreams.

Gustave Flaubert
It was the fault of destiny!

It was the fault of destiny!

Gustave Flaubert
My foregrounds are imaginary, my backgrounds real.

My foregrounds are imaginary, my backgrounds real.

Gustave Flaubert
Abstraction can provide stumbling blocks for people of strange intelligence.

Abstraction can provide stumbling blocks for people of strange intelligence.

Gustave Flaubert
And the more he was irritated by her basic personality, the more he was drawn to her by a harsh, bestial sensuality, illusions of a moment, which ended in hate.

And the more he was irritated by her basic personality, the more he was drawn to her by a harsh, bestial sensuality, illusions of a moment, which ended in hate.

Gustave Flaubert
Do not imagine you can exorcise what oppresses you in life by giving vent to it in art.

Do not imagine you can exorcise what oppresses you in life by giving vent to it in art.

Gustave Flaubert
On certain occasions art can shake very ordinary spirits, and whole worlds can be revealed by its clumsiest interpreters.

On certain occasions art can shake very ordinary spirits, and whole worlds can be revealed by its clumsiest interpreters.

Gustave Flaubert
For a long time now my heart has had its shutters closed, its steps deserted, formerly a tumultuous hotel, but now empty and echoing like a great empty tomb.

For a long time now my heart has had its shutters closed, its steps deserted, formerly a tumultuous hotel, but now empty and echoing like a great empty tomb.

Gustave Flaubert
He took it for granted that she was content; and she resented his settled calm, his serene dullness, the very happiness she herself brought him.

He took it for granted that she was content; and she resented his settled calm, his serene dullness, the very happiness she herself brought him.

Gustave Flaubert
As for the piano, the faster her fingers flew over it, the more he marveled. She struck the keys with aplomb and ran from one end of the keyboard to the other without a stop.

As for the piano, the faster her fingers flew over it, the more he marveled. She struck the keys with aplomb and ran from one end of the keyboard to the other without a stop.

Gustave Flaubert
What an awful thing life is, isn’t it? It’s like soup with lots of hairs floating on the surface. You have to eat it nevertheless.

What an awful thing life is, isn’t it? It’s like soup with lots of hairs floating on the surface. You have to eat it nevertheless.

Gustave Flaubert
Let us not kid ourselves; let us remember that literature is of no use whatever, except in the very special case of somebody's wishing to become, of all things, a Professor of Literature.

Let us not kid ourselves; let us remember that literature is of no use whatever, except in the very special case of somebody's wishing to become, of all things, a Professor of Literature.

Gustave Flaubert
The writer must wade into life as into the sea, but only up to the navel.

The writer must wade into life as into the sea, but only up to the navel.

Gustave Flaubert
… Her heart remained empty once more, and the procession of days all alike began again. So they were going to follow one another, like this, in line, always identical, innumerable, bringing nothing!

… Her heart remained empty once more, and the procession of days all alike began again. So they were going to follow one another, like this, in line, always identical, innumerable, bringing nothing!

Gustave Flaubert
Indeed, for the last three years, he had carefully avoided her, as a result of the natural cowardice so characteristic of the stronger sex...

Indeed, for the last three years, he had carefully avoided her, as a result of the natural cowardice so characteristic of the stronger sex...

Gustave Flaubert
There are some men whose only mission among others is to act as intermediaries; one crosses them like bridges and keeps going.

There are some men whose only mission among others is to act as intermediaries; one crosses them like bridges and keeps going.

Gustave Flaubert
Come, let’s be calm: no one incapable of restraint was ever a writer.

Come, let’s be calm: no one incapable of restraint was ever a writer.

Gustave Flaubert
One mustn't look at the abyss, because there is at the bottom an inexpressible charm which attracts us.

One mustn't look at the abyss, because there is at the bottom an inexpressible charm which attracts us.

Gustave Flaubert
I detest common heroes and moderate feelings, the sort that exist in real life

I detest common heroes and moderate feelings, the sort that exist in real life

Gustave Flaubert
My life which I dream will be so beautiful, so poetic, so vast, so filled with love will turn out to be like everybody else's - monotonous, sensible, stupid.

My life which I dream will be so beautiful, so poetic, so vast, so filled with love will turn out to be like everybody else's - monotonous, sensible, stupid.

Gustave Flaubert