What ultimately happens to Emma Bovary in "Madame Bovary"?

Prepare for the Praxis Literary Texts and Authors Exam using flashcards and multiple-choice questions, with hints and explanations. Ace your test!

In "Madame Bovary," the character Emma Bovary ultimately commits suicide as a culmination of her disillusionment with life and unattainable romantic ideals. Throughout the novel, Emma seeks fulfillment and happiness through various means, such as pursuing passionate love affairs and seeking a lavish lifestyle. However, she finds that these pursuits lead to further dissatisfaction, financial ruin, and emotional despair.

Her despair intensifies when she realizes that the realities of her life, including her marriage to Charles and the constraints of provincial society, are starkly at odds with the fantasies she yearns for. Unable to cope with the overwhelming sense of failure and the absence of any true contentment, Emma resorts to suicide by consuming arsenic. This tragic end highlights the themes of romanticism, the limitations of social and personal aspirations, and the consequences of seeking fulfillment through external means rather than confronting deeper emotional truths.

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