Biographical note

Born in Rouen in northern France, memoirist and novelist Gustave Flaubert (1821–1880) is considered the chief influence of the realist school of French literature. Educated at Rouen’s Lycée Pierre Corneille, Flaubert moved to Paris to study law while eager to pursue a career in literature and writing. It was there that Flaubert developed a distaste for the bourgeoisie that would inform his debut novel, Madame Bovary. Though his obsession for perfection and finding —le mot juste— led to morbid bouts of depression, he produced seven more works in his lifetime. Flaubert’s final novel, Bouvard et Pécuchet, a satire on the ubiquitous mediocrity of the middle class, was published posthumously. Born in London, Eleanor Marx-Aveling (1855–1898) was an activist, politician, actress, translator, feminist, and youngest daughter of Karl Marx. From childhood through adulthood, Eleanor divided her time between three passions: social activism, writing, and literature. They coalesced when Eleanor became her father’s secretary, later editing and translating editions of Capital. An ardent feminist, she was also drawn to the theater where she starred in a groundbreaking production of A Doll’s House. She later learned Norwegian expressly to translate Henrik Ibsen’s revolutionary plays. Eleanor Marx-Aveling is best known today for producing the very first translation of Flaubert’s Madame Bovary.