Boule de Suif

By Guy de Maupassant

Book Overview

A carriage transporting ten passengers fleeing from Rouen is stopped at a village inn by Prussian soldiers, who decide to detain them until one of their party, the prostitute Boule de Suif, consents to sleep with their officer. When Boule de Suif refuses to do so on account of her principles and patriotic sentiments, the solidarity initially manifested by her fellow travellers becomes increasingly tested as the deadlock continues, and the strained relationship between her and her "respectable" counterparts gradually worsens. A scathing satire of bourgeois prejudice and hypocrisy and a compelling snapshot of France during the 1870 Franco-Prussian War, 'Boule de Suif' - here presented with five other major stories by the author of Bel Ami - was declared a masterpiece by Flaubert and is widely considered to be Maupassant's finest short story.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1847497640
• ISBN13: 9781847497642
• Release Date: April 2021
• Publisher: Alma Books
• Length: 128 Pages
• Weight: 0.15 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.3" x 4.9" x 7.7"

Customer Reviews

`

A retailer, a factory owner and a count, all accompanied by their wifes, are joined by two nunns and a squanderer to show the utter hypocricy of the society at the time of the Franco-Prussian war. The novel also shows the role that the common people play in the war (referring to the fishermen and boatmen fishing out bodies of dead Germans from the water early in the story. The Butterball herself is shown from a very positive side, displaying humanity and generosity.

Mmmmm, Butterball

Butterball is just an amazing illustration of class and shifting morals. Our poor heroine is viewed first by her fellow travelers as being below contempt. This view changes after she decides to share her food with them. Again, poor Butterball's companions shift their views and try and sell her to the Prussians. This is an immensely silly novella with a serious commentary. After you read it, it is hard to be ride of its impression.