Description
BOUVARD AND PÉCUCHET
Book Summary
This is the most complete Spanish-language edition of one of the most unique novels in the history of literature. Gustave Flaubert tells the story of two copyists who, after inheriting a fortune, retire to the countryside to dedicate themselves to studying every discipline of human knowledge. What begins as an enthusiastic project turns into a merciless comedy about the vanity of knowledge and the impossibility of attaining truth. A masterpiece that combines erudition, irony, and a profound reflection on the human condition.
What is it about?
Bouvard and Pécuchet, two Parisian office workers, meet on a hot day and discover that they share the same hobbies and intellectual interests. When Pécuchet inherits a small fortune, they decide to leave the city and buy a property in the country to dedicate themselves entirely to study. Their ambition is to encompass the entirety of human knowledge: agriculture, chemistry, medicine, geology, archaeology, history, literature, politics, philosophy, and religion.
However, every discipline they commit to ends in a resounding failure. Their agricultural experiments ruin the crops, their medical treatments make the peasants ill, their archaeological excavations find nothing of value, and their philosophical readings submerge them in inescapable contradictions. What Flaubert constructs is a monumental satire on human stupidity and the pretension of mastering encyclopedic knowledge. The novel was left unfinished due to the author's death, but its circular structure and final appendix—the famous "Dictionary of Received Ideas"—give it a perfect conclusion.
Main themes
- A critique of the 19th-century encyclopedic pretension and Enlightenment optimism.
- Human stupidity as a force that is both comic and tragic.
- Failure as the narrative and philosophical engine of the work.
- A satire of bookish knowledge and the inability to apply it to real life.
- Friendship as a refuge from the absurdity of the world.
Who is it recommended for?
This book is aimed at readers with literary and philosophical interests who are looking for a demanding and deeply original work. It is ideal for those who enjoy intellectual satire, subtle irony, and novels that challenge narrative conventions. It will also be of great interest to scholars of Flaubert, 19th-century French literature, and those who want to explore a work that anticipates many of the concerns of modern and contemporary literature.
What this book offers
- A unique reading experience that combines erudition, humor, and philosophical reflection.
- The opportunity to access the most complete Spanish-language edition of this fundamental work.
- A lucid and timeless critique of the limits of human knowledge.
- An unforgettable portrait of two characters who embody the comedy of the intellectual condition.
- An appendix with the celebrated "Dictionary of Received Ideas," a satirical gem in its own right.
Technical specifications
- Author: Flaubert, Gustave
- Publisher: Eterna Cadencia Editora SRL
- Language: Spanish
- Genre: Modern and contemporary fiction, Classic fiction
- Collection: Novel
- Binding: Paperback
- Publication date: November 2023
- Number of pages: 664
- Weight: 1239 g
Editorial assessment
Bouvard and Pécuchet is one of those works that critics have enshrined as essential, but which the general public has yet to fully discover. Here, Flaubert achieves a perfect synthesis between his obsession with style and his implacable gaze upon the society of his time. The Eterna Cadencia edition, with its careful translation and annotation work, offers Spanish-speaking readers the opportunity to delve into this complex and fascinating work. It is not light reading, but it is enormously rewarding for those seeking a novel that thinks, questions, and, above all, makes one laugh with intelligence.