Œuvres complètes de Gustave Flaubert, tome 4: L'éducation sentimentale, v. 2

The narrative follows Frédéric Moreau, a young provincial who arrives in Paris and becomes infatuated with a married woman, pursuing career, social standing, and occasionally political involvement during the upheavals of mid-century France. Through episodic encounters—romantic disappointments, unreliable friendships, failed ambitions, duels, and financial reversals—the story sketches shifting social circles, salons, and the city's bustle. Political events and revolutions form a backdrop that exposes gaps between idealism and private self-interest. The work examines longing, disillusionment, and the routines of bourgeois life, using detailed realist observation and ironic distance to portray characters whose desires rarely lead to lasting fulfillment.