Boule de Suif

Boule de Suif. "Boule de Suif" is a seminal short story by the renowned French writer Guy de Maupassant, first published in the 1880 anthology Les Soirées de Médan. The narrative, set during the Franco-Prussian War, offers a scathing critique of bourgeois hypocrisy and morality through the journey of a diverse group of travelers fleeing Rouen under Prussian occupation. It established Maupassant's literary reputation and remains a cornerstone of naturalist fiction, praised for its sharp social observation and complex characterization.

Plot summary

The story unfolds as ten passengers board a diligence bound for Le Havre from the occupied city of Rouen. The group includes various figures of French society, such as the democrat Cornudet, the wealthy Comte and Comtesse de Bréville, the industrialist Carré-Lamadon and his wife, two nuns, and the titular prostitute, nicknamed "Boule de Suif." Their journey is halted at Tôtes by a Prussian officer who detains the coach, refusing passage until Boule de Suif yields to his sexual demands. Initially, the travelers unite in indignation, but over days of confinement, their bourgeois morality erodes as they conspire to pressure her into submission for their own freedom. After she reluctantly acquiesces, the group immediately shuns her, consuming the food she brought while offering her none, completing their journey in contemptuous silence.

Characters

The central character is the kind-hearted prostitute Elisabeth Rousset, derisively called "Boule de Suif" (Butterball) for her plumpness. Her companions represent a cross-section of Second Empire society: the Comte de Bréville and his wife embody the old aristocracy; the Carré-Lamadon couple are wealthy bourgeoisie from the cotton industry; Cornudet is a radical republican and wine merchant; and the two Sisters of Charity represent the Church. The Prussian officer who detains them serves as the catalyst for the moral crisis. Each character's actions, particularly those of the Countess and Madame Carré-Lamadon, reveal the hypocrisy beneath their respectable facades when contrasted with Boule de Suif's genuine, if compromised, patriotism and sacrifice.

Themes and analysis

The story is a masterful exploration of social hypocrisy and class conflict within French society. Maupassant, influenced by his mentor Gustave Flaubert and the tenets of literary naturalism, starkly contrasts the perceived moral corruption of the prostitute with the far more profound ethical bankruptcy of the upper classes. Key themes include the performative nature of patriotism, the objectification of women, and the malleability of morality under duress. The journey serves as a microcosm of a nation defeated in the Franco-Prussian War, where self-interest trumps solidarity. The famous final scene, where Boule de Suif weeps alone as the others eat, is a powerful indictment of bourgeois values and collective cruelty, cementing the story's status as a classic of French literature.

Publication history

"Boule de Suif" was first published in April 1880 in the collaborative anthology Les Soirées de Médan, a collection conceived by Émile Zola featuring stories by writers of the naturalist school, including Joris-Karl Huysmans and Henry Céard. The anthology was a literary manifesto responding to the Franco-Prussian War and established Maupassant, then a relative unknown, as a major talent. The story's immediate critical and popular success launched his prolific career. It has since been included in countless editions of Maupassant's collected works, such as Contes de la bécasse, and is routinely anthologized in studies of short story and 19th-century French literature.

Adaptations

The story has been adapted for film and stage numerous times. The most notable cinematic version is the 1945 French film Boule de Suif directed by Christian-Jaque and starring Micheline Presle. An earlier American adaptation, titled Angel and Sinner, was released in 1945. It has also been adapted for television, including a 1973 BBC production. The narrative's structure and moral conflict have influenced later works and continue to be referenced in discussions of war cinema and literary adaptation.

Category:1880 short stories Category:Short stories by Guy de Maupassant Category:Works originally published in French