Madame Bovary Study Guide

Glossary of Terms

About works in translation

Works translated from other languages are sometimes written in easily readable language, while scholarly translators aim to reproduce the nuances of an author's diction. The best advice for readers of any translation is to do as the new student does in Chapter 1 of Madame Bovary: "We saw him working conscientiously, looking up every word in the dictionary, and taking the greatest pains."