Flaubert's Style

When referring to the style of an author, we would say that it is the way he or she likes to write and the way they portray their ideas. In Gustave Flaubert’s A Simple Soul, he shows a unique style, one that includes a lot of description. “The outgoing tide exposed star-fish and sea-urchins, and
the children tried to catch the flakes of foam which the wind blew
away. The sleepy waves lapping the sand unfurled themselves along the
shore that extended as far as the eye could see, but where land began,
it was limited by the downs which separated it from the "Swamp," a
large meadow shaped like a hippodrome.”(Chapter 2). Not only does he use a list to describe a beach in this case but also, by using words like sleepy and unfurled Flaubert personifies the words for the reader to get a perfect mental picture.

The use of punctuation especially the comma stands out in Flaubert’s writing. “Every Monday morning, the dealer in second-hand goods, who lived under
the alley-way, spread out his wares on the sidewalk. Then the city
would be filled with a buzzing of voices in which the neighing of
horses, the bleating of lambs, the grunting of pigs, could be
distinguished, mingled with the sharp sound of wheels on the cobble-
stones. About twelve o'clock, when the market was in full swing, there
appeared at the front door a tall, middle-aged peasant, with a hooked
nose and a cap on the back of his head; it was Robelin, the farmer of
Geffosses. Shortly afterwards came Liebard, the farmer of Toucques,
short, rotund and ruddy, wearing a grey jacket and spurred boots.”(chapter 2) Even though he includes a lot of description in this passage the use of the common makes the idea smooth and precise, again creating a mental picture of the description.

The structure of his writing also stand out, by dividing the chapters into long and short paragraphs he gives more importance to one idea and the uses pauses to start a new idea and describe the house. “then she left her house in Saint-Melaine,
and moved into a less pretentious one which had belonged to her
ancestors and stood back of the market-place. This house, with its
slate-covered roof, was built between a passage-way and a narrow
street that led to the river.”(chapter 2). At a first glance, it may seem as if he used many words and the paragraphs look crowded, once you read you are left with the concise idea.

While reading you get the feeling that the story moves quickly, Flaubert makes this happen by jumping from one idea fast to the next one. His chapters start with the same idea from the last chapter creating the same effect.

Overall, in his writing Flaubert uses a variation in the length of his paragraphs and a lot of description to make the story move quickly making it fun and natural to the reader.