Bourgeois Quote by Gustave Flaubert
“For every bourgeois, in the heat of youth, if only for a day, for a minute, has believed himself capable of immense passions, of heroic enterprises. The most mediocre libertine has dreamed of oriental princesses; every rotary carries about inside him the debris of a poet.”
About This Quote
Source Novel: Sentimental Education, 1869
He reflects on youthful passion and the inner poet within everyone, suggesting that even the most ordinary people harbor grand dreams.
In simple terms: Youthful dreams live inside all of us.
Key Takeaway
Acknowledge your inner poet.
Themes
dreams
youth
passion
inner poet
human potential
Mood
nostalgic
inspired
Type
literary
reflective
When to use this quote
- personal journaling
- creative writing
- self‑reflection
- goal setting
Key Concepts
romanticism
self‑discovery
psychology of desire
Questions to Reflect On
- What grand dream do you hold?
- How can you nurture your inner poet?
A Different Perspective
Idealism may clash with reality.
![“[H]e was soon to be head clerk; it was time to settle down. So he gave up his flute, exalted sentiments, and poetry; for every bourgeois in the flush of his youth, were it but for a day, a moment, has believed himself capable of immense passions, of lofty enterprises. The most mediocre libertine…” quote by Gustave Flaubert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/8c7/gustave-flaubert-354_business_h-e-was-soon-to-be-head-clerk-it-was-tim_2291652.jpg)
![“Avant-garde theatre, with its distrust of the individual (that bourgeois invention), tends to go beyond [character] and the psychological approach in search of a syntax of types and characters which are "deconstructed and post-individual.” quote by Patrice Pavis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/c22/patrice-pavis-72351_approach_avant-garde-theatre-with-its-distrust-of_59690.jpg)
