Gustave Flaubert is responsible for Guy de Mausappant’s first few steps into the world of literature. We know from their correspondence that the disciple obeyed, without hesitation, all that his teacher directed. Subsequently, it would be Mausappant who would go on to write some of the most lucid texts that exist. Ideas, quotes, and judgments are included in this book, with anecdotes and memories dispersed throughout. These essays are among the first accounts of the significance and novelty of Flaubert’s method and design behind his novel. It is possible that Flaubert ate, drank, and smoked like most men, probably even more than most men. However, there were certain things he did completely on his own terms, as this book shows.