Boule de Suif

"Boule de Suif" (French pronunciation:[buldəsɥif]), translated variously as "Dumpling", "Butterball", "Ball of Fat", "Ball of Lard", or "Small Ball", is a short story by the late-19th-century French writerGuy de Maupassant, first published on 15/16 April 1880. It is arguably his most famous short story and is the title story for his collection on theFranco-Prussian War, titledBoule de Suif et Autres Contes de la Guerre(Dumpling and Other Stories of the War).
The story follows a group of French residents ofRouen, recently occupied by the Prussian army. The ten travellers decide for various reasons to leave Rouen and flee toLe Havrein astagecoach. Sharing the carriage are Boule de Suif or "Butterball" (lit.suet dumpling, also translated asball of fat), a prostitute whose real name is Elisabeth Rousset; the strictDemocratCornudet; a shop-owning couple from thepetty bourgeoisie, M. and Mme. Loiseau; a wealthy upper-bourgeoisie factory-owner and his wife, M. and Mme. Carré-Lamadon; theComteand Comtesse of Bréville; and twonuns. Thus, the carriage constitutes a microcosm of French society, representing different parts of the French population during the late 19th century.
Due to the terrible weather, the coach moves very slowly and by midday has only covered a few miles. The occupants initially snub Boule de Suif, but their attitudes change when she produces apicnicbasket full of lovely food and offers to share its contents with the hungry travellers.
At the village of Tôtes, the carriage stops at the localcoaching inn, and the occupants, hearing a German voice, realise they have blundered into Prussian-held territory. APrussianofficer detains the party at the inn indefinitely without telling them why. Over the next two days, the travellers become increasingly impatient, and are finally told by Boule de Suif that they are being detained until she agrees to sleep with the officer. She is repeatedly called before the officer, and always returns in a heightened state of agitation. Initially, the travellers support her and are furious at the officer's arrogance, but their indignation soon disappears as they grow angry at Boule de Suif for not sleeping with the officer so that they can leave. Over the course of the next two days, the travelers use various examples of logic and morality to convince her it is the right thing to do; she finally gives in and sleeps with the officer, who allows them to leave the next morning.
As they continue on their way toLe Havre, these "representatives of Virtue" ignore Boule de Suif and turn to polite topics of conversation, glancing scathingly at the young woman while refusing to even acknowledge her, and refusing to share their food with her the way that she did with them earlier. As the coach travels on into the night, Cornudet starts whistling theMarseillaisewhich sours the mood of everyone in the coach, and all the while Boule de Suif, bemoaning her lost dignity, can hardly suppress her sobs.
It was first published in 1880 inLes Soirées de Médan, a collection of Naturalist short stories dealing with the Franco-Prussian war.
The plot has often been adapted, in whole or in part, for films and other media: