“The parrot was almost a son, a love. He climbed upon her fingers, pecked at her lips, clung to her shawl, and when she rocked her head to and fro like a nurse, the big wings of her cap and the wings of the bird flapped in unison.” This bird made Felicite human, giving her true emotions. Flaubert might have used an animal, something we believe is in some way barbaric, to show how “animal” Felicite was before having Loulou in her life, “All things moved silently, like ghosts. Only one noise penetrated her ears; the parrot's voice.”