Pride and Prejudice is Austin's masterpiece. This work is based on daily life, which is contrary to the content and artificial writing method of sentimental novels popular in society at that time, and vividly reflects the life and social conditions of British towns and villages in the conservative and closed state from the end of 18 to the beginning of 19. This novel with social customs not only attracted a large number of readers at that time, but still gives readers unique artistic enjoyment today.
In this novel, Austin shows the different attitudes of girls from middle-class families in villages and towns to marriage and love through the different treatment of Bennett's five daughters to lifelong events, which reflects the author's own view on marriage: it is wrong to marry for property, money and status; It is also foolish to get married without considering the above factors. So she is not only against getting married for money, but also against taking marriage as a joke. She emphasizes the importance of an ideal marriage and regards the feelings of both men and women as the cornerstone of an ideal marriage. Elizabeth, the heroine in the book, comes from a small landlord family and is loved by Darcy, the son of a rich man. Despite the gap between family status and wealth, Darcy proposed to her, but she refused. Elizabeth's misunderstanding and prejudice against him is one reason, but the most important thing is that she hates his arrogance. Because Darcy's arrogance is actually a reflection of the status difference, as long as there is such arrogance, there can be no common thoughts and feelings between him and Elizabeth, and there can be no ideal marriage. After that, Elizabeth observed Darcy's behavior and a series of actions with her own eyes, especially seeing that he changed his arrogant attitude and eliminated his misunderstanding and prejudice, thus concluding a happy marriage with him. Elizabeth's different attitudes towards Darcy's several marriage proposals actually reflect women's pursuit of personality independence and equal rights. This is the progressive significance of Elizabeth's image.
From an early age, Elizabeth is smart, resourceful, brave, far-sighted, self-respecting and good at thinking. As far as a young lady waiting for the word at that time is concerned, this is commendable. It is precisely because of this quality that she has an opinion on love and has a happy family with Darcy.
In Pride and Prejudice, Austin also wrote about the marriages of several sisters and girlfriends of Elizabeth, as a foil, in contrast to the heroine's ideal marriage. For example, although Charlotte and Collins lived a comfortable material life after marriage, there was no love between them. This kind of marriage is actually a social tragedy hidden under the gorgeous coat.
Although the theme of Austen's novels is relatively narrow and the stories are quite plain, she is good at creating vivid characters in everyday ordinary things, whether Elizabeth and Darcy, whom the author thinks worthy of recognition, or Wickham and Collins, who are satirized, are real and touching. At the same time, Austin's language is tempered. She pays attention to humor and satire in the art of dialogue, and often uses humorous language to set off the personality characteristics of characters. This artistic innovation makes her works unique.
Austin: Write about some families in the country.
Jane Austen (1775 ~-1817) is a very familiar name for readers in China. Her novel Pride and Prejudice and the film adapted from it are probably familiar to everyone. According to a recent BBC survey, Pride and Prejudice ranks second among British favorite novels. Emma is the fourth work of this woman writer, and it is generally considered that she is the best.
A mature work.
Jane Austen was born in Steventon, Hampshire, England, and lived a quiet and wealthy country life. There are eight brothers and sisters, and Austin ranks sixth. She never went to a regular school, but at the age of 9, she was sent to her sister's school Bandu. Her sister Cassandra is her best friend in life, but Austin has more enlightenment education than her father. Austin loved reading and writing. When he was eleven or twelve, he began to like writing. As an adult, Austin moved with his family many times. 18 17 years, Austin has been ill. In order to seek medical convenience, his family moved again for the last time. However, less than two months after arriving in Manchester, she died. Buried in winchester cathedral after death. Jane Austen never married. He was only 42 when he died.
Almost all Austen's novels have been revised and rewritten repeatedly for a long time. Her first novel was Sense and Sensibility (18 1 1). Pride and Prejudice (18 13) is her second work. These two works, together with northanger abbey (18 18) published after her death, were written in118th century, and are usually regarded as her early works. Mansfield manor (18 14), Emma (18 16) and Persuasion (18 18) were written in the 9th century. The total number of these six works is only1500,000 words (Chinese), which is not too much. When the work was first published, the sales volume was not very large. However, with the passage of time, her position in English literature has become more and more important, so that some critics think: "Among writers, Jane Austen is undoubtedly the closest to this master, and this woman can be called the pride of Britain. She created a lot of characters for us ... "(Toba Macaulay). Another person who compares her with Shakespeare is edmund wilson, a modern American critic. He said: "There have been several interesting revolutions in Britain for more than a hundred years. The renovation of literary taste has affected the prestige of almost all writers, but Shakespeare and Jane Austen have lasted forever. " Since Walter Scott, there have been endless writers who admire Austen, in a rough row: Trollope, George Eliot, Coleridge, elizabeth barrett browning, Southey and Ai Mo Foster. However, it is not clear what her outstanding and great points are. Virginia Woolf once said, "Of all the great writers, her greatness is the hardest to capture."
According to The Concise Encyclopedia of Britain, Jane Austen is "the first novelist who realistically describes the daily life of ordinary people". A comedy reflecting the life of the British middle class at that time showed the possibility of' family' literature. She has explored the self-discovery process of young heroines from love to marriage many times. This method, which focuses on analyzing the characters' personalities and the tense relationship between the heroine and society, makes her novels break away from the tradition of18th century and approach modern life. It is this modernity, her wit and wit, her realism and sympathy, her elegant prose and ingenious story structure that have attracted readers for a long time. "And said:" At that time (referring to1early 9th century), people were tired of exaggerated and dramatic romantic novels. Austen's simple realism inspired the fresh wind and was welcomed by readers ... It was not until the 20th century that people realized that she was the most keen observer during the British Regency (18 10 ~ 1820). She carefully analyzed the social nature and cultural quality at that time and recorded the transformation from the old society to the modern society. Modern critics also admire the superb organizational structure of Austen's novels and her exquisite skills in revealing the tragicomedy of life in ordinary and narrow plots. "
After reading the analysis and comments of Chinese and foreign critics on Austin, the author thinks that the short conclusion quoted above is the most accurate and accurate. Among them, the only thing that has not been highlighted is Austin's great talent in portraying characters (the protagonist of each novel is a young woman, but none of them are the same) and her wise eyes that can look at and comment on these characters (especially her favorite characters) coldly from a higher angle. Austin once said what a good work is. She said: "... some works show the most powerful power of intelligence;" Among them, the author used the most carefully selected language to convey to the world the most thorough understanding of human nature, the most appropriate description of this colorful human nature, and the most vivid expression of wit and humor. " (See the last paragraph of Chapter 5 of northanger abbey) A few of Austin's works can be said to be worthy of the heart, and all of them have reached such a standard.
Austin's language is really excellent, which has played a great role in improving her work. Her dialogue not only conforms to the character, but also often contains initiative. When Austin was a child, she entertained herself by performing with her family. Writing good dialogues is her specialty. Some narrative languages usually stretch slowly, which is very commensurate with the social environment and characters' identity in the historical period she wrote. Occasionally, the author quietly said a few sarcastic words with a curved pen, which made the readers who knew it laugh. (The critic Walter Allen once said that the whole of Emma was "conceived in ridicule." ) In terms of structure, Emma is also extremely symmetrical. In addition to the climax of the book, each chapter also has wonderful "highlights". This makes translators have fun while working hard, as if "walking on a tree-lined road, mountains and rivers set each other off, making people overwhelmed." I believe readers will have the same experience when reading her book. Some critics have said: "In Emma, the whole theme is the process that the heroine painfully knows herself and gradually gives up her fantasy." Similarly, in the process of the translator's translation and the reader's reading, everyone gradually realized Emma, a vivid image with various advantages and disadvantages. At the same time, through the reflection of this mirror, we can have a deeper understanding of ourselves than before. In the final analysis, the greatest benefit of reading literary works is nothing more than helping yourself to understand yourself, others, society and the world more deeply through such activities. Emma's self-confidence, self-righteousness, lack of self-knowledge, good intentions to do bad things, unwilling to admit mistakes, and a little snobbish. Doesn't this character defect still exist in ourselves and the people around us? And it exists not only in individuals, but also in collective people-doesn't it exist as small as a group and as big as a country?
Emma was written by Austin in 18 14 1 month. 18 15 was completed at the end of March and published at the end of the year (the title page of the first edition indicates 18 16). 18 16 In March, Quarterly Review published Walter Scott, the most famous novelist at that time. He praised Austin's works, especially Emma's long articles. 18 17 July 18, Austin died suddenly. Emma became the last novel to meet readers before her death. But readers don't know who the author is. It was not until 18 18 that her works were published under her brother's real name.
When Austin was alive, England was ruled by the Regent. His father George III was insane in his later years, and Congress arranged for him to be regent. 1820 After the death of the old king, the Regent succeeded to the throne for George IV. It is said that he likes Austin's works very much, and every residence has a set. He also wrote a letter to Austin, expressing his admiration and hoping that she would dedicate her next work to herself. Austin said in the letter: "I am honored to thank the prince." At the same time, I wrote a dedication to Emma's book against my will. According to records, the head of the Regent's Library once suggested Austin to write works with bigger themes. Austin wrote back: "I don't write legends. I must keep my own style and go my own way, although I may never succeed on this road again. I believe that I will fail completely on other roads. " Austin told her relatives that all she could do was "write about some rural families" and "sketch on a small piece of ivory (two inches wide)" ... with a thin brush. Today, people naturally thank Austin for not adopting this proposal. And she is not simply "a small theme for a small theme". She can also see the big from the small. In her works, she pays attention to women, love and marriage, and explores the fallacies and prejudices of society in these aspects, thus revealing some weaknesses in human nature. Exploring human nature, can this be said to be writing a trivial topic? The ancient Greeks believed that the most important issue was "knowing yourself". This is what they carved on the temple of Delphi. La Traviata Dumas
China's first translated foreign novel.
Created the first series of "Girls in Distress" in France
A earthly love completes the ultimate beauty of a beautiful woman.
/kloc-excellent French works in the 0 th and 9 th centuries
One of the hundred classic works in the world.
Classical translation that influenced modern China society.
In China, La Traviata is one of the most familiar and favorite foreign literary masterpieces. As early as 100 years ago, after the famous translator Lin Shu translated and published the novel La Traviata in Paris in classical Chinese, the love story between Margaret and Armand spread rapidly among readers in China and was deeply rooted in the hearts of the people.
La Traviata is the first masterpiece of Dumas. The humanitarian thought expressed in the novel embodies the true feelings of human beings, the care, tolerance and respect between people, and the love for human nature. This kind of thought and feeling resonates with people and is widely welcomed.
It is said that La Traviata caused a sensation all over the country as soon as it was published. After Dumas became famous in one fell swoop, he adapted the novel into a play. 1852, when the five-act drama La Traviata was staged, the theater was full and the streets were empty. La Traviata may not win a good evaluation for Dumas in social morality, but it does make the author immortal after his death. Dumas, which people talk about, constitutes a rare "father and son" spectacle in the history of French literature and even in the history of world literature.
I was sick and bored three years ago, so I picked up this book and reread it in bed. I even read it in one breath and burst into tears. When I was young, I was very moved to read Lin Qinnan's translation The Legacy of La Traviata, but at my present age, I don't think I would be so devoted. I didn't expect Dumas to affect my feelings, so I wanted to list this book as my favorite. What moved me? Mainly the unfair treatment of women at the bottom of this society. However, such love stories of prostitutes and dudes are common in Chinese and foreign literary works. The uniqueness of La Traviata lies in that it makes armand, the lover of La Traviata, retell her experiences most of the time, and finally show her inner world more deeply with her diary. This narrative method makes readers feel particularly cordial.
—— Yuan Xingpei, a famous scholar
I watched my friend's La Traviata for ten hours. I've been studying hard since eight o'clock in the evening. After watching it at night, I will let my sister get up and watch it. At five o'clock in Rosty Yi, my sister went back to bed. I turned it over for the second time and went to the ferry to return the book. I remember that night when the power went out, I lit two oil lamps. As if I heard someone crying under the window, I opened the curtain several times and looked at the white path. I was in tears.
-the famous poet Shu Ting
La Traviata has a great influence. As a fashion, it happened one hundred years ago. At that time, the "Reform Movement of 1898" failed and the people were depressed. The road to improvement is not feasible, so everyone has to make do with reading novels at random. La Traviata was born in China at the right time.
-Famous writer Ye
Translate the earliest French novels
1848, the French writer Dumas published his masterpiece La Traviata. After the novel came out, it caused a great shock, was quickly translated into various languages, and was widely circulated in the world, making thousands of readers in Qian Qian shed tears of sympathy for this unfortunate beauty and the story of joys and sorrows of men and women. The first readers of this novel in China were a few French students at that time. It was not until 1898, half a century after the novel was published, that it was translated into Chinese by Lin Shu in A Talented Translator and Several Scholars, which was known to readers in China. According to research, one day in 1897, Wang Shouchang, who returned from studying in Paris, visited Lin Shu who was concerned about his country and people. At that time, the country was being invaded by foreign powers, and Lin Shu himself suffered the pain of losing his wife in middle age. He said to him, "I asked my son to translate a book, so that I could break the silence. I could also introduce a famous book to China, which is much better than frowning." Lin Shu felt reasonable after listening to it, so he asked Wang to dictate, take notes by himself, and jointly translated Dumas' novel, titled La Traviata in Paris.
The translation of La Traviata's Legacy was first printed in February 1899 in the name of Yin Su Bookstore. 190 1 was reprinted in the name of Qing Yu Yao Yuan Pavilion, which was also a woodcut version; 1903 was printed in type by Wenming Bookstore, and the third edition was issued. "Because of its novel content and touching translation, this novel is very popular in China and spreads like wildfire." Yan Fu once praised: "The poor La Traviata has completely broken Zhina's intestines." In short, "after the publication of the translation, it had a great influence on the literary world in China, and the traditional love novels of talented people and beautiful women were quickly eliminated." ? See China Modern Literature Series from 1840 to 19 19, the English version of Solving the Problem. China's novelists "wrote many love novels with new meanings and new structures under the direct or indirect influence or imitation of La Traviata"? Shi Zhecun's words.
Dumas La Traviata was thus translated into China's first foreign literary work. According to statistics, since the publication of the new translation of La Traviata in 1980, the cumulative print run has reached more than one million copies.