"The Biography of Famous People" is written by Romain Rolland (France) and translated by Fu Lei (China)
"The Biography of Famous People" is the "Biography of Beethoven" written by the French writer Romain Rolland. , the general name of "The Life of Michelangelo" and "The Life of Tolstoy". The three biographers of this book are all extremely talented and great figures in human history. Their lives are rich and colorful, their works are profound and profound, and their influence will last through generations. Romain Rolland firmly grasped the similarities between these three artists in their respective fields, and focused on depicting their psychological journeys in the troubled and difficult life journey without changing their original intentions, highlighting their noble personality, The emotion of fraternity and broad mind have thus composed a "heroic symphony" for us.
Romain Rolland (1866-1944) was a 20th century French writer, winner of the 1915 Nobel Prize for Literature, and a world-famous anti-war activist. His mother was a devout religious believer and loved music very much. This had a profound impact on Roland's later love of music and reverence for Beethoven. In 1880, the Roland family moved to Paris from Cramsey, a city in central France. In 1886, he was admitted to the prestigious Ecole Normale Supérieure in Paris. During this period, he read a large number of literary and historical works. Roland embraced lofty social ideals and enthusiasm, but the reality around him made him depressed and confused. So he wrote to the great Russian writer Leo Tolstoy to seek answers to his life. Tolstoy enthusiastically wrote a twenty- to thirty-page reply, answering various questions in detail, and pointed out in a highly concise manner: "Everything that unites people is goodness and beauty; everything that divides people is Evil and ugly." Tolstoy's "kind" words and deeds had an indelible impact on Roland's life.
The writing purpose of "Celebrity Biography" is to create the sun of the spiritual world, breathe the breath of heroes, and enable people to obtain spiritual support in the painful and disappointing reality. "Celebrity Biography" is filled with strong passion. Every reader who reads "The Biography of Famous People" will first strongly feel the irrepressible enthusiasm in the work, and will be moved by Roland's inspiring language.
From a structural point of view, "The Life of Beethoven", "The Life of Michelangelo" and "The Life of Tolstoy" seem to be independent and unrelated to each other, but in fact they have internal consistency. . This consistency stems not only from the spiritual similarity of the three biographers, but also from another important thought of Roland, namely the idea of ??European unity and the spirit of humanitarianism.
"Biography of Celebrities" is a uniquely charming biography. The author devoted all his passion and successfully allowed readers to get in touch with the three masters in the biography and share their pain and failures; Sincerity and success.
The most outstanding aspect of "Celebrity Biography" is that it expresses the physical and mental suffering of the protagonists in multiple aspects, their unremitting struggle against infinite suffering, and the emotions that broke out in the struggle. Passion for life. Throughout the three novels, Roland's heroes have the same destiny pattern and direction: long-term suffering, torrent of vitality, artistic creation that embodies the will to live, and the pursuit of exchanging pain for joy.
Romain Rolland called these three great geniuses 'heroes'. His heroic point of view is not that of a hero that is usually praised. The heroes Romain Rolland refers to are just 'loyal servants of mankind'. They are great only because of their great character. They are great because they can serve the public wholeheartedly. Roland himself also said: "What I call a hero is not a person who dominates with ideas or strength; but a person who is great by his heart. In order to highlight this essence of a hero, Roland changed the way of writing conventional biographies and abandoned the biography. It mainly focuses on the general knowledge introduction of life, and concentrates on grasping the highly unified spiritual character of the characters. In this grasp, it also projects its own passion for admiration for the heroes.
Beethoven and Michelangelo. , Tolstoy, these people who were revered as heroes by Romain Rolland, they were either tortured by illness, or by the misery they encountered, or by the confusion and contradiction in their hearts, or the three were overlapped, and they were so deep in distress that they were almost suffocated. They lost their breath and destroyed their reason. The reason why they persisted in their arduous journey was due to their love for mankind and their faith in mankind. Beethoven's music of "exchanging pain for joy"; Michelangelo dedicated his life to it. Tolstoy has always cared about the greatness and insignificance of thousands of creatures, so as to spread the seeds of love and the ideal of tolerance.
The following is a brief summary of the contents of the three biographies.
"The Biography of Beethoven"
Ludwig van Beethoven was born in Bonn, Germany on December 16, 1770. His father was a tenor singer at an early age. Beethoven received almost harsh musical training. Therefore, Beethoven's childhood was rarely warm. From the beginning of his life, it seemed like a tragic and cruel struggle. When he was 17 years old, his mother died of illness and his father was an alcoholic. He became the head of the family and took on the burden of life prematurely.
In 1789, the French Revolution broke out. Beethoven was deeply inspired by the spirit of the revolution. In 1792, Beethoven left his hometown and went to Vienna. Music creation. In 1796, he lost his hearing, and this pain stayed with Beethoven throughout his life.
In addition to physical pain, Beethoven also continued to experience emotional torture. He was desperate and depressed, and even wanted to end his life. Relying on his strong will, noble moral pursuit, and his ardent desire for the sound of joy, Beethoven grabbed the throat of fate, defeated these pains, and sublimated the personal and physical pain into one song after another. Music, such as "Eroica Symphony" (1804), etc.
"The Biography of Michelangelo"
On March 6, 1475, Michelangelo was born in Caprese, Florence, Italy. His father, a magistrate, had a bad temper, and his mother died when he was six. When Michelangelo was a child, he was fostered in the home of a stonemason. The future sculptor was nurtured by the milk of the stonemason's wife. Michelangelo was obsessed with painting since he was a child and always drew sketches in school. For this, he was often beaten by his family because his father believed that it was shameful to engage in art. He persisted in his choice and later entered sculpture school. At that time, Italy was the birthplace and center of the European Renaissance. Under the atmosphere of advocating Greek classical culture, he devoted himself to learning and imitating ancient Greek art, which had a profound impact on Michelangelo's artistic development.
His sculpture "Lamentation of Christ" made him famous in one fell swoop.
In 1534, Michelangelo returned to Rome, where he spent all his subsequent years. From 1536 to 1541 he completed "The Last Judgment".
"The Biography of Tolstoy"
Tolstoy is the great heart and soul of Russia. He is not only a great artist, but also a sincere person loved by many people. friend. His works are closely connected with his life, and he has been engaged in intense exploration throughout his life.
Leo Tolstoy was born on August 28, 1828, in the aristocratic manor Yasnaya Polyana in Tula Province, Russia. Tolstoy was less than two years old when his mother died. When he was nine years old, his father passed away. His father's death made him "understand the miserable reality for the first time, and his heart and soul were filled with despair." Tolstoy's two aunts became his guardians. The aunts were pious and loving. These humble hearts helped him realize love and the happiness it brings, and they had a huge impact on Tolstoy's life.
In 1844, Tolstoy entered Kazan University to study. During this period, his mind was in a feverish state. He constantly experimented with various life concepts and theories. The contradictory and opposing theories made him inherent His faith was shaken, and all kinds of fantasies occupied his mind from time to time. In the young and chaotic heart, one unchanging thing is his most precious spiritual wealth, which is his absolute sincerity. He relentlessly conducted self-analysis and dissection, confessed all his thoughts and actions, and later showed his wife the records of his immoral young life. Dissatisfied with the education at school, he voluntarily dropped out of school and went home to carry out farm reforms. These contents were reflected in his novel "Morning of a Landowner" (1856). Nekhlyudov in the novel is his own artistic portrayal. .
His later important works include "The Death of Ivan Ilyich" (1884-1886), "Kreutzer Sonata" (1889) and "Resurrection" (1899). "Resurrection" can be said to be his artistic testament, the last and highest peak in his entire creative career. The seventy-year-old Tolstoy looked at his past and his world like a great man. "Resurrection" is the most beautiful and true poem that praises human sympathy.