The "Saturday Evening Post" commissioned me to write three articles, which are now reprinted in volume in response to the needs of readers, firstly, for the convenience of readers and collections, and secondly, I hope that this book will reach other readers who have missed the original article. They have benefited.The entrusting party asked me to write 4,000 words for each article. However, even if my article slightly exceeds this word count, I can only reduce the content as much as possible in the face of such a short space.To tell the truth, each of these three articles could expand into a thick volume.The predecessors have left us a wealth of spiritual wealth, but many readers are confused and don't know what to read, and my goal is to make a list for them. Every book on it will make people feel Pleasure and benefit a lot.

However, in order not to make this list too long to be frustrating, I had to omit many important works.With the exception of a very few individual authors, I mention only one book per author, but such novelists as Jane Austen, Dickens, Thackeray, Balzac, and Dostoevsky, I list them Several books by each, and each of them met my selection criteria.Also, I had to omit some talented writers, such as Charlotte Bronte, because I really don't have room for writers who hover on the fringes of first-rateness.And I've also left out all the lesser-known books like Isaac Walton's Lives and James Moriah's Adventures of Haji Baba in Isbahan. Adventures of Hajji Baba of Ispahan).They are all enjoyable books, but space constraints limit me to listing only those considered masterpieces.This is like taking a friend who is full of enthusiasm but has a hasty schedule to the sculpture gallery. In order to let him feel the most outstanding splendor within a limited time, I can only take him directly to visit the great works of the Greek Golden Age. , and skip Roman portraits, or even Archaic sculptures, but this does not mean that I deny the value of the latter.

This book is very thin and insignificant, but I believe readers will not think it is a book without depth.When writing these articles, I am not a critic (and I am not), nor a professional writer (if I were this identity, my taste in literature would be very special), but as a person who is interested in human nature. ordinary people.Before adding each book to the list, my first criterion is whether the book is readable.Readability is a matter of course for literature professors or critics, and it is not used as a criterion for judging their works. However, readability is not a matter of course. In fact, there are many books in the history of literature that are only suitable for students to read. .In this day and age, few people take the time to read books that have nothing to do with themselves, and the books I will mention next are related to everyone.What I mean by readability does not mean that readers can read through the whole article even if they don't invest in it—for readers, the basic quality of reading is to be interested in people and things, and to have a certain amount of imagination.I know a lot of people who say they can't read novels, that their minds are so full of other important things that they can't accommodate imaginary characters and plots.But I think these are just excuses. The reason why I can't read the novel is either because I am so concerned with myself that I am not interested in anyone else's experience, or I really lack imagination and the ability to control the various aspects of the novel. The joys and sorrows of this kind of character.No book is readable to a reader who has neither curiosity nor sympathy.A readable book must resonate with the reader the moment they read it.This may be just a certain characteristic of a book, but it is this characteristic that firmly grasps the interest of readers.I can say with confidence that all the books I recommend will resonate with ordinary people, because what they express is universal human nature.

In the American literature piece, my narrative thread is slightly different from the other two, and I want to explain why here. European literature is vast, so the works I have selected are all recognized as superior works that I worship and worship. If a book is not worthy of absolute praise, then I don’t need to include it in the list.However, the history of American literature is relatively short. If the same standard is adopted, then maybe I can only list four writers.Today's American literature has integrated into the world, so there is no need to stick to the distinction between American writers and writers from other countries, although for me, if I confess my feelings about certain American writers, readers will be guided to a certain extent, and then gain It is very beneficial, but what I hope is that readers read for themselves and find out the value of the book for themselves, without being influenced by authority.Here I want to repeat what I wrote in the first chapter: For readers, only their own understanding of a book is the most important, even if no one in the world agrees with your opinion, there is no one at all. relationship, because your point of view only works for you.I think Americans, in particular, are more sensitive to the dictatorship of the government than professors and critics to the arts, which they tend to accept willingly, than the dictatorship of professors and critics to the arts, which would lead them to revolt.But there is no right or wrong in these things, for the relationship between the reader and the book, like the mystic and God, is free and private.Of all forms of pretentiousness, literature is probably the most abominable, and it makes little sense for an idiot to despise someone because someone else thinks differently about a book than he does.Pretending is disgusting in literary appreciation, and there is nothing to be ashamed of if a book that has been approved by the greatest critics turns out to be nothing for you.On the other hand, if you haven't read these books, it's better not to slander them.Back to American literature.Because of the short history of the United States and the paucity of books, third-rate writers have also been honored in the halls of grace, and their works have received, in my opinion, a disproportionate admiration.The United States today should also put aside the prejudice of patriotism, and regard those American writers as citizens of the world, not just Americans; compare them with those great artists, so as to give proper evaluation.

Due to space limitations, I only mentioned the names of three novels in the article on English literature. In order to satisfy myself, I would like to use this preface to make some explanations.They are Trollope's The Eustace Diamonds, Meredith's The Egoist and George Eliot's Middlemarch ).When I started writing, I hadn't read these books for many years, but then I picked them up again.I had originally advised readers to read "The Eustis Diamond" rather than Trollope's best-known novel, "Barchester Towers" (Barchester Towers), because "The Eustis Diamond" is a complete book, And "Bachester Tower" is more like a part of a series, the theme and characters in the book are not clear, so unless you read the previous and previous novels together, you will not be able to get a complete understanding.My aim is to recommend books that the reader can enjoy and benefit from, and Trollope's literary importance does not warrant a list of his novels.Besides, I recall that Barchester Tower has a lot of Victorian hyperbole, which now appears to be mere idle rhetoric.

But after reading The Eustis Diamond again, I recommend that readers still read the more famous Barchester Tower, even if it is not perfect. "The Eustis Diamond" is a detective novel, and Trollope has cleverly designed two unexpected plots, but the story is too long.Although this book gives us a good study of how to write a novel on this subject, what is presented in 300 pages should be a more exciting story.The characters, while well-drawn, are not interesting, and most of them are the usual stereotypes of Victorian novels.The book feels like Trollope was trying to write a Dickensian novel and failing to do so.The most human character in the book is Lizzie Eustis, but it's clear that Trollope either hates her, or wants the reader to hate her, and doesn't do her justice.Just like when you see a lawyer intimidating a prisoner in court, no matter what crime he committed, you still feel sympathetic. You feel that Li Qi is not much worse than other characters, so the author should not be so harsh on her.

The book is not difficult to read, and anyone interested in Victorian England will have a lot of fun observing the manners and customs of yesteryear as described in the book.This is a real review.But while I recommend that you read Barchester Tower in comparison, don't get your hopes up too much, because Trollope's late writing is somewhat exhausted.He was almost forgotten by a generation, but when he was remembered again, his work was marked with the characteristics of the times, and thus received acclaim that I think was inappropriate.He is an honest and hardworking craftsman with great powers of observation.He has a natural appeal and can tell a simple and accessible story in a straightforward (though extremely verbose) manner, but he has no enthusiasm, wit, or ingenuity to use only A simple, meaningful sentence reveals the character of a character or the importance of a certain episode.His interest lies in recreating a dead social formation with unvarnished, accurate and honest descriptions.

Fifty years ago, every intelligent young man would have read Meredith's book with gusto and cultural conceit.But the reading tastes of young people change with the times, just as they read Thomas Eliot ten years before Meredith and Bernard Shaw after Meredith.I think few young people want to read Meredith these days.Although "The Egoist" is out of touch with the times, it is still a good novel.George Meredith thought the classes he described were to be awe-inspiring, but people have changed these days, and we no longer think of country gentlemen and wealthy ladies in four-seater coaches as this The backbone of society, their behavior has become vulgar and trivial in our eyes.The world has changed after Meredith, and it is hard for us today to be ashamed of the brave, self-reliant, wealthy Clara Middleton who broke her engagement because she found she no longer loved Sir Willoughby. Touched, because girls these days can easily solve this dilemma.Today's readers expect novels to make sense, and dilemmas that can be resolved with a little common sense are simply intolerable.When Clara finally decides to flee to London, she slips out of the house and walks nervously to the station, but is persuaded to go back after missing her train because of a growing storm.In her, there is almost no cunning that a woman should have.She was getting married and would definitely need dresses, and the excuse of going to London to try on dresses would not arouse anyone's suspicions, and it was strange that it never occurred to her.

Meredith's book is not easy to read, and his affectations and convoluted language can only be boring.He could never come straight to the point of saying simple things, and his proud intellect suffered as a result.But he has a gift for creating vivid, unforgettable characters.They are not like the characters in the movie, they are authentic characters in life, they have surpassed ordinary people.In them there was a hand-carved mark, like the characters in Congreve's comedies, but it was not rigid, and Meredith ignited their lives with her own enthusiasm, and they were like Like the puppets brought to life by the magician in Hoffman's works, they bloom with their own brilliance.Only a true novelist can produce such a work.It is this enthusiasm that has attracted many readers.For all the leaps in his writing, the inappropriateness of his values, and the sometimes clumsy plotting of his pen, if you read Meredith with pleasure, you will find that he tells his story methodically, and you I can't wait to fly high with him, soaring in the heart-shattering joy of his rich creativity. The Egoist is Meredith's best novel because of the universality of its themes.Egoism is the mainstream of human nature, and it is this quality (although egoism is the ugliest human vice, I still prefer not to call it that, because it is also the essence of many of our virtues) that determines how we are at this moment. exist.Without egoism, we would not be who we are, and without egoism, we would be nothing.However, we should still examine our inner selfish desires persistently.If a person wants to live a happy life, he must do his best to suppress his inner selfish desires.Sir Willoughby is an egoist shaped by Meredith who has never been seen before or since, but I think everyone will be condemned by conscience when they read this book, because if people fail to find out from themselves To have certain qualities that put Sir Willoughby to shame means that he is a greater egoist than Sir Willoughby.As Meredith says, his dastardly hero is not this one, or that one, but everyone.Therefore, I recommend "The Egoist" not only because it is a lively and interesting novel, but also because this book may give you a deeper understanding of yourself, which is very beneficial to you.

Finally, I want to discuss Middlemarch.From the point of view of the novel alone, it is better than the previous two, and it is a masterful work.The characters in George Eliot's works are not confined to a certain class, but come from a variety of different classes, including landed nobles living in the estates around Middlemarch, and also living in Middlemarch. Professionals, businessmen and small traders in the deed - it is not easy to build such a story structure.When reading other novels, you only need to care about the fate of two or three characters. They live in a vacuum to some extent, and the changes around them are not important to these characters.But in reading "Middlemarch", you have to pay attention to the fate of various characters in the world.

In "Middlemarch", George Eliot used superb skills to naturally connect the various stories that happened to different characters.If a writer who is not so skilled attempts such complex creations, the reader is likely to like only one type of character and not accept other types of images.George Eliot, however, had a knack for letting the reader "dip in the rain" on all of her characters, and when her focus shifted from one group of people to another, it was as if in real life we ​​follow certain people. Getting to know some of the others was as natural as it gets.It also lends her novels a remarkable sense of realism, in that even though the story takes place during the reign of George IV, we still feel that life is as it should be. Many characters in "Middlemarch" are very natural, George Eliot carefully portrayed these characters, each of them is independent and has his own idiosyncrasies, but George Eliot has no enthusiasm , she couldn't bring the characters to life like George Meredith. (It occurred to me that Clara Middleton would not have thought of trying on a wedding dress to escape, because people like her don't think about wedding dresses.) George Eliot accurately portrays various characters , she treats these characters with cold but sympathetic sympathy, so that her heroes are not much greater than ours, and her villains are not really very evil.She thinks with the characters' thinking, so when we look at these characters, we are not outsiders, but more like the characters' self-examination, so even Mr. Casaubon (Mr Casaubon), people will feel pity besides hatred .George Eliot's characters are thoughtful, because they are not only governed by emotion, they care about politics and current events, they also live a life of daily necessities, just like us, they have both emotions and brains, In short, they are human beings with flesh and blood just like us.Finally, I would like to comment on George Eliot in this way: except for enthusiasm, she has all the qualities that a first-class novelist should have. No English writer can interpret life more richly and properly than her. Sensible and sympathetic, but lacking in romance. Before concluding this preface, I would like to add one more point.When talking about collections of poetry, I left out Robert Bridges's The Spirit of Man.A reviewer objected to my listing of Oxford Poems, saying it was worthless.I do not share his opinion, although I admit that some of the poems collected in the second half of the book are of little reading value.This is unavoidable.Anthologies reflect the editor's choice and taste.In the editing process, if it is the previous works, the editor may still have full confidence, but when faced with contemporary works, he will hesitate, because time will ravage these works, and who knows what will happen at this moment. Can the works we are shocked by can also infect future generations in the same way?But I think it's pure nitpicking to criticize The Human Spirit.This is definitely just a family opinion, and readers will not buy it.However, because of Robert Bridges's great learning, good judgment, and passionate pursuit of beauty, this book contains many excellent poems that are not familiar to most readers, but this does not affect "Humanity". "Spirit of Spirit" becomes a noble and inspiring book. Finally, I would like to conclude this article with a quote from Dr. Johnson to Mrs. Slyer: "Those who do not read have nothing to think and nothing to say."