Chapter 22 The hero behind La Traviata - Alexandre Dumas

I do not draw the conclusion from this story that all girls like Marguerite could be like her; far from it, but I know one of them who, in her life, was There had been a serious love for which she had suffered until she died.It is a duty of mine to tell the reader what I have heard. I am not preaching fornication and evil, but wherever I hear such a noble sufferer praying, I will do it for him. I repeat, Margaret's story is rare, but if it were universal it would seem unnecessary to write it. - Alexandre Dumas More than a century ago, Lin Qinnan, who did not know a single foreign language, traveled across the ocean and came to China. At this time, it was translated into "La Traviata in Paris".From the west to the east, I don't know how many tears of foolish people have been earned.Although its author Dumas fils is famous for this, people may not know much about his life experience.

Dumas fils was born in 1824. His father, Alexandre Dumas, was a hero in the 19th century French romantic literary movement, and Dumas fils was his illegitimate son.He has been ridiculed and humiliated by others since he was a child, which is indeed a strong stimulus and a terrible blow to a child under the age of 7.Dumas still remembered this humiliation until his later years.Dumas fils was originally a simple boy who grew up in a poor and humiliating living environment, but after returning to the father of the great writer, Dumas's luxurious and lustful lifestyle set a good example for this young man who was not deeply involved in the world. One of the most realistic "models", Alexandre Dumas also started a ridiculous life of sensuality.However, although Dumas, who was born in poverty, lived a dissolute life, his conscience has not been completely wiped out.He published novels and poems before he was 20 years old.But what really enabled him to occupy an important place in the history of French literature was the popular novel.It was his accidental acquaintance with the famous Parisian prostitute Alphonsina Plessi that made this masterpiece. Four months after Lacey's death, Dumas came to the countryside where he had spent a happy time with Alphonsina again. Seeing things and thinking about others aroused his impulse to create.So he wrote behind closed doors, and wrote the novel within a month. After the novel was published, it immediately brought Dumas a great reputation.

Shortly after Dumas published the novel, he immediately tried to adapt it into a play.If the creation of the novel was smooth sailing, then the production of the play was full of twists and turns, and what surprised Dumas the most was that his father, the playwright Dazhong Mali, persuaded his son to give up the idea of ​​adapting it, and asserted that it was not a good subject. No audience will welcome it.But Dumas fils was unmoved and devoted himself to adapting and creating the script.Finally, when Alexandre Dumas read the script written by his son, he was also very moved.However, the French book and newspaper inspection department at that time prevented the play from being staged on the pretext that "the play did not conform to moral standards".After nearly three years of hard work, the play was allowed to be performed at the Variety Theater in Paris.

As for the creation of the opera, it is carried out almost simultaneously with the drama, and has nothing to do with Dumas himself.When the novel was all the rage, the famous Italian musician Verdi was in Paris.The talented composer immediately got enlightenment and inspiration from this novel. After the performance of the play, Verdi asked his friend Piawe to write the opera script, and then devoted himself to the composing work with enthusiasm. On March 6, 1853, the opera premiered at the Fenice Theater, a famous theater in Venice, Italy. The content of the stories in novels, dramas, and operas has basically not changed much. The center of the story is the love tragedy between the hero Armand and the heroine Marguerite.Dumas fils reveals the social significance of the tragedy of Armand and Marguerite.He keenly felt that the death of this unfortunate prostitute was not an isolated event, but a social phenomenon with profound meaning.From this, he thought of his poor biological mother, and thought of all kinds of cruelty and injustice in society.As a result, Dumas's creative concept changed profoundly. Perfecting morality and pursuing ideals became the principles of Dumas's literary creation.Although the "morality" and "ideal" in Dumas's mind are only vague concepts, readers can clearly see the author's criticism of the hypocritical and cruel moral concepts that suppress humanity and destroy love. And whipping, this is the author's cry of pain from the bottom of his heart.The protagonist of the story, Margaret, is beautiful, intelligent and kind. Although she has fallen into prostitution, she still maintains a pure and noble heart.She is full of enthusiasm and hope to pursue a real love life, and when her hope is dashed, she is willing to sacrifice herself to help others.All of these make the image of the fireworks woman shine with a holy brilliance, and "La Traviata" has thus become a symbol of beautiful, lovely and sympathetic women.