Victor Hugo (February 26, 1802 - May 22, 1885) was a representative figure of French romantic writers and an active romantic literary movement in the early 19th century. leader and an outstanding bourgeois democratic writer in the history of French literature. Hugo experienced almost all major events in France in the 19th century. He wrote many poems, novels, scripts, various essays, literary reviews and political articles throughout his life, and was an influential figure in France.
Hugo was born in Besan?on, Doubs, in eastern France, close to Switzerland. His father was a general under Napoleon. When he was a child, Hugo was stationed in Spain with his father. When he was 10 years old, he returned to Paris to go to school. , graduated from high school and entered law school, but his interest lies in writing. At the age of 15, he won the prize in the poetry competition of the French College. At the age of 17, he won the first place in the "Hundred Flowers Poetry Competition". At the age of 20, he published a collection of poems "Ode". He was rewarded by Louis XVIII for praising the restoration of the Bourbon dynasty, and later wrote a large number of exotic poems. Later, he was disappointed with both the Bourbon Dynasty and the July Dynasty and became a pacifist. He also wrote many poetic dramas and scripts. He wrote a large number of novels with distinctive characteristics and implemented his ideas
In 1841, he was elected as an academician of the French Academy, a member of the House of Lords in 1845, and after the February Revolution of 1848, he served as a representative of the Communist Party and the National Assembly. In 1851, when Napoleon III proclaimed himself emperor, Hugo rose up in opposition and was forced to go into exile. During his exile, he wrote a political satirical poem "Punishments". Each chapter is accompanied by an article of Napoleon III's policy program, and is satirized and used. Contrast the achievements of Napoleon I with the humiliation of Napoleon III.
After the revolution of 1878 overthrew Napoleon III, he returned to Paris. Hugo wrote numerous works throughout his life, covering almost all fields of literature. Critics believe that his creative ideas are the closest to modern ideas. After his death, the whole country in France mourned him, and he was buried in the Panthéon, which gathers memorial plaques of French celebrities.
Hugo's romantic deeds that are most talked about by the French are: when he was 30 years old, he met the 26-year-old actress Juliette Drouet and fell in love. No matter whether they were together or separated, Hugo wrote a love letter to her every day until her death at the age of 75. He never stopped for nearly 50 years and wrote nearly 20,000 letters.
The play "Cromwell" was a verse play published in 1827. The "Preface" of the script is considered to be the declaration of the French Romantic drama movement and is Hugo's extremely important literary treatise.
"Hernani" (Egni), whose premiere in 1830 marked the complete victory of French Romanticism over Classicism.
Novel
"Notre Dame de Paris", written in 1831, is Hugo's famous novel and a representative of romantic novels. The two characters in the novel, Quasimodo and Archdeacon Claude, are in contrast. The former is ugly in appearance but pure and kind-hearted. The latter is sanctimonious. The heroine Esmeralda is the embodiment of beauty.
"The Man Who Laughs" was published in 1869. The novel has the same contrast between beauty and ugliness as Notre Dame de Paris. The protagonist Gwen Puland was born into a noble family, but due to intrigues in the palace, her face was disfigured when she was a child. Later, he was adopted by the folk artist 'Xiong' (or transliterated as 'Usus'). Therefore, Gwen Pulan is the son of the people. Later, the novel took a turn, and Gwen Pulan's fate went up and down. However, because of the death of her lover "Goddess" (transliterated as "Ti"), she was completely desperate and threw herself into the river. The creation of "The Laughing Man" marked a big step for the author towards realism.
"Sea Laborers"
"Les Misérables" lasted more than thirty years. It was conceived in 1828 and started to be written in 1845. It was not until 1861 that Hugo finally completed the book. . It is a literary masterpiece that best reflects Hugo's literary techniques and ideas. In the novel, Hugo described the deep suffering of the lower class people. And through the experience of the protagonist Jean Valjean, Hugo's compassionate thoughts are expressed.
"1993" is Hugo's last novel. The two opposing characters in the novel, the revolutionary Guo Wen and the royalist Marquis de Lantenac, are another contrast between good and evil by Hugo. After Guo Wen captured the Marquis of Lantenac, he thought that the Marquis of Lantenac had saved three children, so he even sent himself to the guillotine and let the enemy leader go. This arrangement best reflects Hugo's belief in compassion and pure conscience.