Introduction to "Notre Dame de Paris"
1. Introduction to the author
Victor Hugo (1802-1885) is the most important person in the history of French literature Writer, leader of the Romantic literary movement in the 19th century. , known as the "Shakespeare of 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 was in writing. When he was 15 years old, he won the prize in the poetry competition of the French Academy, and when he was 17 years old, he won the first place in the "Hundred Flowers Poetry Competition"
In 1826, He organized the "Second Literary Society" with the romantic literary youth Musset, Alexandre Dumas and others, and began to clearly oppose pseudo-classicism. In 1827, the theme of opposing the Restoration Dynasty and praising Napoleon began to appear in his poems. In the same year, he published the famous "Preface to Cromwell". He put forward the literary proposition of Romanticism, especially the principle of contrasting the comic and the grotesque with the sublime and beautiful, and tried to expand the scope of artistic description to make literature suitable for expressing the content of real life after the bourgeois revolution. This preface is a denunciation of pseudo-classicism, the banner of the Romantic school, and occupies an important position in the history of literary and artistic theoretical criticism.
In 1831, he created the monumental work "Notre Dame de Paris" for romantic literature in novels. In 1841, he was elected as an academician of the French Academy. In his acceptance speech, he expressed his support for the constitutional monarchy. In 1851, Louis Bonaparte launched a counter-revolutionary coup and declared imperialism. Hugo and his political faction issued a declaration to resist, but failed. Bonaparte implemented terror and ruthlessly suppressed the rebels. He was forced to live in exile abroad for 19 years.
Hugo's most important work during his exile was "Les Misérables." Hugo's other two novels of the same period, "Sea Laborers" and "The Man Who Laughs," are also very famous.
2. Introduction to the work
In 1482, Notre Dame de Paris was inhabited by the sanctimonious archdeacon Frollo and the bell-ringing freak Quasimodo. Frollo, who is evil in his heart, lusts after Esmeralda, a gypsy girl who dances and performs on the street. He sends Quasimodo to kidnap the girl at night, but is rescued by the handsome young guard captain Phoebus. The girl fell in love with Phoebus. The jealous archdeacon took advantage of their tryst to stab the officer, but put the blame on Esmeralda. She was sentenced to death and was rescued by Quasimodo, who secretly loved her, before being executed. She was placed in the Notre Dame Cathedral for refuge. However, Frollo instigated the church to regard her as a witch. The court ignored Notre Dame's right to asylum in the Holy Land and decided to arrest her. she. Heroes from the lower classes of Paris came to rescue her, but the bell-ringers mistakenly thought they were officers and soldiers coming to arrest her and resisted desperately. King Louis XI mobilized his troops to attack Notre Dame, attacking from both sides. During a melee, Frollo kidnapped the girl out of Notre Dame and threatened her, but when she refused, Frollo handed her over to the officers and soldiers. Quasimodo was so angry that he pushed the archdeacon who raised him from the top of a high building and fell to death. He found the girl's body and lay in the cemetery to die with her.
"The Hunchback of Notre Dame" (created in 1831) (also known as "The Hunchback of Notre Dame") is Hugo's first large-scale romantic novel. It tells a story that happened in France in the 15th century in a bizarre and contrasting way: Claude, the vice-president of Notre Dame de Paris, was sanctimonious and vicious, loved first and then hated, and persecuted the Gypsy girl Esmeralda. The ugly but kind-hearted bell ringer Quasimodo sacrifices his life to save the girl. The novel exposes the hypocrisy of religion, declares the bankruptcy of asceticism, praises the kindness, friendship and self-sacrifice of the lower working people, and reflects Hugo's humanitarian thoughts.
3. Summary of the story of "Notre Dame de Paris":
January 6, 1482, is a day that can arouse the emotions of the citizens of Paris. Because this day has a double meaning, it is both Epiphany and April Fool's Day. Therefore, the whole city of Paris is immersed in an extremely happy atmosphere from morning to night.
On April Fool’s Day, people can laugh as much as they want. On this day, no bad behavior is permitted and considered sacred. So you can imagine how Parisian citizens were reveling. People flocked to the old town from all directions. Especially large crowds gathered on the roads leading to the Palace of Justice, where an election for the "King of Fools" was taking place. The rules of the election were that whoever looks the ugliest, smiles the weirdest and ugliest, is expected to be elected.
When everyone brought out the lucky King of Fools, surprise and appreciation reached their highest point. I saw that he had a tetrahedral nose, a horseshoe-shaped mouth, one eye, a hunchback, and a limp. The height and width of his body were about the same, and the lower part was square. Viewed from the front, his legs seemed to be two, with the hilt of the knife. Connected. Among all his deformities, there is an undoubted firm, serious and brave attitude. He is Quasimodo, the bell ringer of Notre Dame in Paris. People put on him a crown and robe made of cardboard, He got on the decorated sedan and walked towards Place Greve.
In the parade crowd on the street, someone shouted: "Esmeralda is coming!" The parade people immediately got into revelry, and the shouts kept coming and going. People flocked to the square. In the square, I saw Esmeralda, a gypsy girl who made a living as a performer, dancing on a Persian carpet.
Her light and elegant dancing posture always arouses people's carnival applause. Thousands of people twirled as Esmeralda danced. At this time, Gringoire, a skeptical philosopher and satirical poet, was fascinated by this brilliant scenery. He didn't know whether this girl was a human, a fairy, or an angel. At this time, among all the people watching, there was a serious, calm and gloomy middle-aged man. At this time, he paid more attention to the dancing girl than anyone else, and he cursed from time to time. He is Claude Frollo, the associate bishop of Notre Dame de Paris. This person has been educated by the church since he was a child, so he is very devout in religious beliefs and has a strong desire for knowledge. This quickly made him a leading figure in the church and a knowledgeable scholar. He has a withdrawn temperament, usually taciturn, living in seclusion in a small room, poor and serious, studying alchemy, and avoiding all worldly joys and enjoyments. Therefore, he always looks melancholy, serious and deep, which may be brought to him by his unusual experience. In the summer when Frollo was 18 years old, a large-scale plague broke out in the city of Paris. More than 40,000 people in the position of Viscount alone died, and the plague became even more rampant where Frollo lived. Both his parents died of the plague, leaving him with an infant brother. From that time on, he devoted himself to religious causes and enthusiastically took care of his younger brother. His kindness and erudition gave him high prestige in the religious community.
Frollo has always been a man of few desires and avoided all worldly pleasures. Ever since he discovered Esmeralda dancing in the square, he had been uneasy all day long. Esmeralda's unparalleled beauty aroused Frollo's lust that had been dormant for many years, like a beast breaking its chains, causing him to completely lose his ability to restrain himself. Frollo also knew that his feelings would bring him an uncontrollable situation, but he couldn't let go of it and couldn't forget the gypsy girl. In the end, he felt that one was to do everything possible to possess her, and the other was to kill her. If he couldn't get it, no one else could get her. Only in this way can your soul be comforted.
In the Dutch Tower in the corner of the square, the hermit Gudier was scolding Esmeralda in a pious and hateful voice because her daughter was snatched away by Gypsies 15 years ago. Go quickly, Esmeralda is deeply frightened and disturbed by the curse of the cloistered nun.
When the members of the Friends of Fools carried Quasimodo to the square, he suddenly became the new hot spot of people's attention. The fools blocked the swarming crowd and struggled to defend their King of Fools, but when the triumphant Quasimodo saw Frollo, he was as docile as a lamb. It turns out that 16 years ago, Quasimodo, a deformed child, was abandoned in front of Notre Dame de Paris. The deputy bishop adopted him out of compassion and named him Quasimodo. Quasimodo is ashamed and sensible, grateful to Frollo, and obeys his orders.
In the evening, the climax of the April Fool's Day party has passed and people gradually dispersed. Esmeralda leaves the festival square with her beloved little goat. She walked to the alley next to the square. Quasimodo, who was ordered by Frollo, was about to kidnap Esmeralda. Esmeralda resisted and shouted for help. At this moment, Phoebus, captain of the King's Guards Archery Corps, led his soldiers passing nearby. Hearing the news, he arrived, rescued Esmeralda and captured Quasimodo. Esmeralda was moved by Phoebus's handsome appearance and his kindness in rescuing her. After asking the young officer his name, Esmeralda quickly ran back to the gathering place of homeless people and beggars——" Miracle Dynasty”.
The "Miracle Dynasty" is a very large square inhabited by lower-class people, including French, Spanish, Italians, Germans... They have different religious beliefs and are beggars during the day. A thief at night. Esmeralda lives here, and she has great magic power among these beggars and thieves. When she returned, beggars of both sexes were lined up tenderly, their fierce faces brightening at the sight of her. At this time, Clopin, the beggar king of the dynasty, was trying the poor poet Gringoire who accidentally entered here. According to the laws of the "dynasty", Gringoire will be hanged unless someone is willing to marry him. Time passed minute by minute, and Gringoire's life was in danger. The kind and beautiful Esmeralda unexpectedly stood up and announced her willingness to be Gringoire's "wife". After Gringoire was rescued, Esmeralda only provided him with food and lodging, and did not allow him to get close to her.
The next day, a temporary execution platform was erected in Greve Square. Yesterday, Quasimodo was the King of Fools. Today, he is kneeling on the turntable and being whipped. The crowd in the square played in all kinds of ways and insulted this ugly man. When Quasimodo saw Frollo in the crowd, his eyes lit up and he was overjoyed, but the adoptive father who adopted him hurriedly avoided Quasimodo's eyes. Quasimodo, who was tied up on the execution platform, was whipped mercilessly. He was thirsty and cried out desperately: "Give me water!" The people watching laughed at him and were indifferent. Esmeralda looked at all this, stepped onto the execution platform from the crowd, and tenderly brought the water hyacinth in her arms to Quasimodo's chapped mouth. People saw a line of tears rolling out of Quasimodo's dry eyes. Perhaps this was the first time Quasimodo shed tears. The people in the audience were moved by the fact that such a beautiful, pure, charming and delicate girl could care for such an ugly and vicious person. Only the hermit nun in the Dutch Tower saw all this and cursed repeatedly: Damn gypsy woman. Quasimodo returned to Notre Dame and became a bell-ringer.
Esmeralda continues to dance in the square. Quasimodo leans on the bell tower of Notre Dame to admire Esmeralda's dance. Quasimodo shows a gentle and lovely look in his eyes.
Esmeralda has been thinking about this handsome young officer since she was rescued by Phoebus, the captain of the archery team. Phoebus, the captain of the guard, left a deep impression on Esmeralda. He was not only her savior, but also her idol of love. Phoebus was born into a noble family. He was young, handsome and beautiful. He was engaged to his cousin and often visited his aunt's house, where he was a guest. By chance, Esmeralda was dancing in the street and was recognized by Phoebus, who was a guest at his aunt's house. He invited her to perform at his aunt's house. Esmeralda took her cute little goat to Aunt Phoebus's house. A girl from her aunt's house took advantage of Esmeralda's inattention when she was talking to Phoebus, and used candy to lure the little goat to a corner of the house. Curious, she untied the pouch from around the sheep's neck, opened it, and dumped the contents onto the floor. It was an alphabet, with each letter inserted into a small piece of boxwood. The sheep skillfully dialed the letters with its hooves, and soon they formed a word. People were surprised to find that it was a person's name - Phoebus. Yang'er's move is the result of Esmeralda's two months of careful training. Esmeralda blushed when she saw the stupid thing the sheep had done. All this was completely seen by Phoebus, an expert in playing with women, and he knew the secret in the heart of this beautiful gypsy girl. When sending Esmeralda out, he asked her to have a tryst at a small hotel in the evening. This sweet fruit falling from the sky made Fabi get carried away, and he told Frollo's brother the secret of his tryst with the girl. Frollo soon learned the news. Seeing that the girl he coveted was about to fall into the arms of another man, he became jealous and came to the inn in disguise. Just when Fabi hugged Esmeralda and was about to have fun, Frollo jumped out of the room, pulled out a dagger, and inserted it into Fabi's chest. Frollo escapes. The news that the gypsy girl had assassinated the captain of the guard quickly spread throughout the city. Esmeralda was arrested. The religious court tried Esmeralda and insisted that the witch Esmeralda drove the devil in black to assassinate the officer. Esmeralda was beaten and confessed, and the court sentenced her to hanging. She was sent to a cold and damp cell. Suddenly, the iron door of the cell opened, and Frollo, wearing a cassock, came to the dungeon secretly. He knelt in front of Esmeralda and confessed that he had killed Phoebus. , unabashedly expressing his love and inner pain to Esmeralda. He proposed to escape with Esmeralda, but Esmeralda refused. Esmeralda was taken to the square for execution. Phoebus, who had recovered from his injury, was sitting upstairs at his aunt's house, looking at Esmeralda with an indifferent expression. For the sake of his own reputation, he did not dare to stand up and prove Esmeralda's innocence. At this time, out of gratitude to Esmeralda, Quasimodo rescued her from the execution ground and rushed into Notre Dame. Notre Dame is a "holy place" not governed by law. In Notre Dame, Quasimodo took care of and protected her meticulously with a kind of tenderness mixed with gratitude, sympathy and respect, and was willing to go through fire and water for her. He found that Esmeralda wanted to see Phoebus, so he volunteered to find him and begged him to see Esmeralda. Phoebus faced Quasimodo, dismissed him, and rode away. Several ill-intentioned attempts by the Archdeacon failed because of Quasimodo's protection.
The church and the royal family were very angry that Esmeralda took refuge in Notre Dame. Soon the church set off religious fanaticism, threatening that Esmeralda was a witch and desecrating the church's holy place. The court also ignored the right of asylum in the holy place. , to arrest Esmeralda. After hearing the news, the homeless people and beggars in Paris, led by Clopin, rushed to attack Notre Dame and prepared to rescue Esmeralda. Quasimodo, who was unaware, thought they were here to harm Esmeralda, so he resisted desperately. King Louis XI saw a blaze of fire from the window and thought it was the citizens of Paris rising up against the judges who were fighting against him, and secretly gloated at the misfortune. But when the news came that tramps and beggars were attacking Notre Dame de Paris, he showed his ferocious face and immediately ordered to suppress the crowd and hang the "witches". The bodies of homeless people and beggars lay on the ground in front of Notre Dame, and rivers of blood flowed.
During the melee, Frollo used Esmeralda's trust in Gringoire to convince Gringoire to persuade Esmeralda and quietly follow Frollo in disguise. Rollo, slipped out of the back door of Notre Dame and then crossed the river to escape danger. Frollo possesses Esmeralda and takes her to the gallows in Place Greve, threatening her and asking her to obey him. Esmeralda would rather die than surrender. Frollo had nothing to do, and in a rage, he temporarily handed her over to the hermit nun Gudier who lived in seclusion next to the square, and went to call the soldiers himself. Who knew that this nun was Esmeralda's biological mother, who had taken her from the girl's breast? I recognized my daughter on the little shoes hanging on the front, and felt a mixture of sadness and joy. At this time, officers and soldiers arrived. Although the mother tried her best to rescue her daughter, she was kicked down by the executioner and her head hit a stone and died. Esmera was sent to the gallows, and when the noose was put around her neck, Frollo was so proud that he hid on the roof of the church and let out a ferocious laugh. Quasimodo had long recognized Frollo's true identity. In a rage, he pushed Frollo from the top of the high building and fell to death.
The next day, Quasimodo disappeared. Two years later, people discovered two bones connected together in the tomb of Hayabusa Mountain. One was a deformed man's body, and the other was a girl's body.
The strange thing is that they hugged each other, and when people separated them, the bones immediately turned into dust.