I will give you the full text, with analysis and appreciation!
It has been more than two years since I last saw my father, and what I cannot forget is his back. That winter, my grandmother died and my father's errand was handed over. It was a day when misfortunes never come singly. I went from Beijing to Xuzhou, planning to go home with my father for the funeral. When I went to Xuzhou to see my father, I saw the mess in the courtyard and thought of my grandmother again, and I couldn't help but shed tears. My father said, "It's the way it is, so there's no need to be sad. Fortunately, there's always a way out!" He went home and sold off the mortgage, and his father repaid the shortfall; he also borrowed money to pay for the funeral. These days, the family situation is very bleak, half because of the funeral and half because of the father's unemployment. After the funeral, my father was going to Nanjing to find a job, and I was going back to Beijing to study, so we went together.
When I arrived in Nanjing, a friend asked me to go sightseeing and stayed for a day. On the second day in the morning, I had to cross the river to Pukou and get on the train in the afternoon to go north. Because my father was busy with work, he had already decided not to see me off and asked a familiar waiter from the hotel to accompany me. He repeatedly asked the waiter to be very careful. But he finally felt uneasy, fearing that the waiter might be inappropriate; he hesitated for a while. In fact, I was already twenty years old at that time and had already been to Beijing two or three times, so it wasn't that important anymore. He hesitated for a while and finally decided to send me there himself. I tried to persuade him two or three times not to go; he just said, "It doesn't matter, it's not good for them to go!"
We crossed the river and entered the station. I bought the ticket and he was busy taking care of the luggage. There was too much luggage, so I had to tip the porter to get through. He was busy negotiating the price with them again. I was really too smart at that time, and I always felt that what he said was not very beautiful, so I had to interrupt myself. But he finally agreed on the price and sent me to the car. He picked out a chair for me by the car door; I spread the purple fur coat he made for me on the seat. He told me to be careful on the road and to be alert at night so as not to catch cold. I also asked the waiter to take good care of me. I secretly laughed at his tortuousness; they only recognized money, and it was nothing to support them! And for someone as old as me, can’t I still take care of myself? Well, now that I think about it, I was so smart back then!
I said, "Dad, let's go." He looked outside the car and said, "I'm going to buy some oranges. Just stay here and don't move around." I looked at the moon over there. There are several sellers waiting for customers outside the fence of the platform. When you get to the platform over there, you have to cross the railway, jump down and climb up again. My father is a fat man, so it would be more troublesome to walk there. I was going to go, but he refused, so I had to let him go. I saw him wearing a black cloth cap, a large black cloth mandarin jacket, and a dark blue cloth cotton robe. He staggered to the side of the railway and slowly leaned down. It was not a disaster. But it was not easy for him to cross the railway and climb to the platform over there. He clung to it with both hands and retracted his feet; his fat body leaned slightly to the left, showing an effort. At this time I saw his back, and my tears flowed down quickly. I quickly wiped away my tears, fearing that he would see me and others would see me. When I looked out again, he had already hugged the scarlet orange and looked back. When crossing the railway, he first scattered the oranges on the ground, climbed down slowly, then picked up the oranges and walked away. When I got here, I quickly went to help him. He walked with me to the car and put oranges on top of my fur coat. So I patted the dirt on my clothes, feeling very relaxed, and said after a while, "I'm leaving; I'll write you a letter over there!" I watched him go out. He walked a few steps, turned around, saw me, and said, "Go in, there's no one inside." When his back blended in with the people coming and going, and he couldn't be found anymore, I came in and sat down, and my tears came again. .
In recent years, my father and I have been traveling here and there, and the situation at home has deteriorated day by day. He went out to make a living as a young man, supported himself by himself, and did many great things. Who knew that Lao Jing was so decadent! He was so sad that he couldn't help himself. When he is depressed in his heart, he will naturally express it outwardly; trivial matters in his family will often make him angry. He gradually treated me differently than before. But after not seeing each other for the past two years, he finally forgot about my faults and only thought about me and my son. After I came to the north, he wrote a letter to me. He said in the letter, "I am in good health, but my arm hurts a lot, and I have a lot of inconveniences in lifting chopsticks and pens. I think my death is not far away." I read this , in the glistening tears, I saw the fat man's back again, wearing a green cloth cotton robe and a black cloth mandarin jacket. well! I don’t know when I will see him again!
Appreciation
In recent years, the reform of Chinese education in primary and secondary schools has been quite vigorous. Many kinds of textbooks are being tried out across the country at the same time. Some textbooks have gone to great lengths to adjust their content, and many traditional classics have been rejected. However, Mr. Zhu Ziqing's "Back View" and "I Am Still Unmoved" are still required texts in every textbook. Why? Is it because "Back View" was written by Zhu Ziqing and has already become a classic, so I don't dare to make mistakes.
I think the reason why you may ask this is because "Back View", about 1,500 words, looks simple, plain and unremarkable; if someone said that the current good compositions for middle school students are no worse than this Too many, and quite a few people will believe it to be true. ——Of course, now, even if someone writes the level of "Back View", it is impossible for him to be Zhu Ziqing, and his works will not receive the courtesy of "Back View". In this regard, it may even be said that "The Back" is so famous and well-told because it was written by Zhu Ziqing, and has become a classic.
This is not surprising. First of all, there is the so-called "first person to eat crabs", and there is also the so-called "it will be too late for the rest of my life".
Secondly, this idea is actually very consistent with modern literary theory. American literary theorist Jonathan Culler once explained a similar situation in profound terms of the "super-protective principle of cooperation" (see page 27 of "Contemporary Academic Introduction to Literary Theory" , Liaoning Education Press, November 1998 edition). Simply put, because you have basic trust in Zhu Ziqing and super "protection" of his articles, you believe that "The Back" is a classic work with profound connotations and strong artistry; and because of this trust, even if you cannot read "The Back" "Good" in "Back View", you will doubt your own level; even if it is just to prove yourself, you will be very "cooperative" in reading and telling the story of "Chou Yinmao".
Everyone is like this, how could "Back" not become a classic? However, it should be considered that "Back View" was created by Zhu Ziqing in 1925, so things are a little more complicated.
At that time, although Zhu Ziqing had already joined the Literary Research Association, ran literary journals, tried and published works in various genres such as poetry, novels, and prose, the number was not small; in prose writing In 1923, "Singing", "Hurry", "Traces of Wenzhou" and other masterpieces were published; especially in 1923, his and Yu Pingbo's "Qinhuai River in the Shadow of Oars and Lanterns" appeared simultaneously in the well-known publication "Oriental Magazine" , "Among the vernacular prose of that period, these two articles were quite moving and spread quickly" (Wang Tongzhao, quoted from Chen Xiaoquan's "The Biography of Zhu Ziqing", page 71, Beijing October Literature and Art Publishing House, March 1991 edition), It has become a legend in the literary world. However, generally speaking, Zhu Ziqing at that time had not become as famous a "brand" as he later became; rather, it was precisely after the publication of "Back" that "Zhu Ziqing" was given a very important weight.
So, why did "Back View" achieve this and stand out and attract attention at the time? The opinions of Li Oufan, a famous overseas modern literature researcher, are quite enlightening. He once lectured at Peking University: Lu Xun said in the famous article "How should we be fathers now" that China's "sage disciples" "believe that the father has absolute power and majesty over the son; if Lao Tzu speaks, of course there is no "It's impossible, the son has something to say, but he was already wrong before he said it." This concentrated expression of the May Fourth generation's dissatisfaction with their fathers. The "May Fourth" was an anti-traditional era, an era of "beating fathers to death". The images of fathers in the four literary works are all negative; but "Back" is different. For the first time in modern Chinese literature, it focuses on portraying a positive image of a father. In a situation where "bad dads are everywhere", this "good dad" suddenly aroused the screams of countless readers. In short, "Back" was born at the right time and achieved extraordinary success in a special context, greatly improving Zhu Ziqing's reputation.
What needs to be added is that since 1935 at the latest, "Back View" has been continuously selected into the "Hundred and Eight Lessons of Chinese Language" compiled by Mr. Ye Shengtao and others, "Junior Chinese Literature and Education Textbook", "Lecture Notes on Enlightened Chinese Language" and "The Enlightened New Chinese Reader (Type A)" and other middle school textbooks during the Republic of China; and this orientation was not interrupted in 1949. In the "New Junior High School Intensive Reading Selections" published in July and August of that year, " The "Criteria for Selection of Materials for this Book" has been added with the first item "in line with the spirit of new democracy", and "Back View" is still selected as a suitable candidate (Volume 4 and 5 of "Collected Works of Ye Shengtao on Education") , People's Education Press, August 1994 edition). From then on, Mr. Zhu Ziqing, who was praised in Mao Zedong's "Farewell, Leighton Stuart", was indispensable in Chinese language textbooks in New China, and his "Back View" was also indispensable. Obviously, the widespread influence and authoritativeness of the textbook undoubtedly added a lot to the "super-protective principle of cooperation" when interpreting "Back".
In one sentence, why did "Back View" become a classic? Reasons external to literature, even extra-literary, are important and indeed fundamental.
On the other hand, as Kahler dialectically pointed out, no matter how much "super-protective cooperation principle" is given to some texts, it is still impossible to read any "literary nature": The reason why "Back" has become a classic is It would also be unimaginable without its inherent quality as a classic. In fact, "The Back" "has been recited for a long time and has the power to move people deeply, just because of his honesty and the true feelings expressed in it" (Li Guangtian's "The Most Perfect Personality"), a similar statement , we are more familiar with it. Back then, when Mr. Ye Shengtao selected "Back View" into his textbook, there was a reminder: "The dialogues in the article may seem very ordinary, but they are all filled with emotions." Nowadays, various textbooks, reference books, and teaching aids talk about Starting from "Back View", I always emphasize: This article expresses and fully expresses the deep love between father and son.
These are naturally good. "Back View" indeed "expresses the father's deep affection for loving his son and the son's gratitude for his father's care" (see page 83 of the fourth volume of "Chinese" Junior High School edited by Hong Zongli , Jiangsu Education Press, December 1996 edition). But in my opinion, in the history of reading "Back", there has always been an inappropriate simplification: the flat understanding of "deep love between father and son" means that the relationship between father and son has always been harmonious, and the relationship between Zhu Ziqing and his son has always been harmonious. Emotions are "purified" and "purified" willingly.
We know that "Back View" is a retrospective prose. There is a full eight years between the "Back View" article and the "Back View" story, and how many things can happen in eight years or "{ Trivial” happens! Not to mention the discord and displeasure between Zhu Ziqing and his father in the biographical materials (see "Chinese Modern Literature Research Series", Issue 1, 2001, page 235), even in the text of "Back", the author also recorded some truthfully , it’s just that the words are concise and implicit, and it requires careful reading to decipher. --I'm referring to the last paragraph of the article.
"When he was young, he went out to make a living, supported himself independently, and did many great things. Who would have thought that his old state was so depressed! He was so sad that he couldn't help himself. If he was depressed, he would naturally express it outside; family Trivial things often make him angry. He gradually treats me differently than he used to." The hint and explanation are quite clear: as his father gets older, he becomes more degenerate and depressed; "Every family has a hard-to-recite scripture." Zhu Ziqing Their family also has a lot of trivial matters; my father doesn’t treat me as well as he used to. And what does "I" do to my father? Just look at the fact that father and son "have not seen each other for more than two years", but it is the father who takes the initiative to "finally forget my bad things and just think about me and my son" and "write me a letter". It is not difficult to imagine: "I" have a strong opinion on my father, and how upright I seem to be; obviously, "I" treats my father badly.
In this case, how could "I" actually write "Back View", an article praising father's love and father, in that situation? Twenty-two years after the publication of "Back View", Zhu Ziqing's memory of this is still very clear, "I wrote "Back View" because of the sentence in his father's letter quoted in the article." "Chinese" Junior High School Volume 1, page 10, People's Education Press, June 2000 edition) - "I am in good health, but my arm pain is severe, and I have a lot of inconveniences in lifting chopsticks and pens. I think I will be cured soon." Here, the so-called "period of death" is actually a "death"! Think about it, the father had not seen his son for two years, but he finally wrote a letter to his son, with whom he still had a stalemate. Without saying much else, he just talked about his own death. How could this not make Zhu Ziqing feel ashamed, sad and lamenting, talking about his father's goodness, and reflecting on his own shortcomings: no matter what mistakes his father made, and no matter how wronged he was, his father will always be his father; there is really no more There is a bigger mistake than his own performance in the past two years; does the father still have time and opportunity for his son to make up for his mistakes... As long as you are a son or a daughter, you should understand that the author is upset and excited at this time.
And I want to say that although many people have noticed Zhu Ziqing’s memories in 1947 and the importance of the last paragraph of the article, unfortunately, no one has yet spoken to the point: it was precisely in The conclusion of this article hides the biggest secret why "Back View" is "good", and also contains the most important potential of "Back View" as a literary classic. We can understand this from two aspects. First, in terms of theme content and ideas, although Zhu Ziqing is "only realistic", he truly writes that the blood relationship between father and son will also have frictions, and the family relationship between father and son will also have twists and turns; revealing that "the moon is cloudy and sunny" The objective reality is that people are worldly and complicated, and may make mistakes due to this. In this way, the classic theme of "deep love between father and son" adds to the son's feelings of guilt and repentance, which are also very important among the many emotions expressed in the work; and as a result, "Back" is no longer like other similar works. It is so simple and obvious, even if it may lose its "innocence", it has solidly gained a rich and complex experience from multiple perspectives such as family and life.
Why did Zhu Ziqing's "Back View" become a classic?
Second, and more importantly, if the deep meaning at the end of the article is not discovered, the passion expressed in "Back" will appear to be sudden and excessive, and many of the focus points in the text will appear somewhat artificial; in other words , only by discovering the "leopard's tail" in "Back View" that easily conceals its true face can we discover the artistic exquisiteness and perfection of "Back View". The most special point is the article structure, emotional expression, language selection, etc. The kind of control that is both powerful, flexible, and natural is very valuable. Let's think about it carefully: Zhu Ziqing started writing "Back View" when he was so excited by complex emotions such as shame, sadness, gratitude, etc. In other words, the author actually wrote "Back View" with deep emotion and exertion. However, Zhu Ziqing did not express his emotions in one stroke like a novice. Instead, he started like this with a thousand waves almost invisible, "My father and I have not seen each other for more than two years. What I cannot forget the most is "It's his back" - it seems very calm, it not only solves the problem, but also sets up doubts. Once you understand the ending and then reread it, you can easily understand the emotions that Zhu Ziqing tried his best to restrain. Furthermore, this beginning means that the author is still able to consciously or unconsciously consider technical issues such as article structure under such a surging heart, which shows that Zhu Ziqing is quite mature as an essayist.
Moreover, this kind of maturity runs through the text of "Back View". For example, the author uses two "repeatedly", two "hesitates" and explains that "the father is a fat man" and other full preparations and foreshadowing; such as the famous "Back" shot: "I saw him wearing a black cloth cap, a black cloth mandarin jacket, and a dark blue cloth cotton robe. He staggered to the side of the railway and slowly leaned down. It was not a disaster. But when he crossed the railway, he had to It's not easy to climb up to the platform over there. He used both hands to hold on to it, and then retracted his feet; his fat body leaned slightly to the left, showing that he was trying hard." - Have you noticed that this is indeed the case? It is an out-and-out close-up shot in a movie: the color of the clothes is very clear, the direction of the action is very clear, and the picture feels very strong; moreover, it is such a sensational shot, no wonder the author wrote at the right time, "At this time I saw Looking at his back, my tears flowed down quickly." - A sentimental reader will probably be unable to control it. --If this is the case, Zhu Ziqing's pursuit of artistry will have an effect. The "dramatic action" as a "literary eye" will either not be fired, but will hit the target immediately, with immediate results. Another example is the last sentence of the article, "In the glistening tears, I saw the fat man's back again, wearing a green cotton robe and a black mandarin jacket. Alas, I don't know when I will see him again!" I paid attention to the reason. The text begins and ends, then stops abruptly, with lingering sounds...
After such "every word is precious", has the inner potential of "Back View" been fully explored? I don't think so. Here's an example. As we mentioned earlier, "Back View" is the earliest positive portrayal of the father's image in the May Fourth literature; and some people have found that the father image described in "Back View" mainly has the characteristics of "careful", "considerate", "not strong and powerful", etc. This is far from the classic image of a father who is "responsible", "perseverant", "careless" and "powerful". "What we see in "Back" is not the image of a father, but rather the image of a mother. ” (See "Chinese Modern Literature Research Series" Issue 1, 2001, page 235). This is an interesting discovery, but how to interpret it and what can be read from it? It's an even more interesting question. You can contact Zhu Ziqing's consistent style of creation, contact "Green", "Moonlight over the Lotus Pond", "For the Dead Wife", especially the argumentative essay "Woman" written in 1925, and learn from the female metaphors and feminization of Zhu Ziqing's articles. When working on aspects such as consciousness, we can also connect with Zhu Ziqing’s life experience, and even appropriately use Freud’s “psychoanalysis” as an introduction to other research. You can also think about it, "Back View" is a work that positively portrays the image of a father, but why does the father in "Back View" still look more like a mother image? How does this relate to the social context and literary context of May Fourth? Can it be said that there was a strong "collective unconscious" during the May Fourth period, which made Zhu Ziqing unable to control his thoughts and writing? Wait, wait.
In short, the width of the interpretation of "Back View" is the width of your life and the width of your thinking. The short article "Back View" contains the long history of Zhu Ziqing's life, emotions, and thoughts. You can also have your own long history of life, emotions, and even thoughts. Literary reading or even "literature" itself is not afraid of, but needs such projection and empathy. Modern literary theory has long made it clear; moreover, it is precisely those classic works because of the "super-protective cooperation principle" " has been read repeatedly by countless readers, so the more you read, the more exciting and classic it becomes. In other words, your and my participation are also one of the reasons why classics become classics.
If it is not unreasonable to say this, then it is necessary to clarify which of the contents mentioned in this article belong to "Back" and which belong to "super-protective cooperation". It's neither possible nor necessary.
Why did "Back View" become a classic? Let us conclude by inappropriately borrowing a famous metaphor: When you eat an egg that tastes good, as long as you know it tastes great, why bother asking where the egg came from?