Author: Windy City Sunshine
"There are only two elements in the world, beauty and truth; beauty is in the heart of the lover, and truth is in the arms of the cultivator.
Great beauty captured me, but a greater beauty released me from its grasp.
Beauty shines brighter in the hearts of those who long for it than in the eyes of those who see it. A brighter light.
I love the person who confides his heart to me, and I respect the person who reveals his dream to me.
But why do I do so in front of those who serve me. Shy, even a little ashamed?"
——"Sand and Foam" by Kahlil Gibran
In the history of Eastern literature, Gibran's artistic style is unique. His works contain both the seriousness and coldness of rational thinking and the romance and lyricism of arias. He is good at discovering the meaningful in the ordinary and revealing profound philosophy in the wonderful metaphors.
His works mostly take "love" and "beauty" as themes, expressing deep feelings and lofty ideals through bold imagination and symbolic techniques. As a poet, Gibran focused on and thought about the most essential issues such as the universe, people, society, and truth.
We feel the philosophical beauty contained in the words, which is a valuable asset for us to understand life and establish a correct outlook on life and values.
When I read Gibran's works for the first time, it was like a breeze that cleansed my soul: fresh, natural, and true, but also full of romance and profound philosophy. The images in the work are beautiful, easy to understand, and true emotions are revealed naturally; the work is very passionate, and having a spiritual dialogue with the author is a beautiful enjoyment!
First of all, what we experience is beauty everywhere. The category of beauty comes from nature and human nature:
“There are only two elements in the world, beauty and truth; beauty is in the heart of the lover, The truth is in the arms of the cultivator."
The author hints to us that beauty and truth come from emotion - it is in the heart of the lover; truth comes from labor creation, and he praises workers. , is really more valuable than beauty.
Secondly, beauty is great and sublime:
“Great beauty captured me, but a greater beauty actually released me from its grasp.”
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Beauty can shock people’s hearts and cleanse their souls. So beauty is sublime and hierarchical. Thirdly, beauty is inner activity, beauty is in the heart of the pursuer, beauty is the love and feeling of life, and beauty is also a kind of passion.
“Beauty shines brighter in the hearts of those who long for it than in the eyes of those who see it.”
Beauty is the appeal of the heart and soul, It is the response of dreams:
"I love the person who confides his heart to me, and I respect the person who reveals his dream to me."
Beauty is very simple, very pure, and a kind of respect:
“But why am I shy, even a little ashamed, in front of those who serve me?”< /p>
To sum up, we might as well use Western literary theory to conduct a detailed interpretation of this poem by Gibran.
(1) Use Democritus’ theory of imitation to interpret texts
Democritus’ theory of imitation believes that:
The objects of literary and artistic description are not just Biological people, but social people, are people with the same appearance and heart. They believe that literature and art should "imitate good people" and "do good things". Demand truthfulness in literature and art and oppose false descriptions. The second is the study of the subjective conditions of writers and artists. He valued the genius, inspiration and language of writers and artists. He believes: "Without a kind of spiritual fire and a kind of crazy inspiration, one cannot become a poet.
Pay special attention to the relationship between literature and art and aesthetics, and propose that the pursuit of beauty is one of the signs that distinguish humans from animals. A point of view. It is proposed that the pursuit and creation of beauty "is a sign of the divine soul", which has an influence on Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, and writers and aestheticians after the Renaissance.
Gibran's poems particularly pursue artistic truth and oppose falsehood; the objects of the poems are "social people"; what they express is the poet's love for life, and the poet is full of inspiration and passion; his works reveal a very philosophical aesthetic Consciousness: "The pursuit and creation of beauty is a sign of a sacred mind"
(2) Use the theory of Horace and "Poetic Art" to interpret the text
One of the viewpoints: The social function of art is the principle of "edutainment and entertainment"
This article proposes the dual purpose and effect of art, which "gives readers pleasure and provides lessons." The ideological content must be expressed through certain artistic means, an organic combination of ideological, artistic, and emotional interest.
Gibran's poems are very philosophical, and the strong expressions of these very philosophical verses and poems. Thoughts and feelings, both pleasure and beauty, and ideological artistry have been unified.
(3) Interpret the text with the literary and artistic thoughts of Longina's "On the Sublime"
The sublimity of literature. In its essence, it refers to a great mind and a noble mind. In this sense, Longinus proposed that "the sublime is the echo of the great spirit" (the manifestation of the great spirit). Style requires strong and passionate emotions.
This emotion is real, it is higher than ordinary enthusiasm, it is passion and ecstasy. "Nothing can lead to sublimity like the revelation of true feelings. This kind of true feelings emerges like crazy and sounds like the voice of God."
The literary view of "On Sublime" is classical, It is also romantic, moving from classical to romantic. "On the Sublime" enriches and deepens the principles of classical study. He introduced the principles of emotion and imagination into literary theory and criticism, established the romantic criticism standard of main emotion, and created a new trend.
When we read Ji Bolun's poems carefully, they have a romantic atmosphere and a majestic momentum.
At the same time, it also confirms Longinus’s point of view: artistic works should have a strong artistic infection effect, which comes from the writer’s noble feelings. This is an important point in Longinus’s literary and artistic thought.
(4) Use Hegel’s “Aesthetics” to interpret the text
The definition of the essence of beauty: “Beauty is the perceptual manifestation of ideas”
“Artistic The task is to express ideas with perceptual images for direct observation, rather than in the form of ideas and pure spirituality.
Art is the unity of perceptual and rational images. It can be seen, heard and perceived; on the one hand, it is a rational content that appeals to the soul.
Gibran's poetry is the appeal of the soul, full of the beauty of nature and the brilliance of human thought and philosophy. It is no exaggeration to say that the image of poetry is emotional, while the rational one is the appeal of two souls and a dialogue between two hearts.
Gibran's poetry is a feast for our spirit. Gibran composed a spiritual song for us, which stirs in the heart...