Short stories are an extremely important part of Tagore's entire works, and his achievements are very outstanding. As Bengali scholar Aben Qasem Chaudhry said: "Short stories are Tagore's second major achievement, after poetry." 1
Short stories have always been Tagore's favorite One of the literary genres. At the age of 16, he published his first short story "The Beggar Girl". A large number of excellent short stories were written in the 1990s. This interest lasted until the last few weeks of his life. In more than 60 years, he has written more than 90 short stories (approximately one million words). This cannot be considered an astonishing achievement in the era when the short story genre was just born in Bengali literature. From the perspective of effectiveness, realistic short stories, like romantic poems, are the most popular chapters among readers.
1 Abun Kasem Caudhuri, "Collected Novels of Rabindranath Tagore" (Abun Kasem Caudhuri, "Rabi-ndranather Galpaguccha") Dhaka, Bengali edition, preface.
Tagore is a pioneer of Bengali literature and the pioneer of realist short stories in Indian literature. Indian classical Sanskrit literature is extremely developed, and Bengali folk literature is also colorful. As far as prose literature is concerned, although there are many fascinating folk tales, fables, legends, myths, etc., there are no realistic short stories. The field of novels and novels was also pioneered in the mid-19th century by Rabindranath Tagore's predecessors, such as Panjim Chandra Chattopaday (Chatterjee) and others. Before Theon produced short stories in large numbers, the genre was still obscure in Bengali literature. Kaitra Gupta said it well in the book "History of Modern Bengal Literature": "The short story genre in Bengali literature was pioneered by Rabindranath." ② Sukumar Sen also said: "Tagore is The real founder of Bengali short stories.” The genre has been pushed to the point of perfection. As the Bengali scholar Narayan Chaudhry said: "Rabindranath is a master of Bengali short stories. No one can compare with him in terms of actual influence in this regard until today." ④ Theon The novels boldly use folk spoken language, which brings a lively atmosphere to Bengali literary language and promotes the formation and development of modern Bengali literary language.
①Bankimchandra Chattopādhāy Cattopādhāy (1838-1894) was one of the greatest writers in Bengal and even India in the 19th century. He wrote 12 novels. , novel. It opened a vast avenue for the genre of novel in Bengali literature.
②Ksetra Gupta's "History of Modern Bengal Literature" (Ksetra Gupta's "Adhunic Bānlā Sāhityer Itihas") Calcutta, 1961, Bengali edition, 168 pages.
③Sukumār Ser "History of Bengali Liferatura" New Delhi, 1979 English version, 282 pages.
④Nārāyan Caudhuri "Prose Literature" (Nārāyan Caudhuri "Katha-Sanitya") Calcutta, 1963 Bengali edition, 33 pages.
Tagore's short stories have not only established an undisputed authority in Bangladesh and India as a whole, but are also treasures in the treasure house of world literature. E. Thompson, a famous British litterateur who has published many works on Tagore, once said: "Excellent short stories made him (referring to Tagore - author's note) one of the greatest novelists in the world." ① This That's no exaggeration. Taiweng's short stories can be compared with the works of Maupassant, Chekhov and other world short story giants. Works such as "People of Kabul", "Mohamaya", "Clouds and Sun", "A Woman's Letter", etc. are undoubtedly among the world's famous short stories. When Rabindranath Tagore visited Britain in 1912, the first thing that caused a sensation in the British literary world was the short story "The People of Kabul" and the English translations of some collections of poems (translated by Santiniketan's teacher Ajikumar Chakravarty). ②Tagore's short stories have spread like wildfire all over the world and are very popular, which reflects his great achievements from another aspect. His short stories have been translated into all major languages ??around the world. The earliest Chinese translation in my country can be traced back to "Little Love" (i.e. "Holiday") published in "Women's Magazine" in 1917. There are currently eight Chinese translations of "People of Kabul". This turbulent competition for translation is very revealing. To sum up, Tagore's short stories are not only one of the most important achievements among his many works, but also a magnificent treasure in Bengali literature, Indian literature and world literature.
①E. Thompson "Rabindranath Tagore, his life and work" London, 1920 English edition, 103 pages.
②See "Critical Biography of Tagore" (printed) S. C. Written by Saint Gupta, translated by Dong Honggou, originally published by Hunan People's Publishing House, 20 pages.
2. Tagore wrote more than 90 short stories with a wide range of themes, rich content, prominent themes, and clear love and hate. The writer has a panoramic view of stories from ancient times to the present, but his brilliant writing mainly focuses on depicting the real life of his era, that is, all aspects of urban and rural life in India in the second half of the 19th century and the early 20th century, and describes the differences between various classes at that time. figure. Whenever we read these novels, a dark and outrageous picture of the times will appear before our eyes.
The writer lived in an era when Britain was strengthening its colonial rule in India. The reality of the fall of the motherland and the humiliation of the nation aroused the writer's lofty patriotic emotions. He once abandoned the title granted by the British King, publicly denounced the massacre of the people by the British colonists, and promoted patriotism and exposed colonialism through artistic images. "Dark Clouds and Sun" describes Shosh Pusong, a peaceful and peace-loving college student. When he witnessed a foreign adult shooting and sinking villagers' boats and drowning people for fun, he complained to the government full of hatred. However, the officials protected each other and the foreigners went unpunished. The writer pointedly pointed out in the novel: "A belief was formed in the mind of this Englishman that he would not be punished for making such a little joke." Later, this college student who upheld justice, instead was thrown into prison.
The writer not only denounced the British colonists, but also pointed his pen at its affiliated institutions and their minions. Through the experiences of a rural doctor, the police authorities' extortion, bullying of villagers, and atrocities rampant in the countryside were revealed ("The Mistake"). Through the story of a widow who lost her virginity and the handling of her suicide, the sanctimonious false face of the judge is exposed ("The Judge").
With the development of capitalist production relations in India, the evil thoughts of pursuing money and seeking huge profits are increasing day by day and corroding people's souls. Therefore, money fetishism cannot escape Tayung's attack. In the article "The Artist", the widow sent her son to the home of her nephew, an artist, in the pouring rain. Ask him to "deliver his son from the lust for money." Because the guardian who is full of copper odor - the child's cousin uncle's teaching is "the first thing is to go all out to make money."
Tagore hated feudal forces and stereotypes. He opposed the caste system and religious disputes. In "Prejudice", an old scavenger was beaten to a bloody head just because he washed clothes under a public tap and then accidentally touched another person. But those "patriots" who were verbally fierce were watching and became the defenders of the old customs. "Sannyasa" depicts the divide created by the caste system. A man and woman who fell in love with each other finally gave up caste and insisted on love. "So That's So" is a good piece of writing that mocks pious belief in God. When Chabipin heard his devout practicing father admit that a Muslim was his son, he said with emotion: "This is what piety is like for the older generation!" Another character in the book put it more straightforwardly: "In the world, The difference between saints and mortals is that saints are pretentious, while mortals are open and honest. ""Stolen Treasure" refutes superstitious ideas such as "natal stars" and "birthday horoscopes" through the story of the union of two pairs of lovers from two generations. "Atonement" criticizes the traditional atonement ritual. The writer not only ridiculed the decadent and cruel customs of religion, but also exposed the false faces of its representatives.
Before Rabindranath Tagore, the situation in rural India was rarely reflected in literary works. The writer himself also said: "There was a period when I wrote short stories about rural life themes month after month. I believe that the picture of rural life has never been described on such a scale in Bengali literature before. ① The writer is very productive The short stories in this period are mainly based on rural life. In "That's How It Is", we see the tenant Achimuddin losing his family and being in debt. , the writer told us that during the busy harvest season, even if their crops were soaked in water, they had to repair the landlord’s office. “Sometimes they had to stand in the rain, but they didn’t get what they deserved. Wage, on the contrary, received a lot of rude scoldings. "Tai Weng not only wrote about the poverty and oppression of farmers, but also described the resistance of farmers. In "The Unavoidable Disaster" he wrote: "The landlord general wanted to significantly increase land rent, which aroused the tenants to rise up and resist. "When the tenant Achimuddin was forced to despair, he finally raised his knife and chopped off the landlord's head.
① Quoted from "Collected Works of Rabindranath Tagore" Moscow, 1961, Russian edition, Volume 1 Page 563.
The low status and miserable situation of Indian women are the result of the constraints of the four powers of politics, clan, god, and husband, and are a reflection of the various shortcomings caused by the remnants of feudalism and the capitalist cannibal society. The people of the upper class are the most common subject in Taiwen's short stories. The writer describes many unfortunate women who are mercilessly swallowed up by the feudal marriage system. "Mohamaya" is a masterpiece that accuses the beautiful and passionate Moha. When Maya was on a date with her lover, she was caught by her brother. In order to maintain the purity of her caste, she married her sister to a dying old man. The cruel brother forced her to bury her husband. Although she escaped death later, the flames had licked away her handsome face. With ingenious conception and delicate description, the work lashed out at the evils of this feudal system.
Tagore also criticized the evil habit of child marriage. This backward custom is harmful to girls' bodies as well as their souls.
Uma in "The Notebook" got married when she was only 9 years old. Not only did she lose her parents' favor, but her study notebook was also confiscated. What a cruel reality this is!
When describing the tragic fate of Indian women, the writer also created some women who pursued light and longed for freedom. Mrinal in "A Woman's Letter" finally awakens after 15 years in her husband's family and decides to leave this rigid family that hates the poor and loves the rich, in order to resist the cannibalism. Jilibala is also a touching image. This beauty who was "intoxicated by the youth that permeated her body." After being ignored and bullied by her husband, she resolutely devoted herself to the art stage ("Abolition of Pride").
The partition of India and Pakistan, The long-standing conflict between Hindus and Muslims intensified. In late June 1941, when Tagore was bedridden, he specially conceived his last short story-"The Story of Muslims". Although this story could not be further processed. Tai Weng passed away. As early as the end of the last century, Tai Weng wrote the story of a Muslim princess who pursued a Brahmin for more than 30 years ("Pull"). This shows that the creative theme of vigorously promoting mutual respect and harmonious coexistence between the two religions is very clear.
Almost every one of Tagore's short stories shines with the glory of the author's humanitarian spirit. The struggle between truth and falsehood, the struggle between good and evil, and beauty can be seen everywhere. The opposition between love and hate, the writer always clearly sympathizes with the weak and opposes the powerful; he praises the truth, goodness and beauty, and denounces the false, evil and ugly, the more he organically combines love and hate, and connects people. The more sincere and profound the friendship between people is written, the more it will arouse people to hate the forces that destroy friendship. "People of Kabul" is the most prominent chapter in the writer's humanitarian-themed works. He married Minnie, the 5-year-old daughter of a wealthy Bangladeshi writer. The vendor devoted all his love to Minnie, his only daughter in his distant hometown. This love made them cross the age gap and become good friends who talked about everything. , and lasted for many years. This sincere love also moved Minnie's father. He cut down on Minnie's wedding expenses and helped the Kabul people return home, trying his best to reunite his long-awaited father with his biological daughter. In the work, Tagore perfectly combines the feelings of father and daughter with sympathy for the poor, and explores and expresses the power of love and affection extremely deeply, eliminating the vast distance between Kabul and Bangladesh, and also destroying the rich. The huge difference in status between the writer and the poor hawker, because they are both fathers who love their daughters! How can this not "arouse good feelings in people's hearts" (Golky)
3. The reason why Tagore's short stories have become literary wonders is not only due to their colorful, authentic and fascinating content, but also due to the writer's superb writing skills and vivid and simple language. Through hard training in creative practice and critical inheritance of the artistic experience of his predecessors, the short stories he created are really shining. Moreover, no matter the differences between countries or the passage of time, their brilliance can be erased. The following is mainly about the short stories. A brief analysis of the four aspects of structure, image, language and scene:
·Structure·The structural layout of Taiweng's short stories is extremely flexible and changeable. Generally speaking, the structure of most chapters is relatively simple. However, there are also a few novels that are more complicated and make people feel overwhelmed. From a single perspective, most of them are relatively dull, but there are often strange peaks in the dullness, which makes people feel that the artistic conception is fresh. The beginning of the short story contains dialogue, description, interjection... it's colorful. In this way, even though the plot unfolds like clouds and flowing water, it is unconventional and quite innovative. For example, "An Old Little Story" begins with "You want me to tell another story? No, I can't tell it anymore." After passing the test, he still told a fable-like story that is both ancient and ever new. The beginning is eclectic in its own way. The ending can be said to be ever-changing and endlessly memorable. For example, "Coronation" ends with three shouts of "Long Live!" Isn't it interesting and novel? The plot development of the novel is mostly narrated in a straightforward manner according to the order of events, but sometimes ups and downs of flashbacks and reviews are also used (such as "Rejection", "Judge", etc.). The former is like a surging river rushing straight down, cascading thousands of miles, dripping with joy; the latter is like a secluded mountain path winding around, turning thousands of times, with flowers blooming on the willow banks.
The structure is ever-changing, such as "Telling of the Steps by the River", "Rejection", "Suba", "Mohamaya", "Notebook", "Abandon the Pride", which take love as the main line ", "The Female Neighbor", "Hemonti", "Farewell Night", "The Hermit", "The Bridegroom and the Bride", "Stolen Treasure" and more than 20 short stories are taken as examples. They each have their own emphasis. The writing methods are different and there is no similarity.
In short, from a structural perspective, it is flexible and well-proportioned. It is a work of ingenuity, but there are no traces of poor management.
·Shape·Image Creating typical images is one of the central issues in literary and artistic creation. Taion paid great attention to this problem and was very successful in doing so. Almost all of his short stories have distinctive characters, which are unforgettable. The characters he creates are never schematic, but have their own characteristics. For example, there are many heroines in novels, but no similar examples can be found. He focused on selecting and refining typical characters. For example, Shosh Pusong in "Dark Clouds and Sun" is a very profound example.
Although he has a master's degree in law, he has no interest in litigating and is a complete nerd. However, it is such a peaceful and peace-loving college student who is forced to uphold justice and fight lawsuits, which shows the depth of oppression and the intensity of resistance, and further highlights the meaning of "officials forcing people to rebel." Characters are generally represented by their own speech and actions. Writers usually describe the inner feelings and inner activities of the characters they sympathize with in more detail (as is the case with most heroines); for the objects of ridicule or criticism, they often use their actions to perform. For example, the landowner in "The Inevitable Disaster" is quite similar to Uriah Heep in Dickens's "David Copperfield". The writer did not use any words such as "hypocrisy" to describe him. He only described his monotonous and repetitive action of touching the feet of a Brahmin from the same village five times, and vividly portrayed this hypocrite who talks sweetly but hides a sword in his smile! The writer skillfully uses contrast techniques to make the characters extremely distinct. Often the despicable and insignificant villains are used to make the positive characters more noble and great.
·Language·Language A distinctive image must be created by vivid language. Tagore's ability to control language is extremely strong and he deserves to be a master. The following aspects of his artistic language are more prominent:
1. Humorous, sarcastic, sharp and witty. Reading Tai Weng's works carefully, one can't help but smile knowingly or express angry rebuke. Especially those short stories with a slightly tragic color, the humorous characteristics are particularly obvious.
2. The writing is concise, subtle and concise. For example, the ending of "The Hermit" only uses one sentence spoken by Boroda and an action of taking out a catalog, which reflects his completely changed face in the past 12 years. Another example is that the few words at the end of "Haymondy" clearly reveal her unfortunate fate.
3. Use metaphors to express imagination. This is an artistic technique often used by writers. For example, there is this passage in "Judge": "From the sea, the coast shrouded in dark green forests is as lovely and beautiful as a fairyland. However, once on the shore, it feels less charming." The writer said " "Coast" is used to compare the mood and fantasy of a 15-year-old widowed young woman who does not understand the world. It is simple and concrete and is as precious as gold.
4. The allegorical symbol is profound. For example, "Dark Clouds and Sun", the title itself implies light and darkness.
5. The aphorism adds the finishing touch. Tai Weng's short stories often contain some aphorisms or aphoristic interjections, which can play a finishing role in understanding the context or theme. When describing Southie's passionate love aroused from the depths of her soul for her husband who left home, he inserted the sentence "The tighter the ties of separation are, the tighter the knot of love in the tender heart is." ("Sister") ) What a vivid and high-level summary! Many of Tai Weng's interjections are both humorous and extremely relevant. Readers can taste it themselves!
The above language characteristics are often blended and intertwined with each other, which greatly enhances the artistic appeal of the work.
·Scene·Scene In his novels, Tagore pays great attention to the description of scenes. There are generally no large sections of landscape paintings, but a vivid picture can often be sketched out with just a few strokes. In Taiwong's short stories, we see the beautiful scenery of Bangladesh - bustling towns, leisurely and quiet villages, majestic springs, golden rice and autumn... The writer's scene descriptions are always related to the theme and theme. Developing the plot, portraying the characters, and heightening the atmosphere are closely related, and it has reached the point where the scenes blend and the artistic conception is unified. To give you an example: the scene at the beginning of "Abandonment" is a "full moon night" with birds singing and flowers fragrant. A newlywed couple is sitting in the bedroom, immersed in the happiness of love. Later, when they abandoned caste and insisted on love and were both kicked out of the house, that night was "a dark night. There was no singing of birds."
"How closely the environmental description and plot development are coordinated!