The "Top Ten Masterpieces in the World" refers to ten classic novels selected in 2000 according to a poll of100000 readers in Europe, Asia, the United States, Australia and Africa organized by Reader's Digest in The New York Times and the United States. These ten masterpieces represent the most cosmopolitan masters of world literature and the most influential masterpieces of Britain, France, Russia and the United States.
They are:
The first masterpiece
War and Peace
Content introduction
18 12 years, Russia and France went to war again. Andre Bohr Konski was badly wounded in the battle, and the Russian army was losing ground when Moscow was about to fall into enemy hands. Rostov replaced the carriage originally used to transport belongings with the carriage used to transport wounded soldiers, so that Nadasha found the dying Andre Bohr Konski among the wounded soldiers. She apologized to him and cared about him enthusiastically, but in vain. Andre Paul Kanski still failed to escape death and died. Bill disguised himself as a farmer and tried to assassinate Napoleon, but he was arrested by the French army and became a prisoner. His wife, Allen, continued to be dissolute during the war, and finally died of taking abortion pills by mistake. After several battles, Russia finally won. Bill met Nadasha and got married in Moscow, and Maria, the sister of Andre Bohr Konski, also married Nicola, Nadasha's brother.
Brief introduction of the author
Lev tolstoy (левниколаевичтолстой). There are other works such as Morning of the Landlord, Cossack, The Story of Sevastopol, etc. He also wrote many fairy tales. He worked hard all his life and reached the peak of critical realism literature in Europe at that time. He also tried to create "the first-class works in world literature" with his powerful brushwork and superb artistic skills, so he was praised by Lenin as "a genius artist with the most vivid realism".
The second masterpiece
Notre Dame Cathedral
Content introduction
Quasimodo, an ugly deaf man, was adopted by Father Claude of Notre Dame as a bell ringer. After meeting the beautiful gypsy girl La Esmeralda, Father Claude was fascinated by her beauty and ordered quasimodo to take Esmeralda away by force. On the way, Esmeralda was rescued by the captain of Forbis cavalry, and fell in love with Forbis. However, Forbis was a romantic, but he was assassinated by Claude in bad karma, but he didn't die. He framed Esmeralda and was sentenced to death. When quasimodo was executed, she rescued Esmeralda and hid in Notre Dame. Beggars rushed into the church to save Esmeralda and mistakenly fought with quasimodo. Esmeralda was strangled by Claude's army in the square. Quasimodo fell angrily from the top floor of the church and caressed Ais.
Create background
Notre Dame is the first large-scale romantic novel by French writer victor hugo. It wrote a story that happened in France in the15th century: Claude, the vice bishop of Notre Dame, was hypocritical and snake-hearted, and loved first and then hated, persecuting the gypsy woman Esmeralda. Quasimodo, the ugly and kind bell ringer, gave 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 embodies Hugo's humanitarian thought.
Brief introduction of the author
Victor hugo is the leader of the French Romantic Movement and one of the greatest writers in the history of French literature. His life almost spanned the whole19th century, and his literary career lasted for 60 years, with enduring creation. His romantic novels are wonderful and moving, vigorous and powerful, and have permanent charm for readers.
Hugo 1802 was born in Shaoshangsong City in the south of France. My grandfather is a carpenter, and my father is an officer in the China army. He was awarded the rank of general by Joseph Bonaparte, the brother of King Napoleon of Spain, and was a close friend of the king. Hugo died in 1885.
The third masterpiece
childhood
Content introduction
Gorky (Aletha), the little hero, lives with his mother at his grandfather's house after his father died. In the meantime, he was loved and cared for by his grandmother, influenced by the beautiful fairy tales told by her, and witnessed the quarrel and struggle between two uncles for family property, as well as the selfishness and greed shown in the trivial matters of life. Gorky (Aletha) spent his childhood in this "suffocating and terrible world".
Brief introduction of the author
Maxim Gorky (1868-1936) is the founder of the Soviet proletarian literature and an outstanding representative of the world socialist literature.
Gorky's original name was Alexei Macsimovici Piskov, 1868 was born in Nizhny Novgorod (now Gorky City) on the Volga River on March 28th, and his father was a joiner. He lost his father at the age of 4 and lived with his mother at his grandfather's house. 10 years old, grandpa went bankrupt because of a fire, so he was thrown into the "human world" and began to support himself. /kloc-When he arrived in Kazan at the age of 0/6, he wanted to go to college. As a result, the slums and docks of Kazan became his "social university". There, he contacted revolutionary groups of progressive youth and read the Manifesto of Producers' Party and Das Kapital. 1899, Gorky completed his first novel, Fuma? Gore deyev. 190 1 year, Gorky was arrested for participating in a demonstration in Petersburg. The famous prose poem "Song of Haiyan" was written after he participated in this demonstration. He used this passionate revolutionary prose to meet the revolutionary storm of the proletariat in the 20th century. In the same year, he wrote his first play Ordinary Citizen, and his outstanding achievement was to create the image of the first revolutionary proletariat (revolutionary worker Neil) in the history of world literature. 1902, he wrote "At the Bottom", which is a summary of the author's observation on the life of the homeless in the past 20 years and a masterpiece of Gorky's drama. Gorky joined the revolutionary movement as a soldier during the high revolutionary situation in 1905, and his residence became one of the strongholds of the armed uprising in Moscow in 1905.
He wrote his life into the autobiographical trilogy "Childhood", "On Earth" and "My University". 1892, he published his first novel, Macard Cudla, and made his mark in the literary world. The publication of Song of Haiyan in 190 1 marked the new development of Gorky's creation. His major works include Mother, Little Citizen and The Last Generation. Mother is his best work.
Gorky presided over the first congress of Soviet writers in 1934 and was elected as the chairman. 1936 died in June 18.
The fourth masterpiece
Wuthering Heights
brief Introduction of the content
A man who loves to the extreme has made crazy behavior. He killed people with love, but he also committed suicide with love. After Catherine died, he lived in pain. When Catherine was dying, he stabbed her with words. However, Heathcliff suffered two kinds of pain, his own and Catherine's. I admire such a affectionate man. Although a little abnormal and cruel, I can't hate him. Still full of sympathy for him. Even moved by his crazy love. Relatively speaking, Catherine is too selfish. She loves Heathcliff and married rich Linton. It can be said that a large part of the tragedies of Wuthering Heights and Thrushcross Grange were created by her own hands. Heathcliff, this is crazy. But charming. Of course, he is also a good husband. It's just, it's a little silly Catherine: She is very bad and selfish, but her persistence in love makes her exude the mixed charm of good women and bad women.
Brief introduction of the author
Emily bronte (18 18~ 1848), 19 century English novelist and poet, is one of the famous "Bronte Three Sisters" in the history of English literature. This woman writer died in obscurity after only 30 years in the world, but her only novel Wuthering Heights established her position in the history of English literature and world literature. Besides, she also wrote 193 poems, which is regarded as a talented female writer in Britain.
The fifth masterpiece
David copperfield.
brief Introduction of the content
David copperfield reveals the real face of society at that time through the joys and sorrows of the protagonist David's life, highlighting the corrosive effect of money on marriage, family and society. A series of tragedies in the novel are all caused by money. Maud Si Tong cheated David's mother because he coveted her property; Emily's elopement can't stand the temptation of money; The pain of the wakefield family and the despair of Haimu are all the consequences of money. The despicable Heep also gradually degenerated under the temptation of money, and finally ended up in a shameful life imprisonment. Dickens exposed the evil of money from the humanitarian point of view, which opened the beautiful curtain of "Victoria prosperity" and revealed the hidden social truth.
Brief introduction of the author
Charles Dickens was a British critical realist novelist in the19th century. Dickens paid special attention to describing the life experiences of the "little people" living at the bottom of British society, which profoundly reflected the complex social reality of Britain at that time and made outstanding contributions to the development and growth of British critical realism literature. His works are still popular today and have had a far-reaching impact on the development of English literature. His major works include The Legend of Pickwick, Oliver Twist, Old Antique Shop, Hard Times and Our Friends.
The sixth masterpiece
Red and black.
brief Introduction of the content
Red and Black is a monument of French and even European literature in the19th century. Based on Julian's personal struggle and two love experiences, the novel reveals the turbulent class struggle during the Restoration Dynasty and reflects the broad life picture of political darkness, church corruption, aristocratic reaction and bourgeois greed. Julian's two love motives are based on the possession of love, and ultimately they all want to achieve their own political goals.
Through the literary image of Julien, on the one hand, it describes the panic of the nobility and the middle and small bourgeoisie under the impact of the wave of people's revolution on the eve of the French July Revolution; On the other hand, it created an artistic image of an individual careerist who appeared in the social upheaval, and beautified the bourgeois outlook on life and happiness. The structure of the novel is rigorous and symmetrical, the language is concise and fluent, the characters' images and personalities are closely connected with the environment, and it is good at revealing the contradictions and conflicts in the characters' hearts and the instantaneous changes in their thoughts and feelings, thus highlighting the characters' personality characteristics. This is the greatest artistic feature of this book.
Brief introduction of the author
Stendhal (1783-1842) was an outstanding French writer of critical realism in the 19th century. His life is not long, less than 60 years old, literature started late, and he began to publish his works in his thirties. However, he left a huge spiritual legacy to mankind, including several long articles, dozens of short stories, millions of words of literary theory, essays, travel notes and so on. He is famous for his accurate psychological analysis of characters and concise brushwork. He is regarded as one of the most important and earliest realists. The most famous works are Red and Black (1830) and Bama Monastery (1839).
The seventh masterpiece
Les Misérables
brief Introduction of the content
In Les Miserables, Hugo showed the cruel reality that capitalist society enslaved working people and forced them into prostitution with outstanding artistic charm. Hugo's masterpiece has created a long historical story reflecting the social and political life of modern France. The book spans nearly half a century, and the combination of personal destiny and historical themes is magnificent and colorful, which embodies Hugo's extraordinary talent in narrative to the maximum extent. In terms of richness, profundity and complexity, it undoubtedly ranks first among Hugo's many works.
Brief introduction of the author
Victor hugo (1802.2.26 ~1885.5.22), a French romantic writer, a humanitarian representative, a representative writer of the active romantic literary movement in the early19th century, and an outstanding bourgeois democratic writer in the history of French literature, was called "French Shakespeare".
The eighth masterpiece
Anna karenin.
brief Introduction of the content
Anna karenin is the representative work of the famous Russian writer lev tolstoy. This book depicts a vast and colorful picture of Russia from Moscow to other provinces, cities and villages through two clues: the heroine Anna's pursuit of love tragedy and Levin's exploration of the reform in the face of rural crisis, and has described more than 150 characters successively. It is a social encyclopedia.
Anna, a noble woman, pursued love and happiness, but was beaten out of the water by karenin's hypocrisy, Lenski's indifference and selfishness, and finally committed suicide and died on the railroad tracks. Levin, the owner of the manor, opposed the private ownership of land, resisted the capitalist system and sympathized with the poor peasants, but he could not get rid of the aristocratic habits and fell into an unavoidable contradiction. Contradictory period, contradictory system, contradictory characters and contradictory psychology make the book bumpy in the whirlpool of contradictions. This novel is a portrayal of the tense and fearful Russian society in the transitional period between the old and the new.
Brief introduction of the author
Lev Nikolayevich Tolstoy, a Russian critical realist writer, litterateur and thinker in the middle of 0/9th century, wrote novels such as War and Peace, Anna karenin and Resurrection, and also created a lot of fairy tales. His works profoundly show the drastic social changes in Russia.
Lev tolstoy is one of the best realistic writers. His literary tradition is not only critically inherited and developed by Gorky and other Soviet writers, but also has great influence in the world literary world. He put forward Tolstoyism in his literary creation and social activities, which had a far-reaching influence on many political movements.
The ninth masterpiece
John Christophe
brief Introduction of the content
John Christophe is a novel that reflects a series of contradictions and conflicts in real society through the protagonist's life experience, and promotes humanitarianism and heroism. The novel describes the protagonist's struggling life, from the awakening of musical talent in childhood, to the contempt and resistance to powerful people in youth, to the pursuit and success of career in adulthood, and finally to the lofty realm of spiritual peace.
Brief introduction of the author
Romain rolland was born in Clancy on 1866. Thinker, litterateur, critical realist writer, music critic, famous works include Who's Who and This John Christophe, and he is also a social activist. 19 15 Nobel Prize in Literature winner.
The tenth masterpiece
Gone with the Wind
brief Introduction of the content
Gone with the Wind tells a love story set in the American Civil War.
Scarlett O 'Hara, the hero of the novel, is the daughter of a rich and prestigious planter in Georgia, USA. Father Gerald is an immigrant from Ireland. When he first arrived in Georgia, Gerald was penniless and won the ownership of Tarot Manor by gambling. So he began to start a business in this red land and weave his American dream. It was not until he was 43 years old that he married Allen, the daughter of a French immigrant on the east coast. 15. Gerald has a good heart but a bad temper, while his young wife has a good family education and strict moral values. She personally manages the daily affairs of the whole manor, and even treats the slaves in the manor and delivers babies. Therefore, the couple were respected by the surrounding white manor owners and loved by the black slaves. Daughter Scarlett O 'Hara grew up in this environment.
Brief introduction of the author
Margaret Mitchell Margaret Mitchell, a famous modern American woman writer, once received a doctorate in literature and worked as a reporter in Atlanta News. She won the Pulitzer Prize with 1937. 1939 won the gold medal of new york Southern Association. 1949, she died in a car accident. She didn't leave many works in her short life, but Gone with the Wind alone is enough to establish her unshakable position in the history of world literature.