Balzac

Gorio old manFrench Literature, History and Culture

Balzac's "Old Gorio" Synopsis and Impressions - The Story of the Rise of a Young Frenchman - What is the Connection to Dostoevsky's "Crime and Punishment"?

『ゴリオ爺さん』は１８３０年に出版されたバルザックの代表作で、世界十大小説のひとつに入るほどの名作とされています。

When I read this novel, I was amazed.

The situation of the young man Rastignak, the protagonist of the film, was similar to that of Raskolnikov, the protagonist of "Crime and Punishment.

Reading "Old Gorio" also made me think about why Dostoevsky created Raskolnikov, whose path is similar to Rastignak's but very different.
FranceFrench Literature, History and Culture

A quick look at the flow of France after Napoleon - French July Revolution and February Revolution

この記事ではナポレオン以後のフランス、具体的にはナポレオン失脚後の１８１５年から二月革命という出来事が起こった１８４８年までの流れをざっくりとまとめていきます。

なぜドストエフスキーを知る上でこの時代のフランスの歴史を学ぶ必要があるのかと言いますと、この時代はまさしく彼の青年期と同時代であるからです。

彼の青年期はフランス文学と共にあったと言ってもよいほど、フランス文学に浸った生活をしていました。この時期のフランスを学ぶことはドストエフスキーを知ることにも繋がります。
NapoleonFrench Literature, History and Culture

Napoleon's Expedition to Egypt and Accession to the Czar's Throne - A Study of the Relationship between Dostoevsky's Crime and Punishment and Napoleon

今回の記事でも前回に引き続きナポレオンについてお話ししていきます。

ナポレオンはパリでの反乱を圧倒的な力で鎮圧、ここから獅子奮迅の働きで対外戦争にも連戦連勝していきます。

ここからのナポレオンの動きを知るためにはフランスと諸外国の状況を知る必要があります。

この記事ではそんなヨーロッパ情勢を見ていきます。
NapoleonFrench Literature, History and Culture

Who was Napoleon? His origins and underbelly: A study of the relationship between Dostoevsky's "Crime and Punishment" and Napoleon

ナポレオンといえばその知名度は抜群ではあるものの、実際にいつ頃活躍し何をした人物かと問われれば意外とこれに答えるのは難しいのではないでしょうか。

正直に申しますと、今回フランスのことを学ぶまで私もよくわかっていませんでした。知れば知るほどなるほどなるほどと面白い発見でいっぱいでした。
calamudineRussian History and Culture and Dostoevsky

Karamzin, "Paris in the Eighteenth Century as Seen by Russians" - What was the shock of the Russian humanist scholar who saw Paris, the city of his dreams?

In this book by Karamzin, he candidly describes the overwhelming charms and negative aspects of Paris, the city he admired from a Russian perspective, and his impressions of the Parisian people as he saw them.

It was another version of the glamorous and beautiful city of Paris, a stench and filth-ridden Paris.

Paris was the most prosperous city of its time, but at the same time, the negative aspects of that prosperity were not uncommon.

This is a surprising fact.

It was very interesting to see Paris from the perspective of a Russian, Karamzin!
Zweig.Dostoevskyism

Zweig's "Three Masters" - Balzac, Dickens, and Dostoevsky, their characteristics as seen by comparison

The book's author, Stefan Zweig, was born in Vienna in 1881 and is best known as a world-renowned biographer, having written international bestsellers such as "Marie Antoinette" and "Balzac.

Why is Dostoevsky so difficult and what makes Dostoevsky's literature so unique?"

Zweig highlights this through comparisons with Balzac and Dickens.

It is really easy to understand when you compare the two. You are indeed one of the best biographers in the world. It was truly an eye-opener.