asked me what book I was reading recently, and I said: " Little Women ". My friend said: "It's a distant memory, I was still in junior high school."
Yes, a distant memory!
came into contact with this book earlier, probably in elementary school. One day, my father brought home a few books, all of which were colorful comics, including "Little Women". It's a pity that at that time, I liked fairy tales and dreams. When I read comics, I only liked princesses, wearing a crown, slender waist, and pinching two fingers to lift the hem of the big skirt. And these are not in "Little Women"-this is just a book about ordinary girls. So, the comic book was thrown aside by me. Later, I also bought the original book and played a movie, but I never stopped watching the beginning.
2019 version of "Little Women" movie poster
A short while before the Chinese Valentine's Day, the movie version starring Tiancha and Ronan was released in theaters. At this time, I have already had some life experiences, and are at a similar life stage as the heroines at the beginning of the film. As a result, he was immediately captured, and when he returned home, he found a book and read it. The warmth in this book should not be rejected by any mature heart.
Little Women
Louisa May Alcott
Yilin Publishing House
January 2020
"Little Women" does not have a complicated story. As a female growing up family novel, its plot can be described as quite plain. The biggest waves in the book are the death of Beth and the twists and turns of love between Joe and Laurie. The author uses delicate and true brushstrokes to describe the ordinary lives of the four sisters of March—Meg, Joe, Beth, and Amy, beautiful and warm. As soon as they were published, they touched the hearts of countless readers. Some people say that to read "Little Women", only the first half is enough. Indeed, the first half is the most fascinating part of the book, and it is also my favorite to read. Part of the plot is based on the personal experience of the author Luisa when she was a child, so it is particularly warm and moving. In comparison, the latter part of the story is slightly inferior, with obvious traces of commercialization. It is said that at that time it was the publisher who suggested that Louisa write a book about "girls", so "Little Women" was born. Therefore, in the direction of the storyline, Louisa also had to follow the publisher's requirements and cater to the tastes of the public so that the book could sell for a good price. At that time, novels about the heroine not marrying were basically unsold. As a result, we saw that the four sisters of March, except for Beth's death of illness, the other three basically got a happy marriage, and everyone was very happy. However, this kind of joy is just a reflection of the cruelty of reality. In the book
, the heroine Joe, a personal projection of the author Louisa, finally made love with Professor Barr and opened a school together. She also gave birth to twin sons, and her life aspirations were fulfilled. But in reality, Louisa couldn't wait for her "Professor Barr" for life. She died alone and died of disease at the age of 56, which is very sad.
is different from the original and the straightforward narratives of the previous versions of the film. The new version of the film captures the huge contrast between this story and reality, drastically cuts off the story, and then reorganizes it, telling a brand new "Little Women" story . The film
started when Joe contributed to the Volcano Weekly in New York. That was the first attempt of a girl to bid farewell to her childhood and move towards society, and it was also a turning point in the original story. From here, the story gradually faded its colorful colors, showing the truth of life. Meg has become a financially strangled housewife. Buying a piece of fabric to make clothes has to think and consider, and finally has to sell the beloved fabric; Beth is sick and dying; Amy travels in Europe , Wants to find a rich golden turtle son-in-law across classes; Joe is alone in New York by working as a tutor and writing manuscripts to make money to support his family. With a home letter, Joe boarded the train back home to visit his dying sister. In my sleep, those beautiful pasts have become the greatest comfort in the current predicament. The film shuttles back and forth between the cold reality and the happy childhood, confusion, exhaustion and laughter are constantly intertwined, hitting every heart before the screen that has been baptized by life.
If the original book is a "girl's story", focusing on showing the growth of girls, the new version of the movie is a "woman's story", focusing on the current women's plight.
Joe is facing the dilemma of career, independence and marriage. , who dreams of life like a boy and becoming a writer, is resistant to marriage. Even in the original book, Joe's image is dominated by rebellion, constantly questioning: "Why do women have to get married?" However, the original book finally succumbed to reality and arranged a wishful man for Joe, while the movie blurred Joe's ending. In the movie, Joe eventually became a writer and wrote a novel called "Little Women". The original ending she arranged was that the heroine never married. But the publisher told her that the novel would not be sold in this way, and the heroine had only two choices, either to die or to marry. So, Joe faced the reality and asked the heroine to chase Professor Barr back in the rain at night, and the two kissed under an umbrella. So, did Joe get married? Women, do they have to get married?
Meg and Amy face the dilemma of love and bread. Once Meg yearned for a life in the upper class, but fell in love with the poor Mr. Brook, and married love. In the book, Meg's situation is considered a well-off home. In the movie, Meg becomes a shabby housewife, leaning on the door frame frowning. Amy is a bit like Wang Manni in "Thirty Only", and she wants to marry a rich family. In the original work, this is always critical. The author specially arranged for Amy to refuse a boyfriend who was richer than Laurie, to prove that Miss Amy was married to love in the end, not snobbery. The new version of the movie is more forgiving, letting her say frankly: Since this society gives women no choice but to marry the rich, there is nothing shameful for me to want to marry the rich. So, how to choose between marrying love and marrying bread?
Beth is facing the dilemma of traditional women. She has always been the little cutie who is content with family life and dedicated to her family. However, despite the closeness of the four sisters, her dedication was sometimes overlooked, so that she unfortunately contracted scarlet fever and died at a young age. So, should a woman be cute, be at home, and be a dedication flower, come and go quietly, without taking away a cloud?
Unfortunately, the dilemma faced by the four sisters is still unsolved even now. "Female" is really difficult to write beautifully.
can no longer understand what it would be like to read this book when I was a teenager, but now I can't help being attracted by the warm and happy plots in the book, picking up the book and reluctant to let it go.
This feeling can be regarded as a remembrance, but it was already in a daze.
text|若水
