Romain Rolland - a popular French writer, musicologist and public figure, who lived at the turn of the XIX-XX centuries. In 1915, he became a Nobel Prize winner in literature. He was well known in the Soviet Union, even has the status of a foreign honorary member of the USSR Academy of Sciences. One of his most famous works is the 10-volume novel-river "Jean-Christophe".
Childhood and youth
Romain Rolland was born in the small French town of Clamsay in 1866. His father was a notary public. In 1881, the whole family moved to Paris, where the hero of our article enrolled in the lyceum of Louis the Great, and then to the Higher School of Ecol Normal.
After her graduation, Romain Rolland went to Italy for two years to study the biography and work of great composers, this topic fascinated him throughout his life, in addition, he paid special attention to fine art.
From childhood, he fell in love with playing the piano, continued to seriously engage in music in his student years, for this he even intentionally chose the history of music as his specialty.
Return to France
After returning to France, Romain Rolland defended his dissertation at the Sorbonne. It is dedicated to the origin of the contemporary opera house, as well as the history of European opera. In 1895, he received the title of professor of music history. After that, he begins to lecture: first at Ekol Normal, and then at the Sorbonne itself.
In 1901, he founded the musicology magazine together with the famous French musicologist Pierre Aubrey. Several of his programmatic works belong to this period: “Musicians of our day”, “Musicians of the past” and “Handel”.
Literary debut
As a writer, Romain Rolland became known in 1897 when he made his debut in print with a tragedy called "Saint Louis." It becomes the basis of the so-called dramatic cycle "Tragedies of Faith", which also included his works "The Time Will Come" and "Aert."
During the First World War, the hero of our article becomes an active participant in pacifist organizations that are gaining popularity throughout Europe. He publishes a large number of anti-war articles, later consolidated in the Forerunners and Over the Struggle collections.
Correspondence with Russian classics
He becomes an internationally recognized author after he was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1915. At this point, the best works of Romain Rolland have already been written, including Jean-Christophe, which we will talk about in more detail.
During this period, he actively supports the February Revolution in our country. Later approvingly speaks about the events of October 1917. Noting that he is afraid of the methods used by the Bolsheviks, as well as their ideas that the end always justifies the means. In this regard, he is more attracted to the ideas of non-resistance to evil by the violence that Gandhi preaches.
In 1921, Rolland moved to the Swiss town of Villeneuve, where he continued to work actively, corresponded with modern writers. He regularly visits Vienna, London, Salzburg, Prague, as well as Germany.
One can trace how Romen Rolland is connected with Likino-Dulyovo. Now it is a small town located less than a hundred kilometers from Moscow. From there came the Soviet writer and memoirist Alexander Peregudov, author of the novels "The Severe Song", "In Those Far Years", the stories "On the Bear", "Forest Enchantment", "Kozhennik", "Mill", "Heart of the Artist". Rolland corresponded with him, appreciating his works. In particular, he wrote about the wonderful sense of nature of the author, the ability to convey the smell of northern forests.
In the 1920s, his relationship with Maxim Gorky was established. In 1935, at his invitation, he even came to Moscow and met with Joseph Stalin. Taking advantage of his acquaintance with the Generalissimo, two years later, in the midst of the Great Terror, he even wrote to Stalin, trying to stand up for some of the repressed, in particular, Bukharin, but did not receive any answer.
In 1938 he received news of brutal repressions in the USSR, his numerous letters to other Soviet leaders also did not bear fruit.
When the Second World War began, he was in the French village of Vezle in occupation. He continued to write until in 1944 he died of tuberculosis at the age of 78 years.
Personal life
The writer was married to the poetess Maria Cuvillier, who was partly of Russian origin (her father was a Russian nobleman). For Cuvilliers, this was the second marriage. Her first husband is Prince Sergey Kudashev.
Features of creativity
In the collected works of Romain Rolland today you can find his main works. The first publication includes the play "Orsino", the events of which unfold in the Renaissance, and the title character shows the best features of that time.
In his works, Rolland often calls for the renewal of art. The collection of articles "People's Theater" of 1903 is devoted to this.
Another attempt to reform the theater scene was the series of plays Theater of the Revolution, dedicated to the events of 1789 in France.
On biographical material
Over time, the works of Romain Rollan are increasingly starting to be based on biographical material. He also brings innovative notes to this genre, paying attention to the literary porter, psychological essays and musical studies.
So, from 1903 to 1911 his trilogy “Heroic Lives” was published. These are the biographies of Beethoven, Michelangelo and Tolstoy.
In them, he tries to combine action and dream. For example, in "The Life of Michelangelo" describes the conflict between a weak person and the personality of a genius who coexist in one hero. As a result, he is simply unable to complete his work, refuses art.
"Jean-Christophe"
Rolland's most famous work is the novel Jean-Christophe, which he wrote from 1904 to 1912. It consists of 10 books. The cycle tells about the creative crisis of the German musician Jean-Christophe Kraft, the prototype for which is the author himself and partly Beethoven.
The novel consists of three parts, each of which has a completed character, its own tonality and rhythm, as in a musical work. The book has many lyrical digressions that give it additional emotionality.
The main character of Rollan is a rebel, a modern genius of the music of his time. Describing his emigration, the author recreates the fate of the European people, again tries to talk about the need to reform art, which is becoming more and more an object of commerce.
In the final, Jean-Christophe ceases to be a rebel, but remains faithful to his art, which is most important for the author. The character's life changes in his search for wisdom. He goes through a series of trials, trying to overcome his passions, subjugate his life and achieve true Harmony in everything.
In 1915 he became a laureate of the Nobel Peace Prize in Literature, academics celebrate his sublime idealism, love and sympathy, with which he creates all kinds of human destinies.
Renaissance appeal
In the years of the First World Article, the writer again turns to the Renaissance. For four years he writes the novella Cola Bruyon. Romain Rolland in it transfers the scene to Burgundy.
His title character is a talented and cheerful woodcarver. For him, creativity and work are two integral components of life, without which he cannot imagine himself. If "Jean-Christophe" was an intellectual novel, then this work captivates many with its simplicity, and therefore remains one of the most popular among the writer.
After 1918, a real evolution took place in the work of Rollan. He perceives the just ended World War I as a banal way of making money by the powerful. This is dedicated to his anti-war articles, combined in the collection "Over the fray."
Anti-war views are at the heart of the pamphlet Lilyuli, the novel Clarembo, the tragedy Pierre and Luce. In all these works, human feelings and peaceful life are in conflict with the destructive power of war.
The philosophical works of Rollan
The writer is faced with the fact that he is not able to reconcile his own revolutionary thoughts with the ongoing social transformations, with his aversion to war. Therefore, he begins to promote the philosophy of Mahatma Gandhi on the non-resistance to evil by violence.
Among his works of the 20s, it should be noted "Mahatma Gandhi", "The Life of Vivekananda", "The Life of Ramakrishna." Romain Rolland gives biographies of these outstanding religious philosophers of the XIX century. He notes that he considers the historical forms of Christianity, Islam, Hinduism only private manifestations of aspiration for universal religion.
His articles on the Soviet Union belong to this period. In particular, "To the death of Lenin," "Reply to C. Balmont and I. Bunin," "Letter to Liberter on the repression in Russia." It is worth noting that the last article relates to 1927. Despite the repressions that began in Russia, before the time of the Great Terror, Rolland continued to believe that the October Revolution was the greatest achievement of mankind.
Women's rights
Another iconic work of Romain Rolland - "The Enchanted Soul". This is an epic novel that he writes from 1925 to 1933. In it, he addresses social topics.
The main character becomes a woman who is trying to assert her rights. Her son is killed by an Italian fascist, after which she joins the fight against the "brown plague." This becomes his first anti-fascist novel.
In 1936, Rolan published a collection of articles and essays entitled "Satellites." In it, the writer dwells on the biographies of creative people and philosophers who influenced the formation of his worldview. These are Goethe, Shakespeare, Lenin and Hugo.
In 1939, Rolland wrote the play "Robespierre", which completes the revolutionary theme in his work. In it, he discusses the terror to which any society is subject immediately after the revolution. Moreover, in the end, he comes to its inexpediency.
In the occupation during World War II, the hero of our article is working on the autobiography "Inner Journey", which he completes in 1942. After his death, the work "Circumnavigation" and a large-scale study of Beethoven’s work, which is known as Beethoven. The Great Creative Eras, are published.
The last book of the writer called "Pegs" is published shortly before his death. In it, Rolland describes his close companion, the editor of "Two-Week Notebooks", a poet and polemicist.
In the posthumous memoirs that saw the light in 1956, one can trace the cohesion of Rollan's views in love for humanity.