This is a completely different topic that I am writing about and one that might help some members to pick up a next book when they want to read. And if many of you already know this writer and have read his works, I hope you all agree with me.
I was first introduced to Guy De Maupassant in my Class 9 English textbook with the story The Diamond Necklace. It was the start of a love affair which will last till the day I survive on this planet. The story of a lady who sqaunders away her life over a few fake jewels, touched and shocked me to the core and introduced me to a writer whose works influence my style of writing too. This story set me on a quest to know and read this writer more.
Guy De Maupassant was a French writer of the 19th century, remembered mostly for his short stories. His characters were always common people with extraordinary tales to tell. Many might argue that he wrote stories of a pessimistic nature but the truth is, he showed a mirror to the society. He wrote about destinies and social lives of people during the Franco-Prussian wars of the 1870s and describes the futility of war and the innocent civilians who, caught up in events beyond their control, are permanently changed by their experiences. He won quite a few accolades during his time but we lost this great writer to suicide at the age of 42 in the year 1893. I would like to discuss a few of his stories here so that they may inspire you to read his time transcending works.
The one I like the most is one titled 'Vendetta'. It tells the story of a bereaved mother who lost her young son to one hooligan in a senseless fight. Her irreperable loss, her coming out of it to plot revenge and then training a dog to listen to her command of ripping a person's head off makes the story a gripping, chilling tale which leaves you breathless in the end.
Another of his stories asks the meaning of true patriotism. A group of French travellers are accosted by a group of Prussian soldiers. Among the travellers is a prostitute. When asked by the leader of the soldies to sleep with him she refuses on the grounds that she won't give her body to the enemy. The leader lays a condition that until she goes to bed with him, the travellers won't be allowed to move. The story then leads on to tell what ultimately happens and further asks the reader who is the true patriot- the people who give up a fellow countryman or the prostitute who refused to sleep with the enemy.
One hard hitting story was that of an Indian girl Cheli. This was Maupassant's real life experience and tells about the atrocities committed by the rulers of India on the poor of the country when Maupassant was on an official visit here. He befriends a little girl who was sent to serve him and gifts her the music box which had been given to him by his host. After that he went to other places for visit but returned to the host's place for a last time to meet the little girl. But on finding her nowhere when he enquired, he was told that she had been punished for having stolen from him the box. When Maupassant protested that he himself had given it to her, they just said a sorry and showed her where she was- at the bottom of the lake which was visible from Maupassant's room's window. She had been drowned there alive.
Many of his stories speak about what true love is, speak about what small wage earners suffered, poor women preyed upon by rich men and then abandoned. His stories were so hard hitting that I never could read more than 2 at a time and always had to close the book and sit still for sometime before starting another one. And to imagine I was reading just English translated versions, imagine what they would feel in his mother-tongue.
I hope that all those who have read till here will feel inspired to read this great writer. And if you do, I hope his works will inspire you to write too.
I am, I am inspired to read his stories. Where can I get them?