Romain Rolland's Reading Notes

Author: Roman Rolland
Publisher:
Publish Date: 1999-12-01
Features: As a novelist, Roman Rolland reached the peak after "Jean-Christophe," while as a scholar, he was renowned for his obsessive admiration and research on Tolstoy. This excerpt includes chapters from his "Life of Tolstoy" and the preface to "Letters from Tolstoy." His interpretation of Tolstoy is likely more authoritative than that of ordinary critics. Besides Tolstoy, Rolland's other two idols were Shakespeare and Goethe. His "Four Essays on Shakespeare" is deeply emotional, with the line "Shakespeare came to me when I was still a child" setting the tone for the entire work. Another essay on Goethe, "Death and Transformation," analyzes Goethe's literature and thought with numerous quotations, and the passionate language woven throughout makes it utterly engaging to read.