Immortal (A Series of Works by Milan Kundera)

Author: Milan Kundera
Translator: Wang Zhensun / Zheng Kelu (Translated from French)
France/France
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2003-06-02
Features: Goethe spoke of immortality, of course, and it had nothing to do with the immortality of the soul. This is a different kind of worldly immortality, referring to the immortality of those who remain in people's memories after death. Anyone can achieve this kind of immortality, which varies in greatness and duration, and everyone can aspire to it from their youth. In my childhood, I often wandered through a Moravian village every Sunday; it was said that the village mayor kept an open coffin in his living room. At moments when he felt particularly satisfied with himself, he would lie in the coffin and imagine his own funeral. The most beautiful moments of his life were those spent dreaming in the coffin; in this way, he lived in his immortality. Immortality is not equal among people. It is necessary to distinguish between small immortality and great immortality. Small immortality refers to the memory left behind in the hearts of those who know a person (the immortality dreamed of by the Moravian mayor); great immortality refers to the memory left behind in the hearts of those who do not know the person. Some works can instantly grant one great immortality, of course, this is uncertain, and even very difficult, but undeniably possible: that is for artists and politicians.