Biography: Stendhal (1783-1842), whose original name was Henry Bell, was born in a lawyer's family in Grenoble, France. He was deeply influenced by enlightenment in his early years. During the Napoleonic Wars, he devoted himself to the military and followed Napoleon to fight south and north. This experience had a profound impact on his thoughts and creations. After the restoration of the Bourbon dynasty, Stendhal lived in Italy and actively participated in the revolutionary activities of the Italian charcoal-burning party. Later, he was expelled by the Austrian government and returned to France and began to focus on literary creation until he died of illness.

Creative style and achievements: Stendhal is one of the founders of French critical realist literature. His works are known for their profound social insight, delicate psychological descriptions and accurate analysis of human nature. His creative style is simple, bright, sharp and profound, and he is good at showing social contradictions and human struggles through the characters' inner monologues and actions. In addition to "Red and Black", he also wrote classic works such as "Palma de Monastery" and "Armans", which occupies an important position in the history of literature.

Time background: France in the 19th century was in a period of drastic social change. After the fall of the Napoleon Empire, the Bourbon dynasty was restored, feudal aristocracy and church forces regained power, and social contradictions became increasingly acute. On the one hand, the feudal aristocracy tried to restore the old order and cruelly oppressed the emerging bourgeoisie and the vast majority of civilians; on the other hand, the bourgeoisie continued to grow and was eager to gain more political and economic power, and the common people were also dissatisfied with the status quo and social unrest.

Personal experience and creative motivation: Stendhal personally experienced the glory of the Napoleon era and the darkness of the Restoration Dynasty. He was deeply dissatisfied with the rebellious actions of the Restoration Dynasty and was determined to use literary works to expose the ugliness of society and arouse people's awakening. He hopes to reproduce the blood and passion of the Napoleon era through "Red and Black", criticize the corruption and reactionary movement of the restoration dynasty, and speak out for the change of French society.

The foundation work of critical realism: "Red and Black" is the pioneering work of French critical realism literature. It uses realistic techniques to depict the true face of French society in the 19th century, providing examples and references for later critical realism writers.

Influence on European Literature: In the history of European literature in the 19th century, Red and Black was the first masterpiece of critical realism with wide influence. It led the trend of critical realism literature and promoted the transformation of European literature from romanticism to realism.

Research and adaptation: Later generations formed special "Stendardians" and "Red and Black", and many scholars conducted in-depth research on it to interpret the connotation, artistic characteristics and social significance of the works. In addition, "Red and Black" has been adapted into various art forms such as drama, movies, TV series, etc., and has been widely disseminated around the world, further expanding its influence.

Julian's background and character formation: Julian was born in a carpenter family in the small town of Villier. His father and brother were rude to him and often beat him up and scolded him. This made him yearn for getting rid of this humble life and pursuing a higher social status since he was a child. He is smart and studious, full of admiration for Napoleon, dreaming of making a name for himself with his talent and hard work just like Napoleon.

Become a mayor's tutor: Julien became a tutor for the family of Mayor Mr. De Rena with his Latin knowledge and intelligence. At the mayor's house, he first came into contact with the life of the upper class, and at the same time he felt the arrogance and hypocrisy of the nobles. He developed complex emotions for the mayor's wife, Mrs. De Rena, who was attracted by her beauty and kindness on the one hand, and regarded her feelings as a tool for rising upwards.

Love with Madame de Renal: Madame de Renal was gradually moved by his talent and unique temperament while getting along with Julien, and the two fell in love. Their relationship was cautious at first, but as the relationship deepened, it gradually became hot. However, this relationship was eventually noticed, causing rumors in the small town.

Leaving after the relationship was revealed: After Julian and Madame de Rena were discovered by the mayor, Julian decided to leave the mayor's house and go to Beschanson Seminary in order to avoid greater trouble. His decision was to evade public opinion pressure, and to seek new development opportunities and continue to pursue his dreams.

The environment and interpersonal relationships of the seminary: Beshangsong Seminary is a place full of hypocrisy and conspiracy, with many internal factions, and teachers and students are suspicious and intrigue. Julian felt a more depressing and dark atmosphere here than in the small town of Villier, but in order to achieve his goal, he worked hard to adapt to the environment here.

Julien's Study and Struggle: Julien worked hard to learn theological knowledge in the seminary, trying to gain appreciation and promotion from superiors through outstanding performance. Yet, deep down, he was full of disgust with the hypocrisy of the church and the bondage of doctrine, and he constantly struggled between faith and real interests. At the same time, he also aroused jealousy and exclusion from some people because of his intelligence and unique personality.

Relationship with the Dean of the Seminary: Father Pila, the Dean of the Seminary, is a relatively upright person. He appreciates Julien's talent and hard work and takes care of Lian. At the recommendation of Father Pila, Julien was given the opportunity to leave the seminary and go to Paris to serve the Marquis of Lamor, which brought a new turning point in his destiny.

Become a private secretary of the Marquis: Julien came to Paris and became the private secretary of the Marquis Lamor, the backbone of the extreme royalist party. At the Marquis' Mansion, he came into contact with the uppermost social circle of France and witnessed the luxurious life and hypocritical nature of the nobles. With his intelligence and outstanding ability to do things, he gradually gained the appreciation and reuse of the Marquis.

Love with Miss Martel: The Marquis' daughter, Miss Martel, has a noble and rebellious personality. She has developed a strong interest in the civilian status and unique temperament of the company. Miss Martel took the initiative to pursue Julien, and the two began a relationship full of twists and turns. Their love has both a sincere emotional component, as well as Miss Martel's resistance to traditional aristocratic life and Julien's pursuit of a higher social status.

The dream and destruction of becoming successful: After the relationship between Yan and Miss Martel gradually stabilized, he seemed to see his hope of becoming successful. For the happiness of his daughter, the Marquis also began to arrange a future for Julien, providing him with aristocratic status and military post. However, just as he was about to realize his dream, the church planned to have Madame de Reina write a snitch letter that exposes his past with Madame de Reina, and all his efforts were vain.

Shooting and sentenced to death: Julien was furious after learning about Mrs. Derena’s snitch letter, and he felt that he had been betrayed. In extreme pain and despair, he returned to Villier and shot and injured Mrs. De Rena. Eventually, he was sentenced to death, and despite Miss Martel and some attempts to rescue him, he refused, choosing to face death calmly, ending his life full of struggle and pursuit.

Characteristic traits

Causes of character formation

The tragedy of the character's fate: Julien's life was full of tragedy. Although he achieved class leap to a certain extent with his talent and efforts, he was unable to escape from the shackles of society and the teasing of fate. His love ended in tragedy, his career was ruined, and he had to face death in the end. His tragedy was not only a personal tragedy, but also a social tragedy, reflecting the darkness and unreasonableness of French society at that time, as well as the many difficulties and helplessness faced by civilian youth in the process of pursuing their dreams.

Characteristic traits

View of Love and Growth: Mrs. De Rena's view of love is pure and sincere. She pursues a kind of love based on spiritual harmony and mutual respect. Before meeting Julien, her marriage life was dull and her husband's vulgarity and indifference made her feel lonely and depressed. Julien's appearance awakened the love desire deep in her heart. She gradually grew up with Julien, learned to pursue her own happiness bravely, and at the same time began to reflect on various problems in her life and society.

Influence on the development of the story: Madame de Rena is an important figure in Julien's life. Her love gives Julien warmth and strength, and also becomes a key factor in the turning point of Julien's fate. Her relationship with Julien triggered a series of events, which promoted the development of the story, and her snitch letter directly led to the shattered dream and the tragic ending of Julien.

Characteristic traits

View of Love and Pursuit: Miss Martel's view of love is deeply influenced by romantic thoughts, and she pursues a passionate and legendary love. Her love for Lian was not only curious and attractive to his civilian identity and unique temperament, but also resistance and challenges to the traditional aristocratic life. She hopes to break the shackles of aristocratic society through love with Julien and realize her ideals for love and life.

The relationship with Julian and its role in the story: Miss Martel and Julian have a complex and subtle relationship, and their love is full of twists and turns and conflicts. The appearance of Miss Martel brought new changes to Julien's fate. Her love and support made Julien see hope to realize her dreams, and at the same time exacerbated the contradictions and conflicts in the story and promoted the further development of the plot.

Structural form: The structure of "Red and Black" is unique, consisting of three relatively independent and interrelated life scenes, namely the small town of Villier, the seminary of Bechanson and the Marquis de Paris More. These three scenes represent Julian's different life stages and life situations, and each scene has its own unique characters, environments and conflicts.

Scene Transformation and Connection: What connects these three life scenes is not the inevitable logic of the protagonist Julien's character development, but a series of occasional events. Although these occasional events may seem accidental, they actually reflect the complexity of social reality and the impermanence of life. For example, Julian left the small town of Villier to go to the Berchanson Seminary because his relationship with Madame de Reina was exposed, and this accident changed his life trajectory; while he went from the seminary to the Marquis of Mor Paris due to the recommendation of Father Pila, the dean of the seminary, which was also an accidental opportunity.

Narrative rhythm and effect: This prose-cultural narrative method makes the narrative rhythm of the novel relatively relaxed. The author has enough time and space to carefully describe the characters, environment and events in each scene, showing the overall picture of society and the complexity of human nature. At the same time, this narrative method also adds to the realism and lifelike story, making readers feel as if they are in the French society of the 19th century.

Description methods and techniques: Stendhal is good at using various methods such as inner monologue, psychological analysis and action suggestion to describe the psychological activities of characters. Through the character's inner monologue, he directly shows the deep thoughts and emotions of the character; uses psychological analysis to deeply analyze the character's psychological changes and motivations in a specific situation; uses the character's actions, expressions and other details to imply the character's psychological state.

The role of character creation: delicate psychological description makes the characters in the novel more full, three-dimensional and real. Through in-depth portrayal of the character's psychology, readers can better understand the character's personality traits, behavioral motivations and emotional changes, thereby resonating with the character. For example, when describing Julian's psychological struggles in the face of various temptations and dilemmas, readers can deeply feel his inner contradictions and pain, and then more comprehensively understand his character and destiny.

Meaning of theme expression: Psychological description not only helps shape the characters, but also plays an important role in the expression of the theme of the novel. By showing the psychological changes and struggles of the characters in the face of social reality, Stendhal profoundly reveals the darkness of society, the complexity of human nature, and the helplessness and insignificance of individuals in society, making the theme of the novel more profound and connotative.

Julien's struggle: Julien was a carpenter son of a humble background, trying to make a name for himself in society with his intelligence and unremitting efforts. He worked as a tutor at the mayor's home, studied in the seminary, and became the marquis' private secretary, step by step towards his goal.

The obstacles to individual struggles: However, in the French society during the restoration dynasty, the class was severely solidified, the aristocracy and the church forces firmly controlled social resources, and the rise channel for civilian youth was extremely narrow. Julien encountered many difficulties and obstacles in the process of his struggle. He not only had to face discrimination and suppression from the upper class of society, but also had to deal with various conspiracies and traps.

Social issues reflected: Julien's personal struggle reflected many problems in French society at that time, such as social injustice, sharp class contradictions, and corruption in power. These questions reveal the darkness and corruption of the restoration dynasty, and the constraints of social systems on personal development.

Julien's love with two women: the love between Julien and Madame de Rena and Miss Martel is an important clue in the novel. His love with Mrs. De Rena is sincere and deep, full of warmth and the beauty of human nature; while his love with Miss Martel is more passionate and adventure, and also contains the pursuit of social status and power.

The manifestation of love and human nature: These two loves show the complexity and multifaceted nature of human nature. In love, Julien has both a sincere and enthusiastic side, as well as a selfish and hypocritical side; Madame de Renal and Miss Martel also show different human characteristics such as kindness, courage, arrogance, and willfulness. Love has become a touchstone for testing human nature, revealing the brilliance and darkness of human nature.

The relationship between love, dignity and desire: Julien always sticks to his dignity in love, and he is unwilling to lose himself because of love. This persistent pursuit of dignity makes him show a complex attitude when facing love. At the same time, his love is closely linked to desire. For Madame de Rena, his emotions include both the elements of love and the desire to enhance social status through this relationship. For Miss Martel, his love is largely attracted by his aristocratic identity and a way for him to realize his ambitions. This interweaving of love, dignity and desire further highlights the complexity of human nature.

Criticism of the Feudal Restoration Dynasty: The novel profoundly criticizes the reactionary nature of the Feudal Restoration Dynasty by describing various phenomena in French society during the Restoration Dynasty, such as the luxurious life of the aristocracy, political corruption, and oppression of the common people. The nobles in Stendhal's works live in luxury but have no sense of talent or responsibility. They only care about their own interests and are indifferent to the fate of the country and the people. For example, the Marquis of Lamor and other nobles played politically with power, and in order to maintain their privileged status, they did not hesitate to collude with the church to suppress the emerging bourgeoisie and civilians.

Revealing the power of the church: The church played an important role during the restoration dynasty, and Stendhal made a ruthless disclosure of the hypocrisy and darkness of the church in his novel. The seminary is a representative of the church's power, and it is full of conspiracies and struggles. Teachers and students believe in God devoutly on the surface, but in fact they are using any means for power and interests. Although Father Pila was relatively upright, he could not escape the complex relationships and power struggles within the church.

Social contradictions reflected: "Red and Black" reflects many contradictions in French society at that time, including the contradiction between the aristocrats and the civilians, the contradiction between the bourgeoisie and feudal forces, the contradiction between the church and the secular society, etc. These contradictions intertwined, forming a complex picture of French society during the Restoration Dynasty and revealing the inevitability of social change.