人生歷程
Victor Marie Hugo was born on February 26, 1802, the third son of Joseph Léopold Sigisbert Hugo, a general in Napoleon's army. His parents' troubled marriage and his father's military postings across Europe deeply influenced his worldview.
The young Hugo showed extraordinary literary ambition, writing in his journal that he wanted to be 'Chateaubriand or nothing.' His precocious talent was already evident in poetry and drama compositions.
Hugo won his first major literary prize from the prestigious Toulouse poetry academy. The same year, he and his brothers founded the literary journal Le Conservateur littéraire, establishing his place in Parisian literary circles.
Hugo published Odes et poésies diverses, which earned him a royal pension from Louis XVIII. He married his childhood sweetheart Adèle Foucher, beginning a union that would produce five children but eventually become troubled.
Hugo's play Cromwell was too long for staging, but its preface became the manifesto of French Romanticism. He rejected classical unities and championed artistic freedom, establishing himself as the movement's leader.
The premiere of Hugo's play Hernani at the Comédie-Française sparked violent confrontations between Romantic and Classical supporters. This 'Battle of Hernani' marked Romanticism's triumph over Neoclassicism in French theater.
Hugo's historical novel about the hunchback Quasimodo became an immediate sensation. The book sparked a Gothic revival movement and is credited with saving Notre-Dame Cathedral from demolition through public awareness.
Hugo began a passionate affair with actress Juliette Drouet that would last fifty years until her death. She became his devoted companion, copying his manuscripts and following him into exile, while his marriage deteriorated.
After multiple failed attempts, Hugo was finally elected to the prestigious Académie française. This honor cemented his status as France's leading literary figure and cultural institution.
Hugo's beloved eldest daughter Léopoldine drowned in the Seine along with her husband just months after their wedding. This tragedy devastated Hugo and profoundly influenced his later work, including many poems in Les Contemplations.
Hugo was elevated to the peerage, entering the Chamber of Peers. He used this political platform to advocate for social causes including abolition of the death penalty and improvement of conditions for the poor.
Following the February Revolution that established the Second Republic, Hugo was elected to the Constituent Assembly. He initially supported Louis-Napoleon Bonaparte but would later become his fierce opponent.
When Louis-Napoleon staged his coup d'état, Hugo actively resisted and was forced to flee France. He would spend nineteen years in exile, first in Brussels, then Jersey, and finally Guernsey, refusing amnesty offers.
Hugo purchased and lavishly decorated Hauteville House, which became both his home and creative sanctuary for fifteen years. Here he wrote many of his greatest works while gazing toward his forbidden homeland across the sea.
Hugo's masterpiece about redemption, justice, and the struggles of the poor was published simultaneously in multiple countries. Despite mixed critical reception, it became an immediate popular sensation and enduring classic of world literature.
Hugo published his novel about Channel Islands fishermen battling the sea, dedicating it to the island that had sheltered him. The work showcased his deep connection to his exile home and his mastery of dramatic natural description.
When Napoleon III fell after the Franco-Prussian War, Hugo returned triumphantly to Paris after nineteen years of exile. Crowds greeted him as a living symbol of republican values and resistance to tyranny.
Hugo's last novel depicted the brutal civil war in the Vendée during the Terror. The work explored themes of mercy versus revolutionary duty and represented his final major fictional statement on politics and humanity.
Hugo was elected to the Senate, where he continued advocating for amnesty for Communards, abolition of the death penalty, and free education. He remained politically active into his final years.
Victor Hugo died on May 22, 1885. His body lay in state under the Arc de Triomphe as two million people paid respects. His funeral procession to the Panthéon was one of the largest gatherings in French history.
