The biography of the great 19th century writer Victor Hugo is no less interesting than his works. Many are familiar with such creations of his pen as Les Miserables and Notre Dame Cathedral. The writer's creativity can impress any critic. Romanticism can be considered the main genre of his works, but Victor Hugo was multifaceted and from under his pen came out both prose and poetry, both journalism and literary criticism.
Victor Hugo's childhood
Hugo's biography begins on the day of his birth on February 26, 1802. Relations in the family where the child grew up were difficult. This was due to the fact that the husband and wife adhered to diametrically opposed political convictions. His father was a staunch supporter of Napoleon and during his reign he received the rank of general. Mom, on the other hand, fiercely hated Bonaparte and was a supporter of the Bourbons.
As a child, the boy and his family often moved from one city to another. It is known that Hugo spent some period of his childhood in Spain. The collapse of the family came in Madrid, where Hugo the elder was the governor. After the fall of Napoleon, the family also fell apart. Apparently, there was no love in her for a long time. After the divorce, the mother took the children with her and left for France. As a result of his maternal upbringing, Victor became an equally royalist supporter. All of his early works praise the Bourbon dynasty. During his youth, Victor turned his attention to the classical genre and aristocratic romanticism.
The beginning of the creative path
Victor Hugo can be noted not only as a writer, but also as a reformer. In 1820, the list of his poems in the genre of classicism was already very long. During his education, the young writer reads a collection of Lamartine, which leads him to admiration and change the writing genre. Victor Hugo becomes a novelist.
As a result, Hugo begins to work diligently to transform poetry. Thanks to Victor Hugo, the protagonist of the works, beyond the desire of man, becomes a doer and participant in the world that was created by the writer. The works of Hugo differ from Lamartine also in that in the read collections, only the heroes are in conflict. In Hugo, not only heroes are in conflict, but nature itself is in conflict. The brightness and dynamism of the genre can amaze. In the work of the author, one can see a call to abandon the language of classicism with all its severity and start writing in the language of feelings and emotions, a language understandable to an ordinary person. Victor did not refuse to include colloquial phrases, some terms, as well as outdated terms in his poems. As a result, in 1826, the writer's collection "Odes and Ballads" appeared.
In 1827, Hugo wrote Cromwell, his first drama. It was a step of all romanticism towards the theater, where classicism still dominated. "Cromwell" made a huge impression and still remains one of the most famous works of its author.
In 1829, Victor publishes his new collection "Orientals", which is the very first collection of works in the style of romanticism. At that time, the writer had an extraordinary intensity in his creative activity. This collection glorified Victor Hugo as an outstanding lyricist.
The writer was distinguished by an unprecedented genius in all genres for which he undertook. In his dramas, written between 1829 and 1839, he was guided by the attitude of commoners and aristocrats.
In 1831, Victor Hugo publishes his greatest work, Notre Dame Cathedral, written in the genre of a historical novel. In it, the writer managed to touch upon the current problems in the country.
In the late 1920s and early 30s, Victor Hugo breaks all of his productivity records. He creates a huge number of works in completely different genres, publishes excellent collections and develops a new direction in literature - romantic drama.
In 1848the February Revolution took place, as a result of which Bonaparte became the dictator. In such a political situation, Victor Hugo decides to leave the country. Immediately after his expulsion from France, Hugo publishes the book "Napoleon the Small", in which he denounces the entire criminal regime of the dictator. And in 1877-1878. published "The History of a Crime", where the writer denounces all the terrible actions during the years of the coup d'etat.
From Jersey, Victor Hugo creates his best collection, Maps, in the style of political poetry. In addition, it was on this island that in 1862 he created "Les Miserables", in 1866 - "Workers of the Sea", and in 1869 - "The Man Who Laughs". Everywhere a single theme is clearly traced - the people.
Return of the writer to France and death
In addition to the changes made to the literary world, Victor Hugo tried to change the life of the people of his country. He also became famous in the role of a public and political figure. In 1872 he created his work "The Terrible Year", which traces the chronicle of the events of 1870-1871. By that time, the writer had already returned to his homeland. The population accepted him as a national hero.
May 22, 1855 Victor Hugo died. The entire society accepted the death of the writer as a national mourning. An unprecedented number of people came to the funeral, ready to spend the last journey of the great writer, poet and public figure.
