去年夏天带孩子们去了趟伦敦和巴黎，在人文世界里遛了个弯，感谢伦敦的朋友，贴心地安排了久演不衰的音乐剧“悲惨世界”。还幸运地碰上A角的表演班子,两小时四十分钟的表演浓缩了爱恨情仇，各种人性冲突，牵动各个年龄层面，小人物大时代，加上各种社会冲突，剧情纵横捭阖，全剧覆盖了各个社会层面，人间大爱在世俗黑夜中迎来最后觉醒。全剧表演丝丝入扣，剧情紧凑流畅，几十年下来，该音乐剧无愧魁首。在剧场内不觉时间飞逝，笑点泪穴都被从各个角度按了个遍，看完仍是意犹未尽。 回来后偏爱理工科大儿子用自己的零花钱买了一堆欧美小说，其中就有雨果的“悲惨世界”。大孩子不太说他的想法，看他对文科的东西开始更多的留意，当妈的自然乐在心里。 前几个月读七年级的小儿子突然问我可否买一本电子版的“悲惨世界”。小家伙做事谨慎有余，狼性不足，为妈的希望他多点冒险精神，于是把网上书店挂在信用卡上，密码给他，让他买书。告诉他一次性的书，比如一般的小说，图书馆借阅比较好，工具书，需要多次翻阅的书可以自己做主买，如果不清楚类别的书，一定数目内也无需请示。这本书完全在他的决策权内，孩子还是跑来问，可不可以电子版的“悲惨世界”，好吧，为妈只好自我安慰小心说明重视吧。 告诉他这本书哥哥已经买了，在书架上，哥哥已经看完，你拿过去就是。小家伙坚持要电子版，好随时随地看。“好吧好吧，买书妈妈本来就没意见”。 音乐剧编演都精彩，读几百年前的黑白文字又是一回事，怕孩子看不明白会打击他的积极性，还是忍不住提醒他：书挺厚，讲过去的事，即使会看不下去也没关系，以后还可以看。没想整个冬假，孩子除了滑雪，看音乐剧出去几天，多数时间就窝在家里看书，马丁路德金的长周末，更是把滑雪推掉，说必须把书看完。当妈的心痛他这快乐童年，玩得太少，有点“悲惨”，总想推他出去玩。 后来发现孩子文学课作业是读一部历史小说，孩子看中这部小说了。老师要求从作品中选一个人，设想你是他，选三个标志性的物品，用这三个物品说来描述他的一生，写作不要分段。小家伙买书，原来如此。 作业完工，孩子昨晚让我帮他校读，我在Google drive 里边校边看他写，没想孩子还真读懂了：他选择让阿冉为叙事角度，用监狱的船，释放证书和银烛台三个物件作为人生转折点来讲他的一生，这三点抓得还真准...... 这个作业让我们意外有了一个小时的交流，从主教到各种宗教，从苛政谈到博爱，非常好的亲子时间，孩子评：是本好书。主教对人对物完全不设防，这样的人不多见。有些章节，比如好几章的篇幅描写下水管道应该没有必要，管他文豪不文豪，童言无忌，能这么总结出来，难能可贵。 表扬他说：“写得不错，评得也好，比妈妈强。” 小家伙微微一笑，扔来一句：“妈妈都是这样夸自己的孩子的。“ 大有提醒妈妈要清醒点的意思，这么冷静，大人小孩要倒个个才好。 有这篇作业在，欧洲一站也算不虚此行。有这么个孩子，当妈也不能太贪心，有这份冷静在，要有点荷尔蒙的狼性还不是件容易的事。 Historical Fiction Independent Reading Reflection: Time Capsule In Les Misérables by Victor Hugo, one of the main characters is Jean Valjean. Valjean lived in nineteenth-century France. He would put in a time-capsule: the galleys at Toulon, a yellow passport, and a pair of large silver candlesticks. Galleys are low, flat ships that were rowed by prisoners serving a sentence. These prisoners often only committed minor crimes. The story starts with Valjean stealing a loaf of bread to support his large family (himself, his sister, and seven of his sister’s children), but he was caught while doing so. During his trial, “Jean Valjean was pronounced guilty. The terms of the Code were explicit. . . . Jean Valjean was condemned to five years in the galleys.” (Hugo 161). Later on, after a few escape attempts, Valjean’s total time in Toulon totaled nineteen years. In present times, five years of hard labor for stealing a loaf of bread would seem excessive and cruel, but the way Hugo references the rigidity of the law, it is clear that the lengthy prison time would be a thing that would be seen as normal. Because of this change in perspective, Valjean would keep the memories of Toulon and the Judicial system in a time capsule. When Valjean was finally released from the galleys, he was overjoyed at the thought of being free. He soon learned that as an ex-convict, he would have a much limited freedom of mobility. He was required to carry a yellow passport that stated that “Jean Valjean, discharged convict . . . has been nineteen years in the galleys: five years for house-breaking and burglary; fourteen years for having attempted to escape on four occasions. He is a very dangerous man.” (Hugo 147). Because of this passport, he was often discriminated against. On the first day of his release, he offered his services to help out at an orange-flower distillery. During his work he found out that the normal payment was 30 sous by talking to the other workmen. When evening arrived, “he presented himself to the owner of the distillery and requested to be paid. The owner did not utter a word but handed him fifteen sous. He objected. He was told, ‘That is enough for thee.’ He persisted. The master looked him straight between the eyes, and said to him ‘Beware of the prison.’” (Hugo 179). After this experience, he felt robbed. The yellow passport would be a different item that would be seen as strange in our time, especially the reaction to it in the public. This punishment after prison is an example of his time. The third and final items are a pair of silver candlesticks. After getting out of prison, he wandered for several days, eventually ending up on the doorstep of a kind bishop. Even knowing of Valjean’s status from the passport, he was the only one in the town to let Valjean in, and provided food and shelter to Valjean. In the middle of the night, he decided to steal the Bishop’s silverware to make a profit. On the next morning, after getting caught, he is brought back to the Bishop by a gendarme (policeman). Instead of letting the gendarme take Valjean away, he acted as if the silverware were a gift. Valjean was surprised at the remarks from the venerable Bishop. In fact, “Jean Valjean was like a man on the point of fainting. The Bishop drew near to him and said in a low voice:- ‘Do not forget, never forget, that you have promised to use this money in becoming an honest man.’” (Hugo 194). Clearly, the Bishop did this act to help Valjean, and the candlesticks become an inspiration for Valjean to start a new life. In contrast to the other two items, the candlesticks represent the kindness of the time, expressed through the church. The main protagonist of Les Misérables, Jean Valjean, would put the the prison at Toulon, a prisoner’s passport, and a set of candlesticks in a time-capsule. The prison and the passport represent the darkness in the time while the candlestick lit his start to a new life. These three items show the time periods attitude towards ex-convicts and the kindness that very few expressed.