The small island hidden in the sea fog is full of mysterious atmosphere.
Yan Shui tried his best to investigate the truth, feeling that everyone on the island seemed to be hiding a secret. But when he tried his best to dig out the truth, the truth turned out to be so cruel.
It turns out that all this was his fantasy. His loved ones died because of his betrayal. Unable to bear the blow, he could only use fantasy to anesthetize himself.
He imagined himself as a police officer, imagining that bad people had implemented a huge conspiracy against him and his family, in order to anesthetize the pain in his heart.
But when the truth is revealed, it's like the anesthetic has ended, and the pain that comes again will only get worse.
Therefore, at the end, Yan Shuzhong fell into fantasy again after a brief period of sobriety. He could not bear the weight of reality.
Zhang Manling feels pathetic for what happened to Yan Shouzhong. He is the culprit who caused the death of his relatives, so he is pathetic. He is also using this method to punish himself, which proves that his conscience has not been forgotten, which is sad.
That night, she was lying in bed after reading the novel, and the pictures in her mind were numerous, all derived from the words, about Yan Shuzhong, about Shutter Island, about Zhang Peilan...
She couldn't sleep, and finally she picked up the copy of "October" again and decided to read the novel again.
After reading the novel for the second time, Zhang Manling had a new feeling about the novel.
She discovered that the place Shutter Island was probably also a fantasy created by Strict Guard.
Because in the novel, there is no mention of the external environment outside Shutter Island at all, and Yan Shuzhong’s brief moment of sobriety at the end also reveals that he has actually been in a deep fantasy.
Zhang Manling carefully searched for the detailed description of Shutter Island in the novel and found some clues. All the specific details in it were described from Yan Shuzhong's subjective perspective, while his colleague Lei Jianming did not make any statement.
Then there is the "Prologue" at the beginning. Zhang Manling believes that this is the biggest evidence that "Shutter Island is the imagination of Strictly Guard" because Lin Chaoyang did not make up an unfamiliar name, but used "Xu Lingjun", a fictional name that the public is already familiar with.
The character's name.
People are fictitious, so the diary in "Prologue" is also fictitious.
The more she thought about it, the more she realized that this idea made sense. But when she told her classmate Gao Xianjun about this idea, she was surprised by another unexpected idea from Gao Xianjun.
"Is there a possibility that Yan Shuzhong was caught up in a huge conspiracy? Yan Shuzhong is a psychopath. This is only what the author let us see in the end.
However, if we put aside the ending, the things we experienced in the previous strict observation can be explained in a self-explanatory manner.
Look at the end, the novel only says that Yan Shuzhong woke up, remembered his true identity and past, and then fell into a deeper imagination.
Isn't it possible that this sobriety itself is just an imagination to tame him? Can you overturn this statement?"
Faced with Gao Xianjun's questioning, Zhang Manling fell silent and then fell into self-doubt.
According to the logic in the novel, Yan Shouzhong's family fell into a conspiracy. This is the most superficial story, but it was easily overturned in the second half.
But if you look at what Gao Xianjun said, it is actually not a different idea, because as long as it is confirmed that the protagonist is being persecuted, no one can falsify this plot.
But in this way, the novel becomes a very ordinary detective story with a tragic ending, and the connotation and ideological height are undoubtedly greatly reduced.
Zhang Manling didn't think Lin Chaoyang had such a simple thought when he wrote this novel.
“Of course your idea makes sense, but I think it’s more of a wishful thinking as a reader who doesn’t want to see Yan Shuzhong’s heroic image collapse.
Since Chaoyang has written various angles for us to discuss and speculate, he must not have such a single plot in mind." Zhang Manling said.
"What you said makes sense. I think this may be the reason why Lin Chaoyang left an open ending to the novel.
In this way, all of our guesses will make sense."
Zhang Manling relaxed her brows and smiled, "That makes sense!"
She added: "Every reader will have their own understanding after reading the novel. This may be the greatest success of this novel."
Gao Xianjun clapped his hands and praised: "That's right! I think it's okay to write a review of 18,000 words."
The speaker is unintentional, but the listener is intentional. Zhang Manling thought of her unfinished graduation thesis.
It seems not impossible to use "Shutter Island" as the research object. The rich ideas and various hidden possibilities of this novel can fully support a thesis.
Thinking of this, Zhang Manling expressed her thoughts to Gao Xianjun. After hearing this, Gao Xianjun pondered, "You'd better ask the teacher about this. I feel it's a bit risky."
Zhang Manling has always been bold in thinking and doing, so she went directly to the Chinese Department office and found Hong Zicheng.
After hearing her thoughts, Hong Zicheng joked: "You are brave enough! Taking a novel like "Shutter Island" that has just been published less than half a month as the research object, are you not worried about the quality of the paper?"
Zhang Manling said firmly: "Although "Shutter Island" has not been published for a long time, its level is unquestionable and is enough to be passed down to the world. If the quality of the final paper is not recognized by the school, it must be my problem, and
It’s not about the novel.”
Hong Zicheng was Zhang Manling's thesis advisor and had known her well for four years in college. He knew that this female student had some talents and was very confident in the things he was determined to do.
"Can I ask you why you must use this novel as a research object?"
Zhang Manling thought deeply and said: "When I read novels, I always liked to look at plot conflicts, character creation, and writing structure. I also imitated what I thought was a good work.
After so much practice, I think many works can be imitated. Such a work is like a photo. If you draw on it, as long as you pay attention, you can always draw a three-dimensional image.
Recently, "There is a Beautiful Place" and "Clouds" have been published successively, which have caused some response. I am also a little complacent, thinking that my level can be on par with those well-known writers.
But after watching "Shutter Island", I felt that I was really far behind. This kind of work is like the work of Van Gogh or Monet, which is difficult to imitate."
Speaking of this, Zhang Manling's always confident face showed a rare look of self-defeat.
"A classic literary work is first of all easy to read and watch, but more importantly, it has the quality to withstand the discussion and even criticism of hundreds of millions of readers. This is the reader's perspective.
As a creator, what I saw in "Shutter Island" is a kind of conception and creative ability that is beyond my reach.
I thought I had broken away from the limitations of focusing on words, paragraphs, and writing styles, and had made some gains in my creation.
But after reading "Shutter Island", I understood what a good writer should do. I don't know how to describe this feeling..."
When Zhang Manling said this, she was unable to give an exact description to express her feelings.
Hong Zicheng could probably understand her thoughts from her attitude and words. He had a thorough study of literary theory and found out the crux of Zhang Manling's thoughts in just a moment.
"Hemingway once explained his views and practical methods on literary creation in his documentary work "Death in the Afternoon". He believed:
The reason why an iceberg feels majestic is that we only see one-eighth of it above the water, while the remaining seven-eighths are hidden underwater, invisible but supporting the overall shape of the iceberg.
In literary creation, this principle means that the author only directly displays "one-eighth" in the written expression, that is, the superficial storyline, dialogue and direct description.
The "seven-eighths" of the emotional depth, complex thoughts, and background information behind the story are left to the readers to feel and speculate through the hints between the lines.
His view is of course a family opinion, but it is very insightful.
If literary works want to impress people's hearts, they should have many excellent elements, some of which can only be understood but cannot be expressed in words.
But in summary, there are still rules to follow.
Use concise and refined language, remove all redundancies and modifications, and pursue the purity and strength of language.
Deep meaning is conveyed through indirect hints rather than direct statements, allowing readers to actively participate in constructing the complete meaning of the story during the reading process.
Although emotions and thoughts are not directly displayed on the surface of the text, they are deeply embedded in it through the subtle processing of plot, character actions and dialogue.
Even if the text is concise, it should create vivid and vivid images so that readers can imagine rich scenes and characters through limited descriptions.
Readers are encouraged to use their own experience and imagination to fill in content not directly written by the author, thereby establishing a deeper connection with the work..."
When Zhang Manling listened to Hong Zicheng's words, it seemed that every sentence was no different from what she had heard in class before, but at this moment, she had a feeling of enlightenment.
"Teacher Hong, what you said is great. The summary of this 'iceberg' theory is my feeling when watching "Shutter Island", as well as the rules you just mentioned.
I never thought about it seriously before, but now I seem to understand it a little bit."
Hong Zicheng's eyebrows rose. What a teacher hopes most is for his students to become enlightened under his teachings.
"The theory is easy to understand, but it is a long road to combine it with practice. Many people may not understand it throughout their lives. You have already achieved good results at such a young age, and you must continue to work hard in the future.
"Hong Zicheng encouraged.
Zhang Manling nodded in agreement and asked Hong Zicheng, "Teacher Hong, please take a look at the thesis..."
"I think it can be written. I have also been reading "Shutter Island" recently. This novel does contain more indirect information and has richer layers. There are many places that can be explored in terms of narrative and structure."
After getting affirmation from Hong Zicheng, Zhang Manling felt a little more confident and looked forward to her graduation thesis.
As the teacher and student talked, they discussed the topic of the paper.
A few days later, Hong Zicheng met Lin Chaoyang while eating in the cafeteria and told him about Zhang Manling's plan to write her graduation thesis using "Shutter Island" as the research object.
"So far, people around me think very highly of your novel, and you have written another well-received work!" Hong Zicheng said to Lin Chaoyang in a congratulatory tone.
Lin Chaoyang said politely and said: "Why didn't Zhang Manling come and discuss it with me if she wants to write a thesis? I am the author, so I can definitely provide her with some first-hand creative ideas."
Hong Zicheng looked at Lin Chaoyang with a strange expression when he heard this, "What does our study of works have to do with you, the author?"
These words can be called a classic, leaving Lin Chaoyang speechless.
If you use the book I worked so hard to write as a research result, does it still have nothing to do with me?
he~tui!
Literary people are indeed shameless. If you have the ability, you can write it yourself!
When he returned home in the evening, Lin Chaoyang saw Liu Xinwu sitting on the sofa with a happy face. When he saw him coming back, he immediately jumped up with excitement.
"Chaoyang, you have made great contributions to our "October"!"
His words had no beginning or end, but Lin Chaoyang immediately understood why he was so excited.
"It seems the magazine is selling well?"
"More than good?" Liu Xinwu was excited, his face flushed, "I knew you had a strong appeal among readers before, but I really didn't expect it to be this strong."
He asked with a bit of arrogance in his tone: "Guess how many magazines we sold this week?"
Chapter completed!