Love, Friendship and Death

【Abstract】About the American writer Saul Bellows idea of the novel， Ravelstein， it has always been testified that Abe Ravelstein， the protagonist in this novel， represents Bellows best friend—Allan Bloom， the author of The Closing of the American Mind， and meanwhile， Chick， the old author， is a representative of Bellow himself. It is generally thought that the new novel written by Saul Bellow is actually a memoir instead of a novel to a large extent， and also the public constantly blame that Saul Bellow has offended his friend because he has done something in betraying Blooms privacy. Of course， from Bellows past works， it is easy for us to see that his materials for creation are really drawn from his own life experience and many familiar people around him.As far as I am concerned， this is a novel and mostly a remembrance of a friend and his whole life， which is full of marvelous friendship， especially from the first half of the book， Saul Bellow has always been writing about the deep friendship between Ravelstein and Chick： they share writing experiences with each other， think together， discuss some problems about love， friendship and death together， have meals together， hang around and go shopping together， etc. For Ravelstein， that period of time meant a lot to him， very important and significant. The reason why Bellow wrote this novel instead of a documentary memoir is that he didnt want to write a personal article or academic memories， but to gain a greater freedom to write an elegy as a kind of disappeared thought patterns.

【Key Words】Saul Bellow; remembrance; love; friendship; elegy

【作者簡介】 范际艳，厦门南洋职业学院。

1. Introduction

Saul Bellow， the son of immigrant Russian Jews， was born in Lachine， Quebec， Canada. In 1924， he moved to Chicago with his family where he became most closely identified. His first novel， Dangling Man （1944）， was followed by a steady output of major fiction， including the novels The Adventures of Augie March （1953， National Book Award）， Henderson the Rain King （1959）， Herzog （1963， National Book Award）， Mr. Sammlers Planet （1969， National Book Award）， and Humboldts Gift （1975， Pulitzer）. This work， much of which treated with compassion and wit the spiritual crisis of Modernism while drawing on his own feelings of alienation from contemporary society， established him as Americas most distinguished post-war writer of fiction. His later work included the novels The Deans December （1982） and More Die of Heartbreak （1987）， the collected stories Him With His Foot in His Mouth （1984） and The Bellarosa Connection （1989）， and the play The Last Analysis （1965）. He won the Nobel Prize for Literature.

2. Main Idea of the Novel

The novel Ravelstein is told in the first person， by Chick. His colleague and best friend， Abe Ravelstein， has asked him to write a memoir for him after his death. Ravelstein doesnt believe Chick is suitable to capture his intellectual legacy， but he thinks that Chick is best-suited to capture and portray his mind.

Chick begins by recounting a trip to Paris， years before， when Ravelstein first makes the suggestion. In fact， it is only many years after Ravelsteins death that Chick writes the memoir. Much of the book is about the difficulties of writing such a memoir， and Chick acknowledges the trouble he has and the variety of approaches he considers.

Ravelstein is a very charismatic figure and he is full of contradictions. On one hand， he admires ancient Greece and Rome， loves classical music， emphasizes the importance of minds development and desires for love， on the other hand， he indulges himself in the pursuit of worldly enjoyment， such as Armani suits， LV bags， crystal wares and other famous products; on one part， he likes to challenge the authorities and question the social value and contemporary American education system， on the other part， he is interested in the spotlight and is willing to appear in different kinds of official parties; he is not a conservative on the free market， but he is a capitalist talent by using his ideas and insights to create benefits. In a word， he is not a perfect person.

3. Three Themes of the Novel

（1） Love

Love is very important to Ravelstein. Although he is a homosexual， he always believes that “Love is the highest function of our species—its vocation. This simply cant be set aside in considering Ravelstein. He never forgot this conviction. It figures in all his judgments”. So Chick would make us believe that. But Ravelsteins love rarely convinces us either. Nikki seems devoted， but he is also bought off with a fancy car， and the relationship becomes one of dependence. In spirit， they have not any common words to share; the conversations that Ravelstein talks with his colleagues， friends and students have nothing to do with Nikki， and he is not interested in them.

The relationship between Chick and his former wife Vela is also the same. Chick admits， “in the same sun， same planet， there exist two unrelated individuals”. Actually， they are not husband and wife， but rather a pair of foes in a tortured state of tension with each other everyday， and ultimately， they have no choice but divorce.

The typical love in the novel is between Chick and his present wife， Rosamund， who is an intellectual type for a perfect wife and mother. She asks Chick to maintain their vitality and helps him back from the brink of death. Maybe in other peoples eyes， it is very strange for them to get married—a seventy-year-old man marries a young lady. Therefore， Ravelstein believes that love can transcend all， and because of this， they can get mutual appreciation and understanding.

（2）Friendship

Chick loves his friends. The friendship between Ravelstein and Chick shows throughout the whole novel. At the beginning of the novel， both of them have trips to Paris， live in the same hotel， eat at the same restaurant and go shopping together; later on ， when Ravelstein is sick and stays in the  hospital， Chick has always accompanied with him until his death. Although the last part of the novel mainly describes Chicks own experiences of death， the figure of Ravelstein constantly emerges in his mind： “He always appeared in extraordinary ways indirectly and went into my existence life”.

They admire each other and have mutual trust. The bestseller which makes Ravelstein a millionaire is written under Chicks suggestions and guidance; it is Ravelstein who helps Chick deal with his marital problems. They can tell their most intimate private affairs， such as sex， to each other. When Ravelstein jumps into Zeke and Veras bedroom and it causes Velas anger， Chick excuses his behavior by saying that “this is one of his charms”. This friendship goes beyond the boundaries of “good friend”， “close friend” or “confidant”. No wonder Vela would say they are “having an affair”.

（3）Death

Life and death are closely linked. It is the law of nature for people that cant be changed by their will. Ravelstein is written by Saul Bellow when he is 84 years old. Perhaps the author is aware that he is approaching the end of the life， so the topic of death in this novel was repeatedly and frequently mentioned with the lingering of the shadow of deaths. The death of individuals and groups are both involved in this novel， which recalls of the murder during World War II， because they are the descendants of the Jews， it really a difficult and unforgettable time for Ravelstein， Chick and their many friends. They hope that all the people around the world must learn lessons from the history and dont let the tragedy be put on performance once again.

4. Conclusion

This is a book of love and memory， which is full of courage， humanity， grief， happiness， friendship and love！

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