Naipaul's dark country

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? Reading is of course a very private matter, but reading with netizens can lead to a wider world.

? Naipaul was recommended by a book club. From the initial Miguel Street to Naipaul's special performance to the first issue of Reading Green Leather Cars in 2022, the first stop was India, and the first book read by * * * was Dark Country. The premise is that I am willing to follow and actively participate.

Dark Country is one of Naipaul's Indian trilogy and a model of non-fiction literature. Time magazine's propaganda: there is a kind of person who is far from home, but knows better than anyone in his hometown. V.S. Naipaul is one of the most outstanding people.

? Before that, I had read Naipaul's Miguel Street, A Bend in the River, The Imitator, and Naipaul's letters. Naipaul showed innate sensitivity in his writing. Born into an Indian immigrant family in Trinidad, a famous British writer first set foot in India, from Mumbai, Delhi and Kolkata to Kashmir, and finally to his grandfather's hometown. I just read the travel notes, but I always remind myself that this is India 60 years ago, and this is Naipaul's India. I would rather appreciate Naipaul's writing than speculate on the writer's mood in those days.

? I like Naipaul's writing. His works often have good sentences. Friends who like to take notes in reading will certainly not refuse Naipaul. I have never set foot in India, and my impression of India is not only reading books, but also watching movies. India's film industry is very famous in the world. I heard that India's IT industry is also very developed. India's hierarchy, India's advanced and backward are obvious. Advanced can be referenced, and "backward" is difficult to judge. Anyway, most of us have no chance to live in India, so we don't need to do as the Romans do.

? Naipaul in "Dark Country" is similar to "Indians like to confess everywhere. Usually they crouch on both sides of the railway, but when they are in high spirits, they will also crouch on the beach, hillside, river bank and street. "

"Kashmiris selling snow dug up a shovel of ice and snow, rushed forward desperately, caught up with the pilgrims who had left, bargained in a hurry, paid the goods on the one hand, and then rushed back, dug up another shovel of ice and snow and sold it to another group of pilgrims. In this way, he kept digging and running on the mountain road all day. He only does business on this day of the year. "

"A friend who works in the Indian Government Tourist Office reminded me in advance that if I brought the whole bottle of wine ashore intact, it would definitely be confiscated." I think such a record is nothing more than what I have seen and heard, and there is no need to interpret it too much. Travel notes have no standard template and single theme, so it is not necessary to write only good deeds and happy things. This is the keynote of the guidebook.

In the process of reading, I really wonder, what do Indians think of Naipaul's book? But I'm not interested in looking up comments made 60 years ago. This is Indian history. Naipaul committed suicide by the Indian: "Interesting, you are lucky, you don't have to live in this country." We're all trapped here. You know, this is our situation: trapped in one place, unable to move. At the same time, he said to himself, "that business friend criticized me: you read too many books written by westerners full of prejudice against India." It's unfair to me. I have read countless books that he thinks are correct and worth reading. "

"Gandhi failed to convey his direct and honest vision and ideal to India. Strangely, after staying in India for a whole year, I can't find anyone who can tell me what Gandhi really looks like. They are all admirers of Gandhi. "

? "Every word Gandhi said and every article he wrote was almost recorded and preserved. The bibliography about Gandhi is overwhelming. However, in India, Gandhi has long retired from history. "

? Well, I think it makes sense to replace Gandhi with Naipaul.

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