The background of Lao Wang's times

First of all, is Lao Wang's kindness the only description in the article? I don't think so. The article begins with: "After the liberation of Beijing, people riding tricycles are organized. At that time, he was "slow-headed" and "one step late" and couldn't get in. He lamented that he was "old and useless". Lao Wang often has the fear of being behind the times, because he is a single-handed household, and all he relies on is a worn-out tricycle. " Is this just about Lao Wang's honesty and kindness? In fact, this is not only about Lao Wang's honesty and kindness, but also a satire and accusation against the era when black and white were reversed. So the author wrote the kindness of Lao Wang in a big background-it was a dark and ugly era.

Secondly, Lao Wang is a very kind person. What about the Jiang Yang family? The article has written many times about how the Jiang Yang family treated Lao Wang, which shows that the kindness of the Jiang Yang family has been extended to their daughter. In other words, this article not only wrote about a person's kindness, but also wrote about the nostalgia of an unusually kind person for another unusually kind person, and wrote about the mutual warmth of kind people in adversity.

Finally, the core sentence in the article is: "After several years, I gradually understand that a lucky person is a pity for an unfortunate person." This sentence is always understood:

First, why is Lao Wang said to be an "unfortunate person"?

Lao Wang in the article is an ordinary worker living at the bottom of society. His source of life is "just an old tricycle"; He lives in "a lonely alley", "a dilapidated yard" and "several collapsed huts". He is also "blind in one eye". In addition, he is "alone" and "out of the group"; He has few relatives. "My brother is dead, and my two nephews are worthless." He is an "old bachelor, but his mind is still not flexible. Lao Wang is an out-and-out "unfortunate person" whether materially, physically or mentally.

There is no doubt about it. But such an "unfortunate man" met Jiang Yang in a historical period.

Their acquaintance was unequal from the beginning. "He pushes" and "I sit", and their communication is limited to "chatting", but Lao Wang still cherishes such acquaintances. He conveyed this "treasure" in his own way: "Every morning, Lao Wang holds the third floor on the ice and puts it in the refrigerator for us to eat. The ice he sent was twice as big as that sent by his predecessor, and the ice price was equal "; During the Cultural Revolution, her husband, Mr. Qian, "couldn't walk with one leg." Lao Wang sent Mr. Qian to the hospital and "resolutely refused to take money." He said: "I have no money to send Mr. Qian to see a doctor." The reason why Lao Wang is like this is because in his contacts with the Jiang Yang family, he felt a kind of warmth and closeness that he had never felt before: Jiang Yang regarded him as an "acquaintance" and was willing to listen to him talk; Jiang Yang's daughter once "gave him a big bottle of cod liver oil", which made his eye disease better; After he did some work for Jiang Yang's family, he always got some money compensation. Although sometimes, "taking money" is not from his original intention, such warmth and closeness have comforted Lao Wang's lonely heart. It is this warmth that makes Lao Wang consciously or unconsciously gain a spiritual sustenance. Lao Wang is a real humble man who lives by labor. His true and simple nature always gives him a different kind of admiration for knowledgeable people. Such admiration is not utilitarian, but from the heart. So, when Lao Wang died, he gave Jiang Yang eggs and sesame oil that he could not bear to eat. When Lao Wang came here, he should know that he was going to die soon. The reason why he dragged his "stiff" body and came to Jiang Yang's house for the last time was obviously due to inner considerations. However, his painstaking efforts were finally misunderstood by Jiang Yang (why this misunderstanding will be caused, which will be explained later), making it a simple exchange of money and goods. "He went downstairs straight at his feet", and that "footsteps" sounded another "unfortunate" feeling to Lao Wang. If Lao Wang's past "misfortunes" are all explicit, then the "misfortunes" that Lao Wang stepped on this time are implicit. The key is that Lao Wang misinterpreted Jiang Yang's sympathy for him as affection with his simple way of thinking. He sincerely did everything he thought he should do, but he didn't really realize that he and Jiang Yang's family came from different classes after all, and the distance between them was obvious. Although the encounter from the sky gave him a chance to communicate with Jiang Yang "at close range", this kind of communication can only stay in the superficial exchange of things and money, far from spiritual communication. No matter how hard he tries, the distance between his hearts can't be shortened.

Second, why is Jiang Yang a "lucky man"?

Jiang Yang's "luck" not only refers to the material disparity between her and Lao Wang, but also refers to Jiang Yang's "luck" that she first met Lao Wang, the "most honest" person, when her family met with "misfortune". Lao Wang tried his best to help her family. Lao Wang doesn't know what bullying is. "He probably didn't expect it at all." In Lao Wang's life dictionary, there is no word "bullying". Lao Wang only knows how to be a man and do things honestly. Although life is unfair to him, he still sticks to his position and sticks to his moral conscience as always.

Although Jiang Yang also had "misfortune": he was shocked during the Cultural Revolution and was sent to a cadre school; Her husband's legs can't walk, so he has to ask Lao Wang to help him go to the hospital. But these are just passing by in the article. Because Jiang Yang's real intention in writing this article is to convey her different understanding of life by analyzing her acquaintance with Lao Wang, it is impossible to describe everything else in detail in such a short article. Jiang Yang sympathized with Lao Wang's "misfortune" and tried his best to help Lao Wang economically. In her opinion, Lao Wang is poor enough, and he can't take advantage of Lao Wang anyway. The "lofty" in the intellectual's mind makes her stick to a principle in dealing with people, that is, never owe others' feelings. In her mind, Lao Wang and others are equal. Therefore, her contribution to Lao Wang is always materialized as a return with money: Lao Wang sent ice to her family, although Lao Wang said "the fare was halved", but she persisted; Lao Wang sent Mr. Qian to the hospital, "resolutely refused to take money", but she "must give money"; Even though Pharaoh sent her eggs and sesame oil at the end of his life, she still "insulted him with money." Please note that Jiang Yang used a particularly striking word here: "Insult" makes people feel more about the different moods of the old man when he wrote this article, which has far-reaching influence. Let's read these two paragraphs in the article again: I thanked him for his good sesame oil and his big egg, and then turned and went into the house. He quickly stopped me and said, "I don't want money." I quickly explained, "I know, I know-but since you're here, you don't need to ask someone to take it." The two "haste" here are intriguing. Lao Wang's "haste" is to know what Jiang Yang's "turning into the house" will mean, which Lao Wang is most unwilling to accept; And Jiang Yang's "urgency" lies in her failure to understand Lao Wang's mind. In fact, at that time, she didn't have time to understand, because at that time, the Pharaoh Jiang Yang saw was "embedded in the door frame", "like a zombie gushing out of a coffin" and "with a yellow and dry skin on the skeleton, it would be scattered into a pile of bones when hit with a stick". Out of an instinct, she was "scared and confused", and all she could think about was to send Lao Wang away quickly. And the best way to send Lao Wang away is money. I don't think anyone has any reason to criticize Jiang Yang's behavior at such a specific moment. As a result, Lao Wang reluctantly accepted the "money" that he was most unwilling to accept. From this detail, we can easily see the huge gap between Jiang Yang and Lao Wang at that time. There is such a blank in the article, that is, after Lao Wang went to Jiangyang's home for more than ten days for the last time, Jiang Yang talked with Lao Li in the same hospital of Lao Wang: "What happened to Lao Wang? Is it better? " "Buried early." "Ah, when did he ..." "When did he die? It was the day after I came to you. " From this passage, we can easily see that it is not only Jiang Yang who is alienated from Lao Wang, but even Lao Li, who is in Lao Wang's class, is alienated from Lao Wang, although the meanings of the two alienation may be different.

However, Jiang Yang is, after all, a senior intellectual with social conscience. Lao Wang's death prompted her to "recall" the words Lao Wang left before his death and "wonder if he knew" her gratitude to him, but what Jiang Yang got was "uneasy heart". Such "uneasiness" constantly tormented her soul and made her suddenly realize that the dribs and drabs between herself and Lao Wang were so unfair; Compared with Lao Wang's devotion to his "heart", his return to Lao Wang's "money" is so insignificant. This is undoubtedly a heart-wrenching pain for her. This is also a spiritual reflection of Jiang Yang's reflection on life after A few years have passed. Isn't the introspection of intellectuals' spirit "lucky" in another sense?

In fact, the "lucky people" in Yang's conclusion are originally "people who eat more and occupy more". The author made such a change because of her careful consideration. I think this is probably the real reason why Jiang Yang said that "a lucky man is ashamed of an unfortunate man".

As a supplement, Lao Wang, an ordinary person, finally made Lao Jiang deeply realize the "guilt" of life, and she simply showed it to future generations, which should be the "great luck" of future generations.