Chapter 642 Daddy's Boy Herzen
It was a pleasure to chat with Herzen, although the man would not later be known for his achievements in natural philosophy.
But Arthur could see that this college student who graduated from the Department of Mathematics and Physics of Moscow State University was a person with a wide range of interests and a person who really liked reading.
When talking to such a person, you don't need to stick to the topic, just talk about whatever comes to mind, because no matter what field the topic is, Herzen can always talk about it more or less.
The two of them started from Cuvier's "On the Catastrophe of the Surface of the Earth" to De Candor's "Plant Morphology", to Humboldt's 30-volume masterpiece "Travel in the New World Tropics", Heine's "North Sea" "Collection", Alexandre Dumas's "The Count of Monte Cristo", Tennyson's "Lyric Poems", and even the unspeakable stories of Elder's creation.
Herzen was particularly interested in the story of the "British" editorial office and their feud with "Blackwood". No matter which author Arthur mentioned, the young man would always interrupt and ask questions at the right time.
Although this guy always says that he has been taking classes for half a year and has become very mature.
But in Arthur's opinion, he is still very young, because only young people have such a wide range of interests and curiosity.
The criterion for judging whether a person is old is not his appearance, skin or age, but whether you can find the light in his eyes, see the hope, desire and unrealistic dream, and Herzen is obviously Such a person is full of youthful vitality.
Even more fortunately, Arthur is always surrounded by such a group of young people, even though these guys are often too young.
Another interesting thing about chatting with Herzen is that this young man has his own ideas. Although he is very polite, when you get to the core of the issue, he will always stand up and debate with you.
Especially when he discovered that Arthur was always criticizing the philosophical thoughts of Hegel and Schelling, he couldn't help but stand up to defend these two philosophers. Although his methods and logic were not always rigorous, he could not help but stand up and defend these two philosophers. But interesting enough.
Herzen lay on his easy chair and said: "To be honest, talking with you reminds me of Lagrange's famous reply to Napoleon. Napoleon said to him: 'In astronomy, Kant accepted the idea of God. Lagrange immediately retorted: "Your Majesty, I will never need this hypothesis in my research."
Arthur didn't want to get entangled with Herzen on this issue for too long, and as a devil's contractor, he felt that it was completely unreasonable for Herzen to imply that he was an extreme materialist.
The reason why he expressed similar views was simply to scold Hegel's "absolute spirit" and Schelling's mystical tendencies.
His long life in Britain made him tainted with the habits of British empiricism, and his work experience in the past few years made him more and more inclined to realism.
As an experimental physicist, Arthur believed in scientific evidence, which made him scorn Schelling's romanticized view of nature.
As for Hegel?
He has always hated Hegel, especially after experiencing the London riots and parliamentary reforms. Hegel's discussion of national and historical rationality made Arthur feel even more physically and mentally uncomfortable.
If you want him to believe in the philosophy of Hegel and Schelling, it would be better for him to believe in the philosophy of Sir Isaac Newton!
In order to refute these two guys, Arthur could even hold his nose and admit that Newton's statement about God is right - God controls everything and knows everything that can be known. Moreover, God is also the first mover of the universe, and God is the one who spins the earth.
Even, Arthur can use this to argue that God invented football and was elected as the Footballer of the Universe.
Herzen held the tea cup, as if he remembered something. He laughed dumbly and said: "But it's a bit funny to say it. Although I don't support this view, I have to admit that it was this view that made me choose to enter the Department of Mathematics and Physics. read."
Arthur also suddenly remembered Herzen's identity: "I remember your graduation thesis was about astronomy, right?"
"That's right, my paper won a silver medal." Herzen nodded with satisfaction: "To this day, I still sometimes dream, dreaming that I am studying in school and about to take the exam, and I feel panicked and wondering I forgot a lot and thought I must have failed the exam this time... I was shocked. When I woke up and looked at the wall of the room, I realized that I had graduated. I felt happy from the bottom of my heart because no one else had. If you dare to torture me again, give me that nasty 'point'."
Arthur felt the pain and joy of Herzen. They were both good students, and they were both afraid that the professor would fail him, but they used different methods to deal with such terrible consequences.
Arthur did not have a good family background like Herzen. When he was in college, he did not know a big shot like Duke Yusupov, but fortunately, he knew a Duke who was exiled from hell, the useless Mr. Agares.
Arthur looked at Herzen's deserted house. Except for the two male servants who were yawning and smoking, there was also the cook who was busy in the back kitchen without saying a word.
Although this situation seems quiet and comfortable, in a bustling festival like Maslenitsa, it can’t help but make people feel deserted.
Considering the Russian habit of early marriage, it seems strange that a young man like Herzen, who comes from a well-educated family and is still single, is still single.
"Neither of your parents lives here?"
Herzen lit his pipe, pointed out the window and said: "My parents live in the house across the street, and this house was bought specifically for me. My father is an old stubborn man. He thinks that his son is now an official of the Land Office, so he always Living with my family is easy to talk about, and it is not conducive to work, so he asked me to move here. He would not let me go to his place normally. If something happened, he would ask my childhood nanny. Tell me to come over."
Arthur thought about it and asked tactfully: "I came to visit unexpectedly. Do I need to pay him a visit?"
"You?" Herzen replied: "The old man is probably very happy to meet you. Because in his judgment system, you are the most distinguished kind of guest, which is different from the friends I make every day. If you want to go, I will ask my servant to show you the way. My own words..."
Arthur saw Herzen's dilemma: "Are you having a conflict with your father?"
Herzen spread his hands helplessly: "You know what day today is."
Arthur laughed: "Has your family arranged a blind date for you?"
When this was mentioned, Herzen inevitably became irritable. He remained silent for a long time with an angry look on his face, and then he squeezed out a sentence through his teeth.
"He arranged three games for me today."
Arthur praised: "Your father's connections are really wide."
"Mr. Hastings!" Herzen couldn't help standing up and emphasized: "I'm not showing off to you!"
Blackwell, who was sitting next to him, was shocked when he heard that Herzen had three blind dates today: "Mr. Herzen, if you are not satisfied, maybe we should exchange jobs."
When Arthur heard this, he felt that this was really a siege. People inside wanted to get out, and people outside wanted to get in.
Of course, he still didn't plan to give his secretary a day off.
Arthur asked: "Why are you so repelled by blind dates?"
Blackwell was obviously more concerned about this aspect. The secretary, like a mother, enumerated the benefits of marriage to Herzen bit by bit.
"Mr. Herzen, you see, after you get married, your life will be more stable, and you no longer have to worry about the deserted home. Besides, with a good wife by your side, you can devote more energy to your career and books. , instead of being tied down by daily chores, not to mention that marriage can expand your network and consolidate your social status, which is of great benefit to your career! "
Herzen sighed and pressed the pipe into the ashtray: "Mr. Blackwell, hearing what you said, I almost thought you were sent by my father to persuade me."
At this point, Herzen took a step back and posed the question to Arthur: "Since getting married is so good, why don't you take advantage of this great day to attend more shows? I remember Otto told me , you are also a bachelor, right? What are you worried about?"
"I?"
Arthur did not expect that Herzen would play this trick with him. He casually prevaricated: "Your question really surprised me. But someone did tell me about two or three marriages, and they were not bad, but when I think of me If a woman appears in my room to dominate and arrange everything, for example, banning me from smoking, asking me to eat on time, tidying my desk, and digging out all my little secrets, I can't help but go crazy. ”
Blackwell muttered and complained in a low voice: "Yes! All these are done by the secretary. Why marry a wife and give one person's work to two people?"
Arthur glanced at the guy. In a way, Blackwell was right.
However, if he finds something is wrong, he can apply to change his secretary at any time, but a seemingly decent person cannot apply to change his wife at will.
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Or, he could choose to be a dishonest person.
But for the conservative British society, in the eyes of the increasingly important middle class, moral flaws are a more serious sin than suppressing riots.
This can be seen from the British public's evaluation of Foreign Secretary Viscount Palmerston.
Palmerston is obviously a playboy, but the citizens of London only gave him the joking nickname of 'Irish Cupid'. This is because he is a 50-year-old bachelor who is still unmarried and has not even publicly acknowledged an illegitimate child. .
Compared with him, the Minister of the Interior, Viscount Melbourne, was obviously much worse off. His late wife's relationship with Byron aroused heated discussions in society, and later became a hot topic in London because of her connection with Mrs. Norton. If the Prime Minister, Earl Gray, hadn't insisted on him, and the Viscount of Melbourne had indeed done nothing improper, and Arthur unexpectedly broke the situation in the cases of Senator Harrison and Judge Norton, then the Viscount of Melbourne might have been forced to take the blame. Resign.
In British politics, there are ten victories for not getting married, and there are ten defeats for getting married.
There was nothing wrong with Arthur's arithmetic.
Especially when there is no huge crisis at present, he cannot afford to lay a trap for himself in advance.
As long as he didn't see the order to be 'assigned' to a colonial institution, Arthur would not consider becoming a rich man-in-law for the time being.
Herzen complained: "Well, it seems that there is still a difference between the two of us. I am not opposed to ladies, but I hate my father's involvement in my life. Do you know? Before I was seven years old, I had to be helped. I started to go up and down the indoor stairs, because they were a bit steep. Before I was eleven, I had to go up and down the stairs. That is, my nanny used a wooden shed to bathe me. I thought I would be liberated when I went to college. Who would have thought that I, a college student, would have to be escorted to and from school only half a mile away? Wherever I can go, I have to send someone to escort me! Even now, he still stipulates that I am not allowed to go home after 10:30!”
Herzen's complaints were an eye-opener for both Arthur and Blackwell.
Is this raising a son?
Even in a conservative place like the UK, only aristocratic ladies would be subject to such strict restrictions.
The lives of aristocratic ladies in Paris were much more relaxed than those of Herzen.
Arthur joked: "Does His Majesty the Tsar know that his homeland officials are subject to such a high level of surveillance? Perhaps I should recommend to the Tsar that your father take over Count Benkendorf's work in the Third Bureau."
Herzen said angrily: "Really? According to you, there is more than one Benkendorf among the parents of students at Moscow State University."
"Is your classmate's parents like this too?"
"Maybe it's not as serious as my father's, but there are quite a few who will open our correspondence privately."
Herzen said: "We have a brainless child. His mother used a whip to scare him and asked him about the Malouf incident. He was scared, so he told his mother some things. As a result, this Kind mother, the duchess immediately She ran to see the principal and took her son's report as proof of his repentance. She thought that this would protect her son, but she did not expect that this would cause public outrage. Everyone in the class accused him of being a traitor, forcing him not to finish reading this book. I voluntarily dropped out of school after one academic year.”
"The Maloof incident?"
Herzen said: "Malov is a stupid, rude, ignorant professor in the Department of Politics. The students don't like him because he is very vicious and harsh to them. One day, the students couldn't stand it anymore, so We decided to unite to expel him. After discussion, the students from the Department of Politics sent two representatives to our Department of Mathematics and Physics, asking me to lead the reserve force to support them.
I immediately launched a mobilization in the Department of Mathematics and Physics, calling on my classmates to wage war against Malouf. A few people went with me, and when we arrived at the Politics Department classroom, where Malouf was lecturing, he saw us. The politics student in the classroom had a worried look on his face, fearing that he would not say even a single rude word today. But the worry soon passed. The crowded classroom was not quiet, and there was a low-pitched hum everywhere.
Malouf began to lecture, because the sound of feet scraping the floor appeared in the classroom: 'You are like a herd of horses, you use your feet to express your thoughts. I thought that horses think in terms of trot and trot. ’
This sentence instantly angered the students, and the classroom boiled with roars and boos, and they kept shouting: 'Tell him to get out, get out! Get rid of him! ’
Maloof's face became as white as a blank sheet of paper, and he tried desperately to tell everyone to be quiet, but he couldn't. Students jumped to their seats. Malouf had no choice but to quietly step off the podium in embarrassment, tighten his head, and squeeze out of the classroom. The whole class followed him across the school yard and drove him into the street, throwing his galoshes at him from behind. "
Arthur, who has rich experience in fighting professors, commented: "You should not have driven him to the street. In public places, the nature of things is different."
Herzen sighed: "Yes, but the students didn't think of this at all at the time. The incident suddenly became a public incident, and Moscow citizens saw it, so the matter eventually became a big deal. The school board panicked and had to Convince the school district superintendent to end the incident privately and find a few troublemaking students or others to deal with. Forget about being confined for a few days. This is a wise measure. Otherwise, the emperor will probably send an attaché to handle the matter. In order to get the Cross of Medal, the attaché will inevitably describe the matter as a conspiracy, rebellion, riot, etc. It is recommended that All were sent to hard labor, and then were pardoned by the emperor and served as soldiers in the barracks.
But fortunately, the emperor did not take it seriously that time. He saw that the matter had been concluded, the crime had been punished, and virtue had won the victory, so he followed the trend and issued an order to approve the student's request and dismissed Malouf from his professorship. We drove Malov to the school gate, but the Tsar drove him inside and outside the school. In Russia, it's always the loser who's unlucky, but this time we can't blame the Emperor. However, we were not happy for long, because when the Moscow citizens felt that the students had been spared, they began to slowly liquidate the students. "