What kind of character is Wang Mu in Cold Night?

Compared with daughter-in-law Zeng Shusheng, Wang Mu also has similarities: First, her life experiences are similar. Zeng Shusheng used to be proud of the spring breeze, but then everything went wrong. Wang Mu used to be a talented woman in Kunming, with a higher education. She once lived a leisurely life in Shanghai, and even wrote poems and painted. However, the war made Wang Mu not only lose her property, but also become a second-class old lady, wandering in a foreign land. After experiencing poverty and hardship, the daughter-in-law ran away from home and her son was in critical condition. How difficult the struggle between her and her grandson was! Second, everyone has a good personality. Zeng Shusheng is kind and generous, cheerful and enthusiastic. Wang Mu is kind, tenacious and diligent. She went from rich to poor and once angered her daughter-in-law, but later she regretted it very much. Although she misses the "golden age" of the past, she is now able to manage the housework under difficult circumstances and even reluctantly sold the only souvenir gold ring left by her wife. Especially after the daughter-in-law left, she was worried about her sick son and had to take care of her grandson at school. After the loss of her beloved son, she was able to live alone with her grandson and bear the hardships of life alone, which was sad and admirable. The difference is mainly in temperament. They are completely different: Zeng Shusheng advocates individuality and is bold and lively. Wang Mu is selfish, conservative, even stubborn and bossy. She is afraid that "her son loves his daughter-in-law more than she loves her". [16] She tried every means to prevent her son from making up with her daughter-in-law, and even tried to take her son away from her daughter-in-law, always looking at her son with "eyes full of love and compassion" [17]. Meanwhile, she tried to subdue her daughter-in-law. She often makes trouble without reason, taunts her, and even curses her daughter-in-law as her son's "mistress", because her son and daughter-in-law are free to fall in love, without any formalities or weddings. Therefore, Wang Mu was duty-bound for her daughter-in-law's departure and her son's final death. Finally, she lived alone with her grandson. Sometimes it's inevitable that someone will take the consequences. It is worth mentioning that in this novel, the contradiction between mother-in-law and daughter-in-law has always been a focus of debate, involving the evaluation of Wang Mu, or "the contradiction between old and new ideas and old moral concepts", [18] or Wang Mu's abnormal psychology, and so on. In fact, the contradiction between mother-in-law and daughter-in-law is more complicated than we take for granted, which can be discussed from the following aspects: First, the contradiction between mother-in-law and daughter-in-law often has psychological factors. According to the relevant research of psychologists, a person's psychology is generally in a state of balance. Once tilted, then this person will feel lost, that is, psychological imbalance. Therefore, whether a son is married or a daughter is married, mothers are often mixed. If there is an Oedipus complex or an Oedipus complex, it can also be regarded as an Oedipus complex. Now as the saying goes, "If you marry a daughter-in-law, you will have no children." This has a certain psychological basis. Wang Mu can't get rid of this universal emotional fetter. Wang's mother has been widowed for many years, and her rich material life may temporarily cover up her inner loneliness. Now she is in trouble, and her long-dried heart is particularly eager for an emotional shower. At this time, her only son naturally became a substitute for this emotional shower. At this time, Wang Mu grabbed her son like a drowning man! In fact, this is a kind of abnormal maternal love. To this end, she did not want her daughter-in-law to share her emotional resources, and tried every means to attack her daughter-in-law. She seems to have lost her enthusiasm, reserve and reason. In this respect, Wang Mu has profound psychological factors to his daughter-in-law's words and deeds. Secondly, in the novel, the contradiction between mother-in-law and daughter-in-law has profound social connotation. Because of the persecution of the war and the harsh environment, Wang's mother changed from a talented woman in Kunming to a second-class old lady, which is a painful past. This sharp contrast makes it difficult for Wang Mu to face the reality, so she bears a heavy ideological burden and becomes more and more depressed. Over time, she is inevitably mentally abnormal. Wang Wenxuan was originally the spiritual pillar of Wang Mu, but at that time he was weak, didn't make much money and gave up on himself. On the contrary, a daughter-in-law holds up half the sky. Wang's mother hated what Zeng Shusheng had done, but she had to spend her daughter-in-law's money, so she thought that Shusheng "thought she could earn money to support herself, but I depended on you for food, so she looked down on me" [19], which led to a sense of inferiority, and people with inferiority often defended themselves excessively. Since we can't compete with others in reality, we need spiritual comfort. The way we adopted it was Q: You are just my son's concubine. However, Wang Mu is also cynical, but she is also excited to hear the news of the victory of the Anti-Japanese War, thus showing her complicated mentality. Thirdly, the relationship between mother-in-law and daughter-in-law in the novel is not completely "incompatible", leaving a lot of room for discussion. Before, they had a happy time, which was the "golden age" of the Wangs in Shanghai. Wang Wenxuan and his wife once lamented: "We didn't live like this before." [20] In fact, Wang Mu may not object to her son's free love, and she may like to have this daughter-in-law. Although there were several exchanges of fire later, there was also understanding and nostalgia after separation. Both mother-in-law and daughter-in-law made it clear that they did not hate each other. Wenxuan once asked his mother, "Do you still hate scholars?" [2 1] The answer is: "I don't hate her. I never hated her." [22] Wang Mu's personality is straightforward and not duplicitous, which is very convincing. As for the scholar's deep affection for her mother-in-law, she revealed in her letter: "I don't hate her. She leads a life that is several times more difficult than mine. Why should I hate her? " [23] And they all have a desire for reconciliation. The scholar went to Lanzhou and said in his letter, "I don't have time to write to my mother." [24] It seems to be a refusal, but it is actually an understanding of the mother-in-law. The mother-child conversation revealed Wang's wish: I hope to get a letter from my daughter-in-law, and I am willing to write back. In addition, Wang Mu once "silently received letters and remittances, and she frowned and didn't say a word". [25] This shows Wang Mu's inner secret: I miss my daughter-in-law and hope to make up. Unfortunately, they will never meet again! In short, Wang Mu is such an old-fashioned intellectual woman. She is a talented woman in Kunming. She can recite poems, draw pictures and be widowed with her son, but she is also at ease and happy. Later, forced by the times, she was displaced and lived in a strange place. Over time, she was depressed and eventually became abnormal. She quarreled with her daughter-in-law, lost her beloved son, and had to live alone with her grandson. Why is this happening? Just in time. What time is it? It's dark!