"Mao Mao" (also translated as "The Mystery of Time", "Momo") is a famous German children's story, which is a fairy tale with the same name as "Grimm's Fairy Tales".
The "Mao Mao" in the story is a little girl who does not know her age and where she comes from, and she has the "sensitivity" that ordinary people do not have. Mao Mao discovers that there is a group of "Mr. Gray" stealing people's time. People are deceived by Mr. Gray and pursue "saving time", but they lose their responsibilities and feelings and become indifferent and lonely people.
Mao Mao came to the birthplace of time, in order to save the "sick" and unaware of human beings, bravely fought the time thief "Mr. Gray", saved everyone's stolen time and life, and also saved the numb world.
The story of "Mao Mao" is now translated into more than 30 languages, distributed in many countries, with a circulation of tens of millions of copies, and is known as the "Mao Mao Phenomenon". "Mao Mao" will think that it is an ordinary children's fantasy story at first reading, but the more you read it, the more you feel that this is a fairy tale for adults, and it will show those philosophical issues such as the cognition and definition of time, cherishing time and life, and use fantasy stories to express them, although simple but very profound.
<h1 class= "pgc-h-arrow-right" > by Mitchell Ender and Mao Mao</h1>
Mao Mao is the work of German writer Mitchell Ender, published in 1973, and won the German Youth Book Award in 1974.
Mitchell Ender is a well-known children's writer in Germany. In addition to "Mao Mao", he also has a number of children's literature works and has won many honors. Among them, "The Unfinished Story" has won twelve international awards, and its popularity is similar to China's "Journey to the West".
Mitchell Ender was one of Germany's finest writers of fantasy literature and had a profound influence in Europe. The "Special Contribution Award" in the German Youth Literature Prize was inspired by Mitchell Ender's Mao Mao.
Trophy of the Special Contribution Award of the German Youth Literature Prize
People think of Mao Mao as a children's work and as a writer of children's literature, but it is interesting that Mitchell Ender does not consider his work to be children's literature.
He once said: "Fundamentally, I reject the idea that there is a special kind of literature for the sake of children ... In our experience, themes that the child does not care about in principle, or that the child does not understand at all, do not exist. ”
He believes that there should be a kind of literature, a literature in which both children and adults can participate together.
And "Mao Mao" is an attempt by Mitchell Ender, an effort, and he also succeeded. Both adults and children can experience the charm of the story of "Mao Mao".
"In the cold, soulless world, for children and adults to find lost fantasies and dreams." ―German literary critic reviewing the work of Mitchell Ender
Mitchell Ender
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right">
Time is not money, time is life</h1>
Time is of the essence. Life is in the heart. So the more people save it, the less they have. - "Mao Mao"
In Mao Mao's eyes, people originally lived happily, although poor, but cared for each other, lived a good life, and enjoyed life with a grateful heart. But one day "Mr. Grey" appeared. "Mr. Gray" seduces people, saying that time is wasted, and persuades everyone to "save" time and leave more time for themselves.
So more and more people are beginning to "save" time and want to have more time. But the opposite is true, the more frugal you are, the busier you are.
Office buildings are getting taller and taller, streets are getting neater and faster paced. Everyone is more and more chasing fame and fortune, hoping to get more material. The criterion for judging things has become beneficial and unprofitable, and the criterion for judging success is whether more value can be created.
What follows is people's numbness and indifference, no time to communicate with family and friends, no time to feel and experience life, and the heart is a desert.
What is extremely frightening is that the situation after being succeeded by "Mr. Gray" in the story is much similar to our current situation.
Everyone is busy and has not enough time; constantly pursuing material things, wanting to have more; everyone is very stressed, accompanied by anxiety and tension... In this materialistic world, spiritual pursuit is a luxury.
It seems that we are all working hard and getting more, but we have overlooked a problem, and life has been turned upside down!
Originally, we worked hard, we were busy, we wanted to have a better life, to make life happier, but in fact, on the contrary, we lost more, lost the opportunity to truly commune with people, lost kindness, and discarded more precious spiritual experience and better things. In the real world, our hearts are filled with the ashes of "Mr. Gray".
So the old man of time, Master Hou, told the truth about time and life that people have ignored: time is life, and life is in the heart.
The more time you save, the more you waste your life!
Life is not only value, life should not only pursue material. There should also be an emotional flow, a pursuit of nature and inner satisfaction in life.
Mitchell Ender's brilliance lies in expressing an old problem in a simple fairy tale. He integrates the philosophical discussion of time and life into the story, which not only arouses people's discussion of the meaning of life, but also criticizes the materialization of society and abandons the spirit.
And he borrows the eyes and hearts of children to make people perceive and ponder the problem for themselves.
<h1 class= "pgc-h-arrow-right" > three Cherish time is really "save time"</h1>
"Just as you have eyes to see the light, and ears to hear sounds, you have a heart to feel time. All the time that the mind does not feel is lost, just as the colors of the rainbow are to the blind and the song of the birds to the deaf. ”
"Time is life" does not mean that there is no need to work hard, and it is really "time-saving" to experience time with your heart, the best way is to seize the present and cherish the present.
The character in the story, Bebo, whose actions are the best interpretation of this meaning.
Bebo was just an old man and a cleaner, and his daily job was to wield a broom, take a breath, and sweep the streets with great effort.
I was impressed by one of his words about his work.
Sometimes, when I look at the long, long street in front of me, I think that the road is terrible, and I think to myself, this road can't be swept away in a lifetime!
I feel that the road ahead is still so long, it is not shortened at all. There was no way, I stepped up my work, and finally I was exhausted, my whole body was soft, and I couldn't breathe, and I couldn't go anymore.
Old Beibo found that there was something wrong with the work, so he began to think, and finally understood the method and rhythm of the work, and said to Mao Mao:
I shouldn't keep thinking about the whole street, I should just think about the next step, the next breath and the next broom. This is very important, only in this way can we do a good job, and the work must be done like this.
In this way, when I sweep and sweep, I will suddenly find that the whole street has been swept away by me at once, and I myself have not realized how to sweep it, and I do not feel tired at all.
Bebo's thoughts and feelings about work remind me of the psychological concept of "flow."
Flow in psychology refers to a state of mind that people exhibit when they focus on an act. It is a feeling of fully investing one's mental strength in a certain activity.
Flow is generated by a high degree of excitement and fulfillment at the same time. Once in a state of flow, it is easy for us to immerse ourselves in it, not to feel tired, and not to perceive the passage of time.
And Bebo, just happened to realize the true meaning of "flow" and time.
No matter what we do, we should seriously do a good job in the present moment and do a good job in the immediate future. Don't waste every moment, cherish every present.
This is the best interpretation of cherishing time, not wasting time, and saving time and grasping time.
<h1 class= "pgc-h-arrow-right" > the art of imagination and language</h1>
In addition to its profound philosophy, Mao Mao is also a story of the art of imagination and language.
Through the dictation of the tour guide Gigi, the story of a "Magic Mirror Princess" is told, the story is very sad, and it is a story within a story;
The "Nowhere Building" and "Never Alley" in the birthplace of time, the old man who keeps and distributes time, the description and setting of the Flower of Time;
"Mr. Grey" is a group of time thieves, where did they come from and where did they end up?
There are also questions about the philosophy of time such as "the eternity of time", "foreknowledge the future", etc.;
Riddles of the three brothers of "future, present, past":
The boss is not at home, he is walking home. The second is not at home, just went out. Only the old three sit at home. Although the old third rank is small, it is crucial and indispensable. Because the eldest became the second oldest, the third brother was born. You want to stare at one of them, always see his brother.
There are many more wonderful imaginations like this, and they are all amazing.
Mitchell Ender depicts a gorgeous fantasy world.
Mitchell Ender's exquisite use of language, various metaphors and descriptions, and endless "golden sentences" have made abstract concepts of time, vague and difficult to understand philosophical concepts, concrete and interesting.
"Mao Mao" is indeed an excellent work that makes people clap their hands, whether it is children or adults, you can read it carefully. Everyone will read the story that moves them.