Ayatollah Khamenei

Strong French, Russian novels portray life artistically: Ayatollah Khamenei

A few years ago, I read a great French novel entitled “The Thibaults” (Les Thibault in French) by Roger Martin. Great novels from France, Russia and other countries, where eminent novels have been written, depict realities of life. 

If you read novels by Honoré de Balzac, Victor Hugo or Russian authors, you will find that they’ve artistically depicted the social realities of their time; the same can be said for “The Thibault”. 

The book reveals how leftist and socialist groups in France, Germany, Austria and Switzerland tried hard to prevent WWI, once they felt they were on the brink of war. They failed and all their efforts were in vain. They were hoping to establish a socialist government. Eventually, a socialist government came into power in Tsarist Russia and that became another failed experience for the western movement. 

The Soviet’s experience was also a western experience; it was not an oriental one. It is true that they called them the east block and the west block, but that front belonged to Europe. It emerged from European as well as Marxist and Engle’s thoughts; it was another failure.

Statements from a meeting with university students from Kerman Province, May 09, 2005

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