Sunday, February 14, 2010

some famous love letters...

Victor-Marie Hugo (1802-85) was born in Besan on, France, the third son of an army general. He was a sickly infant and was not expected to live, but grew more robust from the age of two when he went to live with his mother in Paris--"the birthplace of my soul."
As a teenager he began to fill notebooks with poetry. In maturity he was a prolific and very successful poet, dramatist, and novelist, and the most celebrated author of his generation. His most famous works include The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1831), Les Chants du Crepuscule (1835) and Les Miserables (1862).

December 31st, 1851

You have been wonderful, my Juliette, all through these dark and violent days. If I needed love, you brought it to me, bless you! When, in my hiding places, always dangerous, after a night of waiting, I heard the key of my door trembling in your fingers, peril and darkness were no longer round me--what entered then was light!
We must never forget those terrible, but so sweet, hours when you were close to me in the intervals of fighting. Let us remember all our lives that dark little room, the ancient hangings, the two armchairs, side by side, the meal we ate off the corner of the table, the cold chicken you had brought; our sweet converse, your caresses, your anxieties, your devotion. You were surprised to find me calm and serene. Do you know whence came both calmness and serenity? From you...



Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-91) was born in Salzburg, the son of Leopold Mozart and Anna Maria Pertl. From the age of five he performed all over Europe with his sister, Maria-Anna.

By 1772 he had composed 25 symphonies and two string quartets. He was appointed honorary concert master to the court in Salzburg in 1774, and after more tours--to Italy, Manneheim, and Paris--and a spell as court organist in Salzburg (1778-80), he moved to Vienna in 1781. Mozart wrote most of his best work in the years that followed: 12 piano concertos (1784-86); six quartets; and the operas The Marriage of Figaro (1786), Don Giovanni (1787), and Cosi Fan Tutte (1790). In 1791, the year of the Requiem and The Magic Flute, he died of heart failure, at age 35.

This is a portion of a letter sent to his wife Constanze

Mainz October 17, 1790

PS.--while I was writing the last page, tear after tear fell on the paper. But I must cheer up -- catch! -- An astonishing number of kisses are flying about --- The deuce!-- I see a whole crowd of them! Ha! Ha!...I have just caught three-- They are delicious!-- You can still answer this letter, but you must address your reply to Linz, Poste Restante-- That is the safest course. As I do not yet know for certain whether I shall go to Regensburg, I can't tell you anything definite. Just write on the cover that the letter is to be kept until called for.

Adieu--Dearest, most beloved little wife-- Take care of your health-- and don't think of walking into town. Do write and tell me how you like our new quarters-- Adieu. I kiss you millions of times.

In the times of texting, when even the spellings are compromised for lack of time/credit, do we really have the time to romance, to woo? If "UR d lite of my life" is love aajkal, I am terribly terribly old fashioned!!

To the beauty and charm of putting pen on paper, this valentines day make your beloved feel special!

26 comments:

Urmi said...

Very well written. Came to know about different stories through your post.
Wish you a very Happy Valentines Day.

sujata sengupta said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Rajesh said...

Very beautiful letters. Now with short text, the feelings are lost.

Save our Tigers

BK Chowla, said...

It is so refreshing to read your posts.
This one is another one. great

R. Ramesh said...

gr8 post this..enjoyed reading..hey did u watch the movie on mozart? it's wonderful yar...romantic guy indeed..

G S Pillai said...

dont underestimate the short text. no explanations :-)

Ire said...

Such a sweet post! Love letters are classic I think. :) Happy belated Valentine's day!

Gymnast said...

I have always loved love letters. Written ones.

Original written ones.

Not stupid cards or stuff copied from somewhere on the internet.

However , that is one dream yet to be recognised..

But , but , if i get a letter that says -

"But I must cheer up -- catch! -- An astonishing number of kisses are flying about --- The deuce!-- I see a whole crowd of them! Ha! Ha!...I have just caught three-- They are delicious!-- "

I think i'll just laugh !!

Yes , i think i am slowly turning into a brick wall.

sujata sengupta said...

@Babli thanks, I was glad to get hold of these letters and share it with all of you.

@Rajesh yeah the feelings are like everything else very hurried and practical.

@BKC thank you Sir!

@Ramesh yah romantic indeed..so R wrote a letter to you wife? pen on paper, or just wrote a few more pieces for the magazine??

@bluebird your comment is quite loaded, but will let it pass without further enquiries..but my mind, cant stop it from wondering..

@Nikita thank you..you should be flooded with love letters, its the right age for you isnt it?

@Gymnast maybe that was the point,of the letter to make the recipient smile even laugh, laughter and joy are the best part of love isnt it? and to think this letter was written just a few months before the writer died..

Kavi said...

Ah ! Letters ! Letters ! Love begets love letters !!
Lovely !

:)

NR said...

simply loved your post!!

Butterfly Thoughts said...

beautiful and precious letters.glad that you shared them.

Destiny's child said...

'What is this life, full of care where man has no time to stand and stare....'

I guess these days, if you get an sms adorned with smileys and an indecipherable lingo, it would mean some one cares. But yes, it shouldn't be one of those silly forwards. Though something solid to hold on to feels good, an sms that comes with some feeling, is just as good. :)

Bhavya.B said...

Great Valentines day special post :)

Arun Meethale Chirakkal said...

Vow! Celebrate the spirit of love everyday, every hour, every minute...

'Days may come and days may go let love go on forever'. That's what I wrote for a jewellery's Valentine Special Collection, long back.

R. Ramesh said...

well well i am not answering that..heheh..plenty smart me na? u still dint aanswerrrr..when dubai? ok now licence ready..ok now everything ready..but when dubai? i pester u so much i think u will drop the idea completely haha

JD said...

wow.. The letters were awesome and the words danced around. A perfect Valentine gift..

Nona said...

Nice! The SMS-es and the internet chat has spoiled the way we spell!

Kavita Saharia said...

Your post made me go and open that special box where my first love letter from my husband is kept....thanks for bringing back those beautiful memories.The header is beautiful.

R. Ramesh said...

the lady with the lipstick in the lift? oh oh.i completely forgot abt her...thanks su,, wait lemme check out abt her and get back..hehe

Sumandebray said...

its all about communicating..... The receiver should comfortably decipher the message.... What say you?
Unless offcourse one wishes to create a masterpiece....be it literature or be it a piece of art....
Happy V day to u

deeps said...

that goes well with the season we are in....

ohhoo nice collection.... would have been of great use to me a year back haha...

by the way, i would really want to travel to Kolcatta, thats one city i have missed ...

R. Ramesh said...

Hiiii:)

Pesto Sauce said...

Seems we have lost those expressions of love in this age where nobody has time to even write on gadgets with full sentences....no wonder Twitter is a hit

Debopam Chaudhuri said...

I also miss the 'days gone by' when i had the time and the interest to lay down my feelings into a piece of paper. We are too busy, too fast now and at the same time too much lackadaisical in approach towards life in general.

dekho na blog lekhata porjonto chhere dichchi, shudhui ki somoyer obhab??

bhalo laglo porey, ar ager sob kotao porchhi, comment kora hoyni.. BTW how is Bond doing now?

Sakshi said...

I am still terribly old fashioned like you when it comes to writing love letters *blush*

Those are some great ones indeed. I was really really surprised to read some of the letters written by Karl Marx to his wife.. Do get your hands on them if you can :)

PS: I love the song Fernado by ABBA