英文版介绍（1）- -
1883 - 1895
Born Gibran Khalil Gibran on 6th January 1883 in the mountain village
of Bsharri [1] (Bet Sharre, the place of kings) in the area now called
Northern Lebanon. The area is predominantly Christian [2] and close to
the beautiful and famous Holy Valley and Cedars of Lebanon [3].
He takes his forename from his father's middle name in accordance with
tradition, his father's full name being Khalil Gibran Saad Youssef Gibran.
His father had worked as an assistant in his uncle's pharmacy but after
accumulating gambling debts he is reduced him to working as an
'enforcer' for the local Ottoman administrator, a man named Raji Bey [4].
His mother - Kamila Rahmeh - has one child from a previous marriage
[5] and this is Butros (or Peter) who is six years Gibran's senior. In
time the family will grow with the birth of his two younger sisters,
Mariana and Sultana.
Initially the family had been of reasonable means but are now
impoverished, largely due to his fathers gambling, and as such,
Gibran receives no formal education. Kamila's deep religious
convictions are instilled in him from an early age and the education
he receives is provided by a local priest.
Recognising Gibran's inquisitive and active mind the priest takes to
teaching him the Syriac and Arabic languages and also fundamental
religious and biblical teachings. Through this informal teaching,
Gibran develops an interest in science, languages and history.
In 1891 the family are left homeless when the authorities seize their
property, the consequence of his father having been convicted and
jailed for tax evasion and fraud. Whilst his father is in prison the family
stay with relatives before emigrating to America in 1895. Although his
father has been released from prison the previous year he chose to
remain in Lebanon.
1895 - 1901
Being Arabic the family are treated as second class citizens. Kamila
makes a living as best she can by selling goods on the impoverished
streets of Boston. His sisters are denied an education due to Middle
Eastern traditions and financial hardship, and it is thanks to charitable
institutions that Gibran is able to attend the Quincy School. It is here
that his name is changed to Kahlil Gibran at the suggestion of his
English teacher. His limited knowledge of the English language
means he is placed in a rudimentary class where English is taught
from scratch. He appreciated the importance of learning the
language and advised his cousin N'oula, who was about to leave
Lebanon for America just as Gibran had done a few years earlier, to
"work hard so that you can learn the language卆fter that you will find
America the best place on earth".
Kamila is strong-minded and determined and through hard work she
manages to save some money and improve conditions for the family.
The money enables Butros to open a hardware store in which
Mariana and Sultana also work.
Although a quiet and introverted child who spends much time alone,
Gibran develops an interest in the artistic and cultural side of Boston
and attends operas, theatres and art galleries. He is introduced to
the Denison House Social Center in Boston where his artistic talents
are quickly recognised by Jessie Fremont Beale and Florence Pierce. Beale introduces the 13 year old Gibran to Fred Holland Day, an avant-garde artist, photographer and supporter of the arts. Day opens up a world of writing, photography, literature and mythology to the young boy and greatly improves his low self-esteem. Gibran learns fast and his artistic talents develop under the tutelage of Day, so much so that in 1898 his images are used as cover designs for books and he begins to make a name for himself.
Concerned that at such an early age, too much success could cause problems in later life, it is agreed that Gibran will return to Lebanon and finish his education at Madrasat-al-Hikmah school in Beirut. Here he learns Arabic and pursues a reformist Arabic curriculum.
During this stay in Lebanon he communicates with Josephine Peabody, herself a writer and poet who he had met during one of Day's art exhibitions in Boston. Peabody has become intrigued by Gibran after he dedicated a picture to her. In 1902 when he leaves college, he is a self-confident, determined young man who has excelled in poetry and his other studies.
1902
News from the United States is not good, his
mother has developed cancer, Butros is struck
with consumption and Sultana has tuberculosis.
Gibran sets out for America but arrives too late.
On 4th April 1902 Sultana dies at the age of 14.
Butros has abandoned the family store and left
for Cuba and it falls to Gibran to look after the
store and provide for the family, something he
prefers not to do as it impedes on his artistic
pursuits.
1903
In February Kamila undergoes an operation to
remove a cancerous tumour and Butros returns
from Cuba, he dies of consumption on 12th
March. On 28th June, his mother is also to die
from the cancer that has spread throughout her
body. In the wake of the three deaths Gibran
ells the store and throws himself into the task
of improving his Arabic and English, a pursuit
he will continue all his life.
1904
Meanwhile, Fred Holland Day and Josephine Peabody, are helping prepare his debut art exhibition which opens on 3rd May 1904 and is widely acclaimed. During the course of the exhibition Gibran meets Mary Elizabeth Haskell, a headmistress of a girls school in Boston, who at 30 years of age is 10 years his senior. This relationship will last his lifetime and Mary is to prove instrumental in shaping the development of the budding artist. It is on her recommendation that he changes to writing in English, having previously written only in Arabic and subsequently translating the work. Mary is a dynamic and sensitive lady who 'adopts' Gibran and becomes his benefactor, patron and collaborator. It would be hard to disagree with the sentiment that Mary was the most important and influential person in Gibran's adult life. For many years she provides the financial support that enables him to continue his studies, to write, to paint and ultimately, to publish his works.
1904 sees Gibran's first published work, an article entitled 'Vision' in the Arabic newspaper Al-Mouhajir (the Emigrant).
1905
He continues writing for Al-
Mouhajir and to this he writes
another column - Tears and
Laughter, this will later form
the basis of his book A Tear
and a Smile. He publishes his
first book (in Arabic) entitled
Nubthah fi Fan Al-Musiqa
(Music) which is inspired by his
visits with Day to the opera
and Butros' music playing [6].
1906
A second book follows - Arayis
Al-Muruj (Spirit Brides), this is
a collection of three allegories,
namely a) Martha, b) Yuhanna
the Mad and c) Dust of Ages
and The Eternal Fire. These
are heavily influenced by the
stories he had heard in Bsharri
involving religious persecution,
prostitution and reincarnation.
Subjects which are frowned
upon by his Arab peers.
1907
The friendship between Gibran and Josephine Peabody falls apart and he has a short affair with a pianist named Gertrude Barrie. During his life he will be associated with several women - Peabody and Barrie as already mentioned and his lifelong association with Mary Haskell [7]. Other relationships develop including that with Charlotte Teller a socialist, playwright and suffragette who wrote under the name of John Brangwyn. His most notable relationships are those with May Ziadeh, Mikhail Na飉eh (Micha) and Youssef Houwayeck; there were others with people named Micheline, Posy and Stern - the full names of which are lost to history.
1908
A third book, again in Arabic, is published. This focuses on the social
issues in Lebanon and causes close to Gibran's heart. The book,
Al-Arwah Al-Mutamarridah (Spirits Rebellious), is derived from the column
in Al-Mouhajir and consists of four narratives which dwell on subjects
including the emancipation of women, criticism of the clergy and the
injustices of the Lebanese feudal system. It is not well received by the
clergy who threaten to excommunicate him, nor the Syrian Government
who censor the book.
1909
Gibran begins a two year arts study programme in Paris and is
influenced by the popular artistic style of the day - Symbolism. Unwilling
as he is to accept the academy's strict formal education, he leaves to tour
London with Ameen Rihani, and thereafter relies on his own artistic style
and temperament. In June he learns of the death of his father in Lebanon
and is comforted when he learns his father had blessed him before dying.
1910
After a short period of travelling abroad, Gibran returns to America late in 1910 and shortly after proposes to Mary, but is turned down on the grounds of the age difference [8]. Fortunately this does not end the friendship and it develops into a long term and important artistic collaboration.
Gibran joins an organisation of Arab-American writers and intellectuals called The Golden Links Society and around the same time a collection of prose poems is published in Cairo under the title Beyond The Imagination. He stops writing for Al-Mouhajir and instead submits articles to Mir'aat al-Gharb (Mirror of the West), something he will continue for the next 11 years.
1911
In the spring of 1911 Gibran moves to New York on the recommendation of his friend Ameen Rihani and starts work on his next book - Broken Wings. This is his longest Arabic work and the only novel he writes, it is he says, a spiritual biography. The character Selma Karameh symbolizing a 22 year old Lebanese widow named Sultana Tabit, with whom he had an affair whilst in Lebanon. As with so much of his writing, it deals with the more gloomy aspects of life; in this case, the ill-fated affair of a married woman with a younger man and her ultimate death during childbirth.
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