一个人的诗章——读《红色英勇勋章》

一个人的诗章

兰卿娘跟你读《红色英勇勋章》

文／兰卿娘   编／张小红

战争与诗意，似乎毫无联系。对美国作家 Stephen Crane 来讲，战争是“去诗意”、“去浪漫”，他创作 The Red Badge of Courage，也是在用现实的笔触摧毁人们对战争的粉饰与幻想，可是，我读完小说，脑海中蹦出来的第一个字眼，仍然是“诗章”。

Stephen Crane 生于1871年，年仅 29 岁便因肺炎逝世，其现实主义作品对后来美国文坛上的海明威、约瑟夫·海勒等作家产生过重大影响，而他的诗歌与艾米莉·狄金森齐名，两人被认为是意象派诗歌的代表人物。

他写战争的血腥和恐怖，暴力和无情，而语言却具有散文式的美感：

This landscape gave him assurance. A fair field holding life. It was the religion of peace. It would die if its timid eyes were compelled to see blood. He conceived Nature to be a woman with a deep aversion to tragedy.

年轻士兵在逃离战场后躲避到一块安静的地带，把自然想象成厌恶悲剧的女性。

He listened for a time. Then he began to run in the direction of the battle. He saw that it was an ironical thing for him to be running thus towards that which he had been at such pains to avoid. But he said, in substance, to himself that if the earth and the moon were about to clash, many persons would doubtless plan to get upon the roofs to witness the collision.

逃离战场之后，又对远方响起的隆隆炮火产生好奇，想要一窥战争真面，即使他之前费了那么多劲逃了出来。可是，如果地球和月亮要撞上了，应该也有不少人会爬上屋顶，瞧一瞧这场罕见的世界大灾难吧！

The simple questions of the tattered man had been knife thrusts to him. They asserted a society that probes pitilessly at secrets until all is apparent. His late companion’s chance persistence made him feel that he could not keep his crime concealed in his bosom. It was sure to be brought to plain by one of those arrows which cloud the air and are constantly pricking, discovering, proclaiming those things which are willed to be forever hidden.

当过逃兵、被一点皮外伤吓傻过、差点迷失战场陈尸荒野，这些“不堪”的过去像内心隐藏的伤疤，年轻士兵时常害怕身边的战友一眼将他洞穿。“The tattered man” 简单无心的一句“你上一场战役在哪里”，都会让他心惊肉跳:军团就像一个小社会，大家毫无怜悯地挖掘他人的秘密，直到一切都被翻出来，我恐怕是藏不住啦，这漫天飞来的利剑，总有一支会戳破我的心脏，把我想永远隐藏的秘密公之于众。

看到这些文字，脑海中会有很强烈的画面感，身为意象派诗人的 Crane 很擅长以诗化的语言将情节烙在读者的记忆之中。他写诗 A Man Said to the Universe:

A Man said to the universe:

“Sir, I exist!”

“However,” replied the universe,

“The fact has not created in me

A sense of obligation.”

人的性格与命运受到环境极大的影响与桎梏，这是西方自然主义与现实主义作家孜孜以求的主题，正如这首诗中所表达的，人类似乎是无足轻重的存在，世界并不对你的生命负有责任。

在小说 The Red Badge of Courage 中，一个年轻的士兵历经战争与死亡的洗礼，浴火重生，流过的血与汗变成荣耀的英勇勋章。然而他并非一直都那么坚强。Crane 绝不是要呈现一个完美的斗士，他要讲的是普通人的故事——普通人受他的环境催化或掣肘，在起起伏伏的较量中获得新自我的故事。年轻士兵在告别母亲参军时，理想主义情怀鼓舞着他。战争未开始前，他最大的困惑是，“How do you know you won’t run when the time comes?” 他没见过战争，不知道真的开始打仗后他是英勇往前冲锋还是果断拔腿就跑。看到军营里的其他士兵，总要有意无意去套套别人的话，他想知道难道只有他一个人有这种担心吗？

“You aren’t the bravest man in the world, are you?” said the youth.

一个士兵被他问烦了，回答说——

“No, I ain’t,” exclaimed the loud soldier indignantly, “and I didn’t say I was the bravest man in the world, neither. I said I was going to do my share of fighting--that’s what I said. And I am, too. Who are you, anyhow? You talk as if you thought you was Napoleon Bonaparte.” He glared at the youth for a moment, and then strode away.

The youth called in a savage voice after his comrade: “Well, you needn’t git mad about it!” But the other continued on his way and made no reply.

年轻士兵的意思是，哎我问问而已嘛你何必生气。可也许他的同伴真被戳到了，毕竟还没有真正上战场，彼时彼地会发生什么，谁也不敢保证。

He felt alone in space when his injured comrade had disappeared. His failure to discover any mite of resemblance in their viewpoints made him more miserable than before. No one seemed to be wrestling with such a terrible personal problem. He was a mental cast.

无法获得内心深处的共鸣和抚慰，他仿佛身陷荒原，形影相吊。

我本人有点理想主义，但却很喜欢现实主义的作品，因为它试图真实而坦率地去展现人与自己、人与他人、人与世界的关系。年轻的士兵激情满满地参军，入了军营却害怕打仗，炮火一响他就跑掉了，又因为好奇跑回来了；身边的战友纷纷倒在血泊中，头皮被流弹擦出血来他就以为自己中弹身亡了；他奋起攻击敌人，起因也并非忠诚与义勇，而是各种复杂的情愫发酵出来的一股喷薄之力……虽是环境催发了个人的行为，个人却因自己当时的选择而注定了未来的一段生命，比如年轻士兵在恐惧、义愤、厌恶、疲惫、不甘之中心下一横，举起旗帜向前冲锋、奋勇杀敌，几次险象环生，最终赢得胜利：

He felt a quiet manhood, non-assertive but of sturdy and strong blood. He knew that he would no more quail before his guides wherever they should point. He had been to touch the great death, and found that, after all, it was but the great death. He was a man.

在不可掌控的复杂的大环境下，年轻士兵选择了豁出去厮杀，他此时的选择决定了他今后的生命走向——九死一生的坚毅、临危不惧的淡定。他有他所有的情绪——愤怒、喜悦、受伤、恐惧、爱、失望、胆怯、兴奋……他战胜一些，强化另一些，在战争这场特殊的体验中形成个体的自我价值与自我认同。因此在我看来，这部小说是关于一个普通人成长的诗章。

在现实主义作家的笔下，人是被动的无奈的，无法决定自己的命运。而由于我理想主义的视角，我同时也认为人是可以主动选择的。最近读到美国心理学家萨提亚的文字，质朴动人，愿与大家分享——

任何时刻，我看、我听、我说、我做、我想或我感觉到的，都是我的。

它如此真实地表现了那个时刻的我。

等时间流过，我再回头看，曾经我所看的、听的、说的、做的、想的或感觉到的，

有些可能已经改变了。

我能够丢掉一些不再适合我的，保留仍然适合我的，再创造一些新的。

我能看、能听、能感觉、能思考、能说、并去做。

我有办法使自己活得更有意义，更亲近他人，使自己更丰富，更有创意。

我拥有我自己，

因此，我能驾驭我自己。

年轻的士兵丢掉了一些不再适合他的，保留了一些仍然适合他的，再创造了一些新的。其实每一天，我们都在谱写关于自己的诗章，不知今天的你写出了怎样的诗节呢？

About the Author

Stephen Crane (1871 – 1900) was an American poet, novelist, and short story writer. Prolific throughout his short life, he wrote notable works in the Realist tradition as well as early examples of American Naturalism and Impressionism. He is recognized by modern critics as one of the most innovative writers of his generation.

Crane's writing is characterized by vivid intensity, distinctive dialects, and irony. Common themes involve fear, spiritual crises and social isolation. Although recognized primarily for The Red Badge of Courage, which has become an American classic, Crane is also known for his poetry, journalism, and short stories such as 'The Open Boat', 'The Blue Hotel', 'The Bride Comes to Yellow Sky', and The Monster. His writing made a deep impression on 20th-century writers, most prominent among them Ernest Hemingway, and is thought to have inspired the Modernists and the Imagists.

红爷说

我的怯弱，我的忧伤，我的愤怒，都是我自己的——我直面自己的一切，诉说自己的一切，未来是一个优秀的自己吗？我不知晓；未来是一个龌龊的自己吗？我亦无从获知。一切都在一个瞬间显现出来，仿佛总是有一个新的婴儿从我的体内诞生，临盆之前，我都不会知道它的模样。

这一切未知可能就是自我的成长？一个普通人的成长在战火硝烟中显得那么渺小却又那么庞大，大到遮盖了枪炮炸药的弥漫，只留了愈渐清晰的生命的诗章。

兰卿娘，热爱文学的英语教师。

古诗唱：

风风雨雨寒寒暖暖 处处寻寻觅觅

莺莺燕燕花花叶叶 卿卿暮暮朝朝

英诗吟：

To see a world in a grain of sand

And a heaven in a wild flower

Hold infinity in the palm of your hand

And eternity in an hour

她说：

原来中西相通，古今一物。朝暮之间，一粒沙里折射着怎样的世界？风雨之中，半瓣花上透视出怎样的人情？一起伸开手掌吧，看看这无穷无极之中，刹那如何成就永恒。