没有玫瑰的人生

赏析/陈榕

威廉·福克纳（William Faulkner， l897～1962）出生于美国密西西比州新奥尔巴尼的南方士绅之家，高中未毕业即辍学，1919～1920年在密西西比大学读书，1919年开始发表小说和诗歌，1925年成为职业作家，1949年获诺贝尔文学奖。福克纳一生共创作长篇小说19部，短篇小说近百篇，其中绝大多数小说的故事发生在福克纳以故乡为原型所虚构的约克纳帕塔法县，这批小说合称“约克纳帕塔法世系小说”，描绘了美国南方的社会历史。福克纳的代表作有长篇小说《喧哗与骚动》（The Sound and the Fury）、《我弥留之际》（As I Lay Dying）、《八月之光》（Light in August）等。《献给艾米丽的一朵玫瑰花》（A Rose for Emily）是福克纳短篇小说的代表作品。

Excerpts1）

When Miss Emily Grierson died， our whole town went to her funeral： the men through a sort of respectful affection for a fallen monument， the women mostly out of curiosity to see the inside of her house， which no one save an old man servant—a combined gardener and cook—had seen in at least ten years.

It was a big， squarish frame house that had once been white， decorated with cupolas2） and spires3） and scrolled balconies in the heavily lightsome style of the seventies， set on what had once been our most select street. But garages and cotton gins4） had encroached and obliterated even the august5） names of that neighborhood； only Miss Emilys house was left， lifting its stubborn and coquettish6） decay above the cotton wagons and the gasoline pumps—an eyesore among eyesores. And now Miss Emily had gone to join the representatives of those august names where they lay in the cedar-bemused cemetery among the ranked and anonymous graves of Union and Confederate soldiers who fell at the battle of Jefferson.

Alive， Miss Emily had been a tradition， a duty， and a care； a sort of hereditary obligation upon the town， dating from that day in 1894 when Colonel Sartoris， the mayor—he who fathered the edict7） that no Negro woman should appear on the streets without an apron—remitted8） her taxes， the dispensation dating from the death of her father on into perpetuity. Not that Miss Emily would have accepted charity. Colonel Sartoris invented an involved tale to the effect that Miss Emilys father had loaned money to the town， which the town， as a matter of business， preferred this way of repaying. Only a man of Colonel Sartoris generation and thought could have invented it， and only a woman could have believed it.

When the next generation， with its more modern ideas， became mayors and aldermen9）， this arrangement created some little dissatisfaction. On the first of the year they mailed her a tax notice. February came， and there was no reply. They wrote her a formal letter， asking her to call at the sheriff10）s office at her convenience. A week later the mayor wrote her himself， offering to call or to send his car for her， and received in reply a note on paper of an archaic11） shape， in a thin， flowing calligraphy in faded ink， to the effect that she no longer went out at all. The tax notice was also enclosed， without comment.

They called a special meeting of the Board of Aldermen. A deputation waited upon her， knocked at the door through which no visitor had passed since she ceased giving china-painting lessons eight or ten years earlier. They were admitted by the old Negro into a dim hall from which a stairway mounted into still more shadow. It smelled of dust and disuse—a close， dank smell. The Negro led them into the parlor. It was furnished in heavy， leather-covered furniture. When the Negro opened the blinds12） of one window， they could see that the leather was cracked； and when they sat down， a faint dust rose sluggishly13） about their thighs， spinning with low motes14） in the single sunray. On a tarnished15） gilt16） easel17） before the fireplace stood a crayon portrait of Miss Emilys father.

They rose when she entered—a small， fat woman in black， with a thin gold chain descending to her waist and vanishing into her belt， leaning on an ebony18） cane with a tarnished gold head. Her skeleton was small and spare； perhaps that was why what would have been merely plumpness19） in another was obesity in her. She looked bloated20）， like a body long submerged in motionless water， and of that pallid21） hue. Her eyes， lost in the fatty ridges of her face， looked like two small pieces of coal pressed into a lump of dough as they moved from one face to another while the visitors stated their errand.

She did not ask them to sit. She just stood in the door and listened quietly until the spokesman came to a stumbling halt. Then they could hear the invisible watch ticking at the end of the gold chain.

Her voice was dry and cold. “I have no taxes in Jefferson. Colonel Sartoris explained it to me. Perhaps one of you can gain access to the city records and satisfy yourselves.”

“But we have. We are the city authorities， Miss Emily. Didnt you get a notice from the sheriff， signed by him？”

“I received a paper， yes，” Miss Emily said. “Perhaps he considers himself the sheriff ... I have no taxes in Jefferson.”

“But there is nothing on the books to show that， you see. We must go by the—”

“See Colonel Sartoris. I have no taxes in Jefferson.”

“But， Miss Emily—”

“See Colonel Sartoris.” （Colonel Sartoris had been dead almost ten years.） “I have no taxes in Jefferson. Tobe！” The Negro appeared. “Show these gentlemen out.”

1. 节选部分选自小说开头，描述了艾米丽去世时小镇人们的反应，并交待了艾米丽一家在小镇中的地位。

2. cupola [?kju?p?l?] n. 圆屋顶，穹顶

3. spire [?spa??（r）] n. 尖顶

4. gin [d??n] n. 轧棉机，轧棉厂

5. august [???ɡ?st] adj. 威严的，令人敬畏的

6. coquettish [k??ket??] adj. 卖弄风情的

7. edict [?i?d?kt] n. 法令，布告

8. remit [r??m?t] vt. 免除

9. alderman [???ld?（r）m?n] n. 市政委员会委员

10. sheriff [??er?f] n. 县治安官

11. archaic [ɑ?（r）?ke??k] adj. 过时的，老式的

12. blind [bla?nd] n. 遮帘；百叶窗

13. sluggishly [?sl?ɡ??li] adv. 懒怠地；缓慢地

14. mote [m??t] n. 尘埃；微粒

15. tarnish [?tɑ?（r）n??] vt. 使失去光泽

16. gilt [ɡ?lt] adj. 镀金的

17. easel [?i?z（?）l] n. 画架

18. ebony [?eb?ni] adj. 乌黑的；乌木制的

19. plumpness [?pl?mpn?s] n. 丰满

20. bloated [?bl??t?d] adj. 肿胀的

21. pallid [?p?l?d] adj. 苍白的，无血色的

作品欣赏

《献给艾米丽的一朵玫瑰花》是威廉·福克纳最为著名的短篇小说之一。小说的女主人公艾米丽·格里尔森生活在南北战争后的美国南部小镇杰斐逊。她出身名门，父亲对她管教严厉，禁止她和当地青年交往，使她到了三十多岁还未能出嫁。父亲去世后的那个夏天，艾米丽终于邂逅了爱情：杰斐逊小镇需要铺设人行道，于是一支施工队来到该镇，为首的工头叫做霍默·巴伦，是个北方佬，他热情而随性，艾米丽的心扉很快被他敲开。然而，巴伦是个浪子，工程一结束便打算离开。不久后，他果然从小镇上消失了。在以后的数十年里，艾米丽过着活死人般的生活，守着日渐残破的老宅度过了一生。直到她去世时，人们来到她家，才在楼上一个关闭的房间里发现了谋杀的秘密：在那个房间的睡床上，巴伦早已化为一副枯骨，而他身旁的枕头上则留着“一绺长长的铁灰色头发”，这绺头发的主人便是年老了的艾米丽。

如果只读小说的标题《献给艾米丽的一朵玫瑰花》，读者很难想到这篇小说竟然会是一则恐怖故事。艾米丽眼见爱情无望，便买来砒霜毒死了巴伦，以将情人永远留在身边。黑森森的大宅就是谋杀的现场，而艾米丽对巴伦的痴迷甚至到了疯癫的程度，即便巴伦死后，她还与他的白骨同床共枕了几十年。这些细节足够让人毛骨悚然。

然而，小说带给读者的阅读体验并不是以恐怖为主，而是悬疑。在小说开篇，艾米丽已死，人们成群结队赶往艾米丽的家，想向她献花致意。叙述者是这群人中的一员，自诩为小镇的代言人。从叙述者的口吻中，我们可以听出浓重的好奇心：艾米丽过着与世隔绝的生活，她从来不和镇上的人们聊天，逢年过节也没有亲戚来拜访，更没有朋友来她家做客，到了晚年她甚至足不出户。越是如此，小镇上的人们越是热衷于窥测艾米丽的行为举止，猜测她的情感世界。在艾米丽死后，人们涌入她的老宅——艾米丽的世界终于可以任由他们参观。直到最后一刻，当人们看到巴伦的枯骨时，故事才真相大白。小说颇有几分侦探故事的意味。

在杰斐逊小镇上，艾米丽之死是个大事件，因为她被小镇居民视为旧时代的纪念碑。艾米丽的父亲曾是镇上的名人，有着南方贵族特有的骄横。艾米丽则是十指不沾阳春水的大家闺秀。虽然时过境迁，艾米丽家早已没落，但她反而将孤傲和倔强表现得淋漓尽致。正因为如此，小镇居民在看待艾米丽时，既有仰慕和崇拜，又有幸灾乐祸和怜悯：他们崇拜艾米丽，将艾米丽的骄傲看做南方最后一点荣光的象征；同时，他们又因艾米丽的不幸而默默感到欣喜——出身名门又怎样，没落之后同样需要为生存而挣扎，同样会被男人所抛弃，他们因此而享受着居高临下的同情心。

然而，艾米丽需要的既不是崇拜也不是怜悯，她需要的是爱。虽然小说的名字叫做《献给艾米丽的一朵玫瑰花》，玫瑰是爱的象征，但艾米丽的人生却没有玫瑰。严厉的父亲造就了她畸形的少女时代，她熬到父亲过世才获得自由，但年华已误，她失去了最美丽的那一段青春。同时，家境没落使她深陷贫困，而她却无一技之长可以谋生。小镇上的人们越是将她奉为旧时代的楷模，她越放不下架子来与周围的人打成一片，昔日的荣光只会越发反衬出此刻的窘迫。只需要看看她的宅院就能了解她的人生境况：“那是一幢曾漆成白色的四方形大木屋，坐落在当年一条最考究的街道上，还装点着有19世纪70年代风格的圆形屋顶、尖塔和涡形花纹的阳台，带有浓厚的轻盈气息。可是汽车间和轧棉机之类的东西侵犯了这一带庄严的名字，把它们涂抹得一干二净。只有艾米丽小姐的屋子岿然独存，四周簇拥着棉花车和汽油泵。房子虽已破败，却还是桀骜不驯，装模作样，显得异常碍眼。”艾米丽活着，是已经逝去的那个时代的纪念碑，却也是一则迟滞于时代的笑话。

南方奴隶制的废除，贵族的没落，北方人来到南方，社会开始全面工业化——在《献给艾米丽的一朵玫瑰花》中，我们可以看到从19世纪后半叶到20世纪初这一段美国历史的变化。其实，艾米丽的故事不仅仅以这一段历史为背景，它也折射出作者对历史变迁在更广泛意义上的思考。新时代的车轮驶过，总有人有幸成为搭车人，也总有人不幸沦为车轮下的鬼魂。但我们很难说艾米丽是搭不上车，还是不想搭车。如果让她上演顺应时代的励志故事，这既是她的教养所没有教会她的，也是她所不屑为之的。其实她也曾想加入这个时代：当她遇到巴伦时，曾经不顾两人悬殊的背景，漠视人们的闲言碎语，放下矜持，和巴伦成双入对，坐着马车高调地从全镇人面前经过。然而，这场恋爱换来的只有伤害。为此，她退回到自己的世界。她曾经是一个身着白衣、苗条安静得像天使一样的少女，后来却渐渐变成了一个乖戾痴肥的老妇人，“看上去像长久泡在死水中的一具尸体”。在与世隔绝的旧宅里，与她朝夕相伴的只有一具没有生命的骷髅。

旧时代的旧并不等于好，艾米丽就是被她父亲所代表的时代所误。新时代的新也不一定都是进步，巴伦所代表的新风气不再相信爱情、荣誉和尊重。艾米丽的不幸在于她身处历史的变革之中。对于习惯了旧时代的人来说，迎接新时代无疑是艰难的，或许退守昔日的世界更容易些，因为昔日还有梦。然而，这梦却不一定有玫瑰色的柔光，也可能是哥特式的暗与黑。