文筆好不好，只讀一小段：勞倫斯強烈而武斷的人物描寫

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上回講到勞倫斯在《意大利的暮色Twilight in Italy》的景物描寫十分傳神，今天我們繼續他在本書中對人物的描寫的賞析。約翰 凱里對勞倫斯的人物描寫有這樣的概括：“他的主張就是相信自己的感受和直覺，而非頭腦。他的散文像催眠的咒語；對遇到的人，他的好惡是強烈而武斷的”。記住這個關鍵詞：強烈而武斷。書中講到一家意大利人--夫婦以及三個孩子--我們先來看勞倫斯對老大Giovanni及其父母的描寫：

Their meetings must have been splendid. Giovanni, the eldest child, was a tall lad of sixteen, with soft brown hair and grey eyes, and a clarity of brow, and the same calm simplicity of bearing which made Paolo(父親) so complete, but the son had at the same time a certain brownness of skin a heaviness of blood, which he had from his mother. Paolo was so clear and translucent.

In Giovanni the fusion of the parents was perfect, he was a perfect spark from the flint and steel. There was in Paolo subtle intelligence in feeling, a delicate appreciation of the other person. But the mind was unintelligent, he could not grasp a new order. Maria Fiori （母親）was much sharper and more adaptable to the ways of the world. Paolo had an almost glass-like quality, fine and clear and perfectly tempered; but he was also finished and brittle. Maria was much coarser, more vulgar, but also she was more human, more fertile, with crude potentiality. His passion was too fixed in its motion, hers too loose and overwhelming.

But Giovanni was beautiful, gentle, and courtly like Paolo, but warm, like Maria, ready to flush like a girl with anger or confusion. He stood straight and tall, and seemed to look into the far distance with his clear grey eyes. Yet also he could look at one and touch one with his look, he could meet one. Paolo’s blue eyes were like the eyes of the old spinning woman, clear and blue and belonging to the mountains, their vision seemed to end in space, abstract. They reminded me of the eyes of the eagle, which looks into the sun, and which teaches its young to do the same, although they are unwilling.

對Giovanni的描寫，從他的膚色寫起，在此過程中，將其父母的膚色也一并做了區分：父親清澈明亮clear and translucent，母親則要brown一點，而兒子從母親那里承襲了更多的膚色特征。接下去，勞倫斯特別寫到Giovanni是父母的完美結合fusion of the parents，他用到的暗喻是perfect spark from the flint and steel，天知道這樣的句子是怎么進入到他腦海里的。這里，他繼續比較父母的各自特色：父親在情感上雖然subtle ，但腦子并不那么好使the mind was unintelligent，他抓不住新的秩序could not grasp a new order，而母親則要銳利得多，也更能適應變化中的社會[she]was much sharper and more adaptable to the ways of the world; 勞倫斯把父親比作草，glass-like quality, fine and clear and perfectly tempered; but he was also finished and brittle，似乎能風行草偃，但其實又早已成型而易碎finished and brittle， 我懷疑這里勞倫斯采用了“逆喻法”oxymoron，即將兩種對立的特質并置在一起，形成一種反差，類似的還包括“苦甜”、“淚笑”。母親則要粗俗但更接地氣一些；做丈夫的，熱情體現在具體的動作上，而做妻子的，則熱情四溢too loose and overwhelming。接下來，勞倫斯寫Giovanni 的眼神，說他 Yet also he could look at one and touch one with his look, he could meet one，這話我的理解是，他的目光一一觸及周遭，但他真正能觸碰到的是一個，也就是說，他比較專注，緊接著勞倫斯又對父子二人的眼神做了比較：父親的眼神像織娘的眼神，屬于群山的，視野深遠而抽象（Paolo’s blue eyes were like the eyes of the old spinning woman, clear and blue and belonging to the mountains, their vision seemed to end in space, abstract）沒有對人的長期入微的觀察是寫不出來這樣的句子的；又像鷹，看得高遠，他很想把這個技能傳授給兒子，但可惜，兒子不愿意。這里，父母、父子、母子的異同，在相互的比較中，各自成型。能在短暫的相處中，抓住人物的各自特色，這是文學家的核心素質。你說他武斷也好，主觀也好，但其文字的力量，就在此時抓住了讀者。

Marco, the second son, was thirteen years old. He was his mother’s favourite, Giovanni loved his father best. But Marco was his mother’s son, with the same brown-gold and red complexion, like a pomegranate, and coarse black hair, and brown eyes like pebble, like agate, like an animal’s eyes. He had the same broad, bovine figure, though the was only a boy. But there was some discrepancy in him. He was not unified, he had no identity.

He was strong and full of animal life, but always aimless, as though his wits scarcely controlled him. But he loved his mother with a fundamental, generous, undistinguishing love. Only he always forgot what he was going to do. He was much more sensitive than Maria, more shy and reluctant. But his shyness, his sensitiveness only made him more aimless, and awkward, a tiresome clown, slack and uncontrolled, witless. All day long his mother shouted and shrilled, and solicited at him, or hit him angrily. He did not mind, he came up like a…and roguish and curiously appealing.

對老二Marco的描寫，他沒有賦予其心理力量，而是抓住他還沒成型，還沒有真正的個性這點：He was not unified, he had no identity。即使這樣，他也不會一筆帶過：他寫他的膚色像石榴，亂蓬蓬的黑發以及像鵝卵石一樣的眼睛。他是個媽寶男，對母親有極大的依戀，他羞澀、扭扭捏捏more shy and reluctant。more shy and reluctant這話有語病，應該是shyer and more reluctant。勞倫斯觀察著這些外在表現，暗中卻在尋求概括，于是有了這樣的句子his sensitiveness only made him more aimless, and awkward, a tiresome clown, slack and uncontrolled。要做概括和解釋的沖動怕是一直折磨著作家們，似乎不說出個所以然，他的筆是不罷休的。最后這句roguish and curiously appealing 算是對Marco下了結論。

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