The Story-Teller oon,and the railway carriage was correspondingly sultry', and the next stop was at Templecombe, nearly an hour ahead. The occupants of the carriage were a small girl and a smaller girl, and a small boy. An aunt belonging to the children occupied one corner seat, and the further corner seat on the opposite side was occupied by a bachelor who was a stranger to their party, but the small girls and the small boy emphatically occupied the compartment. Both the aunt and the children were conversational in a limited, persistent way, reminding one of the attentions of a housefly that refuses to be discouraged. Most of the aunt's remarks seemed to begin with"Don,'t, "and nearly all of the childrens remarks began with"Why? " The bachelor nothing out loud."Dont, Cyril, don,t, "exclaimed the aunt, as the small boy began smacking cushions of the seat, producing a cloud of dust at each blow Come and look out of the window "she added The child moved reluctantly to the window. "Why are those sheep being driven out of that field? " he asked I expect they are being driven to another field where there is more grass, said the aun eakly But there is lots of grass in that field, protested the boy; there s nothing else but grass there Aunt, there's lots of grass in that field Perhaps the grass in the other field is better, "suggested the aunt fatuously Why is it better? came the swift, inevitable question Oh, look at those cows! " exclaimed the aunt. Nearly every field along the line had contained cows or bullocks, but she spoke as though she were drawing attention to a rarity Why is the grass in the other field better? " persisted Cyril The frown on the bachelor's face was deepening to a scowl. He was a hard, unsympathetic man, the aunt decided in her mind. She was utterly unable to come to any satisfactory decision about the grass in the other field The smaller girl created a diversion by beginning to recite "On the road to Mandalay " She only knew the first line, but she put her limited knowledge to the fullest possible use. She repeated the line over and over again in a dreamy but resolute and very audible voice; it seemed to the bachelor as though some one hadhad a bet with her that she could not repeat the line aloud two thousand times without stopping. Whoever it was who had made the wager was likely to lose his bet 8 闷热的 2 An aunt belonging to the children. emphatical ly occupied the compartment:孩子们的姨妈坐在包厢的角落 里,对面的角落坐着一位素不相识的单身汉,但无疑占据整间包厢的是这三个孩子 a housefly that refuses to be discourage 赶不走的苍蝇 producing a cloud of dust at each blow:(男孩)每捶一下(垫子)就扬起一阵灰尘。 fatuously:笨拙地 6 bullock:小公牛或阉牛 he frown on the bachelor's face was deepening to a scow!男人眉头越锁越紧,渐渐面露愠色。 8 Whoever it was who had made the wager was likely to lose his bet不管是谁来打这个赌(指男乘客想象的让 女孩把这第一句话连续背上两千遍的赌局),都绝对输定了
The Story-Teller By Hector Hugh Munro It was a hot afternoon, and the railway carriage was correspondingly sultry1 , and the next stop was at Templecombe, nearly an hour ahead. The occupants of the carriage were a small girl, and a smaller girl, and a small boy. An aunt belonging to the children occupied one corner seat, and the further corner seat on the opposite side was occupied by a bachelor who was a stranger to their party, but the small girls and the small boy emphatically occupied the compartment. 2 Both the aunt and the children were conversational in a limited, persistent way, reminding one of the attentions of a housefly that refuses to be discouraged3 . Most of the aunt's remarks seemed to begin with "Don't," and nearly all of the children's remarks began with "Why?" The bachelor said nothing out loud. "Don't, Cyril, don't," exclaimed the aunt, as the small boy began smacking the cushions of the seat, producing a cloud of dust at each blow4 . "Come and look out of the window," she added. The child moved reluctantly to the window. "Why are those sheep being driven out of that field?" he asked. "I expect they are being driven to another field where there is more grass," said the aunt weakly. "But there is lots of grass in that field," protested the boy; "there's nothing else but grass there. Aunt, there's lots of grass in that field." "Perhaps the grass in the other field is better," suggested the aunt fatuously5 . "Why is it better?" came the swift, inevitable question. "Oh, look at those cows!" exclaimed the aunt. Nearly every field along the line had contained cows or bullock6 s, but she spoke as though she were drawing attention to a rarity. "Why is the grass in the other field better?" persisted Cyril. The frown on the bachelor's face was deepening to a scowl.7 He was a hard, unsympathetic man, the aunt decided in her mind. She was utterly unable to come to any satisfactory decision about the grass in the other field. The smaller girl created a diversion by beginning to recite "On the Road to Mandalay." She only knew the first line, but she put her limited knowledge to the fullest possible use. She repeated the line over and over again in a dreamy but resolute and very audible voice; it seemed to the bachelor as though some one had had a bet with her that she could not repeat the line aloud two thousand times without stopping. Whoever it was who had made the wager was likely to lose his bet.8 1 sultry: 闷热的 2 An aunt belonging to the children…emphatically occupied the compartment: 孩子们的姨妈坐在包厢的角落 里，对面的角落坐着一位素不相识的单身汉，但无疑占据整间包厢的是这三个孩子。 3 a housefly that refuses to be discouraged: 一只赶不走的苍蝇 4 producing a cloud of dust at each blow: （男孩）每捶一下（垫子）就扬起一阵灰尘。 5 fatuously: 笨拙地 6 bullock: 小公牛或阉牛 7 The frown on the bachelor’s face was deepening to a scowl: 男人眉头越锁越紧，渐渐面露愠色。 8 Whoever it was who had made the wager was likely to lose his bet: 不管是谁来打这个赌（指男乘客想象的让 女孩把这第一句话连续背上两千遍的赌局），都绝对输定了
"Come over here and listen to a story, " said the aunt, when the bachelor had looked twice at her and once at the communication cord g The children moved listlessly towards the aunt's end of the carriage. Evidently her reputation as a story-teller did not rank high in their estimation In a low, confidential voice, interrupted at frequent intervals by loud, petulant questionings from her listeners, she began an unenterprising and deplorably uninteresting story about a little girl who was good, and made friends with every one on account of her goodness, and was finally saved from a mad bull by a number of rescuers who admired her moral character Wouldn't they have saved her if she hadn,t been good? " demanded the bigger of the small girls. It was exactly the question that the bachelor had wanted to ask Well, yes, "admitted the aunt lamely, "but I don't think they would have run quite so fast to her help if they had not liked her so much It's the stupidest story I've ever heard, said the bigger of the small girls, with immense convictio I didn't listen after the first bit, it was so stupid, " said Cyril The smaller girl made no actual comment on the story, but she had long ago red murmured repetition of her favourite line You don't seem to be a success as a story-teller, said the bachelor suddenly from his corner. The aunt bristled in instant defence+at this unexpected attack It's a very difficult thing to tell stories that children can both understand and appreciate, " she said stiffly I don't agree with you, "said the bachelor Perhaps you would like to tell them a story, "was the aunt's retort Tell us a story, demanded the bigger of the small girls Once upon a time, "began the bachelor, there was a little girl called Bertha, who was extra-ordinarily good The children,s momentarily-aroused interest began at once to flicker>, all stories seemed eadfully alike, no matter who told them She did all that she was told, she was always truthful, she kept her clothes clean, ate milk puddings as though they were jam tarts, learned her lessons perfectly, and was polite in her Was she pretty? "asked the bigger of the small girls Not as pretty as any of you, "said the bachelor, "but she was horribly good There was a wave of reaction in favour of the story; the word horrible in connection with goodness was a novelty that commended itself o. It seemed to introduce a ring of truth that was absent from the aunt's tales of infant life 9 communication cord:(车厢内的)警报索 petulant:任性固执的,难取悦的 enterprising;毫无新意的 12 with immense conviction:(对自己的话)深信不疑 13 I didn t listen after the first bit.我就听了个开头(后面就听不下去了) 14 bristled in instant defense:跳起来给自己辩解 13 The children's momentarily- aroused interest began at once to flicker:孩子们兴致才起来,(听到这里)一下 子又没了兴趣。 she was horribly good:她真真好得吓人(即“她可真好”) the word horrible in connection with goodne was a novelty that commended itself:用“吓人”来修饰“好”倒是别有新意,显得很加分
"Come over here and listen to a story," said the aunt, when the bachelor had looked twice at her and once at the communication cord9 . The children moved listlessly towards the aunt's end of the carriage. Evidently her reputation as a story-teller did not rank high in their estimation. In a low, confidential voice, interrupted at frequent intervals by loud, petulant10 questionings from her listeners, she began an unenterprising11 and deplorably uninteresting story about a little girl who was good, and made friends with every one on account of her goodness, and was finally saved from a mad bull by a number of rescuers who admired her moral character. "Wouldn't they have saved her if she hadn't been good?" demanded the bigger of the small girls. It was exactly the question that the bachelor had wanted to ask. "Well, yes," admitted the aunt lamely, "but I don't think they would have run quite so fast to her help if they had not liked her so much." "It's the stupidest story I've ever heard," said the bigger of the small girls, with immense conviction12 . "I didn't listen after the first bit13, it was so stupid," said Cyril. The smaller girl made no actual comment on the story, but she had long ago recommenced a murmured repetition of her favourite line. "You don't seem to be a success as a story-teller," said the bachelor suddenly from his corner. The aunt bristled in instant defence14 at this unexpected attack. "It's a very difficult thing to tell stories that children can both understand and appreciate," she said stiffly. "I don't agree with you," said the bachelor. "Perhaps you would like to tell them a story," was the aunt's retort. "Tell us a story," demanded the bigger of the small girls. "Once upon a time," began the bachelor, "there was a little girl called Bertha, who was extra-ordinarily good." The children's momentarily-aroused interest began at once to flicker15; all stories seemed dreadfully alike, no matter who told them. "She did all that she was told, she was always truthful, she kept her clothes clean, ate milk puddings as though they were jam tarts, learned her lessons perfectly, and was polite in her manners." "Was she pretty?" asked the bigger of the small girls. "Not as pretty as any of you," said the bachelor, "but she was horribly good." There was a wave of reaction in favour of the story; the word horrible in connection with goodness was a novelty that commended itself 16. It seemed to introduce a ring of truth that was absent from the aunt's tales of infant life. 9 communication cord: （车厢内的）警报索 10 petulant: 任性固执的，难取悦的 11 unenterprising: 毫无新意的 12 with immense conviction: （对自己的话）深信不疑 13 I didn’t listen after the first bit: 我就听了个开头（后面就听不下去了） 14 bristled in instant defense: 跳起来给自己辩解 15 The children’s momentarily-aroused interest began at once to flicker: 孩子们兴致才起来，（听到这里）一下 子又没了兴趣。 16 she was horribly good: 她真真好得吓人（即“她可真好”） the word horrible in connection with goodness was a novelty that commended itself: 用“吓人”来修饰“好”倒是别有新意，显得很加分
She was so good, "continued the bachelor, "that she won several medals for goodness, which she always wore, pinned on to her dress. There was a medal for obedience, another medal for punctuality, and a third for good behaviour. They were large metal medals and they clicked against one another as she walked 7. No other child in the town where she lived had as many as three medals, so everybody knew that she must be an extra good child Horribly good, quoted Cyril Everybody talked about her goodness, and the Prince of the country got to hear about it, and he said that as she was so very good she might be allowed once a week to walk in his park, which was just outside the town. It was a beautiful park, and no children were ever allowed in it, so it was a great honour for Bertha to be allowed to go there Were there any sheep in the park? "demanded Cyril Why weren't there any sheep? came the inevitable question arising out of that answer The aunt permitted herself a smile, which might almost have been described as a grin There were no sheep in the park, said the bachelor, "because the Prince's mother had once had a dream that her son would either be killed by a sheep or else by a clock falling on him. For that reason the Prince never kept a sheep in his park or a clock in his palace. The aunt suppressed a gasp of admiration Was the Prince killed by a sheep or by a clock? asked Cyril "He is still alive so we can't tell whether the dream will come true, "said the bachelor unconcernedly; "anyway, there were no sheep in the park, but there were lots of little pigs running What colour were they Black with white faces, white with black spots, black all over, grey with white patches, and some were white all over "h The storyteller paused to let a full idea of the park's treasures sink into the childrens imaginations, then he resumed Bertha was rather sorry to find that there were no flowers in the park She had promised her aunts, with tears in her eyes, that she would not pick any of the kind Prince's flowers, and she had meant to keep her promise, so of course it made her feel silly to find that there were no flowers to Why weren,'t there any flowers? Because the pigs had eaten them all, "said the bachelor promptly. " The gardeners had told the Prince that you couldn't have pigs and flowers, so he decided to have pigs and no flowers There was a murmur of approval at the excellence of the Princes decision; so many people would have decided the other way. 19 There were lots of other delightful things in the park There were ponds with gold and blue and green fish in them, and trees with beautiful parrots that said clever things at a moment's notice and humming birds that hummed all the popular tunes of the day. Bertha walked up and down and enjoyed herself immensely, and thought to herself: If I were not so extraordinarily good I should not have been allowed to come into this beautiful park and enjoy all that there is to be seen in it 1 they clicked against one another as she walked:她走在路上(奖牌)就会相互叩击,叮叮作响 Is The story-teller paused to let a full idea of the parks treasures sink into the children's imaginations: iu4-BJ 人稍微停了停,让孩子们尽情想象王子公园里的奇珍异宝。 so many people would have decided the other way:多少人情愿院子里种满花也不肯养猪
"She was so good," continued the bachelor, "that she won several medals for goodness, which she always wore, pinned on to her dress. There was a medal for obedience, another medal for punctuality, and a third for good behaviour. They were large metal medals and they clicked against one another as she walked17. No other child in the town where she lived had as many as three medals, so everybody knew that she must be an extra good child." "Horribly good," quoted Cyril. "Everybody talked about her goodness, and the Prince of the country got to hear about it, and he said that as she was so very good she might be allowed once a week to walk in his park, which was just outside the town. It was a beautiful park, and no children were ever allowed in it, so it was a great honour for Bertha to be allowed to go there." "Were there any sheep in the park?" demanded Cyril. "No;" said the bachelor, "there were no sheep." "Why weren't there any sheep?" came the inevitable question arising out of that answer. The aunt permitted herself a smile, which might almost have been described as a grin. "There were no sheep in the park," said the bachelor, "because the Prince's mother had once had a dream that her son would either be killed by a sheep or else by a clock falling on him. For that reason the Prince never kept a sheep in his park or a clock in his palace." The aunt suppressed a gasp of admiration. "Was the Prince killed by a sheep or by a clock?" asked Cyril. "He is still alive, so we can't tell whether the dream will come true," said the bachelor unconcernedly; "anyway, there were no sheep in the park, but there were lots of little pigs running all over the place." "What colour were they?" "Black with white faces, white with black spots, black all over, grey with white patches, and some were white all over." The storyteller paused to let a full idea of the park's treasures sink into the children's imaginations18; then he resumed: "Bertha was rather sorry to find that there were no flowers in the park. She had promised her aunts, with tears in her eyes, that she would not pick any of the kind Prince's flowers, and she had meant to keep her promise, so of course it made her feel silly to find that there were no flowers to pick." "Why weren't there any flowers?" "Because the pigs had eaten them all," said the bachelor promptly. "The gardeners had told the Prince that you couldn't have pigs and flowers, so he decided to have pigs and no flowers." There was a murmur of approval at the excellence of the Prince's decision; so many people would have decided the other way.19 "There were lots of other delightful things in the park. There were ponds with gold and blue and green fish in them, and trees with beautiful parrots that said clever things at a moment's notice, and humming birds that hummed all the popular tunes of the day. Bertha walked up and down and enjoyed herself immensely, and thought to herself: 'If I were not so extraordinarily good I should not have been allowed to come into this beautiful park and enjoy all that there is to be seen in it,' 17 they clicked against one another as she walked: 她走在路上（奖牌）就会相互叩击，叮叮作响。 18 The story-teller paused to let a full idea of the park’s treasures sink into the children’s imaginations: 讲故事的 人稍微停了停，让孩子们尽情想象王子公园里的奇珍异宝。 19 so many people would have decided the other way: 多少人情愿院子里种满花也不肯养猪
and her three medals clinked against one another as she walked and helped to remind her how very good she really was. Just then an enormous wolf came prowling into the park to see if it could catch a fat little pig for its supper What colour was it? " asked the children, amid an immediate quickening of interest Mud-colour all over, with a black tongue and pale grey eyes that gleamed with unspeakable ferocity. The first thing that it saw in the park was Bertha; her pinafore- was so spotlessly white and clean that it could be seen from a great distance. bertha saw the wolf and saw that it was stealing towards her, and she began to wish that she had never been allowed to come into the park She ran as hard as she could, and the wolf came after her with huge leaps and bounds. She managed to reach a shrubbery of myrtle bushes- and she hid herself in one of the thickest of the ushes. The wolf came sniffing among the branches, its black tongue lolling out23 of its mouth and its pale grey eyes glaring with rage. Bertha was terribly frightened, and thought to herself: If I ad not been so extraordinarily good I should have been safe in the town at this moment However, the scent of the myrtle was so strong that the wolf could not sniff out where Bertha was hiding, and the bushes were so thick that he might have hunted about in them for a long time without catching sight of her, so he thought he might as well go off and catch a little pig instead Bertha was trembling very much at having the wolf prowling and sniffing so near her, and as she trembled the medal for obedience clinked against the medals for good conduct and punctuality The wolf was just moving away when he heard the sound of the medals clinking and stopped to listen; they clinked again in a bush quite near him. He dashed into the bush, his pale grey eyes gleaming with ferocity and triumph, and dragged Bertha out and devoured her to the last morsel All that was left of her were her shoes, bits of clothing, and the three medals for goodness Were any of the little pigs killed? The story began badly, "said the smaller of the small girls, "but it had a beautiful ending It is the most beautiful story that I ever heard "said the bigger of the small girls, with immense decision It is the only beautiful story I have ever heard, "said Cyril a dissentient opinion came from the aunt. A most improper story to tell to young children! You have undermined the effect of years of car I kept them quiet for ten minutes, which was more than you were able to do26 ing the carriage, At any rate, "said the bachelor, collecting his belongings preparatory to leav happy woman! "he observed to himself27as he walked down the platform of Templecombe station; "for the next six months or so those children will assail her in public with demands for an improper story! prow!:潜行 2 pinafore:围裙 2 a shrubbery of myrtle bushes:桃金娘树丛 23 loll out伸出 to the last morsel:一口不剩 23 You have undermined the effect of years of careful teaching:你让我这些年来对小孩子的精心管教全给白费 了 26 more than you were able to do.这你可做不来 27 observed to himself.自言自语
and her three medals clinked against one another as she walked and helped to remind her how very good she really was. Just then an enormous wolf came prowl20ing into the park to see if it could catch a fat little pig for its supper." "What colour was it?" asked the children, amid an immediate quickening of interest. "Mud-colour all over, with a black tongue and pale grey eyes that gleamed with unspeakable ferocity. The first thing that it saw in the park was Bertha; her pinafore21 was so spotlessly white and clean that it could be seen from a great distance. Bertha saw the wolf and saw that it was stealing towards her, and she began to wish that she had never been allowed to come into the park. She ran as hard as she could, and the wolf came after her with huge leaps and bounds. She managed to reach a shrubbery of myrtle bushes22 and she hid herself in one of the thickest of the bushes. The wolf came sniffing among the branches, its black tongue lolling out23 of its mouth and its pale grey eyes glaring with rage. Bertha was terribly frightened, and thought to herself: 'If I had not been so extraordinarily good I should have been safe in the town at this moment.' However, the scent of the myrtle was so strong that the wolf could not sniff out where Bertha was hiding, and the bushes were so thick that he might have hunted about in them for a long time without catching sight of her, so he thought he might as well go off and catch a little pig instead. Bertha was trembling very much at having the wolf prowling and sniffing so near her, and as she trembled the medal for obedience clinked against the medals for good conduct and punctuality. The wolf was just moving away when he heard the sound of the medals clinking and stopped to listen; they clinked again in a bush quite near him. He dashed into the bush, his pale grey eyes gleaming with ferocity and triumph, and dragged Bertha out and devoured her to the last morsel24 . All that was left of her were her shoes, bits of clothing, and the three medals for goodness." "Were any of the little pigs killed?" "No, they all escaped." "The story began badly," said the smaller of the small girls, "but it had a beautiful ending." "It is the most beautiful story that I ever heard," said the bigger of the small girls, with immense decision. "It is the only beautiful story I have ever heard," said Cyril. A dissentient opinion came from the aunt. "A most improper story to tell to young children! You have undermined the effect of years of careful teaching.25 " "At any rate," said the bachelor, collecting his belongings preparatory to leaving the carriage, "I kept them quiet for ten minutes, which was more than you were able to do26." "Unhappy woman!" he observed to himself 27 as he walked down the platform of Templecombe station; "for the next six months or so those children will assail her in public with demands for an improper story!" 20 prowl: 潜行 21 pinafore: 围裙 22 A shrubbery of myrtle bushes: 桃金娘树丛 23 loll out: 伸出 24 to the last morsel: 一口不剩 25 You have undermined the effect of years of careful teaching: 你让我这些年来对小孩子的精心管教全给白费 了。 26 more than you were able to do: 这你可做不来。 27 observed to himself: 自言自语
点评 《讲故事的人》一孩子讲给大人听的故事 尽管萨基的这篇短篇故事标题叫作《讲故事的人》( The Story- Teller),但全篇的重点并 没有落在那位讲故事的男乘客身上,也没有落在占整篇作品一半篇幅的那个故事上面。全文 真正的主角是三个顽皮的小孩,主要的情节是怎样让这三个不听话的孩子乖乖静下来,他们 古板的姨母失败了,而讲故事的陌生乘客做到了。只从列车包厢里给孩子们讲的故事这一小 小的插曲,英格兰作家萨基生动地描绘了一个属于孩子的幻想世界。 萨基的作品往往带有浓重的“魔幻现实主义”味道,是讲荒诞故事的能手,也非常擅长 对孩童的刻画,他的不少作品中都成功地塑造了把大人耍得团团转的聪明狡黠的孩子。而且, 萨基的作品里没有严格意义上的好孩子和坏孩子。故事里的三个孩子绝非文学作品里常见的 洋娃娃式的小孩,他们精力充沛,好奇心十足,对世界的认知还比较懵懂,喜欢打破沙锅问 到底,而且对大人的规矩和做法充满不解,有点我行我素。从文章开头对孩子们捶打车垫或 者没问没了地重复着半句背不出来的话,以及不断为难姨母讲的故事等的描写,不免让人觉 得这是群麻烦的小孩。尽管对孩子们没有太多心理描写,但一句“孩子们的问题大多是‘为 什么?’”就写尽孩子们天真无邪充满好奇的特点。反观他们的姨母,对孩子们的胡闹束手 无策不免令人同情,但她总是阻止孩子做这做那,要他们当个“好”小孩,用命令式的否定 句阻挠孩子的调皮或对小世界的探索,这样的姨母纵然用心良苦,难免让孩子厌烦。有意思 的是,这样一位姨母听到故事入胜出,也会不仅暗自叹服,像个童心未泯的孩子。孩子和姨 母都没有“好”、“坏”之分,孩子和大人的分歧往往是世界观的分歧。大人讲给孩子听的故 事孩子不满意,“孩子”讲给“大人”听的故事“大人”就算心里喜欢也硬要挑刺,就好比 姨母抱怨“讲个孩子能听懂又喜欢的故事实在太难了”这句话,实在是有些影射要讲个大人 既能明白有喜欢的故事才是真正难题的意味。 两个故事都非常简单,不难看出陌生乘客讲的故事是对姨母讲的故事的再发挥再创造 姨母的故事是一个讨人喜欢的“好”姑娘碰到危险时得到众人相救,乘客的故事是一个 姑娘碰到危险时暴露了自己被野兽吃掉了。对于我们成人读者来讲,前面一个故事虽然老套 但仍然富有教义,后面一个故事不仅荒诞而且有点虎头蛇尾。故事里三个孩子的看法和读者 大相径庭:姨母的故事愚蠢透顶,乘客的故事“一开始不怎么样,但结局很妙”。正是这 分荒诞、新奇、天马行空吸引了孩子们的兴趣,毕竞姨母的老掉牙的道德故事早就让孩子们 提不起兴趣了。让孩子们拍案叫绝的故事结局我读着不寒而栗,但不得不佩服这个讲故事的 男人,或者写出这个故事的萨基,他的奇思妙想让整个故事听起来津津有味。纵然不是一个 “适合”小孩子听得故事,但讲故事的方法姨母真该好好学学:“好几块奖牌,别在衣服上, 走起路来相互叩击,叮叮作响”实在比单调的一句“各方面都很好”生动多了,在视觉听觉 两方面都能调动孩子们的感官。再比如“一个院子里不能又种花又养猪,因为猪会把花吃光 的”既迎合孩子们的简单逻辑,也间接回答了姨母和男孩起初争论的赶羊的问题。颠覆性的 结尾时讲故事的男人有意而为的,毕竟他只是想教孩子静下来,免得碍着自己休息,而只有 这样一个结局能让孩子满意上一阵子。不过,要是姨母学着把“一尘不染的衣服引来大狼注 意”或“叮叮作响的奖牌暴露女孩藏身之处”之类的情节换成别的好听的,而不是老用“别 这样”、“看这个”打断小孩,没准真的比“多年来很小心的教育”有用得多。就好比萨基另 篇作品Shε dni vashtar中,好心堂姐的条条框框加剧了病弱男孩对内心幻想世界的沉湎, 因此对儿童的教育,与其规诫不如疏导其内心的想法,这也许是萨基关于孩子的故事给大人 的某种启示吧。 童适盈翻译10300120198
点评： 《讲故事的人》——孩子讲给大人听的故事 尽管萨基的这篇短篇故事标题叫作《讲故事的人》(The Story-Teller)，但全篇的重点并 没有落在那位讲故事的男乘客身上，也没有落在占整篇作品一半篇幅的那个故事上面。全文 真正的主角是三个顽皮的小孩，主要的情节是怎样让这三个不听话的孩子乖乖静下来，他们 古板的姨母失败了，而讲故事的陌生乘客做到了。只从列车包厢里给孩子们讲的故事这一小 小的插曲，英格兰作家萨基生动地描绘了一个属于孩子的幻想世界。 萨基的作品往往带有浓重的“魔幻现实主义”味道，是讲荒诞故事的能手，也非常擅长 对孩童的刻画，他的不少作品中都成功地塑造了把大人耍得团团转的聪明狡黠的孩子。而且， 萨基的作品里没有严格意义上的好孩子和坏孩子。故事里的三个孩子绝非文学作品里常见的 洋娃娃式的小孩，他们精力充沛，好奇心十足，对世界的认知还比较懵懂，喜欢打破沙锅问 到底，而且对大人的规矩和做法充满不解，有点我行我素。从文章开头对孩子们捶打车垫或 者没问没了地重复着半句背不出来的话，以及不断为难姨母讲的故事等的描写，不免让人觉 得这是群麻烦的小孩。尽管对孩子们没有太多心理描写，但一句“孩子们的问题大多是‘为 什么？’”就写尽孩子们天真无邪充满好奇的特点。反观他们的姨母，对孩子们的胡闹束手 无策不免令人同情，但她总是阻止孩子做这做那，要他们当个“好”小孩，用命令式的否定 句阻挠孩子的调皮或对小世界的探索，这样的姨母纵然用心良苦，难免让孩子厌烦。有意思 的是，这样一位姨母听到故事入胜出，也会不仅暗自叹服，像个童心未泯的孩子。孩子和姨 母都没有“好”、“坏”之分，孩子和大人的分歧往往是世界观的分歧。大人讲给孩子听的故 事孩子不满意，“孩子”讲给“大人”听的故事“大人”就算心里喜欢也硬要挑刺，就好比 姨母抱怨“讲个孩子能听懂又喜欢的故事实在太难了”这句话，实在是有些影射要讲个大人 既能明白有喜欢的故事才是真正难题的意味。 两个故事都非常简单，不难看出陌生乘客讲的故事是对姨母讲的故事的再发挥再创造， 姨母的故事是一个讨人喜欢的“好”姑娘碰到危险时得到众人相救，乘客的故事是一个“好” 姑娘碰到危险时暴露了自己被野兽吃掉了。对于我们成人读者来讲，前面一个故事虽然老套 但仍然富有教义，后面一个故事不仅荒诞而且有点虎头蛇尾。故事里三个孩子的看法和读者 大相径庭：姨母的故事愚蠢透顶，乘客的故事“一开始不怎么样，但结局很妙”。正是这一 分荒诞、新奇、天马行空吸引了孩子们的兴趣，毕竟姨母的老掉牙的道德故事早就让孩子们 提不起兴趣了。让孩子们拍案叫绝的故事结局我读着不寒而栗，但不得不佩服这个讲故事的 男人，或者写出这个故事的萨基，他的奇思妙想让整个故事听起来津津有味。纵然不是一个 “适合”小孩子听得故事，但讲故事的方法姨母真该好好学学：“好几块奖牌，别在衣服上， 走起路来相互叩击，叮叮作响”实在比单调的一句“各方面都很好”生动多了，在视觉听觉 两方面都能调动孩子们的感官。再比如“一个院子里不能又种花又养猪，因为猪会把花吃光 的”既迎合孩子们的简单逻辑，也间接回答了姨母和男孩起初争论的赶羊的问题。颠覆性的 结尾时讲故事的男人有意而为的，毕竟他只是想教孩子静下来，免得碍着自己休息，而只有 这样一个结局能让孩子满意上一阵子。不过，要是姨母学着把“一尘不染的衣服引来大狼注 意”或“叮叮作响的奖牌暴露女孩藏身之处”之类的情节换成别的好听的，而不是老用“别 这样”、“看这个”打断小孩，没准真的比“多年来很小心的教育”有用得多。就好比萨基另 一篇作品 Shredni Vashtar 中，好心堂姐的条条框框加剧了病弱男孩对内心幻想世界的沉湎， 因此对儿童的教育，与其规诫不如疏导其内心的想法，这也许是萨基关于孩子的故事给大人 的某种启示吧。 童适盈 翻译 10300120198