旅行的艺术:动机 Ⅲ 异国情调-4

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先来考察一下福楼拜对法国的情感，这对我们更好地理解他为何能在埃及发现异国情调应该是不无帮助的。在埃及，那些让他既感新奇又觉得有意义的异国情调的方方面面，在法国则往往让他觉得极度的愤怒。让他们感觉愤怒的也就是法国小资产阶级的信仰和行为。早在拿破仑王朝倾覆之前，小资产阶级便已成为社会的主导力量——决定着法国新闻、政治、行为方式和公众生活的总体趋势。在福楼拜看来，法国小资产阶级是一个极端虚伪、势利、自鸣得意、虚夸和歧视其他种族的社会阶层。“奇怪的是，这些小资产阶级最陈腐的论调有时竟让我感到惊诧，”他强压愤怒，抱怨说，“这些小资产阶级让我觉得不可理解！我全然不能明白他们的一些手势、他们中一些人发出的声音，还有他们让我觉得眩晕的愚蠢论调……”尽管如此，他还是用了三十多年的时间来理解这一切，其努力体现在他的著作《成见词典》一书中。该词典带有强烈的讽刺意味，收录了法国资产阶级最明显的一些偏见。

To understand why Flaubert found Egypt exotic, it may therefore be useful first to examine his feelings towards France. What would strike him as exotic-that is, both new and valuable-about Egypt was in many ways the obverse of what had driven him to rage at home. And these were, baldly stated, the beliefs and behaviour of the French bourgeoisie, which had, since the fall of Napoleon, become the dominant force in society, determining the tenor of the press, politics, manners and public life. For Flaubert, the French bourgeoisie was a repository of the most extreme prudery, snobbery, smugness, racism and pomposity. 'It's strange how the most banal utterances ［of the bourgeoisie］ sometimes make me marvel,' he complained in stifled rage. 'There are gestures, sounds of people's voices, that I cannot get over, silly remarks that almost give me vertigo … the bourgeois … is for me something unfathomable.' He nevertheless spent thirty years trying to fathom it, most comprehensively in his Dictionary of Received Ideas , a satirical catalogue of the French bourgeoisie's more striking sheep-like prejudices.

这里只是按主题将词典中的一些词条进行归类，从中可以看出他对法国不满的方方面面，而这也正是他对埃及充满狂热的根本原因。

To group only a few of these dictionary entries into themes indicates the direction of his complaints against his homeland, upon which his enthusiasm for Egypt would be built.

对艺术事业的怀疑

A SUSPICION OF ARTISTIC ENDEAVOUR

苦艾酒： 剧毒液体，一杯下去，即可致命。记者写报道时常喜欢饮用。因它而死的士兵远比流浪汉多。

ABSINTHEExceptionally violent poison: one glass and you're a dead man. Journalists drink it while writing their articles. Has killed more soldiers than the bedouins.

建筑师： 都很弱智；总是忘记在建筑物内设计楼梯。

ARCHITECTS-All idiots; they always forget to put staircases in houses.

INTOLERANCE AND IGNORANCE OF OTHER

对异国（及其动物）的偏执和无知

COUNTRIES (and their animals)

英国女人： 对她们能生育漂亮孩子表示惊讶。

ENGLISH WOMEN-Express surprise that they can have pretty children.

骆驼： 有双峰，而单峰驼只有一个驼峰；也许是骆驼只有单峰，而单峰驼有双峰——没有人能记得清楚孰单孰双。

CAMELHas two humps and the dromedary one; or else the camel has one and the dromedary two-nobody can ever remember which.

大象： 因其记性和对太阳的崇拜而著称。

ELEPHANTS-Noted for their memories and worship the sun.

法国人： 世界上最伟大的民族。

FRENCH-The greatest people in the world.

酒店： 只有瑞士才有第一流的酒店。

HOTELS-Are first-rate only in Switzerland.

意大利人： 都懂些音乐，都不可靠。

ITALIANS-All musical. All treacherous.

约翰牛： 如果你不知道一个英国人的名字，叫他约翰牛。

JOHN BULL-When you don't know an Englishman's name, call him John Bull.

古兰经： 穆罕默德著述，全部内容都与女人相关。

KORAN-Book by Mohammed, which is all about women.

黑人： 对自己白色的唾液感到奇怪，并因自己能讲法语而诧异的人。

BLACKS-Express surprise that their saliva is white and that they can speak French.

黑种女人： 比白种女人更热辣的女人（请参见词条“黑发黑肤女人”和“金发白肤女人”）。

BLACK WOMEN-Hotter than white women (see also Brunettes and Blondes ).

黑： 前面总有“乌木般的”作为限定词。

BLACK-Always followed by 'as ebony'.

绿洲： 沙漠中的客栈。

OASIS-An inn in the desert.

共夫的女子： 所有东方女人都是共夫的女子。

HAREM WOMEN-All Oriental women are harem women.

棕榈树： 体现地方色彩。

PALM TREE-Lends local colour.

男子气概，庄重

MACHISMO， EARNESTNESS

拳头： 统治法国需要铁拳。

FIST-To govern France, an iron fist is needed.

枪： 在乡下切记带枪。

GUN-Always keep one in the countryside.

胡须： 力量的象征；胡须过多会秃头；可以保护领结。

BEARD-Sign of strength. Too much beard causes baldness. Helps to protect ties.

1846年8月，福楼拜写给路易斯·科莱的信中有这样的描述：我本质上是一个严肃的人，但是，我发觉自己非常荒谬，而且不是滑稽剧中的那类小的荒谬，我的荒谬几乎是人类生活中固有的，且体现在最简单的行为和最常见的手势之中，这使我觉得自己不是一个严肃的人。比如说，我修面时总要发笑，这看起来很傻，但实际情形就是这样，很难解释。

Flaubert to Louise Colet, August 1846: What stops me from taking myself seriously, even though I'm essentially a serious person, is that I find myself extremely ridiculous, not in the sense of the small-scale ridiculousness of slapstick comedy, but rather in the sense of a ridiculousness that seems intrinsic to human life and that manifests itself in the simplest actions and most ordinary gestures. For example, I can never shave without starting to laugh, it seems so idiotic. But all this is very difficult to explain …

多愁善感

SENTIMENTALITY

动物： “动物能够开口说话就好了，它们中一定会有一些比人更聪明。”

ANIMALS'-If only animals could speak! There are some which are more intelligent than humans.'

圣餐： 第一次圣餐：人一生中最重要的一天。

COMMUNION-One's first communion: the greatest day of one's life.

（诗的）灵感： 源肇于视野中的大海、爱情、女人，等等。

INSPIRATION (POETIC)-Aroused by: the sight of the sea, love, women, etc.

幻觉： 装出曾经有过太多，并抱怨自己而今一无所有。

ILLUSIONS-Pretend to have had a great many, and complain that you have lost them all.

相信进步，夸耀科技

FAITH IN PROGRESS， PRIDE IN TECHNOLOGY

铁路： 有人喜形于色地说道：“先生，我现在可以同你交谈，可就是今天上午，我还在X地。我乘火车到X地，在那里处理完事务，到X点钟时，我又回到了这里。”

RAILWAYS-Enthuse about them, saying, 'I, my dear sir, who am speaking to you now, was at X this morning. I took the train to X, I transacted my business there, and by X o'clock I was back here.'

做作

PRETENSION

《圣经》： 世上最古老的的书。

BIBLE-The oldest book in the world.

卧室： 在一个古老的城堡里，亨利四世总在那里过夜。

BEDROOM-In an old castle: Henri IV always spent a night in it.

蘑菇： 只能在市场里买到。

MUSHROOMS-Should be bought only at the market.

十字军： 使威尼斯的商贸获益。

CRUSADES-Benefited Venetian trade.

狄德罗： 总是和达朗贝尔这个称呼连在一起。

DIDEROT-Always followed by d'Alembert.

甜瓜： 主餐后谈话的好题材。它是蔬菜还是水果？英国人把它当饭后甜点，不可思议！

MELON-Nice topic for dinner-time conversation. Is it a vegetable or a fruit? The English eat it for dessert, which is astonishing.

散步： 饭后总要散步，这有助于消化。

STROLL-Always take one after dinner, it helps with digestion.

蛇： 都是有毒的。

SNAKES-All poisonous.

老人： 只要讨论洪水、暴风雨等，老人们都会说这是他们所见过的最猛烈、最糟糕的一次。

OLD PEOPLE-When discussing a flood, thunderstorm, etc., they cannot remember ever having seen a worse one.

假道学，压抑的性欲

PRISSINESS, REPRESSED SEXUALITY

金发白肤女人： 比黑发黑肤女人更热辣（参见词条“黑发黑肤女人”）。

BLONDES-Hotter than brunettes (see also Brunettes ).

黑发黑肤女人： 比金发白肤女人更热辣（参见词条“金发白肤女人”）。

BRUNETTES-Hotter than blondes (see also Blondes ).

性： 忌用语，以“发生过的亲密接触”来委婉表示。

SEX-Word to avoid. Say instead, 'Intimacy occurred…'