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加拿大英文教练（原温哥华英文教练），致力于地道英文表达
上回讲到劳伦斯在《意大利的暮色Twilight in Italy》的景物描写十分传神，今天我们继续他在本书中对人物的描写的赏析。约翰 凯里对劳伦斯的人物描写有这样的概括：“他的主张就是相信自己的感受和直觉，而非头脑。他的散文像催眠的咒语；对遇到的人，他的好恶是强烈而武断的”。记住这个关键词：强烈而武断。书中讲到一家意大利人--夫妇以及三个孩子--我们先来看劳伦斯对老大Giovanni及其父母的描写：
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(父亲) 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 （母亲）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.
对Giovanni的描写，从他的肤色写起，在此过程中，将其父母的肤色也一并做了区分：父亲清澈明亮clear and translucent，母亲则要brown一点，而儿子从母亲那里承袭了更多的肤色特征。接下去，劳伦斯特别写到Giovanni是父母的完美结合fusion of the parents，他用到的暗喻是perfect spark from the flint and steel，天知道这样的句子是怎么进入到他脑海里的。这里，他继续比较父母的各自特色：父亲在情感上虽然subtle ，但脑子并不那么好使the mind was unintelligent，他抓不住新的秩序could not grasp a new order，而母亲则要锐利得多，也更能适应变化中的社会[she]was much sharper and more adaptable to the ways of the world; 劳伦斯把父亲比作草，glass-like quality, fine and clear and perfectly tempered; but he was also finished and brittle，似乎能风行草偃，但其实又早已成型而易碎finished and brittle， 我怀疑这里劳伦斯采用了“逆喻法”oxymoron，即将两种对立的特质并置在一起，形成一种反差，类似的还包括“苦甜”、“泪笑”。母亲则要粗俗但更接地气一些；做丈夫的，热情体现在具体的动作上，而做妻子的，则热情四溢too loose and overwhelming。接下来，劳伦斯写Giovanni 的眼神，说他 Yet also he could look at one and touch one with his look, he could meet one，这话我的理解是，他的目光一一触及周遭，但他真正能触碰到的是一个，也就是说，他比较专注，紧接着劳伦斯又对父子二人的眼神做了比较：父亲的眼神像织娘的眼神，属于群山的，视野深远而抽象（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）没有对人的长期入微的观察是写不出来这样的句子的；又像鹰，看得高远，他很想把这个技能传授给儿子，但可惜，儿子不愿意。这里，父母、父子、母子的异同，在相互的比较中，各自成型。能在短暂的相处中，抓住人物的各自特色，这是文学家的核心素质。你说他武断也好，主观也好，但其文字的力量，就在此时抓住了读者。
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.
对老二Marco的描写，他没有赋予其心理力量，而是抓住他还没成型，还没有真正的个性这点：He was not unified, he had no identity。即使这样，他也不会一笔带过：他写他的肤色像石榴，乱蓬蓬的黑发以及像鹅卵石一样的眼睛。他是个妈宝男，对母亲有极大的依恋，他羞涩、扭扭捏捏more shy and reluctant。more shy and reluctant这话有语病，应该是shyer and more reluctant。劳伦斯观察着这些外在表现，暗中却在寻求概括，于是有了这样的句子his sensitiveness only made him more aimless, and awkward, a tiresome clown, slack and uncontrolled。要做概括和解释的冲动怕是一直折磨着作家们，似乎不说出个所以然，他的笔是不罢休的。最后这句roguish and curiously appealing 算是对Marco下了结论。
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