金大班的最後一夜

今晚剛看完了白先勇的《金大班的最後一夜》，這篇小說來自《台北人》這本短篇小說集。這本書中的小故事不僅樸實而且逼真。莫種程度上，這是因為白先生以James Joyce的意識流風格寫作。說不定我是因為白先勇以James Joyce的風格而喜歡他所寫的小說。原因怎樣都無所謂，喜歡就是喜歡。
金大班在台北的夜巴黎舞廳混了十幾年，最後找到了個長期飯票，這晚以後就不作大班了。當她正回想著過去的對象時，思路被她親手培養成舞孃的女孩給打斷了。金大班一看到她的身影就明白了：那個舞孃懷孕了。金大班也曾經歷過同樣的事。舞孃令她回憶到過去的愛情經驗。故事就這麼簡單。
在白先勇的作品中，我最喜歡金大班那篇。可是大多數讀《台北人》的人卻都喜歡《那片血一般紅的杜鵑花》。不知為何，我把那篇（紅的杜鵑花）看完後，卻不留下一點點印象。但還早呢，看了這兩篇才判斷。

尤利西斯，我的聖經

尤利西斯是愛爾蘭作家─James Joyce於1922年出版的長篇小說（想起來，何止是‘長篇’）。尤利西斯延續著Joyce先前在A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man裡所描寫的男主角─Stephen Dedalus的故事。
小說一開頭，Stephen的母親去世已經有一年多，但Stephen卻執著於哀悼她。他母親的死使Stephen的父親Simon，那怕手裡有一點小錢，也會拿去沽酒買醉。此時，身為藝術家的Stephen還沒闖出名氣。生活上，他沒有感情對象，也沒有錢，母親走了，父親也沒了（更確切的說法是，在他的心中Simon已經不算是個父親了）。

Joyce為了上述中最後的‘沒有’，而創造了一位新的角色叫Leopold Bloom。讓他不知不覺地扮演起了Stephen父親這個要角。 Bloom也經歷過不少困難。十八年前他的父親是服毒自殺的。七年之後，他的兒子因病而死，死的時候，都還不到一歲。甚至於現在，他的妻子又給他戴了綠帽子。道妻子的外遇，Bloom心知肚明，卻竟日得強忍這令人難堪的事實。

尤利西斯的重點便是讓Stephen和Bloom相遇。因為他們倆都欠缺著某些人生所需的智慧。雖說表面上，他們倆後來似乎仍然保持故我的樣子，不過從讀者的角度來看，我們還是看得出他們彼此都受到對方的微妙的影響了。

接著我想提出尤利西斯最令人佩服的優點，那就是他的文字。書裡面的每一章節，各有各的氣氛，時間點，色調，器官，象徵，角色，技巧和對應。這樣解釋，還不如舉個例子來說明。 譬如第七章“Aeolus"：背景是一家報社辦公室，氣氛忙碌，報社人員的對話說得十分誇張。所以Joyce使用的風格，就像報紙上的字眼一樣誇張，一樣大幅，就連文字也寫得像報紙的標題一樣大。除此之外，Aeolus也常用帶有深紅色的字眼，以及和風有關的詞彙。Joyce認為這樣寫，才能把真正的意義，暗暗地傳達到讀者的內心深處。
同時Joyce也把希臘神話中的Odyssey（奧德賽），天體的軌道，哈姆雷特的悲劇，基督和Shakespeare的生活，還有Joyce本人的生活，也全然巧妙地穿插到故事情節裡頭去了。
你說厲不厲害啊？

Fermat's Last Theorem

One bright midday Fermat was writing of pythagorean triplets in the margings of his Euclid, when a local mobster (whatever the french equivalent for mobster is) swaggered into his study, hands akimbo and very near his sword. The ruffian asked Fermat for a 'contribution to his own safety and wellbeing'. But being a Mathematician, Fermat was more broke than a squared circle, and as he was physicaly 1/0 (undefined) he had no way of defending his life against this assymptote. Well, this caused no limit of anger in the mobster, who as mobsters usually go was a but quick to eiger, and thusly he drew his sword, saying these famous words:
-Fermat, you've written your Last Theorem!
With that, he skewed good old Fermat through the perpendicular.

And now you know the true story of what we now know as "Fermat's Last Theorum"

-BJB

Shugesato Itoi - Haruki Murakami

This next story of Let's Meet in a Dream is somewhat special. It is a story written by Shigesato Itoi which takes his coauthor Haruki Murakami as its subject. It is not anything like a biographical sketch, as you'll notice, but rather Itoi's impression of Murakami.
(The stories posted here are my own translations for purposes of study only.)

Haruki Murakami - Shigesato Itoi

In a model train set, you can always see some old couple sitting up proper on one of the long benches waiting for the engine, or even the kind of people wearing red caps shouldering heavy luggage. It's these models of people that strike me as more interesting than the train or its tracks.
Haruki Murakami really has an atmosphere, just the kind that seems like he might appear in this type of place, playing the part of one of the travelers.
It's very likely that the finger-sized, enameled zinc figurine is just now holding his leather suitcase, waiting for the train.
But his suitcase is far too small, so there's no way of knowing what its contents could be. And as to where his travel objectives lie, they are suspect and unclear.
I imagined that he was just now preparing to go for a round of the entire circuit. But the little plaything himself only answered:
-Maybe.
-But didn't you make this model yourself?
-I'm thinking so, since its lies close to my interests.
-So after you board the train, you might not know when you'll come back around？
-Yup. All I need is to board the train, and after that I wont be bored.
And so we wait for the day when he is sick of the gigantic fake scenery and stands on yet another platform of the train set, waiting again for the engine.
-You made another set?
-No, the ground is still the same. It's just that now I've moved house.
The little zinc figurine's mouth moved without the least hurry.

Shigesato Itoi - Whale

Let's Meet in a Dream is a compilation of essays and short stories from Shigesato Itoi and Haruki Murakami. You may know Murakami from such works as The Winding Bird Chronicles and Norwegian Wood--the latter of which will soon be on the big screen, but unless you've played Earthbound, you have probably never heard of Shigesato Itoi. Itoi and Murakami are equally well known in Japan for their somewhat odd stories and in some cases their even odder personas. (Just take Itoi's supposed attempts at excavating the legendary Tokugawa treasure buried under Mt. Ikagi). But enough talk of these writers strange lives, their weirdness will be clear just by looking at their stories.

Let's Meet in a Dream was published in the early 80's long before either of the writers were known at all in America or Europe. So, unfortunately, no English translations were ever published.

The following story, Whale, is my translation from the Chinese localization of "Let's meet in a Dream."

(The stories posted here are my own translations for purposes of study only.)

Whale

While the singer was being interviewed she always pressed the microphone too close to her lips, so that the wire screen was covered with her red lipstick. But the microphone was only a device, so you couldn't that say it was excited nor disgusted by it. The voice of the lipstick smearing singer sounded from the speaker.

-I would like to ask the interviewer a question. Do you eat whale?

Here it comes, I ought to answer. My coworkers are all staring at me.

The singer really didn't listen to my reply, her face just gave a knowing little smile. This time it was my turn to snatch the microphone.

-Of. Course. I. Do.

Well, truthfully speaking, for the past several years I hadn't eaten whale. But my friend's father-in-law was a fisherman in Shikoku, and he said that whale tail is better eatin' than anything else. Because of this, my answer seemed to have already been decided.

The translator--whose makeup was much thicker than a theater performer's--seemed to stress my answer. She spoke loudly, in English.

-Of course! Always.

Thinking it over a bit, it really was an accurate translation.

I was quick to continue, as if I were building my case, and I added in Japanese,

-Whale is really good, it's my favorite thing to eat. I eat whale, dolphin, and chikuwa. What about it?

The singers face flooded with a tide of red. She held her breath for a bit, and slowly she said something to me. Her blue eyes surrounded by a mass of tiny wrinkles were opened wide, as if to pierce though me.

The translator's eyes were opened just as wide. She swallowed, then spoke.

-Starting today, please don't eat anymore whale, dolphin, or chikuwa.

(Chikuwa is a type of fish cake made of fish, starch, sugar, and MSG)

The Night Before Choicemass

This is time sensitive yes, but as an Obama year has just passed, I'd like to pay attention to it in some way.

'Twas the night before choicemass and all through that House,

the Bush's were packing for a Texas roadhouse.

The keys under doormat were placed with a glare,

for thoughts that Obama will soon be the heir.

While voters were anxiously waiting their chance,

the adverts subliminably put them in trance,

that some wearing red caps or some wearing blue,

were wrong about issues, or scewed what is true.

Now Wright, Now Acorn, Now Ayers, Now Palin

Now Bistol and Troopergate: (New Scandal sans Nixon).

To Faux News they all go without research or reason,

to bludgeon the masses this political season.

But whether we vote without bias or blame,

let's vote and be done this vile. Fucking. Game.