鑽石舞台

☊點擊收聽音頻☊

Half a century after Chinese-American writer Nieh Hua-ling's monograph Shen Ts'ung-wen was published in the United States, a Chinese version has finally been released domestically.

美籍華人作家聶華苓所寫的《沈從文評傳》在美國出版近50年後，其中文版首次在國內面市。

Nieh's work, published in 1972, was the first of its kind to introduce Shen Congwen (1903-88), or Shen Ts'ung-wen, to the English-language world. Shen was one of the most influential modern Chinese writers.

沈從文是最具影響力的中國現代作家之一。於1972年出版的《沈從文評傳》是第一部向英語世界介紹沈從文的書籍。

Late Swedish Sinologist Goran Malmqvist (1924-2019), of the Swedish Academy and a member of the selection panel of the Nobel Prize for Literature since 1985, once confirmed, despite the 50-year secrecy rule, that Shen was heavily tipped to win in 1988 but passed away before selection.

瑞典文學院院士、已故的瑞典漢學家馬悅然（1924-2019）自1985年以來一直是諾貝爾文學獎評選小組成員。雖然諾貝爾獎提名和評選細節有50年保密期，但他曾證實沈從文很有可能獲得1988年諾貝爾文學獎，不過在評選之前，沈從文便已經於1988年5月去世了。

In the book,from the New York-based publisher Twayne's World Authors Series, Nieh reviews Shen's early life and paints a larger picture of the backdrop to China's revolution, as well as the literary and political activities of intellectuals at the time.

《沈從文評傳》是紐約傳文出版社「特懷恩世界作家叢書」之一。書中聶華苓回顧了沈從文的早年生活，介紹了他所處的中國革命時代，以及在該時代背景下知識分子的文學和政治活動。

She highlights the artistic quality of Shen's works and notes that he was a writer "who waded through mankind's misery to get to its basic humanity", and who "wrote with classic simplicity, struggling to match the right words to his noble passions".

聶華苓強調沈從文作品的藝術性，並評價沈從文「是一位跨越人類苦難、走向基本人性的作家」，是「以古典的單純風格寫作，努力為自己的高貴情懷找到最準確的詞語」的作家。

Many of Shen's representative works, such as the novelette Border Town and collection of essays Xiangxi, depict the landscape and culture of his hometown in Fenghuang county in Central China's Hunan province. It is located in the west of the province, a mountainous region known as Xiangxi.

沈從文的許多代表作品，如中篇小說《邊城》和散文集《湘西》，都描繪了他的家鄉鳳凰縣的風土人情。鳳凰縣位於中國中部湖南省的西部邊緣，那裡被稱為「湘西」，是個多山的地帶。

His home, located in Fenghuang ancient town, has become a travel hot spot with many visitors drawn to it by Shen's words.Fenghuang is a water town with wooden, stilted buildings standing sentinel alongside a meandering river.

鳳凰古城如今已成為熱門旅遊景點，很多遊客正是被沈從文書中的描寫吸引，慕名至此遊玩。鳳凰古城是一座水鄉，木結構的吊腳樓就立在蜿蜒的河邊。

Nieh's words reveal that Shen didn't attend school much and spent a long time in the army in the early years of his life before taking up, almost incongruously considering this background, a position as a literature editor for various newspapers and magazines before becoming a university lecturer on literary history.

根據書中聶華苓對沈從文的記述，沈從文沒怎麼上學就進入了軍營，早年在軍隊裡面待了很長時間，結果後來他卻做了和之前經歷似乎完全沒有聯繫工作——開始為不同的報紙和雜誌做文學編輯，還當了大學教授。

He set up residence in several cities around the country.

他在諸多城市居住過。

In childhood, he liked to play truant, spending time in the fields or lingering on the street, observing people, from all walks of life.

沈從文童年時曠課逃學，在田野裡面玩耍或在街上閒逛，觀察着各行各業的人們。

Such panoramic observation provided him with abundant material for writing, as his works include people from a comprehensive social milieu.

這種全景式的觀察為沈從文的文學創作提供了豐富的素材，在他的作品中經常可以見到社會百態。

Recognizing his connections to rural life, Shen presented delicate writing on the beauty of the countryside and people of virtue and kindness leading a life close to nature. He once wrote that water played an important role in forming his outlook on appreciating beauty and learning just how to think.

沈從文和鄉村生活的聯繫在其作品中有着深刻的體現。他用細膩的筆觸描繪了鄉村之美，描寫了善良淳樸、親近自然的鄉村人。他曾寫道，「水」在他學會審美和思考的過程中發揮了重要作用。

He explained that, for many stories, the background pictures, personalities, language styles and the melancholy temperament that he adopted in his writing had been inspired by observations of water.

他解釋說，在許多故事中，他所刻畫的背景圖畫、人物性格，採用的語言風格和散發出的憂鬱氣息，都是在觀察水時獲得了啟發。

In Border Town, a love story about a boatman's granddaughter Cuicui, Shen displays an almost ideal world in the countryside, where the virtues of human nature are presented to the extreme, while giving an "impressionist"—as Nieh has put it—depiction of the landscape, the town, local customs and the people.

小說《邊城》借一個船夫的孫女翠翠的愛情故事，描繪出一個近乎理想的鄉村世界，在這裡人性的美德已達極致。用聶華苓的話來說，沈從文是個「印象派」，能對當地的自然風光、城鎮景色以及人文風情做細緻的刻畫。

The novelette was first translated into English by journalist and author Emily Haan from the United States and Chinese writer Shao Xunmei as early as in 1936, two years after its publication, followed by several other translated versions over the decades.

《邊城》出版兩年後，最初由美國記者、作家項美麗和中國作家邵洵美於1936年首次翻譯成英文。此後數十年間，又有其它幾個翻譯版本出版發行。

However, having experienced violence and ideological upheaval during the first half of his life, Shen didn't shy away from showing the dark side of human nature, and also expressed a reluctance to embrace a modernity that he thought had alienated human nature.

儘管沈從文前半生經歷了戰爭和意識形態的動盪，但他並不迴避展示人性的陰暗面。在聶華苓看來，沈從文筆下的人物被現代文明所玷污、「異化」，他對現代生活似乎抱持着保留態度。

Shen rarely wrote in the latter half of his life, but devoted himself to researching cultural relics at what is now the National Museum of China, especially ancient silk patterns, bronze mirrors and porcelain.

沈從文後半生很少提筆寫作。建國以後，沈從文在歷史博物館（現中國國家博物館）從事文物研究工作，特別是從事中國古代服飾、銅鏡和瓷器的研究。

His Study of Ancient Chinese Clothing and Ornaments, published in 1981 in Hong Kong, was a great contribution to the history of Chinese materials.

他的《中國古代服飾研究》於1981年在香港出版，對中國物質文化史研究做出巨大貢獻。

It was not until the 1980s that Shen's literary works were rediscovered and his position in modern Chinese literary history reevaluated. Research on his works has boomed since then.

直到20世紀80年代，沈從文的文學作品才重回視野，人們才重新評價他在中國現代文學史上的地位。從那以後，針對沈從文作品的研究便開始蓬勃發展起來。

Nieh was born in 1925 in Wuhan, Hubei province, and went to Taiwan with her family in 1949 before immigrating to the US to attend the Writers' Workshop at the University of Iowa in 1964.

聶華苓於1925年生於湖北武漢，1949年隨家人遷居台灣。1964年旅居至美國，參加愛荷華大學的「作家工作坊」。

▲ Nieh Hua-ling

Apart from her own writings, that have achieved global acclaim, represented by Mulberry and Peach: Two Women of China, she was known for co-founding the International Writing Program at the university with her late husband Paul Engle (1908-91).

聶華苓因代表作《桑青與桃紅》等聞名世界。不僅如此，她與丈夫保羅·安格爾（1908-1991）共同創辦的「國際寫作計劃」也使其為人熟知。

Over 1,500 writers from more than 150 countries and regions have attended the program over the past five decades.

已有150多個國家和地區的1500多名作家和詩人受邀參與了聶華苓夫婦創辦的「國際寫作計劃」項目。

Dozens of authors active in the Chinese literary scene have joined the program. And, in 1976, around 300 writers nominated the Engles for the Nobel Peace Prize.

數十位活躍在中國文壇的作家也曾加入過這個項目。1976年，安格爾和聶華苓夫婦獲來自世界各國三百多名作家的聯合提名，成為了諾貝爾和平獎候選人。

In 1964, when Nieh left Taiwan for Iowa City in the US, the only book she took with her was Shen's collection of essays, Sketches of A Trip to Hunan.

1964年離開中國台灣前往美國愛荷華市時，聶華苓只帶了一本書，就是沈從文的《湘行散記》。

And, in her book, Nieh recounts the interactions when the Engles finally met Shen in person in Beijing in 1980 and 1984.

此次中文版的《沈從文評傳》還收入了聶華苓於1980年、1984年與沈從文相見的印象記。

▲ Chinese-American writer Nieh Hua-ling (left) met Shen Congwen in April 1980 at a banquet for Chinese writers in Beijing. China Daily

In Nieh's mind, it takes all the senses－visual, tactile, olfactory and gustatory－to appreciate Shen's words.

在聶華苓看來，要想欣賞沈從文的作品，需要動用所有的感官——視覺、觸覺、嗅覺和味覺。

He had a wealth of imagination and different styles of writing.

沈從文充滿想象力，並且不斷試驗和發展多種文學形式，以此拓寬自己的文學之路。

Nieh went to the US in the 1960s and returned to China a handful of times. Her influence in domestic literary circles was not as great as it was overseas, according to Xiao Yao, one of the editors of the Chinese version of Shen Ts'ung-wen.

聶華苓上世紀60年代移居美國後，回國次數屈指可數。據《沈從文評傳》中文版編輯之一肖瑤介紹，聶華苓在海外文壇的影響力要比在國內文壇大。

In a time of limited cultural exchanges, the author and the publisher did not vigorously promote the publication of different language versions of the book, and this, Xiao explains, is why it took 50 years to publish a Chinese version.

肖瑤還解釋說，在文化交流受限時期，聶華苓和出版商並沒有大力推動《沈從文評傳》不同語言版本的出版，所以這本在50年前發行的英文版《沈從文評傳》至今才被譯成中文並在中國出版發行。

"There are not many biographies about Shen in China. I believe this one will help readers know more about his life and personality and trigger a deeper understanding of the beauty and artistry of his work."

「目前國內關於沈從文的傳記作品並不多。我相信這本書會幫助讀者進一步了解沈從文其人，對沈從文作品的美及其藝術性有更多、更深的體會。」

☊點擊收聽音頻☊

編輯：陳月華

記者：方艾青

錄音：Stephanie Stone