鴻鴻的過氣兒童樂園

I don't know why, but reading Inger Chritensen's poetry published in l969 (remember the important year 1968) reminded me of what I read long time ago:


James Merrill is commonly thought of as a genteel lyric poet who lived a genteel lyrical life, engaging himself in purely domestic concerns, whether in New England or Greece, while turning out some of the most balanced and swiftly canonical American poems of the century. He is also thought of as a poet who willingly removed himself, for the most part, from the political and social discord that marked many of the decades of that same century. As with most abbreviated portrayals, this is at once inaccurate and a bit too much to the point. Although not attracted to the political stage, Merrill's life and works are important more for their inward development, their internal contrary energies, than any imagined civic obligation they might fulfill. Where Robert Lowell and Robert Bly felt quite at ease at the great podium of American politics, Merrill was cut from very different cloth. He believed that the foremost problem with "political or social writing is that when the tide of feeling goes out, the language begins to stink." In this he was correct, and, in exchanging a bit of democratic contemporary appeal for a more ample vision, it is likely that he guaranteed himself a lasting place in the history of American letters.


Do you agree with what he said:

"political or social writing is that when the tide of feeling goes out, the language begins to stink."

這句話我不盡了解，請釋疑。

就我讀過的少量Merrill，他的寫作方式對我來說有點太old fashion了（相反地，W. Stevens卻一逕常新）。

政治與社會論述太過概念也使字詞狹義化，詩正是磨新這些語言的利器。但磨利的前提是去處理、而非迴避。我對題材的看法亦然。

讀來令人冷汗直流...
不幸的是
詩人說的不是寓言
是事實

"Ｐolitical or social writing is that when the tide of feeling goes out, the language begins to stink."
意思大概是, 政治或是社會意識的詩歌, 潮流過了, 熱血涼了, 事過境遷, 文字開始發味... This is a very strong statement，ａｓ　ｓｔｒｏｎｇ　ａｓ　ｓａｙｉｎｇ　reading political poems is like reading old newspaper: Nothing is older than yesterday's newspaper．．．


我不見得完全同意他的說法, 不過似乎有幾分道理

There are poems you read only once, and there are poems you read more than once and there are poems that you ｗａｎｔ to read again and again.


W. Stevens is of course a great poet; but I don't think Merrill is old fashion at all. Have you read his previously uncollected poems? Some are very wittｙ. I guess he is not as easy to understand as W. Stevens. I am savoring his poems slowly.

Here is the comment from Helen Vendler:" The time eventually comes, in a good poet's career, when readers actively wait for his books: to know that someone out there is writing down your century, your generation, your language, your life....He has become one of our indispensable poets.

對不起, 不知為何突發高論. 我同意你所說的 "政治與社會論述太過概念也使字詞狹義化，詩正是磨新這些語言的利器。但磨利的前提是去處理、而非迴避。我對題材的看法亦然"

謝謝你．

請問詩名〈行動〉後接（完整性），是原來詩人就這樣寫嗎？是個副標題？

〈行動〉有8組，（完整性）係其中一組。其他會陸續貼上來。

報紙不因只能讀一次於是毫無價值。多數詩為了想要讓人讀很多回，而變得迂迴、保守，於是連讀一回也惹人生厭。而那些只為讀一回而寫的詩，往往卻歷久長新。我以為，詩人先寫出對當下有意義的詩，至於是否成為千古迴響，餘事矣。否則，我們是為誰而寫作？

在香港反世貿的CD中聽到廖偉棠的一首即事詩，應可為佐證。


〈灣仔情歌〉 廖偉棠

12月17日，我們到灣仔聲援愛情，
我們高舉愛情，示威愛情，為愛情絕食，
我們看見外國的農民們
懷揣著對土地的愛情轟隆隆前進。

會展中心裏富人們在討論愛情，
他們在賣和買，他們割讓愛情，
他們大打仇恨牌，威脅愛情，
他們用愛情把我們和農民阻擋在門外。

在這之間是充滿了愛情的男警和女警，
他們的愛情噴霧和水炮向我們襲來，
他們敲打著巨大的愛情盾牌向我們襲來，
他們在告士打道一連十三個小時扣留我們的愛。

電視上高官笑談愛情、愛情的苦和累，
他們幾乎要對我們的愛痛哭流涕，
報紙也變相販賣：淪陷的愛、
最漫長的愛、穩定繁榮壓倒一切。

而我們在灣仔學習了仇恨，
我們把清晨的黑牛奶白天喝夜裏喝，
我們把愛折斷去攻打不愛，
我們跳著印地安舞對付他們的華爾茲。

我們是一群暴徒，將送上一瓶莫洛托夫
給他們的世界宴會，
而我們把清晨的黑牛奶白天喝夜裏喝，
12月17日，我們不和你談愛情，在灣仔。

2005．12．21
*可至http://www.archive.org/details/wanchailovesong下載音樂。

（完整性）看起來是Lukacs所說的totality？
啊，寫得妙呢，好驚豔，興高采烈往下看。^^

依英譯者的用詞
「完整性」是integrities
「普遍性」則是universalities

很好奇你說得這本好書, 路過書店買了一本, 對照你的翻譯, 非常精采.

有両行小小疑點, 不知你以為如何?

Action

2
In barrack no. 1423 the men are completely identical

在第1423間營房內男人列隊成行

---在第1423間營房內男人一模一樣?

7
In company no. 1423 a man calculates a worker’s life expectancy

在第1423間公司內有一個人在計算勞工的生活期望
---在第1423間公司內有一個人在計算(估計)勞工的生命的(壽)期?


僅供參考.

您譯的那段很有趣呢
我過些天得去書店找英譯本翻翻看
想請問鴻鴻你有打算出版譯本嗎?

是有衝動想出
但還沒去談版權
如果今年台北詩歌節能邀來詩人
也許是一個機會
也讓我可鼓勇把翻譯拚完

我同意羅莉塔的譯法...