成长的不能承受之轻:麦克尤恩《水泥花园》的伦理意识与伦理选择

The Unbearable Lightness of Growth:Ethical Consciousness and Ethical Choice in Ian McEwan's The Cement Garden

作为麦克尤恩"惊恐文学"的代表作,《水泥花园》带给读者的不仅是阅读过程中的"不安"与"震撼",更多的是阅读之后的伦理启迪与思考。本文试图从文学伦理学批评视角出发,重点分析小说人物杰克、朱莉、汤姆、苏在成长过程中所遇到的伦理问题及其蕴含的文学价值。文章认为,在父母相继离世的伦理环境中,杰克家庭原本完整的伦理结构遭到破坏,他们兄妹失去了效仿的道德榜样,难以获得正确的伦理观念和构建自己的伦理规范。同时,由于杰克等人自身的人性因子受到兽性因子的抑制,导致其伦理意识无法产生,理性无法成熟,使得他们在确认伦理身份的过程中出现了身份错位,产生了乱伦意识,并最终导致了伦理混乱。故此,小说揭示了少年儿童在向成人转变的过程中确认伦理身份的困难,隐喻了人在完成生物性选择之后进行伦理选择的必要性。

Typical of Ian MeEwan＇ s ＂shock of literature＂, The Cement Garden not only generates a sense of shock and uneasiness for the reader but also foregrounds a number of ethical issues for us to ponder over. From the perspective of ethical literary criticism, this paper attempts to examine the ethical problems encountered by Jack, Julie, Tom and Sue. In particular, it argues that owing to the death of their parents, Jack and his siblings have lost the moral models for them to follow, which makes it hard for them to acquire ethical consciousness and formulate ethical norms. In the meantime, the animal factors of Jack and his siblings frequently subdue their human factors, which prevents them from maintaining ethical consciousness and ration. Instead, they come to acquire incorrect identities and produce incestuous desire, which eventually leads to ethical chaos of the storyworld. Viewed in this light, the novel not only reveals the puzzles and difficulties of children＇ s self-development but also suggests the necessity for human beings to make an ethical choice after their making biological choice.