威廉·燕卜荪“中国作品”中的文化、身份与种族问题

Issues of Culture,Identity and Race in William Empson's "China Works"

燕卜荪在中国英语界是一个传奇人物,老一辈许多英语大家从燕卜荪那里得到了英语启蒙教育,他们的回忆录和纪念文章给予燕卜荪的人品和学识以高度评价。然而,前辈很少谈到燕卜荪在中国创作的作品,很少谈到他的"中国作品"中的文化和身份问题,以及中国经历如何影响了他的学术思想。这些都需要我们进入燕卜荪在这个时期所留下的文字资料,如诗歌、小说、批评论文、书信、旅行笔记等等。本文试图通过细读燕卜荪在中国创作的诗歌、小说、批评论文对以上问题进行梳理,旨在理清燕卜荪对文化身份、中西文化差异等问题的思考。

Empson is a legendary figure in China's English Studies,regarded as mentor to the most renowned old-generation professors in the field,many of whom have written memoirs about his personality and about his talents.However,these professors seldom discussed the works Empson wrote in China in this period,nor did they analyse the culture and identity issues reflected in these works,or the way his China experience influenced his academic ideas.Exploring these questions requires a careful reading of the poems,short stories,critical works,letters and travel notes which Empson wrote at the time.This essay analyses the above issues through a close reading of these written materials,in the hope of understanding Empson's perception of identity and East-West cultural difference.