厄普代克:“清理书桌”?——谈厄普代克近期小说创作

John Updike:"Tidying Up"?——A Critique of John Updike's Recent Fictional Writings

随着约翰.厄普代克进入其创作生涯的后期,他一方面多次表示出“清理书桌”的意思,另一方面又一如既往地以每年一部的速度推出新作,仅2000年以来发表的小说就有《葛特露与克劳狄斯》、《爱的插曲》、《寻找我的面孔》和《小镇》。然而批评界对此总体上反应较为平淡,有批评家甚至用“职业化的平庸”来评价厄普代克的近期创作,认为这些作品失去了其早期作品所具有的原创性。或许如厄普代克本人所说,他的下一部作品,而不是上一部,会成为他的“杰作”。

Now entering the later part of his professional career, John Updike has expressed repeatedly the idea of ＂tidying up＂ on the one hand, but on the other hand, he continues to produce new writings, at the regular rate of one book a year. However, his recent fictional works, i. e. , Gertrude and Claudius, Licks of Love, Seek My Face and Villages, have received neither enthusiasm nor critical acclaim from the circle of critics. Some critic goes so far as to regard his recent writings as ＂ professionalised ordinariness＂, criticising that they lack the originality which once characterized his early works. It is hoped that, according to John Updike himself, his next work, rather than the previous one, will be his ＂masterpiece＂.