穿越历史,通向彼岸——犹太边界空间视阈下《伊莱,狂热者》的“反狂热”追寻

A Journey through History to the Other World: The “Anti-fanatic” Pursuit of “Eli, the Fanatic” across the Jewish Boundary

在菲利普·罗斯的短篇小说《伊莱,狂热者》中,伊莱的狂热之路是由混沌走向清醒,由压抑走向超脱。他穿梭于同化的犹太人和传统的犹太人之间,在边界空间中见证了犹太历史上的创伤遗留问题以及当下的犹太内部冲突和信仰危机。具体说来,失语、对话、书信等语言空间将创伤重复上演;视觉、听觉、嗅觉等感官空间辅之以电影技巧的运用将同化中的矛盾不断激化;彼岸空间中的诺斯替主义将犹太人潜藏的灵性从心底唤醒,进而实现终极救赎。值得注意的是,在这个复杂的边界空间中不乏犹太人为获取稳定的安身之所而狂热地追求同化的现象。有鉴于此,伊莱最终的狂热举动可以理解为对部分犹太人一味推崇同化的反抗,从而形成一种"反狂热"的行为表征。从某种程度上说,"反狂热"既是为了对创伤进行根本的治愈,也是为了追寻具有重生意义的彼岸空间。

In Philip Roth’s short story "Eli, the Fanatic," the titular protagonist’s journey of fanaticism goes from confusion to sobriety, from repression to freedom. He shuttles between the assimilated Jewish space and the traditional Jewish space. Within his own boundary space, there are many elements of the Jewish history, such as traumatic memories, current difficulties in assimilation and attempts at Jewish spiritual revival. Specifically, despite aphasia, dialogues, letters and other language devices have made a linguistic space to restage the trauma. The cinematic space with its combination of vision and hearing has intensified the contradictions in assimilation. On the other side of the boundary, Gnosticism evokes the deep cry of Jews from memory. The historical shadow on every corner of the post-war Jewish life spans history and the future. It involves the cultural opposition between traditional Jews and assimilating Jews, the racial friction between Jews and Gentiles, and many other problems faced by the Jewish diaspora. If people in the fictional Woodenton are fanatical to cover the shadow of Jewish history, then Eli’s fanaticism is to fight the frenzy of assimilation among other Jews. His "anti-fanatic" journey aims to cure the historical trauma and pursue a significant rebirth on the other side of the boundary.