“灵魂选择自己的伴侣”——论狄金森书信的“自我发表”

“The Soul Selects her Own Society”:On Emily Dickinson's Self-Publication of Her Letters

本文希望通过对狄金森书信写作动机的关注,通过分析其书信文字的诗歌特征与读者身份,阐明狄金森书信对诗歌与书信两种文学形式的重要贡献。本文从史密斯的狄金森书信"自我发表"说出发,运用详实的文本资料、社会历史语境研究及文献对比研究等方法展开讨论。作者认为,狄金森一生从未真正放弃"发表"作品的欲望。由于公开出版受到各种因素的制约,她有意将书信当作最重要的文学创作园地和发表手法,一生坚持书信创作,直至生命的最后一刻,并且独创出"狄金森诗信"文体。对狄金森"自我发表"说的肯定意味着狄金森书信研究思路和方法更加多元化,也为我们重新解读狄金森书信的人格角色、诗文特色及叙事风格、诗歌意象的运用以及狄金森其他研究等提供了新的契机和视角。

This study is to illustrate Dickinson's important contribution to both poetic and epistolary literature through an investigation of the creation and motivation of her letter writing.The paper,starting from the proposal of Dickinson's'Self-publication'by Martha Nell Smith,examines the poetic features of her poetry,her ideas about publishing her works through textual,cultural and historical approaches as well.The author believes that Emily Dickinson never gave up the expectation for her poetry to be published,which partially explains why she took it so seriously to keep letter-writing and sharing her'Loems'with the recipients.With this practice,Dickinson developed a unique literary genre'Dickinson PLetters'.It is significant to find out if Emily Dickinson had the intention to'publish'her poetry through letter sending.A positive answer would promote the diversity in the study of Emily Dickinson,and provide different perspectives for and approaches to the study of the personae,poetic features and narrative techniques of the letters.