内德·凯利传说的当代阐释:《凯特妹妹》与《凯利帮真史》的比较分析

Contemporary Interpretations of the Ned Kelly Legend: A Comparative Study of Sister Kate and True History of the Kelly Gang

《凯特妹妹》和《凯利帮真史》是澳大利亚当代作家重塑民族集体记忆的典范。二者都旨在重写历史:前者通过赋予女性讲诉自己故事的权力,来冲破男性主义的历史编纂学对女性的歪曲和压制;后者模拟了19世纪澳洲殖民地丛林汉的话语,并通过戏仿和互文手段对历史的虚构性进行反思性再现。二者都具有后殖民批判的维度:前者侧重披露殖民统治的后果,后者则致力于揭示殖民统治阶层对殖民地居民的压制以及受压制方展开的抗争。二者都力图颠覆男性阳刚气质的虚假表象:前者揭示男性阳刚气质的建构和维系需要通过一系列"排他"活动来实现,后者则通过聚焦"异性装扮"来揭示凯利帮男性气质的复杂与含混。对两部作品进行比较分析有助于厘清不同作家重塑民族集体记忆时的关注焦点和颠覆路径。

Sister Kate and True History of the Kelly Gang are two important rewritings of the Ned Kelly Legend--an indispensable part of Australian collective memory. Both novels aim to rewrite history： Sister Kate focuses on deploring the unfair treatment of women in the nationalist history, whereas True History places emphasis on disclosing the operations behind the colonialist historiography. Both can be viewed as postcolonial rewritings： Sister Kate is primarily keen on bringing to light the catastrophic consequences under the colonial rule, while True History centers on the colonized Other＇s fighting back. They are both involved in subverting the facade of masculinity. To attain this goal, Sister Kate reveals a series of aggressive exclusion on the part of the Kelly Gang, while True History focuses on the phenomenon of cross-dressing. A comparative study of both novels helps to explicate different writers＇ concerns and approaches in their reshaping of Australian collective memory.