论《赛姆勒先生的行星》中宏大叙事的解构

On the deconstruction of the grand narratives in Mr.Sammler s Planet

在让-弗朗索瓦·利奥塔的后现代主义语境中,历史、科学等主题都依据宏大叙事而构想,并形成它们自己的叙事。索尔·贝娄的《赛姆勒先生的行星》主要解构了历史宏大叙事和科学宏大叙事。就历史宏大叙事而言,历史是一个向着解放和进步不断前进的理性过程,但犹太大屠杀却是历史宏大叙事的一次断裂,战后知识分子对大屠杀的历史解释同样也受到质疑和驳斥。科学宏大叙事声称能够通过科学技术解放整个人类,但小说中启蒙运动的科学计划最终幻灭,科学理性主义的权威地位也随之被颠覆。同时,小说摒弃了宏大叙事保留的末世学原则,试图通过伦理建构寻找出路。犹太人被视为伦理的化身,伦理义务也成为当下人类生活更为迫切的需求。通过分析可以看出贝娄对理性主义和权威主义的批判,以及他对于重塑西方文明的希冀。

In the context of Jean-Francois Lyotard s postmodernism,history,science and other subjects are conceived and their own narratives are developed reliant on the grand narratives.Mr.Sammler s Planet by Saul Bellow mainly deconstructs the grand narratives of history and science.History is seen as a rational process which moves towards emancipation and progress in terms of the grand narratives of history.However,the Jewish Holocaust proves to be a disruption of the historical grand narratives and after the Second World War the intellectual s historical explanation on the Holocaust is also attacked with doubts and refutations.The grand narratives of science claim that humanity as a whole can be liberated through science and technology,but in the novel the Enlightenment project of science turns out to be a failure and the authority of scientific rationalism is subverted as well.Meanwhile,rejecting the eschatological principle conserved by the grand narratives,the novel attempts to seek a way out by means of ethical construction.In it the Jews are regarded as the embodiment of ethics,with the ethical obligation considered a more imperative need of current human life.The analysis reveals Bellow s criticism towards rationalism and authoritarianism,and his hope to reshape western civilization.