种族越界与心理书写:解析拉森的小说《越界》

Ethnic Passing and Psychological Writing:A Review of Nella Larsen’s Passing

内拉·拉森在《越界》里从社会心理学的角度图解了种族越界主题,淋漓尽致地展现出黑白混血儿在种族越界中所经历的各种磨难,刻画了越界后内心世界的惊恐、痛苦、多疑、抑郁和绝望,探索黑白混血儿灵魂深处的自我冲突和人性本真。种族越界现象反映了黑白混血儿要求融入美国主流社会的强烈愿望,揭示了种族越界中的善良与邪恶、真诚与奸诈、执着与背叛。拉森从艺术手法和文学主题两个方面把“种族越界”类黑人小说推向成熟,拓展了现代美国黑人小说的叙述空间。

In Passing,Nella Larsen illustrates the topic of passing from the socio-psychological perspective,delineates the panic,pains,suspicion,depression and despairs in the characters’ psyches,and highlights the mulattoes’ troubles in the process of passing. Their psychological description demonstrates the selfconflict and human nature at the bottom of mulattoes’ souls. The phenomenon of passing reflects American mulattos’ strong desire of integrating into American mainstream society,and discloses the virtues and kindness,sincerity and wickedness,stubbornness and betrayal appearing in ethnic passing. Larsen paves the ways for the maturity of black“passing”fiction from the aspects of artistic techniques and literary themes,expanding the narrative space of modern black novels in America.