英格兰德短篇小说中的共情研究

Empathy in Englander's Short Stories

共情不仅是情感传导与认知理解的过程,也是道德认同的过程。在英格兰德的三篇短篇小说中,他从情感、认知与道德三个层面出发阐发对共情的理解:情感层面的共情在民族矛盾的激化下易引发以暴力复仇为代表的共情过激行为,认知层面的共情在极权体系的作用下会产生共情非正义问题,而道德层面的共情有利于建立基于正义与爱的共同道德体系,形成良知共识,为当今世界避免出现类似大屠杀的极端族群暴力事件、创建和谐人类社会提供借鉴。英格兰德对共情问题的探讨一方面体现了他对犹太人大屠杀事件的深度思考;另一方面彰显了其意图使犹太文明与美国社会接轨的主观愿望。

Empathy is a process of affective transmission and perception,but one of moral identification as well.Englander expresses his understanding of empathy from affective,cognitive and moral dimensions in his three short stories:affective empathy may easily breed empathic violence due to the intensification of racial conflict;cognitive empathy may cause the problem of empathic injustice under the rule of totalitarian system;moral empathy helps construct a common moral system based on justice and love to reach a conscience consensus,which can be perceived as a reference for avoiding extreme ethnic violence,e.g.the Holocaust,and creating a harmonious human society in the world today.Englander's probe into the issue of empathy shows his deep reflection on the Holocaust on the one hand and,on the other,highlights his desire to integrate the Jewish civilization with the American society.