《太阳之子》中的“南海”绘图与帝国想象

Mapping"the South Sea"and the Imperial Imagination in A Son of the Sun

在19、20世纪之交,随着“西进运动”接近尾声,美国开始推行“关闭边疆”政策。在此历史语境下,美国的国家意识从陆地转向海洋,从而加快了海外拓殖的进程。为了迎合这一时代潮流,美国作家杰克·伦敦亲自出海,将自身见闻化为文字,以满足当时美国大众的期待。杰克·伦敦的“文学版图”也随之发生重大改变,其作品的地理空间从“北疆”转向“南海”,《太阳之子》正是他写作转型之后的“南海”小说代表作之一。基于杰克·伦敦文学地理空间的转变,本文以文学绘图为切入点,从《太阳之子》“南海”绘图的时代背景、社会图景和“文明”话语权等三个层面,全面探讨“南海”书写与美国帝国想象之间的互动机制。在小说《太阳之子》中,杰克·伦敦将“天命论”“白人至上主义”“东方主义”融入“南海”绘图中,其笔下的美国人格里菲被塑造成推行美国价值观的“救世主”形象,他帮助当地人驱逐来自欧洲的侵略者,为波利尼西亚带来“文明”之光,从而为美国在波利尼西亚推进海外扩张政策披上了“合法”的外衣。因此,杰克·伦敦的“南海”绘图建构了拯救和被拯救、教导和被教导、文明与野蛮、自我与他者的二元对立模式,但其实质不过是帝国主义在波利尼西亚地区的空间表征形式。

At the turn of the 20th century,as the westward movement came to an end,America began to limit the advance of the frontier.Meanwhile,the national consciousness to accelerate the overseas expansion was aroused.Catering to the mass-market,American writer Jack London worked on the sea narratives based on his sailings across the Pacific Ocean.As a result,London's"literary territory"has been dramatically expanded,ranging from the northland to"the South Sea".A Son of the Sun is one of his masterpieces in the genre of sea narratives.From the perspective of literary geography,this paper explores the interactions between the"South Sea Narratives"and the imperial imagination in the aspects of the historical background,the social context and the discourse of"civilization".Manifest destiny,white supremacy and orientalism have been incarnated in mapping"the South Sea".In the novel,David Grief,an American,has been depicted as a savior to expel European invaders for Polynesians,propaganda American values and spread the western"civilization".Binary oppositions have been projected in mapping"the South Sea"'-the savior versus the saved,the educator versus the educatee,the civilian versus the barbarian,the"One"versus the"Other".Thus,mapping the South Sea in essence is merely the representation of space to promote the concept of American imperialism in Polynesia.