从“挪亚的诅咒”到美国非洲主义——对鲁宾逊种族书写的反思

From "Noah’s Curse" to American Africanism:Robinson’s Writing on Race Reconsidered

种族主题在美国当代女作家鲁宾逊的小说创作中占有重要地位。《基列家书》和《家园》两部小说中的移情策略受到众多评论家的赞赏。但是细察之下,鲁宾逊的种族书写仍然暴露出白人作家的典型两面性:一方面采取积极的伦理手段对抗歧视、提倡种族间的沟通,另一方面又表现出对历史问题和不公现实的回避和辩解。作家种族立场上消极的一面既与教会历史上对奴隶制的支持等问题相关,也来源于对'白人性'的种族想象。莫里森提出的'美国非洲主义'概念聚焦主流白人文学中的种族书写批评,为读者挖掘鲁宾逊小说中隐含的保守立场提供了适合的框架。

The racial theme occupies an important position in contemporary American woman writer Marilynne Robinson’s oeuvre. In both Gilead and Home, empathy as a racial strategy has been commended by many critics.Under careful examination, however, Robinson’s writing on race betrays the typical ambivalence in white writers. While they adopt positive ethical solution towards racial discrimination to promote interracial communication, they cannot help displaying an escapist and defensive stand facing both history and reality. The negative treatment of the racial theme is related to the Church’s support for slavery in the past, and also originates from the whites’ racial imaginary. To critique the racial writing in mainstream white literature, Toni Morrison put forward 'American Africanism,' which provides a perfect perspective on Robinson’s implicit conservativeness.