記憶傳授人

by Lois Lowry

烏蕪 譯

記憶傳授人

The Giver

by Lois Lowry

烏蕪 譯

洛伊絲·洛利（Lois Lowry）是美國著名的兒童文學(xué)作家，曾兩獲美國紐伯瑞兒童文學(xué)金牌獎，其寫作主題探討了許多復(fù)雜的內(nèi)容，題材多樣，包括種族歧視、不治之癥、謀殺等。洛利的代表作包括《數(shù)星星》（Number the Stars）、《阿納斯塔西亞·克魯布尼克》（Anastasia Krupnik）、《信天翁格林尼》（Gooney Bird Greene）等。

《記憶傳授人》是洛伊絲·洛利的代表作之一，獲得了1994年的美國紐伯瑞兒童文學(xué)金牌獎?！队洃泜魇谌恕肥且槐究苹眯≌f，故事背景設(shè)置在未來的一個社區(qū)，在那里人們過著貌似安居樂業(yè)、衣食無憂的生活?？墒请S著故事的發(fā)展，你會慢慢發(fā)現(xiàn)這個看似人間樂園的世界沒有記憶、感情、顏色、音樂……人們更沒有選擇的權(quán)力。這個世界過去所有的記憶全在一個人身上，那就是記憶接受人，而本書的主人公喬納斯便是在十二歲時被選為了記憶接受人，通過接受過去的記憶，他漸漸發(fā)現(xiàn)支撐這個社會的不過是謊言，人們也在這樣的環(huán)境下變得越來越冷漠，越來越殘酷。于是他決定要改變一切……本期節(jié)選了此書的精彩部分—— 喬納斯第一次接受記憶傳承訓(xùn)練，也第一次感受到現(xiàn)在與過去的不同之處。

J onas felt nothing unusual at frst. He felt only the light touch of the old man’s hands on his back.

He tried to relax, to breathe evenly. The room was absolutely silent, and for a moment Jonas feared that he might1)disgrace himself now, on the first day of his training, by falling asleep. Then he shivered. He realized that the touch of the hands felt, suddenly, cold. At the same instant, breathing in, he felt the air change, and his very breath was cold. He licked his lips, and in doing so, his tongue touched the suddenly chilled air.

It was very2)startling; but he was not at all frightened, now. He was flled with energy, and he breathed again, feeling the sharp intake of frigid air. Now, too, he could feel cold air swirling around his entire body.

The touch of the man’s hands seemed to have disappeared.

起初，喬納斯并沒有什么特別的感覺。他只感覺到老人輕輕地觸摸他的背。

他盡量放松身體，平緩呼吸。整個房間都靜悄悄的，有一瞬間，喬納斯害怕自己會在受訓(xùn)的第一天就出丑，害怕自己會睡過去。然后他打了個哆嗦。他發(fā)現(xiàn)背上的手突然變冷了。與此同時，他感到吸入的空氣發(fā)生了變化，他吸入的那口氣也是冷的。他舔了舔嘴唇，舌頭碰到了驟然變冷的空氣。

這很讓人吃驚。但是，他現(xiàn)在一點兒也不害怕。他感覺全身充滿了能量。他又吸了一口氣，感受鋒利寒冷的空氣。此刻，同樣地，他可以感覺到寒冷的空氣在他周圍轉(zhuǎn)繞。

老人的觸摸似乎消失了。

Now he became aware of an entirely new sensation:3)pinpricks? No, because they were soft and without pain. Tiny, cold, featherlike feelings peppered his body and face. He put out his tongue again, and caught one of the dots of cold upon it. It disappeared from his awareness instantly; but he caught another, and another. The sensation made him smile.

現(xiàn)在，他感受到一種全新的感覺：針刺？不對，這種感覺是輕柔的，沒有痛楚的。細(xì)微、冰冷、羽毛般的感覺落在他的身上和臉上。他又再次伸出舌頭，捕捉落在舌上的小冰點。那種感覺一轉(zhuǎn)眼就消失了。但他又抓到了另一個小冰點，一個又一個。那種感覺讓他露出了微笑。

1) disgrace [d?s?gre?s] v. 使羞辱，使蒙羞

2) startling [?stɑ:tl??] adj. 令人吃驚的

3) pinprick [?p?npr?k] n. 針刺的孔, 小孔

And he could see, though his eyes were closed. He could see a bright, whirling torrent of crystals in the air around him, and he could see them gather on the backs of his hands, like cold fur.

雖然閉著眼睛，但他可以看到——一股晶瑩剔透的不明物體自空中旋轉(zhuǎn)飄落，落在他周圍，聚集在他的手背上，像一層冰冷的軟毛。

His breath was visible.

他的呼吸清晰可見。

Beyond, through the swirl of what he now, somehow,4)perceived was the thing the old man had spoken of—snow—he could look out and down a great distance. He was up high someplace. The ground was thick with the furry snow, but he sat slightly above it on a hard, flat object. Sled, he knew abruptly. And the sled itself seemed to be poised at the top of a long, extended mound that rose from the very land where he was. Even as he thought the word “mound,” his new consciousness told him “hill”.

呼氣之上，透過在空中旋轉(zhuǎn)的東西——他如今感覺到這就是老人說過的雪，他可以看到極遠(yuǎn)的地方。他現(xiàn)在正身在高處，地上是一層厚厚、柔軟的雪，而他則坐在雪地上的一塊薄薄、堅硬平坦的東西上。雪橇，他立馬就想到了這個詞。他腳下是一個崛地而起、蜿蜒而上的土堆，雪橇安穩(wěn)地停在這個土堆的頂端。即便他想到的是“土堆”這個詞，但是新的感知告訴他這叫“山丘”。

Then the sled, with Jonas himself upon it, began to move through the snowfall, and he understood instantly that now he was going downhill. No voice made an explanation. The experience explained itself to him.

接著，喬納斯開始乘著雪橇在飄雪中滑行，他立馬就明白了這是在下坡。沒人告訴他，這完全是他自己體驗出來的。

Comprehending all of those things as he sped downward, he was free to enjoy the breathless5)glee that overwhelmed him: the speed, the clear cold air, the total silence, the feeling of balance and excitement and peace.

隨著他飛快地向下滑行，他慢慢地理解到了所有的這些東西。他沉浸在巨大的喜悅當(dāng)中，感受著這無與倫比的一切：速度、清新寒冷的空氣、全然的寂靜、平衡、興奮和平和的感覺。

Then, as the angle of incline lessened, as the mound—the hill—flattened, nearing the bottom, the sled’s forward motion slowed. The snow was piled now around it, and he pushed with his body, moving it forward, not wanting the6)exhilarating ride to end.

然后，下坡的傾斜度慢慢變小，土堆 —— 不，應(yīng)該說山丘——越來越平坦，在接近其底部時，雪橇前進(jìn)的速度變慢了，積雪堆在雪橇周圍。他用身體推動雪橇前進(jìn)，不愿如此刺激的滑行經(jīng)歷就此結(jié)束。

4) perceive [p??si:v] v. 感知, 感到, 認(rèn)識到

5) glee [gli:] n. 歡樂, 高興

6) exhilarating [?g?z?l?re?t??] adj. 令人喜歡的, 爽快的, 使人愉快的

Finally the obstruction of the piled snow was too much for the thin runners of the sled, and he came to a stop.7)Tentatively he opened his eyes—not his snow-hill-sled eyes, for they had been open throughout the strange ride. He opened his ordinary eyes, and saw that he was still on the bed, that he had not moved at all.

最后，積雪對雪橇那薄薄的滑雪板的阻力實在是太大了，他被迫停了下來。他試探著張開眼睛——不是滑雪橇?xí)r的眼睛，在那奇怪的滑行經(jīng)歷中，雙眼始終就是張開著的。他張開了平常的眼睛，看到自己仍然躺在床上，動也沒動過。

The old man, still beside the bed, was watching him.“How do you feel?” he asked.

老人依然坐在床邊注視著他：“你感覺怎么樣？”他問道。

Jonas sat up and tried to answer honestly. “Surprised,” he said, after a moment.

喬納斯坐了起來，想盡量說出真實的感受。片刻后，他說：“不可思議。”

“Why don’t we have snow, and sleds, and hills.” he asked. “And when did we, in the past? Did my parents have sleds when they were young? Did you?”

“為什么我們沒有雪、沒有雪橇、沒有山丘?！彼麊柕馈！拔覀円郧坝袉?？我父母小時候有嗎？你小時候有嗎？”

The old man shrugged and gave a short laugh. “No,” he told Jonas. “It’s a very distant memory. That’s why it was so exhausting—I had to tug it forward from many generations back. It was given to me when I was a new Receiver, and the previous Receiver had to pull it through a long time period, too.”

老人聳聳肩，哈哈大笑一聲?！皼]有，”他對喬納斯說?！斑@是段非常遙遠(yuǎn)的記憶。這就是為什么它會如此累人——我必須從許多代的前人那里把它拉過來。在我還是新任的記憶接受人時，我得到了這段記憶，前任的記憶接受人也是得從遙遠(yuǎn)的過去把它拉過來的?！?/p>

“But what happened to those things? Snow, and the rest of it?”

“但是，那些東西究竟怎么了？雪，還有其他那些？”

“Climate Control. Snow made growing food difficult, limited the agricultural periods. And unpredictable weather made transportation almost impossible at times. It wasn’t a practical thing, so it became obsolete when we went to Sameness.”

“氣候控制。雪增加了種植食物的難度，限制了耕作的時段。不可預(yù)知的天氣有時也會使交通幾乎無法正常運行。這不是實用的東西，所以在同化時代到來時，就被淘汰了?！?/p>

“And hills, too,” he added. “They made conveyance of goods8)unwieldy. Trucks; buses. Slowed them down. So—” He waved his hand, as if a gesture had caused hills to disappear. “Sameness,” he concluded.

“山也是這樣，”他補充道?！吧绞沟眠\送貨物非常不便?？ㄜ?、公車的速度都會被減慢。所以——”他擺擺手，仿佛就是這個手勢把山變沒了?！氨惶蕴?，”他總結(jié)道。

Jonas frowned. “I wish we had those things, still. Just now and then.”

喬納斯皺了皺眉。“真希望那些東西一直都在?！?/p>

The old man smiled. “So do I” he said. “But that choice is not ours.”

老人微笑道：“我也是。但這不是我們能選擇的?！?/p>

“Lie quietly now. Since we’ve entered into the topic of climate, let me give you something else. And this time I’m not going to tell you the name of it, because I want to test the receiving. You should be able to perceive the name without being told.”

“現(xiàn)在靜靜地躺下吧。既然我們談到氣候這個話題，我來給你看樣其他東西吧。這次我不會告訴你它的名字，我想測試一下記憶接受的成效。即使沒人告訴你，你也應(yīng)該能感覺出它的名字?！?/p>

7) tentatively [?tent?t?vl?] adv. 試驗性地, 暫時地

8) unwieldy [?n?wi:ld?] adj. 使用不便的，笨重的，笨拙的

Without being instructed, Jonas closed his eyes again. He felt the hands on his back again. He waited.

無須指示，喬納斯就再次閉上了眼睛。他再次感覺到了背上的手。他在等著。

Now it came more quickly, the feelings. This time the hands didn’t become cold, but instead began to feel warm on his body. They moistened a little. The warmth spread, extending across his shoulders, up his neck, onto the side of his face. He could feel it through his clothed parts, too: a pleasant, all-over sensation; and when he licked his lips this time, the air was hot and heavy.

當(dāng)下，那些感覺猛然襲來。這次，老人的手沒有變冷，反而帶著暖意。它們變得有點兒濕潤。暖意開始擴散開來，蔓延至他的肩膀上、他的脖子上、他的臉上。盡管身上還隔著層衣服，他還是可以感受到一種遍及全身的愉悅感。這次，他又舔了舔嘴唇，空氣又熱又悶。

He didn’t move. There was no sled. His posture didn’t change. He was simply alone someplace, outdoors, lying down, and the warmth came from far above. It was not as exciting as the ride through the snowy air; but it was pleasurable and comforting.

他沒有動。這兒也沒雪橇。他的姿勢也沒有改變。他只是獨自躺在戶外的某個地方，遙遠(yuǎn)的上方傳來陣陣暖意。這次的感覺沒有像乘坐雪橇穿過冰冷的空氣那般刺激，但是非常地愉悅、舒適。

Suddenly he perceived the word for it: sunshine. He perceived that it came from the sky.

突然，他感知到了這叫什么：陽光。他意識到它來自于天空。

Then it ended.

接著便結(jié)束了。

“Sunshine,” he said aloud, opening his eyes.

“陽光，”他大聲說道，同時睜開了雙眼。

“Good. You did get the word. That makes my job easier. Not so much explaining.”

“不錯，你真的想到了這個詞。這能讓我的工作輕松點，不用多費唇舌。

“And it came from the sky.”

“而且它來自于天空?！?/p>

“That’s right,” the old man said. “Just the way it used to. Before Sameness. Before Climate Control,” Jonas added.

“沒錯，”老人說?！耙郧笆沁@樣。在同化時代之前，在氣候控制之前?！眴碳{斯補充道。

The man laughed. “You receive well, and learn quickly. I’m very pleased with you. That’s enough for today, I think. We’re off to a good start.”

老人大笑?！澳憬邮艿煤芎?，也學(xué)得很快。我很開心和你一起工作。我想，今天就到這兒吧。我們有了個好開始。”

There was a question bothering Jonas. “Sir,” he said,“The Chief Elder told me—she told everyone—and you told me, too, that it would be painful. So I was a little scared. But it didn’t hurt at all. I really enjoyed it.” He looked quizzicallyat the old man.

有個問題困擾著喬納斯，“先生，”他說，“首席長老跟我說——她跟每一個人說——你也跟我說，這個過程會很痛苦。所以我有點兒害怕。但我一點兒也不覺得痛。我真的很享受。”他疑惑地看著老人。

The man sighed. “I started you with memories of pleasure. My previous failure gave me the wisdom to do that.” He took a few deep breaths. “Jonas,” he said, “it will be painful. But it need not be painful yet.”

老人嘆息道：“那是因為我讓你先接受快樂的回憶。我之前的失敗讓我學(xué)會這樣做?！彼詈粑藥紫?。“喬納斯，”他說，“這會很痛苦，但是現(xiàn)在還不是時候?！?/p>

“I’m brave. I really am.” Jonas sat up a little straighter. The old man looked at him for a moment. He smiled. “I can see that,” he said. “Well, since you asked the question—I think I have enough energy for one more9)transmission.

“我很勇敢，真的?！眴碳{斯坐得更加挺直。老人盯著他看了一會兒，微笑道：“我看得出來。好吧，既然你問了這個問題—— 我想我還有足夠的能量再多做一次記憶傳送?！?/p>

“Lie down once more. This will be the last today.”

“再躺下來一次，這是今天的最后一次了。”

Jonas obeyed cheerfully. He closed his eyes, waiting, and felt the hands again; then he felt the warmth again, the sunshine again, coming from the sky of this other consciousness that was so new to him. This time, as he lay basking in the wonderful warmth, he felt the passage of time. His real self was aware that it was only a minute or two; but his other, memory-receiving self felt hours pass in the sun. His skin began to sting. Restlessly he moved one arm, bending it, and felt a sharp pain in the crease of his inner arm at the elbow.

喬納斯開心地照做了。他閉上眼睛等待，再次感受到了那雙手。接著，他又從自己的另一個十分陌生的意識那里感受到了那股暖意，感受到了自天上而來的陽光。這次，當(dāng)他躺著享受那美妙的暖意時，他感覺到了時間的流逝。他真實的自己知道那不過是一兩分鐘；但是他的另一個自己，那個正在接受記憶的自己覺得他已經(jīng)在太陽底下曬了幾小時。他的皮膚開始覺得刺痛。他不耐煩地挪動了下手臂，才稍微彎曲，手肘內(nèi)側(cè)的皺褶處立馬傳來一陣灼痛。

“Ouch,” he said loudly, and shifted on the bed.

“哎喲，”他大聲叫道，在床上彈了起來。

He knew there was a word, but the pain kept him from grasping it.

他腦海中閃過一個詞，但是疼痛讓他無法抓住那詞。

9) transmission [tr?nz?m???n] n. 傳送, 傳輸

Then it ended. He opened his eyes, wincing with discomfort. “It hurt,” he told the man, “and I couldn’t get the word for it.”

然后便結(jié)束了。他張開雙眼，不舒服得齜牙咧嘴?！昂猛?，”他跟老人說，“我不知道那是什么詞?！?/p>

“It was sunburn,” the old man told him.

“那是曬傷，”老人告訴他。

“It hurt a lot,” Jonas said, “but I’m glad you gave it to me. It was interesting. And now I understand better, what it meant, that there would be pain.”

“那很痛，”喬納斯說，“但我很高興你把這傳給了我。這很有趣?，F(xiàn)在我更能理解，這過程會很痛意味著什么了?！?/p>

The man didn’t respond. He sat silently for a second. Finally he said, “Get up, now. It’s time for you to go home.”

老人沒有回答。他沉默地坐了一會兒。最后他說：“現(xiàn)在，起來吧，你該回家了?！?/p>

They both walked to the center of the room. Jonas put his tunic back on. “Goodbye, sir,” he said. “Thank you for my frst day.” The old man nodded to him. He looked drained, and a little sad.

兩人走到了房間中間。喬納斯穿上了他的束腰外衣?！霸僖?，先生。”他說。“謝謝您今天第一次傳給我記憶?！崩先讼蛩c點頭。他看起來筋疲力盡，還有點兒悲傷。

“Sir?” Jonas said shyly.

“先生？”喬納斯靦腆地問道。

“Yes? Do you have a question?”

“嗯？你有什么問題嗎？”

“It’s just that I don’t know your name. I thought you were The Receiver, but you say that now I’m The Receiver. So I don’t know what to call you.”

“只是我還不知道您的名字。我原本以為您是記憶接受人，但您現(xiàn)在說我才是。所以我不知道該怎么稱呼您?！?/p>

The man had sat back down in the comfortable upholstered chair. He moved his shoulders around as if to ease away an aching sensation. He seemed terribly weary.

老人坐回了那張舒適的軟椅。他動了動肩膀，似乎要借此消除身上的酸痛。他看起來似乎已經(jīng)筋疲力盡。

“Call me The Giver,” he told Jonas.

“叫我記憶傳授人吧，”他跟喬納斯如此說道。