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閱讀夏目漱石 Natsume Sōseki在小说之家的作品!!! |
夏目漱石1867年1月5日生於江戶(今東京)。他的家庭在明治維新前是江戶世襲的“名主”(相當於街道上裏長之類的小吏),維新後,傢道中落。在中學時酷愛漢詩漢文，後在家庭的影響下改學英語。1893年畢業於東京帝國大學英文科。學生時期，與近代和歌、俳句的革新者正岡子規結為好友，從事俳句寫作。青年時期接受了漢文學所藴含的道德觀念、英國文學中的啓蒙主義思想以及俳諧文學中的文人趣味和美學觀點的影響。1895年，放棄東京高師英語教師的教職，先後去四國鬆山市和九州熊本市第五高等學校任教。1900年以官費留學英國三年，觀察到西方社會的種種弊病，特別是資本主義社會的“金錢萬能”，使他感到十分厭惡。 1903年回到日本,在東京帝國大學任教,並為高濱虛子主編的雜志《杜宇》寫俳句。當時，“杜宇派”除致力於俳句創作外,還在提倡“寫生文”,經常發表俳文。
1905年寫了《我是貓》的第一章,作為一篇俳文，在《杜宇》上發表，獲得贊賞，後在高濱等人的鼓勵下，寫成長篇小說。他以敏銳的觀察力，以教師苦沙彌傢一隻“貓”的口吻，批判了走上資本主義道路的明治時代黑暗的現實，特別是對他一嚮所厭惡的資本傢的專橫跋扈與“金錢萬能”的世態，極盡嬉笑怒駡之能事。這部作品還用漫畫式的誇張手法，塑造了一群自命清高、憤世嫉俗的知識分子的形象；對他們玩世不恭的態度和行動無力的弱點,進行了調侃和訕笑。作品巧妙地使用了雅語、俗語、漢語。
1906年作者又在《杜宇》上發表中篇小說《哥兒》，這也是一部帶有幽默諷刺特色的作品。它用第一人稱的手法，塑造了一個憨直、樸實、頭腦有些簡單的青年的形象，並表現他的正義感和反抗性，飽含着對社會勢力的批判精神。作品語言平易，吸取了通俗文學“落語”（類似“相聲”的一種麯藝）的有益成分，滑稽而有風趣。這部作品長期為廣大讀者所喜愛。同年發表另一部中篇小說《旅宿》。
1907年《朝日新聞》社延請他為特聘作傢，他便放棄了大學教授的職位，成為職業作傢。直到去世的大約10年的時間裏，先後寫了10多部長篇小說，均在《朝日新聞》上連載。《三四郎》、《其後》、《門》是他中期創作的三部麯。《三四郎》(1908)近似於“教養小說”，寫農村青年三四郎在東京大學求學的生活和他對女性的愛慕，表現一個農村青年的成長過程。《其後》（1909）描寫一個大學畢業生井代助，將所愛的女郎三千代讓給朋友平岡，自以為這是“英雄的”犧牲精神。幾年後，平岡與三千代從外地回到東京，代助逐漸認識到自己以往的行為是虛偽的，特別是瞭解到平岡已變成一個庸俗不堪的人和三千代的婚後生活並不幸福，便嚮三千代表白了愛情，並和她重新結合。代助認為這樣做是回覆到“自然”(真實)，但結果卻不能不與世俗道德發生正面衝突。作品雖然是描寫愛情，但主題是在說明日本近代社會仍受着強大的封建力量的束縛。《門》(1910)實際上是《其後》的續篇，描寫主人公宗助和阿米這對小資産階級出身的夫婦的暗淡的生活，以深刻的心理描寫反映了衝破封建束縛後小資産階級知識分子精神上遭受的壓抑和痛苦。這三部作品都以現實主義的創作方法，揭示了日本近代社會存在的種種問題，被認為是日本近代文學中具有深刻思想性的作品。晚期寫了《過了春分時節》(1912)、《行人》(1912～1923)、《心》(1914)、《道草》(1915)等長篇小說。《明暗》(1916)是他生前未完成的作品。這些作品大多以細膩的心理分析，描寫知識分子精神上的孤獨和利己主義的醜惡。
夏目漱石一生著有兩部文論、大量俳句、幾百首漢詩,若幹隨筆和書信，但在文學上的最大貢獻是以他十幾部長篇小說和大批短篇小說竪起批判現實主義文學的豐碑，給後來的作傢以深刻的啓迪。夏目一生堅持對明治社會的批判態度,以他的具有鮮明個性的、豐富多采的藝術才能,在日本近代文學史上占有重要的地位。1916年12月9日逝世。
Born as Natsume Kinnosuke in the town of Babashita in the Edo region of Ushigome (present Kikui, Shinjuku), Sōseki began his life as an unwanted child, born to his mother late in her life. His parents foisted him off on a former household servant (Shiobara Masanosuke) and his wife, by whom he was brought up until the age of nine. He returned to his household and was welcomed by his mother although regarded as a nuisance by his father. His mother died when he was fourteen, and his two eldest brothers died in 1887, intensifying his sense of insecurity.[citation needed]
Sōseki attended the First Tokyo Middle School (now Hibiya High School), where he became enamored with Chinese literature, and fancied that he might someday become a writer. However, his family disapproved strongly of this course of action, and when Sōseki entered the Tokyo Imperial University (now the University of Tokyo) in September 1884, it was with the intention of becoming an architect. He began studying English at that time, feeling that it might prove useful to him in his future career.[citation needed]
In 1887, Sōseki met Masaoka Shiki, a friend who would give him encouragement on the path to becoming a writer, which would ultimately be his career. Shiki tutored him in the art of composing haiku. From this point on, Sōseki began signing his poems with the name Sōseki, which is a Chinese idiom meaning "stubborn". In 1890, Sōseki entered the English Literature department, and quickly became a master of the English language. Sōseki graduated in 1893, and enrolled for some time as a graduate student and part-time teacher at the Tokyo Normal School.[citation needed]
Sōseki began teaching at Matsuyama Middle School in Shikoku, in 1895, which is the setting of his novel Botchan. Along with fulfilling his teaching duties, Sōseki published haiku and Chinese poetry in a number of newspapers and periodicals. He resigned his post, in 1896, and began teaching at the Fifth High School in Kumamoto. On June 10 of that year, he married Nakane Kyoko.[citation needed]
Natsume Soseki's lodgings in Clapham, South London
In the United Kingdom, 1901-1903
In 1900, the Japanese government sent Sōseki to study in Great Britain as "Japan's first Japanese English literary scholar". He visited Cambridge and stayed a night there, but gave up the idea of studying at the university because he could not afford it on his government scholarship. He had a miserable time of it in London, spending most of his days indoors buried in books, and his friends feared that he might be losing his mind. He also visited Pitlochry in Scotland.
He lived in four different lodgings, only the last of which, lodging with Priscilla and her sister Elizabeth Leale in Clapham (see the photograph), proved satisfactory. Five years later, in his preface to Bungakuron (The Criticism of Literature), he wrote about the period:
The two years I spent in London were the most unpleasant years in my life. Among English gentlemen I lived in misery, like a poor dog that had strayed among a pack of wolves.[citation needed]
He got along well with the Leale sisters, who shared his love of literature (notably Shakespeare and Milton) and spoke fluent French, much to his admiration. The Leales were a Channel Island family, and Priscilla had been born in France. The sisters worried about Sōseki's incipient paranoia and successfully urged him to get out more and take up cycling.
Despite his poverty, loneliness, and mental problems, he solidified his knowledge of English literature during this period and returned to Japan in 1903.
After his return to the Empire of Japan, he replaced Koizumi Yakumo (Lafcadio Hearn) at the First Higher School, and subsequently became a professor of English literature at Tokyo Imperial University, where he taught literary theory and literary criticism.[citation needed]
Literary career
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Sōseki's literary career began in 1903, when he began to contribute haiku, renku (haiku-style linked verse), haitaishi (linked verse on a set theme) and literary sketches to literary magazines, such as the prominent Hototogisu, edited by his former mentor Masaoka Shiki, and later by Takahama Kyoshi. However, it was the public success of his short story Wagahai wa neko de aru ("I Am a Cat") in 1905 that won him wide public admiration as well as critical acclaim.[citation needed]
He followed on this success with short stories, such as Rondon tō ("Tower of London") in 1905 and the novels Botchan ("Little Master"), and Kusamakura ("Grass Pillow") in 1906, which established his reputation, and which enabled him to leave his post at the university for a position with Asahi Shimbun in 1907, and to begin writing full-time. Much of his work deals with the relation between Japanese culture and Western culture. Especially his early works are influenced by his studies in London; his novel Kairo-kō was the earliest and only major prose treatment of the Arthurian legend in Japanese. He began writing one novel a year until his death from a stomach ulcer in 1916.
Obverse of a 1984 series 1000 Japanese yen banknote
Major themes in Sōseki's works include ordinary people fighting against economic hardship, the conflict between duty and desire (a traditional Japanese theme; see giri), loyalty and group mentality versus freedom and individuality, personal isolation and estrangement, the rapid industrialization of Japan and its social consequences, contempt of Japan's aping of Western culture, and a pessimistic view of human nature. Sōseki took a strong interest in the writers of the Shirakaba (White Birch) literary group. In his final years, authors such as Ryūnosuke Akutagawa and Kume Masao became close followers of his literary style.[citation needed]
Major works
Sōseki's major works include:
Year Japanese title English title Comments
1905 吾輩は猫である Wagahai wa Neko dearu I Am a Cat
倫敦塔 Rondon Tō The Tower of London
薤露行 Kairo-kō Kairo-kō
1906 坊っちゃん Botchan Botchan
草枕 Kusamakura The Three-Cornered World
(lit. The Grass Pillow) latest translation uses Japanese title
趣味の遺伝 Shumi no Iden The Heredity of Taste
二百十日 Nihyaku-tōka The 210th Day
1907 虞美人草 Gubijinsō The Poppy
1908 坑夫 Kōfu The Miner
夢十夜 Yume Jū-ya Ten Nights of Dreams
三四郎 Sanshirō Sanshiro
1909 それから Sorekara And Then, a novel
1910 門 Mon The Gate
思ひ出す事など Omoidasu Koto nado Spring Miscellany
1912 彼岸過迄 Higan Sugi Made To the Spring Equinox and Beyond
行人 Kōjin The Wayfarer
1914 こころ Kokoro Kokoro
私の個人主義 Watakushi no Kojin Shugi My Individualism A famous speech
1915 道草 Michi Kusa Grass on the Wayside
硝子戸の中 Garasu Do no Uchi Inside My Glass Doors English translation, 2002
1916 明暗 Mei An Light and Darkness, a novel Unfinished