The Age of Innocence,不论是原著,还是电影,都会把人虐的死去活来。这是一个爱情故事,却不是简奥斯汀阿姨笔下那种王子与公主过上了幸福生活的happy ending。但是,正因为有缺憾,这个故事才让人回味悠长。
纽约的上层社会,是个一切按照既定规则走,循规蹈矩的世界。男主角Newland Archer, 一开始就是个合格的纽约公民,第二天性就是“遵循狭小社交圈子的行为准则”,并且有个完美的未婚妻May——一个制度下的完美产物,他盼着自己履行职责,与May 共度余生。可是,这种一眼望不到底的生活被May的表姐——Madame Olenska(Ellen)的出现所打破。
华服,晚宴,舞会,Edith Wharton笔下的纽约上流社会,看上去纯洁美丽,宛若人间天堂。可是,在这个循规蹈矩的天堂里,置身其中的人活的快乐吗?我不确定,不过可以确定的一点是男主角Newland Archer 肯定不快乐,因为他失落了他的生命之花。
Newland的妻子May,美丽纯真,讲话得体(she was making the answers that instinct and tradition taught her to make-even to the point of calling him original),是旧制度下最完美的妻子范本。可是,Newland并不觉着这样的生活有多么美好,因为他想要的是一个活生生,有血有肉有思想的女人,不是一个模范妻子。而叛逆的Ellen的出现,让他心头之火重燃。
如果说May是纯洁无暇的百合的话,Ellen就是那束黄玫瑰,开的浓艳动人却不被世俗接受。(There was something too rich, too strong, in their fierce beauty)她可以穿着极其华丽却不符合传统审美观的盛装来吸引所有人的眼球;她可以与出轨的有钱丈夫离婚,只为了追寻自己的幸福。在欧洲,她与名流交际,生活的多姿多彩。可在纽约,她只能是个异类,因为她的所作所为不被那里的主流所认可。当Newland遇上她之后,他感到了从未感到过的激情与活力,他们不顾一切的相爱了。可是,在纽约这个循规蹈矩的世界里,特立独行的人总会引起麻烦。作为一个大家族的发言人,Newland只能舍弃自己最爱的东西,遵循社会的规矩。如他的名字,Newland一直在寻找着自己的new land, 但在找到之后却没有办法留住,只能带着遗憾离开……
时间飞逝,当May染病去世,Newland已经垂垂老矣的时候,才在儿子的陪伴下来到Ellen家的楼下,却没有勇气上去。他所能做的,只是默默地想着Ellen:这么多年她在欧洲看过了多少画展,走过了多少博物馆,和多少名流艺术家谈笑风生,生活的是多么多姿多彩。而自己呢?这一辈子的婚姻是多么的空洞苍白,如同儿子所说的,像一个deaf-and-dumb asylum一般了无生气。但是,这又能怪呢?
Newland最后做的一件事情,只能是deal all at once with the packed regrets and stifled memories of an inarticulate lifetime.纯真年代里,究竟失落了什么,恐怕只有他自己清楚吧。
这是我迄今为止看过的最好看的一本书。出身于上层社会的作者Edith Wharton写出了她自己所了解的leisured class以及个人在整个社会大背景下欲奋力抗争却又百般不能。
我看的是英文版,我一直认为读外文小说最好的是看原版。翻译过来的东西不是不好,但是作者在字里行间中所流露出和想表达的东西是他自己的语言所独有的。
看完这本书,想想我们周围有多少人是书中的Archer Newland, 有多少人前赴后继地却又毫无意识的去当一个又一个的May, 又有多少人是Olenska却遭到整个社会的误解和排挤。
如果不深入作者所创设的那个情境中,你会觉得这是一部爱情小说。Archer 和Ellen的爱情让我心疼。他们的爱情在社会规则面前显得那么的脆弱不堪。爱情是小说中永远的主题,把它和社会历史糅合在一起,更能突出个人在历史洪流下的苍白无力。
Archer认为自己就像在一个大漩涡的边缘上,奋力抗争却最终逃不出控制。这个大漩涡就是社会规则,是每个社会人身处其中,受其影响,却浑然不觉的大黑洞。我突然想到自己,想到自己有时对这个社会是多么的厌恶,可是却对不公对不平多么的漠然以对。就好像《大红灯笼高高挂》中的巩俐,最终逃不过社会的束缚。
几十年后,当Archer再去巴黎的时候,明明可以和Ellen续缘,但是,他却放弃了。那收起的遮阳伞就是Archer对自己过去的态度。Archer就是那些想与社会做抗争的人的代表。
Ellen那句话说的好。"The real loneliness is living among all these kind people who ask you only to pretend."
‘I want somehow get away with you into a world where words like that – categories like that – won’t exist. Where we shall be simply two human beings who love each other, who are the life to each other, and nothing else will matter.’
‘Oh, my dear - where is that country? Have you ever been there?’
– The Age of Innocence, Chapter XXIX
When first read the topic ,not only was I srounded by happiness and warmth ,but it also call back my sweet memory of childhood,However, The first chapter strucked me , thoses who lived in 1970s of American was a palce where decayed social moral still worked.
Accordingly,You can imagine in such a crule background,the story goes on a sad and depressed way. It’s the theater where he meet her , which arouses his sweet memory that he fall in love with her in childhood. Unfortunatly, he has engagement with his cousin . in addition she just experienced a failed marriage which is a big obstacles to their love because at that time a divorced woman could not be accepted by people. Experienced many obstacles, when they were deciding to elope his wife was pregnant .in consderation of marriage and responsibility the lovers separated eventually.Dramatically, after his wife died, his son told that the wife had known he has another women in his heart 。in other words, The pregnancy was only a means to keep him stay
Although he is only 57 years old when his wife died , he is faced with his only choose to back to his hotel.All this leaves readers with a pity
But Where is innocence the title mentioned ?.With this problem I summon up courage and read again
What second read taught me is that the three are all pure.they fight for their own happiness by the mean time ,fight for other two’s happiness
Newland for his wife's love, it is a kind of responsibility and pure love. For the love, the countess. It is a kind of pure, ego, loyal to the more enthusiastic love
May, her happiness from her, but she pretend that is truly understand happiness of person, she gave them the opportunity, seem spellbound and passive, she has the newland and courage, even if she knew his heart have others, she is happy may eventually put it into practice
What impressed most me was ellen’s words” I I can't love you unless I give Up you !“
There is no deny the fact that your bride was always not your first love.though the two who loved each couldn’t be together eventually ,when they look back ,they owned the life, memory is also treaure.