自然主义文学起源于法国，是十九世纪继现实主义之后兴起的文学流派。在达尔文进化论、实证科学和遗传学的影响下，自然主义文学将环境和遗传对人产生的影响置于首位加以描写和探究。今天我们继续为大家推荐美国自然主义文学的代表作《野性的呼唤》，去广袤的荒原上感受强大的原始生命力。

《杰克·伦敦与<野性的呼唤>》（节选自《野性的呼唤》百花洲文艺出版社，2017）

……在杰克·伦敦的作品里，明显流露出他对拥有支配力量的强者的崇拜，以及对名叫“阶级”的这个固定秩序的愤怒。在他身上，美国的个人主义和社会进化论的弱肉强食思想混合在一起，与社会主义思想平安共处。

美国在南北战争后的二三十年间，流行“经济上的个人主义”，一个世代就可以成为百万富翁的“美国式的成功”之梦重新复活。达尔文的“进化论”，以及赫伯特·斯宾塞的“适者生存”说为这个思想的基础。钢铁大王卡内基为“进化论”，石油大王洛克菲勒为“适者生存”说的热烈信奉者。杰克·伦敦也在青少年时期受到达尔文和斯宾塞的强烈影响，简单地说，那就是如何在“吃人或被吃”的生存竞争中获胜，取得成功的个人主义。因此，那当然必须是以尼采式的超人为理想的个人主义不可。

在作家杰克·伦敦的内心世界里，这种个人主义和社会主义成长为怪物，一再发生激烈冲突，其斗争一直持续到最后一天。那是和时代的（或者社会主义运动的）矛盾叠合成的矛盾，自传小说《马丁·伊甸》是那种斗争的代表作，杰克·伦敦正是“时代之子”……

 

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Night came on, and a full moon rose high over the trees into the sky, lighting the land till it lay bathed in ghostly day. And with the coming of the night, brooding and mourning by the pool, Buck became alive to a stirring of the new life in the forest other than that which the Yeehats had made. He stood up, listening and scenting. From far away drifted a faint, sharp yelp, followed by a chorus of similar sharp yelps. As the moments passed the yelps grew closer and louder. Again Buck knew them as things heard in that other world which persisted in his memory. He walked to the centre of the open space and listened. It was the call, the many-noted call, sounding more luringly and compellingly than ever before. And as never before, he was ready to obey. John Thornton was dead. The last tie was broken. Man and the claims of man no longer bound him.

Hunting their living meat, as the Yeehats were hunting it, on the flanks of the migrating moose, the wolf pack had at last crossed over from the land of streams and timber and invaded Buck’s valley. Into the clearing where the moonlight streamed, they poured in a silvery flood and in the centre of the clearing stood Buck, motionless as a statue, waiting their coming. They were awed, so still and large he stood, and a moment’s pause fell, till the boldest one leaped straight for him. Like a flash Buck struck, breaking the neck. Then he stood, without movement, as before, the stricken wolf rolling in agony behind him. Three others tried it in sharp succession; and one after the other they drew back, streaming blood from slashed throats or shoulders. 

自然主义作为一种文学传统和认知世界的方式，影响深远，波及欧洲、美国、亚洲（包括中国）等国家和地区，而且它在几乎所有主要文类（小说、诗歌、戏剧）中均有体现。本书旨在概要介绍自然主义文学的概念、世界范围内著名的自然主义作家及作品，并在此基础上聚焦自然主义在不同文类中的体现，自然主义在美国的发生背景、特征和重要作家作品以及自然主义在欧洲（尤其是法国、英国和德国）和亚洲（尤其是中国和日本）的发展状况，以期给读者呈现一个较为完整的自然主义文学图景。

According to the law of the jungle, the behavior of wild animals can be equated with natural human instincts not only for competition and reproduction, but also for violence and exploitation. This book probes the historical emergence of the jungle as a discourse in the U. S during the Progressive Era, and reveals the significance of animality in relation to the history of sexuality, literary naturalism, and critical race studies, while highlighting how the discourse of the jungle remains a disturbing yet powerful presence in today’s culture.

 

文案策划及录音：图书借阅部 李圣昭

编辑：宣传策划小组 王丹