本帖最后由 欧阳京 于 30-6-2020 10:41 编辑
劳阿尔.达尔(Roald Dahl,1916 – 1990)是挪威裔英国小说家、诗人、皇家空军王牌飞行员、足球运动员、二十世纪最伟大的儿童文学作家。(其最著名的儿童文学作品《查理和巧克力工厂》在2005年被改编成同名电影。他的小说《Matilda》,被改编成了笔者最爱的音乐剧之一,澳大利亚人相当喜欢这部音乐剧,它经常在墨尔本女王陛下大剧院演出,大家走过路过千万不要错过,一定要带孩子一起去听。)他获得的荣誉包括“世界奇幻奖”终生成就奖、“英国图书奖”等等。
不过,从小爱读吉卜林、萨克雷、狄更斯的劳阿尔传奇的生活,也许比他的作品更吸引人。
童年,热爱运动和大自然的他在挪威母亲的家里度过了大部分暑假,这些经历,成了他写作的宝贵素材。成年后,他应征入伍参加二战,成为一名步兵中尉排长。接着,他加入皇家空军,成为一名初级飞行员。在一次突然安排的任务中,他奉命驾驶一架他从未摸过的过时了的皇家空军“角斗士”双翼战斗机,单独飞往利比亚,因燃油耗尽在沙漠迫降,飞机坠毁后,他严重受伤退出战斗。
伤愈后,他所在的80飞行中队被调动到希腊战区,在雅典空战中,他驾驶“飓风”战斗机与队友一起击落敌机22架。参与了数次其他战役后,劳阿尔因伤无法继续参战。他回到英国,成为了一个飞行教练,然后历任外交官、情报官,同时从事写作。
这样出生入死的经历,足够让这位身高近两米的文学家成为所有孩子的偶像。这里我们要读的,是他写给孩子父母们的劝他们少让孩子看电视的一首简单通俗的诗--《电视机》
(当然,从电视机发明到现在,电视节目的变化很大,就拿澳大利亚政府资助的儿童台ABC4Kids来说,上面的很多节目如Playschool、LazyTown、Mr Maker,还有一些优秀的动画片如Peppa Pig、Banana in Pajamas、Thomas and Friends等等,这些专门为儿童制作的节目,没有任何商业气息,节目气氛亲切友善,知识性和娱乐性都好,是非常值得推荐的。就拿我女儿来说,由于她常常在玩累了以后看这些节目,学到的东西很多,最典型的是社交礼仪。她的动手能力也强,而且,她的英语是幼儿园中所有不说英语的家庭里出来的孩子里边最好的。所以,电视机也不一定像诗人说的那样恐怖。不过,尽管如此,多读书少看电视,还是一个值得参考的原则。)
Television
by Roald Dahl
The most important thing we've learned,
So far as children are concerned,
Is never, NEVER, NEVER let
Them near your television set --
Or better still, just don't install
The idiotic thing at all.
In almost every house we've been,
We've watched them gaping at the screen.
They loll and slop and lounge about,
And stare until their eyes pop out.
(Last week in someone's place we saw
A dozen eyeballs on the floor.)
They sit and stare and stare and sit
Until they're hypnotised by it,
Until they're absolutely drunk
With all that shocking ghastly junk.
Oh yes, we know it keeps them still,
They don't climb out the window sill,
They never fight or kick or punch,
They leave you free to cook the lunch
And wash the dishes in the sink --
But did you ever stop to think,
To wonder just exactly what
This does to your beloved tot?
IT ROTS THE SENSE IN THE HEAD!
IT KILLS IMAGINATION DEAD!
IT CLOGS AND CLUTTERS UP THE MIND!
IT MAKES A CHILD SO DULL AND BLIND
HE CAN NO LONGER UNDERSTAND
A FANTASY, A FAIRYLAND!
HIS BRAIN BECOMES AS SOFT AS CHEESE!
HIS POWERS OF THINKING RUST AND FREEZE!
HE CANNOT THINK -- HE ONLY SEES!
'All right!' you'll cry. 'All right!' you'll say,
'But if we take the set away,
What shall we do to entertain
Our darling children? Please explain!'
We'll answer this by asking you,
'What used the darling ones to do?
'How used they keep themselves contented
Before this monster was invented?'
Have you forgotten? Don't you know?
We'll say it very loud and slow:
THEY ... USED ... TO ... READ! They'd READ and READ,
AND READ and READ, and then proceed
To READ some more. Great Scott! Gadzooks!
One half their lives was reading books!
The nursery shelves held books galore!
Books cluttered up the nursery floor!
And in the bedroom, by the bed,
More books were waiting to be read!
Such wondrous, fine, fantastic tales
Of dragons, gypsies, queens, and whales
And treasure isles, and distant shores
Where smugglers rowed with muffled oars,
And pirates wearing purple pants,
And sailing ships and elephants,
And cannibals crouching 'round the pot,
Stirring away at something hot.
(It smells so good, what can it be?
Good gracious, it's Penelope.)
The younger ones had Beatrix Potter
With Mr. Tod, the dirty rotter,
And Squirrel Nutkin, Pigling Bland,
And Mrs. Tiggy-Winkle and-
Just How The Camel Got His Hump,
And How the Monkey Lost His Rump,
And Mr. Toad, and bless my soul,
There's Mr. Rat and Mr. Mole-
Oh, books, what books they used to know,
Those children living long ago!
So please, oh please, we beg, we pray,
Go throw your TV set away,
And in its place you can install
A lovely bookshelf on the wall.
Then fill the shelves with lots of books,
Ignoring all the dirty looks,
The screams and yells, the bites and kicks,
And children hitting you with sticks-
Fear not, because we promise you
That, in about a week or two
Of having nothing else to do,
They'll now begin to feel the need
Of having something to read.
And once they start -- oh boy, oh boy!
You watch the slowly growing joy
That fills their hearts. They'll grow so keen
They'll wonder what they'd ever seen
In that ridiculous machine,
That nauseating, foul, unclean,
Repulsive television screen!
And later, each and every kid
Will love you more for what you did.
电视机
欧阳京译
我们学到最重要的事,
关于孩子
就是绝对、绝对、绝对不要让
他们靠近电视机--
或者,干脆不要装
那个白痴的东西
几乎所有的家里,
都看到他们盯着电视
靠着、歪着、瞪着眼珠
目光呆滞
(上周某个地方
我们就看到十多双眼珠坐在地上)
盯着,坐着,坐着,盯着
痴醉如痴
神魂颠倒
为那些恐怖惊人的垃圾
是的,它让孩子们安静
不会爬出窗子
不再打闹、踢人、推搡
好让你把午餐预备
洗刷碟碗
可你是否停下来想想
这对你孩子到底有什么影响?
它朽坏了理智!
抹杀了想象!
梗塞了心灵!
让孩子沉闷迷茫!
他不再懂得
仙境、幻想!
头脑软的像奶酪一样!
不再思考,只是看到!
“那好吧!”你喊着。“那好吧!”你说
如果我们拿走电视机
我们用什么来娱乐
亲爱的孩子!
为了回答你我先问一个问题
亲爱的孩子们以前怎么过的?
没有电视这个怪物以前
他们如何保持满意?
难道你忘了?难道你们不知?
让我慢慢地大声告诉你
以-前-他-们-读-书,读-了-又-读
读-了-又-读,读了一本
再来一本,天呐!上帝!
他们一半的时间,都在读!
儿童房的柜子,就是书架!
地上散落的也满是书!
卧室里,床头柜上
还有更多的书可读!
多么奇妙精致的故事
恐龙、吉普赛人、鲸鱼和女王
金银岛,遥远的海岸
走私贩偷偷地划着桨
穿紫色裤子海盗
帆船,大象
食人族围着大锅蹲着
热气腾腾搅着,
闻起来好香,那是什么?
天啊,那是佩涅罗珀!(奥德赛美丽的妻子)
小点的就读碧翠丝
《松鼠纳特金》,《温吞小猪》
《提姬.温克尔太太》
《托德先生》那个泥腿子
骆驼为何有驼
猴子为何没有屁股
或者《蟾蜍先生》,
老天保佑,老鼠和鼹鼠
哦,书,熟悉的书,
从前的孩子都爱书!
所以,我祈求你、请求你、哀求你、
扔掉你的电视机。
在那空白的墙上,
装一个可爱的书柜
再把书架填满书籍
别在乎书的新旧和外表
别怕孩子们的叫喊和咬踢,
或者用棍子打你。
因为我们可以保证,
过了一两个星期的
无所事事
他们一定会想起
要把书来读
一旦开始了--哇!
你看快乐就开始慢慢
填满他们们的心房,
随着他们越来越热衷于阅读
你会感叹
他们都从那个可笑的机器
恶心、肮脏、罪恶
讨厌的电视屏幕
都学到了些什么!
译注:
诗里说的这些书都是绘本,和Roald的书,以及其他书本一起,散落在我家各个房间,闺女爱读书,读得尤其快,一个上午可以读完一本哈利波特,读完到处乱扔。尤其值得一提的是,碧翠丝的书朗朗顺口,非常有节奏感和少许诗意,适合家庭朗读。 |