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道不尽的无奈,洗不净的悲哀
------------------ 试论《肉身菩萨》的悲剧意识

摘要: 《肉身菩萨》的作家朱天文是台湾女小说家,她著名的短篇小说有《世界末的华丽》, 《荒人手记》,等。 《肉身菩萨》所描绘勾勒的,正是都会意志下疲惫的众生的存在状况和精神状况。[1]它虽隶属于《世纪末的华丽》小说集中的一篇短篇小说,但是却有其非凡的独立性。并且也是一本奠定朱天文在台湾文坛地位的同志小说《荒人手记》的前身。本篇论文将从两方面去去讨论《肉身菩萨》的悲剧意识。分别为形而下和形而上的讨论,形而下会分成客观和主观因素去探讨其悲剧意识,而形而上主要是从朱天文的写作手法去揭示掩盖其中的悲剧。这两个部分都与题目中‘肉身菩萨’的意象紧密相连,并且各自发散独立的一体去着重揭示悲剧的社会性以及必然性。

[1] 朱伟诚。《台湾同志小说选》二鱼文化事业有限公司,台湾台北,2005年6月。168
前言:
朱天文在《肉身菩萨》这部悲剧小说中作者用第三人称的手法去描述了一个同性恋者的故事。从侧面表现了形而上和形而下两者之间剧烈的矛盾思想和紧密联系。从朱天文的写作手法和主、客观因素中我们可以看到作者是如何把肉身菩萨这个意向影射到悲剧意识上[2]。 那么作者到底是怎样用文字去描述了这样一个荒凉无力的悲剧,以及为何就算是用显著的去污写作手法去帮助同志还其原貌,却又没有能帮同志平反而大团圆收场呢?

从形而下看小说的悲剧意识 形而下,顾名思义是研究题目《肉身菩萨》中的肉身,这是形式的,个体的东西。更多的要求是在个体的选择。本文作为一篇短篇同志小说,也是朱天文另一个著名同志小说《荒人手记》的前身。朱天文在创造这篇作品的时候,宏观下有意识的去契合酷儿理论,她希望边缘群体的感受能够被主流意识形态所接受,并且要求他们有一定的话有权。 在文中,作者并没有有意的支出同志的边缘化,并且从主人公小佟的遭遇我们可以看出,他所谓的爱情与社会上认同的异性恋会发生同样的遭遇。都会遭遇暴力行为,例如文章开篇被贾霸强暴;都会有外遇,或者都会有对象不止一个的问题,总而言之,常态爱情中所遇到的美好的和糟糕的他都会遇到。加上朱天文不同于西方其他的同志文学描写手法去丑化同志,例如《魂断威尼斯》中将同性恋比作是瘟疫。全书通篇未也甚至没有让肉欲赤裸裸的以本来面目呈现,总是被可以的规避,化为美感已经或六百省略[3]。作者用这样去污的描写手法,她并没有持否定或支持的态度,只是还同志一个本来的面目,希望站在一个社会大的角度上去正确的看待这些边缘人群。 有些悲剧小说从揭示悲剧人物的选择,从而表述悲剧形成的客观社会原因[4],也就是其社会性。从微观的角度上,笔者看出作者在描写个体选择的时候,作者着重强调了主人公以及钟霖的选择,在主观和客观的因素上从形而下的表现手法去揭示悲剧的社会性。 首先,从主观因素去看,以主人公小佟为例,自从他十五岁的夏天被村眷中篮球好手贾霸强暴之后,他便看似被迫选择了自己的性取向。实际上,选择永远是人类一个主观的操纵。每个人可能在社会上多多少少接受了不同的思想,不同的生活习惯之后产生表面上的一层行为操守,但是一个人的本质是无法改变的。所以与其说贾霸是小佟人生上的一个污点或者误导,倒不如说他是帮助主人公发现其本质的催化剂。在这个催化剂的作用下面,主人公第一次对自己的性取向进行了选择。小佟异于大众的性取向表明,虽然他生理上并没有改变,但是他的社会性却是变动的、不固定的、不断变化的[5]。主人公内心的女性思想在那一刻被释放,可是由于自己是处于男儿身,他内心的‘自我’在现实社会中找不到出口。所以肉身变为累赘,是阻碍他解放在社会这个牢笼中的重要条件。于是他便试图将自己封锁在‘十五岁’这个时空里,只是这样脱离社会的个体是无法正常生存的。这里作者揭示,选择成为边缘人群是奠定悲剧的社会性的基础之一。 第二,主人公在压抑的社会准则下变成了一具行尸走肉。“大哉问”[6]表示他没有生活的目标,与十六岁和十七岁进行性交表现他没有基本的道德标准。马斯诺曾提出人类有五大需求,分别是生理需要,安全需要,社交需要,尊重需要,以及最终的自我实现需要。小说主人公仅仅停留在最基本的生理需求层次,并试图以肉欲的释放去解压。如文中形容的,他

[2] 同上
[3] 朱伟诚。《台湾同志小说选》。178
[4]吴功正。《小说美学》江苏人民出版社。1985年6月第一次印刷。471
[5] 张红。《从禁忌到解放——20世纪西方性观念的演变》。重庆出版社,2006-4-1. 205
[6] 朱天文。 《肉身菩萨》。http://vip.book.sina.com.cn/book/chapter_132877_85413.html 2012.5.2
只是一个情色的痨鬼,半夜变为鬼魅,样子奇丑无比,不堪入目。作者对于小佟心理上以及外貌的描写突出了他肉体上的堕落。对于情色,主人公是无法压抑的。不得不承认,在他的心里也是对此事件进行了挣扎。他曾经试图压抑情欲,只是效果适得其反。事实证明,他无法生活在以强迫异性恋机制为法则的社会下,看着那被那机制所建构出的同性恋情欲像野兽一样前行。他选择了纵情于色欲的海洋,即便这样的环境榨干他,让他变得像木乃伊一样也义无反顾。所以,事情的惩罚有时候往往不是出自事件的本质,而是执行者专横的意志,也就是他的过渡性交、滥交。悲剧是喑哑的,主人公自知痛苦但是无法发生才是悲剧的最高境界。在这里,作者将选择对于悲剧的重要性提高了层次,从之前的群体选择转换到了个人意志的选择去加深悲剧的社会性。
最后,朱天文还在客观因素上去揭示了选择带来的悲剧意识。这里就不得不谈到钟霖。他是一个转折性的人物,他给了主人公最后救赎的希望却又亲手毁灭。钟霖与主人公的纠缠,不是说他对主人公没有一点感情,而是仅仅当成自己平淡生活的一点“刺激”。而这种刺激只能作为非常规生活的存在方式。这是现代许多男性都有的心态。一个安稳的家,一个火辣的情人。归根到底,钟琳的肉体同样是堕落的,只不过他比主人公要好些,因为他还有一个女朋友要应付,也就是被琐碎和正规的生活所束缚,在一定程度上不会受到社会的排挤。社会上有些爱情是可以被接受的,正如一男一女搭配的异性恋;但是有些就是不被世俗所推崇,甚至遭受到极度鄙视的,这就是作品中所描述的同志情愫。当情感遭到了社会上的约定俗成的规律所相斥,那么这样的感情就是不被理解以及不可实用的。作者便在形而下中最后从钟霖的选择上客观的表达,同志虽然被还原以及出现可能被救赎的迹象,但是在社会这个大的牢笼下人类会惯性的去选择所谓的‘正规’,正因为有这样‘正规’的存在,让悲剧从个人意志提升到社会的集体意识,也是对于悲剧社会性最重要的点睛之笔。

二、从形而上看小说的悲剧意识 朱天文在创造小说的时候,极为明显的写作手法是上段中提到的去污手法。她不仅仅只是将情欲的过程隐藏,并且还极力的将肉身,即为形而下的堕落通过精神上,即是对于人物形而上的提升而进行超脱。作者试图将上段中所总结的三种形而下的悲剧通过精神层面解决,只是悲剧并没有因此而歼灭反而加深,并且也与此同时表现了悲剧的另一性质——必然

性。这样的主题在朱天文的写作手法中能够清晰的表现出来,下面笔者会分两个作者重要的写作手法为形而上所造成的悲剧意识进行解释。 第一种朱天文的写作手法是她赋予小佟对于佛教的错误理解。文中作者曾多次用到印度的传说以及资料,这样的写作手法让文章弥漫了一种宗教的气息。题目中的菩萨,来自印度的传说,也是是佛教术语,指普度众生的人。佛教要求教众清心寡欲,消除欲望给人带来的种种痛苦,从而获得精神上超脱物欲的快乐。这里的痛苦就是主人公异于社会的性取向,而超脱物欲的快乐则指的是将形而下的痛苦转换为形而上的解脱,以至于超越的化俗为圣的道路。[7]在这里,作者从小佟童年中记忆深刻的‘木柴鱼’与印度传说中的‘摩诃国小王子舍身饲虎’与‘尸毗王割肉贸鸽’进行挂钩。他认为,只有达到像苦行僧那样对于自己肉体上的折磨才能够得到精神上的升华。人的思想分两种,一种是对灵魂公平的理智,一种是对肉体公平的感情。这两者之间是互相羁绊的,只有用正确的方式,即从精神的超脱去超越肉身的价值,才能得到真正意义上的切割。主人公无法放弃形而下的羁绊,至终不能达到苦行僧的水平,这归结于错误的参透佛教理论,以肉体作为道场来超越精神这样错误的方向加深

[7] 朱伟诚。《台湾同志小说选》185
了自身的迷乱。精神超脱本是帮助人得以平静的工具,主人公这里却为达到这个目的进行形而下的纵欲乃至无法自控。因此,作者在这里用主人公对于佛教的偏执理解表露形而下阻挡精神超脱的一个悲剧的必然性。
朱天文的另一个写作手法则是在文中赋予主人公小佟的一种特殊功能,对于嗅觉官能的敏感以及执著。朱天文试图将情欲美化到官能的范畴,感官与幻想的经验合二为一,又不断分裂为似真似梦的片断映像。[8]文中曾多次以麝香和松脂的醚味去侧面暗示主人公的情欲过程。当贾霸在小佟十五岁的夏天把他强暴的时候,‘麝香跟松脂的气味,把他醚昏。”[9]这里的醚味是一个引子并且起到了暗示下文的作用,奠定了小佟之后对待情欲上对于气味的执著以及强烈的记忆。作者也在后面当小佟与钟霖,十七岁和十六岁相遇的时候分别突出了主人公在他们身上寻找到的松脂的醚味。波赫士有一篇小说叫《强记者傅涅斯》[10]。这个故事是朱天文在一次采访中提到对自己创作有最大影响的元素。与文中小佟联系,朱天文也在竭尽全力的去塑造他是傅涅斯的形象。作者暗示感官知觉可以使人性免于毁灭[11]。朱天文从小佟对于感官的执著性,用复插的方式去强调作者自身的价值观和世界观,她认为情欲是可以被美化和升华的,它能被净化到一种仅限于官能上的认识以及记忆的重现。作者尝试将精神上的解脱转化为爱情,阐明爱情是两个人的事情,与性别无关。只是最后主人公的爱情要进行净化的时候,他选择了放弃对于气味的执著,这里也为下文暗示感官知觉无法达到真正的形而上的超脱埋下伏笔。朱天文在这里想要强调人类已经被一种主流性的思想所捆绑而不自知,在这样的主流环境下是很难得到真正的解放,当思想已经被捆绑的时候悲剧的必然性就从肉身的羁绊上升到了精神层面其本身,如若本来精神就是被捆绑的,那么就算是达到了一定的高度还是无法得到真正的救赎。看似有出口却无出口的悲哀才是悲剧的真正精化,这样的主题也在文中两个‘十五岁那年的夏天’得到印证,无论是文中的人物还是朱天文作者本身,都无法将一个色情乌托邦在现实社会中实现。这里尽显了作者文笔下的苍白与无力。

[8] 王德威。《跨世纪风筝:当代小说20家》。麦田出版社,台湾。2002年8月1日。28
[9] 朱天文。 《肉身菩萨》
[10] 描述傅涅斯在一次一匹灰蓝马把他摔下来的那个落雨的午后以前,他跟大部分人类一样,眼盲,耳聋, 嘴哑、心理恍惚、记忆模糊,从马上摔下来,他失去了知觉,醒来时,眼前的一切显得既庞杂又鲜明,强烈到他承受不了,连最遥远、最琐碎的记忆也是。好比人们平常可以看见一张桌子上的三个杯子,弗涅斯却可以看见一株葡萄树藤上所有的叶子、卷须和葡萄。他默记着某年某月某日破晓时分南方天空云朵的形状,且这些云朵马上跟他仅看过一次的某本皮革封面的纹路并比,跟某次战役里一支船桨在某河划起的线条比较。而且他的每一个视觉意象都跟力感、热感等相关联。他可以掌握一支变换不停的火焰不可胜数的灰烬,一次实践托长的守灵过程中一个死人的许多不同的脸部变化。
[11] 张诵圣。文学场域的变迁。台北市基隆路一段180号10楼,2001年6月。110
结语:
按照生活的规定性,“毁灭”有价值的事物,引起人们的普遍的社会警醒[12]其实就是朱天文创作《肉身菩萨》的主要目的。作者主张在否定[肉]的基础上,隐含了灵肉可以分家的主张,[13]只是,其两者的关系是对立的,各自有各自所要延伸的方向,而相互为敌,相互否定,难以共存。[14]形而上与形而下互相羁绊拉扯这样矛盾思想,恰恰的跟文章的题目《肉身菩萨》相呼应。朱天文还注意表现悲剧形成的主、客观的双重因素,它们内在相互转化的联系。[15]也是这样的一本书让笔者看到不仅仅只是同性恋的社会问题,它隐藏在背后关于作者对于人性本质的探讨和苍白无力的对抗让我不禁着迷以及叹服。

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