How fiction can change reality - Jessica Wise

小說如何改變現實 - 潔西卡懷思 (Jessica Wise)

譯者: Hao-Wei Chang 審譯者: Allen Li

Emily Dickinson said over a century ago

愛蜜莉狄金森 100 多年前曾說： (Emily Dickinson)

that "There is no frigate like a book to take us lands away ..."

沒有船能像書本，載我們遊歷異邦

一點也沒錯

And it's true.

When we pick up a book, turn on the TV, or watch a movie,

只要拿起書、開電視、看電影

we're carried away down the currents of story into a world of imagination.

我們就被故事帶往幻想世界

And when we land, on a shore that is both new and familiar,

踏上陌生又熟悉的海岸

接下來，怪事發生了

something strange happens.

Stepping onto the shore, we're changed.

踏上海岸時，我們改變了

We don't retrace the footsteps of the authors

我們不再追隨作者或主角的足跡

or characters we followed here.

No; instead, we walk a mile in their shoes.

而是用他們的眼睛看世界

Researchers in psychology, neuroscience, child development and biology

心理學、神經科學、兒童發展學、 和生物學的研究人員

are finally starting to gain quantifiable scientific evidence,

終於開始提出量化的科學證據

證明作家和讀者早就知道的事：

showing what writers and readers have always known:

that stories have a unique ability to change a person's point of view.

故事有改變個人觀點的獨特力量

Scholars are discovering evidence that stories shape culture,

學者發現了故事形塑文化的證據

and that much of what we believe about life comes not from fact,

我們的許多觀點，並非來自現實

but from fiction -

而是小說

that our ideas of class, marriage and even gender are relatively new,

我們對階級、婚姻、性別的觀念

推翻了數百年根深蒂固的意識型態

and that many ideologies which held fast for centuries

were revised within the 18th century,

18 世紀時被修正，寫進當時小說

and redrafted in the pages of the early novel.

Imagine a world where class, and not hard work,

想像一個世界 個人價值由階級而非努力決定、

decides a person's worth;

a world where women are simply men's more untamed copy;

女人只是未馴化的男人、

自由戀愛結婚是前衛的想法

a world where marriage for love is a novel notion.

Well, that was the world in which Samuel Richardson's "Pamela"

這是塞繆爾理查森寫愛情小說《潘蜜拉》 的時代背景 (Samuel Richardson)

first appeared.

Richardson's love story starred a poor, serving-class heroine,

女主角是個貧窮的僕人

who is both more superior and smarter than her upper-class suitor.

但才德遠勝於上流社會的追求者

The book, challenging a slew of traditions,

這本書挑戰了許多傳統觀念

caused quite a ruckus.

造成一時輿論譁然

There was more press for "Pamela" than for Parliament.

媒體報導《潘蜜拉》比國會還多

It spawned intense debate and several counter-novels.

引發激烈論戰和幾本相反觀點小說

Still, for all those who couldn't accept "Pamela,"

雖然許多人無法接受《潘蜜拉》

others were eager for this new fictional world.

還是有人渴望書中描寫的新世界

This best seller and all its literary heirs -

這本暢銷小說，和所有後繼的作品

"Pride and Prejudice," "Jane Eyre," and yes, even "Twilight" -

傲慢與偏見、簡愛、甚至暮光之城

have continuously shared the same tale and taught similar lessons,

持續分享相同故事、傳達相同理念

which are now conventional and commonplace.

現在已成了傳統，甚至陳腔濫調

Similarly, novels have helped shape the minds of thought leaders

相似的，小說也參與塑造

across history.

歷史上領導人物的心靈

Some scholars say that Darwin's theory of evolution

有些學者認為達爾文的進化論 (Charles Darwin)

is highly indebted to the plots he read and loved.

受到他喜愛的故事情節影響很大

His theory privileges intelligence, swiftness, and adaptability to change -

進化論強調智力、敏捷、適應力

這些都是英雄人物的特徵

all core characteristics in a hero.

Whether you're reading "Harry Potter" or "Great Expectations,"

不論你讀哈利波特、或孤星血淚 (Harry Potter) (Great Expectations)

you're reading the kind of plot that inspired Darwin.

都會讀到啟發達爾文的那種情節

Yet, recent studies show that his theory might not be the whole story.

近期研究顯示，他的理論不見得正確

Our sense of being a hero - one man or one woman

要成為超人、女超人、或超人族

or even one species taking on the challenges of the world -

以承擔世界的挑戰，想法可能錯誤

might be wrong.

Instead of being hardwired for competition

與其在自己的故事裡

for being the solitary heroes in our own story,

想強出頭，成為孤獨的英雄

we might instead be members of a shared quest.

不如成為探索之旅的成員

More Hobbit than Harry.

比起哈利波特，我們更像哈比人

Sometimes, of course, the shoes we've been walking in

有時候書中觀念已成陳腔濫調

can get plain worn out.

After all, we haven't walked just one mile

畢竟我們陪珍奧斯汀或馬克吐溫 不止是一小段路

in Jane Austen's or Mark Twain's shoes -

we've walked about 100 trillion miles in them.

而是一段漫長歲月的旅程

This isn't to say that we can't read and enjoy the classics;

這不是說，我們不該享受經典名著

we should travel with Dickens,

而是應該和狄更斯一起旅行 (Charles Dickens)

let Pip teach us what to expect from ourselves,

讓孤星血淚的男主角皮普 (Pip) 教我們認清自己的期望

have a talk with Austen and Elizabeth about our prides and prejudices.

該對珍奧斯汀與主角伊麗莎白 說出自己的傲慢與偏見 (Jane Austen)

We should float with Twain down the Mississippi,

該和馬克吐溫一起在密西西比河上 (Mark Twain)

and have Jim show us what it means to be good.

讓頑童流浪記的吉姆，告訴我們 何謂善良 (Adventures of Huckleberry Finn)

But on our journey, we should also keep in mind

在旅程中，我們要謹記

that the terrain has changed.

時代已經改變了

We'll start shopping around for boots

我們必須用新想法，面對新世界

that were made for walking into a new era.

Take, for instance, Katniss Everdeen and her battle with the Capitol.

例如飢餓遊戲女主角凱妮絲艾佛丁 對都城的戰爭 (The Hunger Games)

Can "Hunger Games" lead us into thinking about capitalism in a new way?

能否帶領我們 以新角度思考資本主義？

Can it teach us a lesson

能否教導我們 個人利益不該凌駕團體？

about why the individual should not put herself before the group?

Will "Uglies" reflect the dangers of pursuing a perfect body

小說《醜人兒》 (Uglies) 是否能 反映出追求完美體態…

and letting the media define what is beautiful?

以及讓媒體定義「美麗」的危險？

Will "Seekers" trod a path beyond global warming?

《熊行者》 (Seekers) 是否能 踏出解決全球暖化之道？

Will the life-and-death struggles of Toklo, Kallik, Lusa and the other bears

小棕熊托克羅 (Toklo)、 小北極熊卡莉 (Kallik)、

小黑熊露莎 (Lusa) 和熊族的 生存奮鬥，能否讓我們

chart a course for understanding animals and our place in their world?

關懷動物、了解責任？

Only the future will tell which stories will engage our imagination,

未來才知，哪些故事激發想像

哪些故事形塑我們的未來

which tales of make-believe we'll make tomorrow.

But the good news is this:

但好消息是：

there are new stories to venture in every day,

每天都有新的故事可以冒險

new tales that promise to influence, to create and to spark change -

帶來影響、創造、和改變的契機

stories that you might even write yourself.

甚至你也可以寫自己的故事！

So I guess the final question is this:

我想最終的問題是：

What story will you try on next?

接下來，你要走進哪個故事呢？