Life Is Hard. Art Helps | Liana Finck | TED

譯者: Jieming Lan 審譯者: Shelley Tsang 曾雯海

The ways of the world often baffle me.

這世道常常使我困惑。

I sometimes wonder if I missed the memo about the most basic things.

我有時會想， 我是否錯過了最基本的什麼東西。

What are you supposed to make for dinner?

你晚飯該做什麼？

What do you talk about in an elevator?

你在電梯裡都聊什麼？

Why do people cut in line?

人們為什麼插隊？

How do you leave a dinner party without being rude?

離開晚宴時如何不失禮？

Or do you leave it all?

還是根本不要離開？

["Why are you still here?"]

[“你怎麼還在這？”]

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

My tendency to see the world like I'm from outer space

我看世界的方式好像我來自外太空，

was a bit of a liability when I was a kid.

在我小時候，這對我造成了負擔。

True story.

這是真的。

["What's a noogie?"]

[“什麼是暱稱？”]

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

But it's been helpful in my career.

但這對我的事業有幫助。

I'm a cartoonist.

我是漫畫家。

When I first started making cartoons for The New Yorker about a decade ago,

大概十年前， 我剛開始為《紐約客》畫漫畫時，

I kept my ideas light and quirky.

我的想法輕鬆又古怪。

And please shout out if you don't get any of them,

如果你完全看不懂，請告訴我，

I'll explain.

我會解釋給你聽。

(Laughter)

（笑聲） [“花樣游泳隊退場”]

["The synchronized swim team quits"]

I didn't draw anything too personal.

我沒有畫什麼太私人的東西。

["Unicorns do exist!"]

[“獨角獸是存在的！”]

I mean, personal for someone.

我的意思是，對某人來說是私人的。

I figured I was too specific,

我想我說的太具體了，

too hard to relate to and read, possibly, too female.

難以理解，以及讀起來可能太女性化。

It took a breakup.

這需要一次分手。

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

["I know there would be a time

[“我知道總有一天

I could wear them without destroying my feet."]

我可以不傷腳地穿著它。”]

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

It took a breakup to get me to start drawing more autobiographically.

某次失戀讓我開始畫更多的自傳。

The pain I was feeling, although objectively pretty run of the mill,

雖然這很普通，

was impossible to ignore.

但我無法忽視我感受到的傷痛。

[Tunnel of love]

[愛的隧道]

I knew that drying was my strongest problem-solving tool.

我知道畫畫是我解決問題最有力的工具。

So I decided to diagram what I was going through.

所以我決定把我的經歷畫下來。

[Tunnel of love. Just kidding. Wall of death.]

[愛的隧道。開個玩笑。死路。]

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

By making these drawings, I could see how my ex and I had hurt each other.

通過這些畫，我明白我和前任如何互相傷害。

And move on.

然後繼續。

Onto other breakups.

繼續經歷其他分手。

["Again?" Pit of despair]

[“再來？”絕望深淵]

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

Drawing from my own life was a revelation to me,

對我來說，從生活中汲取靈感對，

not only because it helped me understand myself better,

不僅幫助我更好地瞭解我自己，

but because it made me see for the first time

還讓我第一次看到

that people could relate to me.

我和他人的關係。

Now that I had this amazing tool,

現在我有一個很棒的工具，

there were so many problems I wanted to solve with it.

我想要用它解決有很多問題。

The problem of scheduling.

時間安排的問題。

[Work | Family / Friends]

[工作｜家庭 / 朋友]

The problem of too many things happening all at the same time.

許多事情同時發生的問題。

[ "I'm having a birthday party! "I'm visiting New York!"]

[“我要辦生日派對！我要去紐約玩！”]

The problem, relatedly, of time.

與時間有關的問題。

[Childhood / now]

[童年 / 現在]

And finally, dating again.

直到最後，再次約會。

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

There's an endless amount to say about dating.

關於約會的討論永無止境。

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

There are, of course, problems

當然，這些問題

that can't be summed up in a single drawing.

不能被一張簡單的畫概括。

For these problems, you need many drawings.

為了這些問題，你需要很多張畫。

One more complex problem I have is with God.

有個更複雜的問題是關於上帝的。

I'm Jewish, so I'm talking about the God of the Old Testament.

我是猶太人，所以我討論的是《舊約》中的上帝。

My problem with God isn't actually a big problem.

我對上帝的問題實際上不是一個大問題。

It's just, I don't know, it's stayed with me.

我不確定，只是它一直伴隨著我。

My problem with God is that he's too confident.

我對上帝的問題是，他太自信了。

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

For me, creation is an act of solving problems,

對我來說，創作是解決問題的藝術。

of figuring things out.

是搞清楚事情的藝術。

God already seems to have everything figured out.

上帝似乎早已把一切想明白了。

He strikes me as more of a king than a creator.

與其說他對我來說是造物主，倒不如說是國王。

And I'm not sure you can be both.

我不確定可不可以同時成立。

As an experiment,

作為一個實驗，

I decided to remake the Book of Genesis as a graphic novel.

我決定把《創世紀》改變為圖畫小說。

My version of God is not confident.

我這個版本的上帝並不自信。

And maybe not coincidentally,

可能不巧，

she's a woman.

她是個女人。

It surprised me how few changes I needed to make to the original text,

驚喜的是，我只需要對鬆散古老的內容做很少的改動，

which is sparse and ancient and lends itself well to interpretation.

就能使它們通俗易懂。

For example,

比方說，

the Bible opens in this mysterious, moody way

《聖經》以這種神秘和情緒化的方式，

with God floating aimlessly on the face of a dark, mysterious void.

使上帝漫無目的地漂浮在黑暗神秘的虛空中。

In my version, I have her floating this way

在我的版本中，我讓她這樣漂浮，

because she's feeling despondent about her limitations as an artist.

因為她對自己作為藝術家的侷限感到絕望。

She's made this messy, wet, mixed up dark first drafts of the world,

她創造了這個混亂、潮濕、混雜黑暗的世界藍圖，

and she just doesn't know where to go from here.

她只是不知道何去何從。

My version of God doesn't know exactly what she's doing,

我眼中的上帝不知道她具體在做什麼，

but she draws a horizon line, and things start to fall into place.

但她畫了一條地平線，然後步入正軌。

She banishes Adam and Eve from the Garden of Eden,

她把亞當和夏娃逐出伊甸園，

not because they disobeyed her,

不是因為他們不服從她，

but because, by eating the apple and becoming wise,

而是因為他們吃了蘋果而變得聰明，

she feels they have outgrown the world she created for them,

她覺得他們超越了自己為他們創造的世界，

and she needs to let them go.

因此她需要讓他們走出去。

She scatters the builders of the Tower of Babel,

她驅散了巴別塔的建造者，

not because she's threatened by their power,

不是因為她被他們的力量所威脅，

but because, like any introvert,

而是和其他內向的人一樣，

she needs her privacy.

她需要隱私。

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

When she destroys the world in the story of Noah,

當她在諾亞的故事中毀滅世界時，

it's not because she's incensed with mankind,

不是因為她被人類激怒了，

but because she's incensed with herself.

而是因為她對自己感到憤怒。

She knows she could have done a better job when she made us.

她知道她本可以做得更好。

My adaptation of the Book of Genesis

我對《創世紀》的改編

is a creation story full of false starts and absurdities.

是一個充滿了虛假和荒謬的創意故事。

But it's a creation story all the same.

但所有創意故事都一樣。

One in which a self-conscious woman,

一個有自我意識的女人，

even though she worries and makes mistakes,

即使她害怕犯錯，

is nonetheless a successful, committed artist.

她仍然是一位成功、專注的藝術家。

When I finished my book,

當我完成這本書時，

I did feel a new connection to the God of the Torah

我感到和托拉上帝有了新的連結，

and a new sense of belonging to my religion.

感到對我的信仰有了新的歸屬感。

I also felt a new sense of belonging,

我也感受到了新的歸屬感，

period.

毫無疑問。

It's lonely being someone who has no idea how to act normal.

作為一個不知道如何正常表現的人是孤獨的。

But it's profoundly less lonely being that person

但在一個由同樣尷尬、有自我意識的上帝

in a world created for her

創造的世界裡，

by an equally awkward, self-conscious God.

作為那樣的人感到的孤獨會大大減少。

These days,

最近，

when I worry that I won't know what to make for dinner,

當我擔心不知道晚飯該做什麼時，

I remind myself that God wouldn't know either.

我會提醒自己，上帝同樣也不知道。

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

This picture is giving me anxiety.

這張圖讓我不安。

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

It's like, literally, I drew it from life.

這就像，真來自我的生活。

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

This gives me the confidence

這給我自信，

to embrace my cluelessness and just wing it.

去擁抱我的無知，然後放手去做

Thank you, thank you so much.

謝謝，十分感謝。

(Cheers and applause)

（歡呼聲、掌聲）