The Call of the Wild《野性的呼喚》—追尋生命的自由與本真

杰克·倫敦(Jack London， 1876~1916)，美國(guó)著名的現(xiàn)實(shí)主義作家。他一生著作頗豐，為世人留下了19部長(zhǎng)篇小說(shuō)、150多篇短篇小說(shuō)以及大量文學(xué)報(bào)告集，還寫(xiě)了三個(gè)劇本以及相當(dāng)多的隨筆和論文。其最著名的代表作有《馬丁·伊登》(Martin Eden)、《野性的呼喚》(The Call of the Wild)、《白牙》(White Fang)、《海狼》(The Sea Wolf)、《鐵蹄》(The Iron Heel)等小說(shuō)，在全世界都廣為流傳。他的很多作品講述了美國(guó)下層人民的生活故事，揭露資本主義社會(huì)的罪惡，帶有濃厚的社會(huì)主義和個(gè)人主義色彩。

《野性的呼喚》，又名《荒野的呼喚》，是杰克·倫敦于1903年發(fā)表的著名小說(shuō)。小說(shuō)講述了一只名叫巴克(Buck)的家養(yǎng)犬，被販賣到美國(guó)北部寒冷偏遠(yuǎn)、盛產(chǎn)黃金的阿拉斯加，成了一只拉雪橇的狗，在極為惡劣的環(huán)境下，在飽受了各種虐待后，為了生存，最終回歸野性的故事。

下文節(jié)選自小說(shuō)第七章，講述了巴克因深愛(ài)的主人約翰·桑頓(John Thornton)被害而野性爆發(fā)的故事。As he held on he became more and more conscious of the new stir in the land. There was life abroad in it different from the life which had been there throughout the summer. Several times he stopped and drew in the fresh morning air in great sniffs， reading a message which made him leap on with greater speed. And as he crossed the last watershed1) and dropped down into the valley toward camp， he proceeded with greater caution.

Three miles away he came upon a fresh trail that sent his neck hair bristling2). It led straight toward camp and John Thornton. Buck hurried on， swiftly and stealthily3).

As Buck slid along with the obscureness of a gliding shadow， his nose was jerked suddenly to the side as though a positive force had gripped and pulled it. He followed the new scent into a thicket4) and found Nig. He was lying on his side， dead where he had dragged himself， an arrow protruding5) from either side of his body.

A hundred yards farther on， Buck came upon one of the sled-dogs Thornton had bought in Dawson. This dog was thrashing6) about in a death-struggle， directly on the trail， and Buck passed around him without stopping. From the camp came the faint sound of many voices. Bellying7) forward to the edge of the clearing， he found Hans， lying on his face， feathered with arrows like a porcupine8). At the same instant Buck peered out and saw what made his hair leap straight up on his neck and shoulders. A gust of overpowering rage swept over him. He did not know that he growled， but he growled aloud with a terrible ferocity9). For the last time in his life he allowed passion to usurp10) reason， and it was because of his great love for John Thornton that he lost his head.

The Yeehats11) were dancing when they heard a fearful roaring and saw rushing upon them an animal the like of which they had never seen before. It was Buck， a live hurricane of fury， hurling himself upon them in a frenzy to destroy. He sprang at the foremost man， ripping the throat wide open till the rent12) jugular13) spouted a fountain of blood. He did not pause to worry14) the victim， but ripped in passing， with the next bound tearing wide the throat of a second man. There was no withstanding him. He plunged about in their very midst， tearing， rending15)， destroying， in constant and terrific motion which defied the arrows they discharged16) at him. In fact， so inconceivably17) rapid were his movements， and so closely were the Indians tangled18)together， that they shot one another with the arrows. Then a panic seized the Yeehats， and they fled in terror to the woods， proclaiming as they fled the advent19) of the Evil Spirit.

And truly Buck was the Fiend20) incarnate21)， raging at their heels and dragging them down like deer as they raced through the trees. It was a fateful day for the Yeehats. They scattered far and wide over the The Call of the Wild country. As for Buck， wearying of the pursuit， he returned to the desolated camp. He found Pete where he had been killed in his blankets in the first moment of surprise. Thornton's desperate struggle was fresh-written on the earth， and Buck scented every detail of it down to the edge of a deep pool. By the edge， head and fore feet in the water， lay Skeet， faithful to the last. The pool itself， muddy and discolored from the sluice22) boxes， effectually hid what it contained， and it contained John Thornton; for Buck followed his trace into the water， from which no trace led away.

All day Buck brooded23) by the pool or roamed restlessly about the camp. Death， as a cessation24) of movement， as a passing out and away from the lives of the living， he knew， and he knew John Thornton was dead. It left a great void25) in him， somewhat akin to hunger， but a void which ached and ached， and which food could not fill. At times， when he paused to contemplate the carcasses26) of the Yeehats， he forgot the pain of it; and at such times he was aware of a great pride in himself—a pride greater than any he had yet experienced. He had killed man， the noblest game27) of all， and he had killed in the face of the law of club and fang28). He sniffed the bodies curiously. They had died so easily. It was harder to kill a husky29) dog than them. They were no match at all.1.watershed [#712;w#596;#720;t#601;#643;ed] n. 分水嶺

2.bristle [#712;br#618;sl] vi. (毛發(fā)因寒冷、恐懼、憤怒等而)豎立；直立

3.stealthily [#712;stelθ#618;li] adv. 悄悄地；偷偷摸摸地

4.thicket [#712;θ#618;k#618;t] n. 灌木叢

5.protrude [pr#601;#712;tru#720;d] vi. [正式]突出；凸出

6.thrash [θr#230;#643;] vi. 猛烈扭動(dòng)

7.belly [#712;beli] vi. 匍匐前進(jìn)，爬行

8.porcupine [#712;p#596;#720;kjupa#618;n] n. 豪豬；箭豬

9.ferocity [f#601;#712;r#594;s#601;ti] n. 兇猛；殘暴

10.usurp [ju#720;#712;z#604;#720;p] vt. [正式]奪取；據(jù)為己有

11.Yeehats: 印第安人，是作者虛構(gòu)的一個(gè)北美洲原住民部落，生性殘暴。

12.rent [rent] adj. 撕裂的；破裂的

13.jugular [#712;d#658;#652;ɡj#601;l#601;(r)] n. 頸靜脈

14.worry [#712;w#652;ri] vt. 撕咬，啃碎

15.rend [rend] vi. 撕裂，扯碎

16.discharge [d#618;s#712;t#643;ɑ#720;d#658;] vt. [舊]發(fā)射

17.inconceivably [#716;#618;nk#601;n#712;si#720;v#601;bli] adv. 難以置信地；不可思議地

18.tangle [#712;t#230;#331;ɡl] vt. 使混亂

19.advent [#712;#230;dvent] n. (尤指不尋常的人或事物的)出現(xiàn)，到來(lái)

20.fiend [fi#720;nd] n. 魔鬼

21.incarnate [#618;n#712;kɑ#720;n#601;t] adj. 化身的

22.sluice [slu#720;s] n. (淘洗金礦用的)流槽

23.brood [bru#720;d] vi. 沉思，默想

24.cessation [se#712;se#618;#643;n] n. [正式]停止

25.void [v#596;#618;d] n. 空寂；空虛感；寂寞感

26.carcass [#712;kɑ#720;k#601;s] n. (人的)尸體；軀殼

27.game [ɡe#618;m] n. 獵物

28.fang [f#230;#331;] n. (動(dòng)物的)鋒利長(zhǎng)牙，尖齒

29.husky [#712;h#652;ski] n. (用來(lái)拉雪橇的)愛(ài)斯基摩狗As he held on he became more and more conscious of the new stir in the land. There was life abroad in it different from the life which had been there throughout the summer. Several times he stopped and drew in the fresh morning air in great sniffs， reading a message which made him leap on with greater speed. And as he crossed the last watershed1) and dropped down into the valley toward camp， he proceeded with greater caution.

Three miles away he came upon a fresh trail that sent his neck hair bristling2). It led straight toward camp and John Thornton. Buck hurried on， swiftly and stealthily3).

As Buck slid along with the obscureness of a gliding shadow， his nose was jerked suddenly to the side as though a positive force had gripped and pulled it. He followed the new scent into a thicket4) and found Nig. He was lying on his side， dead where he had dragged himself， an arrow protruding5) from either side of his body.

A hundred yards farther on， Buck came upon one of the sled-dogs Thornton had bought in Dawson. This dog was thrashing6) about in a death-struggle， directly on the trail， and Buck passed around him without stopping. From the camp came the faint sound of many voices. Bellying7) forward to the edge of the clearing， he found Hans， lying on his face， feathered with arrows like a porcupine8). At the same instant Buck peered out and saw what made his hair leap straight up on his neck and shoulders. A gust of overpowering rage swept over him. He did not know that he growled， but he growled aloud with a terrible ferocity9). For the last time in his life he allowed passion to usurp10) reason， and it was because of his great love for John Thornton that he lost his head.

The Yeehats11) were dancing when they heard a fearful roaring and saw rushing upon them an animal the like of which they had never seen before. It was Buck， a live hurricane of fury， hurling himself upon them in a frenzy to destroy. He sprang at the foremost man， ripping the throat wide open till the rent12) jugular13) spouted a fountain of blood. He did not pause to worry14) the victim， but ripped in passing， with the next bound tearing wide the throat of a second man. There was no withstanding him. He plunged about in their very midst， tearing， rending15)， destroying， in constant and terrific motion which defied the arrows they discharged16) at him. In fact， so inconceivably17) rapid were his movements， and so closely were the Indians tangled18)together， that they shot one another with the arrows. Then a panic seized the Yeehats， and they fled in terror to the woods， proclaiming as they fled the advent19) of the Evil Spirit.

And truly Buck was the Fiend20) incarnate21)， raging at their heels and dragging them down like deer as they raced through the trees. It was a fateful day for the Yeehats. They scattered far and wide over the The Call of the Wild country. As for Buck， wearying of the pursuit， he returned to the desolated camp. He found Pete where he had been killed in his blankets in the first moment of surprise. Thornton's desperate struggle was fresh-written on the earth， and Buck scented every detail of it down to the edge of a deep pool. By the edge， head and fore feet in the water， lay Skeet， faithful to the last. The pool itself， muddy and discolored from the sluice22) boxes， effectually hid what it contained， and it contained John Thornton; for Buck followed his trace into the water， from which no trace led away.

All day Buck brooded23) by the pool or roamed restlessly about the camp. Death， as a cessation24) of movement， as a passing out and away from the lives of the living， he knew， and he knew John Thornton was dead. It left a great void25) in him， somewhat akin to hunger， but a void which ached and ached， and which food could not fill. At times， when he paused to contemplate the carcasses26) of the Yeehats， he forgot the pain of it; and at such times he was aware of a great pride in himself—a pride greater than any he had yet experienced. He had killed man， the noblest game27) of all， and he had killed in the face of the law of club and fang28). He sniffed the bodies curiously. They had died so easily. It was harder to kill a husky29) dog than them. They were no match at all.它繼續(xù)向前奔跑，越來(lái)越清晰地感覺(jué)到這片土地里的那股新的騷動(dòng)。這里還有其他生命，這些生命和這個(gè)夏天都生活在此的那些生命不一樣。好幾次它停了下來(lái)，大口呼吸著這清晨的新鮮空氣，從中捕捉到了一個(gè)訊息，這讓它更加快速地向前奔去。當(dāng)它跨過(guò)最后一個(gè)分水嶺，向下跑到通往營(yíng)地的山谷之中時(shí)，它更加小心謹(jǐn)慎地向前行進(jìn)。

離營(yíng)地還有三英里時(shí)，它發(fā)現(xiàn)一串剛留下的足跡，脖子上的毛不禁豎了起來(lái)。這串足跡直通向營(yíng)地，通向約翰·桑頓。巴克加快了腳步，跑得既迅疾又隱蔽。

巴克悄無(wú)聲息地狂奔著，幽暗的身影飄忽而過(guò)。它的鼻子突然被猛地引向了一邊，仿佛被一股實(shí)實(shí)在在的力量抓住并拽了過(guò)去。它循著這股新的氣味走進(jìn)了一處灌木叢，發(fā)現(xiàn)了尼格(編注：桑頓養(yǎng)的一條狗)。尼格側(cè)身躺著，顯然是掙扎著爬過(guò)來(lái)后就死在了這兒，一支箭射穿了它的身體。

再向前100碼，巴克發(fā)現(xiàn)了桑頓從道森買來(lái)的某只雪橇狗。這只狗就那樣躺在路上，拼命撲騰著，作著垂死的掙扎。巴克沒(méi)有停步，從它身邊繞了過(guò)去。營(yíng)地里傳來(lái)了很多微弱的聲音。巴克匍匐向前爬到了空地的邊緣，發(fā)現(xiàn)漢斯(編注：桑頓的朋友)臉朝下趴著，身上插滿了羽毛做的箭，像一頭豪豬似的。與此同時(shí)巴克向前方望了過(guò)去，眼前的景象令它脖子和肩上的毛直直地豎了起來(lái)，一陣難以遏抑的怒火席卷了它的全身。它沒(méi)有意識(shí)到自己在咆哮，但它咆哮得很大聲，聽(tīng)起來(lái)十分兇殘，令人聞聲喪膽。這是它生命中最后一次讓盛怒戰(zhàn)勝理智，正因?yàn)樗類?ài)著約翰·桑頓，所以它失去了理智。

那些印第安人正在跳舞，突然聽(tīng)到一聲令人恐怖的咆哮，看到一只像是他們前所未見(jiàn)的動(dòng)物沖向他們。這正是巴克，它活像一陣狂暴的颶風(fēng)，瘋狂地向他們猛撲過(guò)去，要將他們毀滅。巴克撲向最前面的人，把他的喉嚨撕開(kāi)一個(gè)大口子，直至破裂的頸靜脈噴出如注的鮮血。它沒(méi)有停下來(lái)去撕咬這個(gè)獵物，而是逮誰(shuí)咬誰(shuí)——它緊接著縱身一跳，將另一個(gè)人的喉嚨大口撕開(kāi)了。沒(méi)有人能擋得住它。它一頭扎進(jìn)他們正中間，啃咬著，撕扯著，毀滅著。它的動(dòng)作一刻不停，猶如風(fēng)馳電掣一般，令印第安人射向它的箭紛紛落空。實(shí)際上，它的動(dòng)作之迅速本就令人難以想象，而印第安人又亂作一團(tuán)，一個(gè)離一個(gè)那么近，以至于他們的箭都射在了自己人身上。接著，印第安人慌了手腳，驚恐萬(wàn)分地逃向樹(shù)林，一路跑一路喊魔鬼來(lái)了。

的確，巴克成了魔鬼的化身，狂暴地追攆著這些在樹(shù)林中奔突逃竄的印第安人，就像撲倒一頭頭鹿一樣把他們拽倒。這是印第安人災(zāi)難性的一天。他們?cè)谶@個(gè)充滿野性呼喚的荒野四散奔逃。而巴克追累了之后就回到了那個(gè)凄寂的營(yíng)地。它找到了皮特(編注：桑頓的朋友)，他身上蓋著毯子，在剛被驚醒的那一刻就讓人給殺了。桑頓拼死搏斗的痕跡還清晰地留在地上，巴克嗅著每一點(diǎn)蛛絲馬跡，一路來(lái)到了一汪深塘的邊緣。在池塘邊，斯開(kāi)特(編注：桑頓養(yǎng)的一條狗)躺在那里，頭和前腳耷拉在水里，忠心耿耿地守護(hù)著主人，直至生命最后一刻。池塘被淘金槽流過(guò)來(lái)的水弄得泥濘渾濁、骯臟不堪，完全掩蓋了池塘里的一切，包括約翰·桑頓——因?yàn)榘涂艘宦费暮圹E到了水里，水旁邊也沒(méi)有他離開(kāi)的痕跡。

一整天，巴克不是在池塘邊沉思，就是在營(yíng)地周圍焦躁不安地轉(zhuǎn)來(lái)轉(zhuǎn)去。死亡，是運(yùn)動(dòng)的終止，是生者生命的流逝和消亡，這它知道。它還知道，約翰·桑頓死了。這令它感到極度的空虛，有點(diǎn)像饑餓的感覺(jué)，但這種空虛感讓它疼痛不已，而且無(wú)法用食物來(lái)填滿。有時(shí)，當(dāng)它停下來(lái)若有所思地看著那些印第安人的尸體時(shí)，它暫時(shí)忘記了內(nèi)心的疼痛；在這種時(shí)候，它感覺(jué)自己內(nèi)心有一種強(qiáng)烈的自豪感——一種比它以往經(jīng)歷過(guò)的都要強(qiáng)烈的自豪感。它殺過(guò)人了，這可是所有獵物中最高級(jí)的一種，而且它還是在大棒和牙齒法則(譯注：即弱肉強(qiáng)食的叢林法則)之下殺的人。它有些好奇地聞了聞這些尸體。他們死得太容易了。殺死一條愛(ài)斯基摩狗都比殺死他們要難得多。他們根本就不是它的對(duì)手?！兑靶缘暮魡尽肥墙芸恕惗刈钬?fù)盛名的小說(shuō)之一，講述的是一只叫“巴克”的大狗返歸野蠻的故事。小說(shuō)看似淺顯易懂，但其實(shí)并未止步于此。正如作者曾說(shuō)的：“我的故事有雙重性質(zhì)，表面上是一個(gè)簡(jiǎn)單的故事，任何一個(gè)孩子都能讀懂——盡是情節(jié)、變化和色彩。那下面的才是真正的故事，有哲理，很復(fù)雜，充滿含義?！?/p>

巴克是一只體形碩大的雜交狗，原是米勒法官家的愛(ài)犬，經(jīng)過(guò)了文明的教化，一直生活在美國(guó)南部一個(gè)溫暖的山谷里。后來(lái)巴克被盜賣到北部偏遠(yuǎn)寒冷、盛產(chǎn)黃金的阿拉斯加，成了一只拉雪橇的狗，從此開(kāi)始了一段艱苦卓絕的生活。雪橇狗的勞動(dòng)極其繁重，面臨的環(huán)境也異常惡劣，不僅要忍受饑寒，還經(jīng)常遭受棍棒的暴打。曾經(jīng)養(yǎng)尊處優(yōu)的巴克在被痛打之后，終于拋卻了幻想，意識(shí)到自己根本不可能與一個(gè)手持棍棒的人抗衡。不僅如此，為了生存，它還要與同類相互爭(zhēng)斗、自相殘殺。在爭(zhēng)奪“狗領(lǐng)隊(duì)”地位的斗爭(zhēng)中，巴克打敗了另一只雪橇狗斯皮茲，通過(guò)殘酷的殺戮確立了自己在狗群中的領(lǐng)導(dǎo)地位。經(jīng)過(guò)這一切，它徹底明白了，在弱肉強(qiáng)食的法則之下，“文明”百無(wú)一用，為了生存下去，它必須喚醒自身潛能，勇敢地應(yīng)對(duì)未來(lái)的生活。

阿拉斯加的荒原空曠靜謐，白雪皚皚。它是神圣與威嚴(yán)的象征，不容侵犯，震懾人心，卻又一視同仁，嚴(yán)苛公正。寂靜的北國(guó)雪地對(duì)一切都是鐵石心腸、無(wú)動(dòng)于衷，任何生命在它面前都顯得分外渺小。在艱苦的跋涉中，身心疲憊的雪橇狗們相繼死去，或死于饑寒和疾病，或死于棍棒和爭(zhēng)斗……幸運(yùn)的是，巴克在被打得奄奄一息時(shí)遇到了約翰·桑頓，得以活了下來(lái)，并與桑頓建立了深厚的友誼。桑頓無(wú)微不至的關(guān)懷深深打動(dòng)了巴克，他對(duì)巴克的照料不是由于利益的驅(qū)動(dòng)，而是出于欣賞和憐惜。忠誠(chéng)的巴克也以同樣的愛(ài)來(lái)回報(bào)桑頓：它曾兩次不顧生命危險(xiǎn)救了桑頓，因此斷了三根肋骨；它毅然拉動(dòng)了一個(gè)載有九百多斤鹽的雪橇，幫桑頓贏了一大筆錢(qián)。不幸的是，在淘金過(guò)程中，桑頓卻被印第安人殺死。悲憤交加的巴克野性爆發(fā)，大開(kāi)殺戒。節(jié)選部分就為我們展現(xiàn)了巴克在桑頓死后野性爆發(fā)的一幕?？衽陌涂讼衩瞳F一樣撲向印第安人，不停地撕扯，不停地啃咬，毫不留情地將幾個(gè)印第安人置于死地。雖然巴克為主人報(bào)了仇，但主人已死，它對(duì)人類社會(huì)已無(wú)所留戀、無(wú)所牽掛。況且，長(zhǎng)期以來(lái)，荒野中總是回蕩著神秘的呼喚聲。這個(gè)聲音是它心靈之聲的回蕩，它循著呼喚，進(jìn)入森林，過(guò)起了原始的生活。只是，每到夏季，總會(huì)有一頭體形碩大、皮毛光滑的“狼”穿越森林來(lái)到山谷的空地憑吊，它會(huì)站在那里久久沉思，離開(kāi)之前還會(huì)發(fā)出一聲悠長(zhǎng)而悲戚的嗥叫……

杰克·倫敦常常將筆下人物置于極端嚴(yán)酷、生死攸關(guān)的環(huán)境之中，從而展現(xiàn)人在絕境中所能爆發(fā)出的強(qiáng)大的生存潛能。巴克雖然只是一條狗，但卻是人的隱喻。它的生活充滿了暴力、血腥和殺戮，但它最終生存了下來(lái)，并重返野蠻。作品顯然反映了當(dāng)時(shí)處于資本主義高速發(fā)展時(shí)期的美國(guó)社會(huì)所盛行的自然主義思潮，即達(dá)爾文“適者生存”的自然選擇思想及斯賓塞的社會(huì)選擇觀。在險(xiǎn)惡的環(huán)境下，似乎只有“超人”才有生存的可能。但杰克·倫敦并不是絕望的悲觀主義者，他的作品洋溢著浪漫的英雄主義情結(jié)：崇拜生命，追尋生命本真的形態(tài)，追求身體和靈魂的解放與自由。生命釋放出強(qiáng)大的原始力量，有著天然的雀躍、奮發(fā)的脈搏，迸發(fā)著同希臘神話中的酒神狄俄尼索斯一樣的激情與自由。那是一個(gè)崇尚奮斗的時(shí)代，因?yàn)橹挥胁磺膴^斗，才能使人走出絕境，戰(zhàn)勝死亡。而巴克正是這樣一個(gè)極具代表性的存在。它從北國(guó)雪地的惡劣環(huán)境中努力生存下來(lái)，從狗群殺戮中奪得領(lǐng)導(dǎo)地位，又將殘暴的印第安人殺死。它目睹過(guò)死亡，也經(jīng)歷過(guò)與死亡的抗?fàn)帲罱K循著野性的呼喚回歸了荒野。野性，意味著殘酷，也象征著純粹。就像巴克對(duì)主人的愛(ài)，不摻雜任何雜質(zhì)。巴克始終會(huì)記得，它曾經(jīng)怎樣陶醉于自己與主人篤厚的感情中。它會(huì)長(zhǎng)時(shí)間貪婪地、專心致志地注視著主人，而主人也會(huì)回報(bào)以同樣的凝視。他們默默無(wú)言，卻惺惺相惜。而在主人去世后，再也不會(huì)有人這樣凝視它，也再也沒(méi)有人值得它這樣凝視了，它感到深深的空虛。巴克的野性爆發(fā)了出來(lái)，它發(fā)瘋似的將殺害主人的印第安人撕成了碎片。在它的世界里，善惡分明，愛(ài)恨純粹。在它的觀念里，死亡不再是可怕的事情，因?yàn)樵谌跞鈴?qiáng)食的法則下，在適者生存的社會(huì)里，只有奮起反抗，才能獲得生存的權(quán)利。

在《野性的呼喚》中，我們目睹了太多的死亡，但伴隨死亡而來(lái)的不是眼淚、哀求、絕望，而是高貴與尊嚴(yán)，是冷靜與清醒的認(rèn)識(shí)。其實(shí)，對(duì)死亡的恐懼、與死亡的抗?fàn)?，從某種角度講也是對(duì)生命的熱愛(ài)。只有意識(shí)到個(gè)體的生命終有一天會(huì)被死亡所終結(jié)時(shí)，才可能萌發(fā)出強(qiáng)烈而清醒的死亡意識(shí)，才能對(duì)死亡有恰當(dāng)?shù)膽B(tài)度，才會(huì)倍加珍惜和熱愛(ài)生命過(guò)程中的每一瞬間，才會(huì)尊重自己和他人的生命，熱烈地追尋生命的自由與本真。