The Mysterious Miss Austen謎一樣的奧斯汀

By+Meredith+Hindley

簡.奧斯汀，一位來自英國漢普郡小村莊的、未接受多少學校教育的普通女子，是如何寫出英語文學中最受讀者喜愛的六部經(jīng)典小說的呢？這至今是一個謎。簡.奧斯汀將自己的創(chuàng)作比作“方寸大小的象牙微雕”，描寫的通常是“鄉(xiāng)間村莊的三四戶人家”，然而她卻具有將尋?，嵤潞推胀ㄈ宋锩鑼懙描蜩蛉缟奶熨x，被評論家們稱為能與莎士比亞等文學巨匠齊名的偉大語言藝術家。在她逝世兩百周年之際，讓我們再次走近她，了解謎一樣的奧斯汀。

For the past two centuries， historians and literary scholars have attempted to solve the mystery that is Jane Austens life. How did a woman from a small village in Hampshire come to write six of the most beloved novels in the English language？ Their search for answers has been complicated by the fact that Austen lived a quiet life.

Scholars have used Austens letters， along with family diaries， correspondence by friends and family， and county records to reconstruct much of Austens life. When everything is assembled， it reveals a woman at the mercy of1） her familys finances for her very existence， yet nurtured and supported by her relatives when they recognized an uncommon talent in their midst.

The Surety of Steventon

Austen was born on December 16， 1775， which was a month later than her parents， George and Cassandra， reckoned she should arrive. With six other children—James， George， Edward， Henry， Cassandra， and Francis—the Austens might have been more adept at counting the weeks. They were happy for the arrival of another daughter. Another brother， Charles， followed four years later， marking an end to the familys expansion. The Austens were continually strapped2） for money， even though the parsonage3） at Steventon， a small village in Hampshire， provided a living. Three years before Janes birth， the Austens opened a school for boys as a way to earn extra income. From an early age， Austens world was full of boyish antics4）， bawdy5） humor， and outdoor exploration.

Leaving that rough-and-tumble6） world behind， seven-year-old Jane was sent， along with her sister Cassandra， to a girls school in Oxford. The Austen girls stayed only a year， returning home after both became ill from typhoid7）. Jane and Cassandra passed a year at Steventon before being enrolled in Mrs. La Tournelles Ladies Boarding School in Reading， where they again stayed only a year.

Austens departure from Mrs. La Tournelles School put an end to her formal education at age ten. However， Austen was far from “unlearned”—indeed， it would have been difficult for her to escape getting an education. George Austen kept a sizable library—one bookcase reportedly covered sixty-four square feet of wall—which his children were encouraged to explore. There were ongoing science experiments and constant engagement with the natural world. Dinner table conversations， which included Georges pupils， ran on philosophy， literature， and science， along with dashes8） of racing， horses， and neighborhood gossip.

When young Jane showed a spark of talent for writing， her father encouraged his budding author， buying her journals and writing paper， both expensive commodities. Austen wasnt afraid to experiment， trying her hand at playwriting， as well as a novel with a morally suspect9） heroine. When she was nineteen， Austen began working on “Elinor and Marianne，” the precursor10） to Sense and Sensibility， which chronicles how the Dashwood11） sisters reconciled their hearts to the brutal realities of the marriage market for women without means12）. Austen understood their predicament well， as neither she nor Cassandra had a dowry13）， because of their fathers ongoing financial problems.

Austen received a lesson in the cruel incompatibility of love and money when she fell hard for Tom Lefroy， a twenty-year-old Irishman. She met the “very gentlemanlike， good-looking， pleasant young man” during the Christmas season of 1795～1796. Lefroy fell for Austen as well， but the match was impossible. As the oldest son of a retired soldier of limited means， he was expected to make a good marriage in order to provide for his five sisters.

Austen began “First Impressions，” which would become Pride and Prejudice， in the fall of 1796， working on it for the next year. She had already begun exploring the implications of a woman professing14） her feelings—or keeping them closely guarded—in “Elinor and Marianne.” That theme again appeared in “First Impressions.”

Betwixt and Between15）

Between 1795 and 1799， Austen wrote early versions of Sense and Sensibility， Pride and Prejudice， and Northanger Abbey. Its an extraordinary period of productivity， particularly given that she was still in her early twenties. That makes the dearth16） of writing over the next decade a bit of a puzzle. The letters that survive dont hint at writers block or a lack of interest in writing. Instead， they reveal a life in a constant state of upheaval17）.

In December 1802， Austen received an unexpected marriage proposal. Her friends Alethea and Catherine Bigg decided to play matchmaker between Austen and their baby brother， Harris. The tall， strapping Harris was five years younger than Austen and had just completed his studies at Oxford. As the heir to a sizable estate， he could provide a comfortable life for a wife. Harris was a sweet boy but socially awkward. Austen agreed to the match， flattered by his regard and the security the marriage could provide for herself and her family， but after sleeping on18） it for a night， she reconsidered. “She esteemed him， she was honoured by his proposal， but on thinking it over she realized that esteem and respect were not enough， and that she would not be behaving fairly or rightly towards him if she accepted the offer of his hand，” writes biographer Claire Tomalin19）.

In the wake of20） the marriage proposal， Austen briefly returned to writing， revising the manuscript for Northanger Abbey. In early 1803， Henry arranged for the novel to be offered to Crosby and Co.， a London publisher， which paid ?10 for it. An advertisement soon followed， trumpeting21） that it was on press， but the novel never appeared.

Austen must have been disappointed， but she soldiered on22）， beginning work on “The Watsons，” the story of a group of unmarried sisters who are anxious to make matches before their clergyman father dies. This time， fiction would mimic life， when George Austen died in January 1805. Austen set aside “The Watsons” not long after. Her nephew， James Austen-Leigh， suggests in A Memoir of Jane Austen that plot problems， namely setting the family too far down the social scale， caused her to abandon the story. But Tomalin notes that Austen planned to kill off Mr. Watson， so it is easy to see what an emotional challenge it would have been for her to keep working on the novel given the parallels to her own life.

“The loss of such a Parent must be felt， or we should be Brutes23），” wrote Austen. George Austens death was both an emotional and financial blow to his wife and daughters. While Mother Austen and Cassandra both had small savings， Jane was penniless and entirely dependent on her family. It fell to her brothers to supplement24） their living and help settle them someplace comfortable. “Seven years I suppose are enough to change every pore of ones skin， & every feeling of ones mind，” Austen wrote Cassandra， reflecting back on the events that had led her to such a perilous25） position. The Austen women bounced between family and friends before settling in Southampton.

A Cottage of Ones Own

In July 1809， the Austen women left Southampton to take up residence in Chawton， a small village about fifty miles from London. At Chawton， Austens sole chore was to make nine oclock breakfast， which consisted of tea and toast， leaving her free to write the rest of the day. The cottage seems to have provided Austen with the conditions she needed to thrive as a writer once again， and she immediately began revising Sense and Sensibility.

In late 1810， Thomas Egerton of the Military Library agreed to publish Sense and Sensibility. Egerton agreed to take the three-volume novel on commission， which meant that Austen bore the financial risk. She paid for printing， advertising， and distribution， but kept the copyright. Of course， “she paid” meant Henry did because Austen had no money of her own. By the fall in 1811， the novel was fully typeset and a notice appeared in The Morning Chronicle on October 31， 1811， announcing “A New Novel by a Lady.” Austen would eventually make a profit of ?140， no small sum for a woman who had never had her own money.

When Sense and Sensibility proved a success—with both favorable reviews and chatter among the ton—Egerton was eager to publish another novel. Austen hadnt been idle， having turned her attention to revising “First Impressions.” When Pride and Prejudice was published in January 1813—three volumes for 18 shillings—Egerton advertised it as the work of the author of Sense and Sensibility. Austen chose to remain anonymous again.

The reviews were also favorable. Critical Review praised Elizabeth， noting that her “sense and conduct are of a superior order to those of the common heroines of novels. From her independence of character， which is kept within the proper line of decorum26）， and her well-timed sprightliness27）， she teaches the man of Family-Pride to know himself better.”

More books followed： Mansfield Park （1814） and Emma （1815）. As Austen worked on the manuscript that would become Persuasion， her health started to decline and she struggled to keep her energy up. The nature of Austens illness remains a mystery and scholars have speculated28） that she suffered from everything from Addisons disease29） to tuberculosis30） to Hodgkins lymphoma31） to a recurrent form of typhus32）. Whatever wracked her body， by the spring of 1817， Austen was bedridden， and on July 18， 1817， she passed away. Six months after her death， in December 1817， two more novels were published： Northanger Abbey and Persuasion.

While Austen was fashionable during her lifetime， she has become beloved in the two centuries since. Pride and Prejudice， in particular， holds a special place in modern readers hearts. In a poll done by BBC in 2003 to determine the UKs best-loved novel， Pride and Prejudice came in second behind J. R. R. Tolkiens The Lord of the Rings. While marriage might be the central force of Pride and Prejudice， the novel has endured because of the other universals Austen captured： money woes33）， troublesome sisters， unwanted suitors34）， embarrassing mothers， meddlesome35） neighbors， snap36） judgments， the trauma of public humiliation， the agony of not knowing if your love is returned， and the desire for a happy-ever-after ending.

“Miss Austen had a talent for describing the involvements and feelings and characters of ordinary life which is to me the most wonderful I ever met with. The Big Bow-wow strain37） I can do myself like any now going; but the exquisite touch， which renders ordinary commonplace things and characters interesting， from the truth of the description and the sentiment， is denied to me. What a pity such a gifted creature died so early.” wrote Sir Walter Scott38） in March 1826.

在過去的兩百年中，歷史學家和文學學者都試圖解開簡·奧斯汀的一生這個謎團。一位來自漢普郡小村莊的女子到底是怎樣寫出了英語文學中最受讀者喜愛的六部小說？要探求這個謎團的答案并不容易，因為奧斯汀的一生過得普通安靜。

學者們根據(jù)奧斯汀寫的信、她家人的日記、她朋友和家人寫的信件以及縣志的記載，重現(xiàn)了奧斯汀一生中的大部分境況。當所有這些材料拼在一起的時候，它呈現(xiàn)出了這樣一位女性：她生活所需的錢全部來自家里，而當親人們發(fā)現(xiàn)她身具非凡才華時，她得到了他們的培養(yǎng)和支持。

斯蒂文頓的安穩(wěn)生活

奧斯汀生于1775年12月16日，比她的父母喬治和卡桑德拉推斷的預產(chǎn)期遲了一個月。夫婦倆此前有六個孩子——詹姆斯、喬治、愛德華、亨利、卡桑德拉和弗朗西斯——所以這對夫婦在計算預產(chǎn)期方面本該更在行些才對。他們對于又迎來了一個女兒感到非常高興。四年后，他們又生了一個男孩查爾斯，至此結束了家庭人口的增長。奧斯汀夫婦經(jīng)常手頭拮據(jù)，雖然在斯蒂文頓這個漢普郡的小村莊里，他們的牧師住宅所帶來的收入使奧斯汀一家能勉強度日。在奧斯汀出生的三年前，奧斯汀夫婦開了一家男校，掙點外快貼補家用。從小，奧斯汀的世界就充滿了男孩特有的搞怪、粗俗的幽默笑話和戶外探險。

七歲時，簡和她姐姐卡桑德拉一起離開了這個打鬧嬉戲的世界，被送到了牛津的一所女子學校。奧斯汀姐妹在那兒只待了一年，后因兩人患了傷寒而返回家中。簡和卡桑德拉在斯蒂文頓待了一年，然后入讀了位于雷丁的拉圖爾內勒夫人主辦的女子寄宿學校，在那里，她們又是只待了一年。

隨著奧斯汀離開拉圖爾內勒夫人的學校，她所接受的正規(guī)教育在十歲這年就結束了。不過，奧斯汀卻遠非“沒有文化”——的確，對她而言，要擺脫教育是件很困難的事。喬治·奧斯汀有一間相當大的圖書館——據(jù)說其中的一個書柜就占滿了64平方英尺的墻壁——而他的孩子被鼓勵去其中探索。常常會有科學實驗，與自然世界的接觸也經(jīng)常發(fā)生。餐桌上的對話有喬治的學生們參與，內容涵蓋哲學、文學和科學，還涉及一些賽馬、馬匹和鄰居們的家長里短。

當年輕的簡展現(xiàn)出了寫作才華的苗頭時，她的父親給這位初露才華的作者以鼓勵，為她買筆記本和寫作用紙，而這些可都是昂貴商品。奧斯汀不怕嘗試，試著寫了戲劇，還寫了一個女主人公在道德方面并非無可挑剔的小說。19歲的時候，奧斯汀開始寫《埃莉諾與瑪麗安》，也就是《理智與情感》的前身，小說講述了埃莉諾和瑪麗安兩姐妹如何將自己的內心和無收入的女性在婚姻市場上所面臨的殘酷現(xiàn)實相調和的故事。奧斯汀對她們的困境不可謂不熟悉，因為父親一直經(jīng)歷著經(jīng)濟上的困難，她和卡桑德拉都沒有嫁妝。

當奧斯汀對20歲的愛爾蘭人湯姆·勒夫羅傾心不已時，她領教了愛情與金錢之間不匹配的殘酷教訓。在1795～1796年的圣誕節(jié)期間，她遇到了“非常紳士、帥氣、令人愉快的年輕人”。 勒夫羅也對奧斯汀頗為心動，但是兩人之間注定不會有結果。作為收入有限的退伍兵的長子，他被家人指望娶個有錢人家的姑娘，以便為他的五個姐妹提供生活保障。

從1796年秋天開始，奧斯汀著手創(chuàng)作《第一印象》，也就是后來的《傲慢與偏見》，這一創(chuàng)作一直持續(xù)到了第二年。在《埃莉諾與瑪麗安》里，她已經(jīng)探索過了一個女人表露自己的感情——或者將自己的情感深埋心底——所產(chǎn)生的后果。這個主題再次出現(xiàn)在了《第一印象》中。

反復搬遷的動蕩歲月

在1795～1799年間，奧斯汀寫下了《理智與情感》《傲慢與偏見》以及《諾桑覺寺》這三部小說的早期版本。這段高產(chǎn)期不同尋常，尤其是考慮到她還只是二十幾歲的年紀。這使在接下來的十年中她為何作品稀少成了一個謎團。現(xiàn)存的信件中并沒有文思枯竭或者對寫作提不起興趣的跡象。相反，它們展示了一段巨變頻生的生活。

1802年12月，奧斯汀收到了一個意料之外的求婚。她的朋友阿麗西亞和凱瑟琳·比格決定為奧斯汀和她們的弟弟哈里斯牽線搭橋。哈里斯身材高大，比奧斯汀小五歲，剛完成牛津的學業(yè)。作為一筆錢數(shù)可觀的遺產(chǎn)的繼承人，他可以為妻子提供舒適的生活。哈里斯討人喜歡，但是不擅長社會交際。奧斯汀一開始同意了對方的求婚，為他的愛慕之意和婚姻能夠為她自己和家人所提供的保障感到很高興。但是經(jīng)過了一晚上的考慮之后，她改變了主意?！八鹬厮?，她對他的求婚心懷感激，但是經(jīng)過一番考慮后，她意識到尊重和尊敬是不夠的，如果接受了他的求婚，她的這種決定對他而言將會是不公平的，也是不恰當?shù)?。”傳記作家克萊爾·托馬林寫道。

在拒絕了求婚之后，奧斯汀又開始了一小段時間的寫作，修改了《諾桑覺寺》的稿子。1803年初，亨利將這部小說交給了倫敦的出版商考斯比公司那里，公司支付了十英鎊。不久之后廣告也出來了，宣稱小說已經(jīng)投入印刷，但是小說從未面市。

奧斯汀一定感到很失望，但是她繼續(xù)堅持，開始著手寫一部新小說《沃森一家》，這是一個要趕在當牧師的父親過世前把自己嫁出去的姐妹們的故事。這一次，小說中的情形與生活中的實際情況很相近，因為喬治·奧斯汀在1805年1月去世了。奧斯汀不久之后就放棄了《沃森一家》的創(chuàng)作。她的侄子詹姆斯·奧斯汀-利在《簡·奧斯汀傳》中認為，使她最終放棄這個故事的原因在于小說的情節(jié)設定——故事中的家庭所處的社會階層太低了。但是，托馬林指出，奧斯汀原計劃在小說中要寫沃森先生的離世，所以很容易看出，由于小說情節(jié)與她自己的生活太相似，對她而言，繼續(xù)創(chuàng)作這部小說在情感上一定非常具有挑戰(zhàn)。

“這樣一位家長的離世，只有鐵石心腸的人才不會感懷傷心?！眾W斯汀寫道。喬治·奧斯汀的死對他的妻子和女兒們而言是情感和經(jīng)濟上的雙重打擊。雖然奧斯汀媽媽和卡桑德拉都有微薄的積蓄，但簡卻身無分文，全靠家里人養(yǎng)活?，F(xiàn)在輪到她的兄弟們出錢接濟她們的生活，幫她們安頓到一個舒適的住處?！捌吣甑臅r間在我看來足夠改變我肌膚的每一個毛孔和我心里的每一種感受?！碑敾貞浧鹗顾萑肴绱司狡染车氐倪@些事件時，奧斯汀在給卡桑德拉的信中這樣寫道。奧斯汀家的女眷們在親戚和朋友家之間多次輾轉，最終搬到了南安普敦。

一間自己的小屋

1809年7月，奧斯汀家的女眷們離開南安普敦，在距離倫敦約50英里的一個名叫查頓的小村莊住了下來。在查頓，奧斯汀唯一的家務活是做九點鐘的早餐，也就是泡茶和烤面包，而一天中其余的時間她都可以花在寫作上。小屋似乎為奧斯汀提供了再一次成為作家所需的條件，她立即開始著手修改《理智與情感》。

1810年底，軍事圖書館的托馬斯·埃杰頓同意出版《理智與情感》。埃杰頓同意將這本三卷長的小說進行委托發(fā)行，這意味著奧斯汀要自負盈虧。她支付了印刷、廣告和發(fā)行的費用，但保留了版權。當然，所謂的“她支付”，實際上是亨利付的錢，因為奧斯汀自己并沒有錢。1811年秋天，小說完成排版，1811年10月31日的《紀事晨報》上也刊登了一則消息，宣稱這是“一位女士創(chuàng)作的新小說”。奧斯汀最終賺得140英鎊的利潤，對于一個從來沒有過屬于自己的錢的女士而言，這不算個小數(shù)目。

《理智與情感》大獲成功：書評給出的評價不錯，在上流社會間的口碑也不錯。埃杰頓因此迫切希望再出版一部小說。奧斯汀也沒有閑著，忙于修改《第一印象》。1813年1月《傲慢與偏見》出版時——三卷售價18先令—— 埃杰頓用“《理智與情感》的作者新作”做了宣傳。奧斯汀再次選擇了匿名發(fā)表。

新書的評價也不錯?！稌u》雜志稱贊了書中伊麗莎白這個人物，認為她的“理智和舉止都比小說中常見的女主人公要高出一等。無論是她在端莊合宜尺度內的獨立性格，還是她不失時機的活潑熱情，都使那位被視為家族榮光的男主人公加深了對自己的了解”。

此后又有兩本書得以出版：《曼斯菲爾德莊園》（1814）和《愛瑪》（1815）。在奧斯汀創(chuàng)作后來成為《勸導》一書的手稿期間，她的健康狀況開始變壞，而她勉強才能打起精神來。奧斯汀到底得了什么病至今是個謎，從愛迪生氏病到肺結核，從霍奇金氏淋巴瘤到復發(fā)性斑疹傷寒，學者們的猜測至今沒有定論。無論是什么疾病損害著奧斯汀的身體，在1817年春天的時候，奧斯汀臥床不起，到了1817年7月18日這一天，她因病逝世。她死后六個月，也就是1817年12月，又有兩部小說出版：《諾桑覺寺》和《勸導》。

如果說當奧斯汀在世時，她的作品算是流行讀物的話，在此后的兩百年中，她的小說已經(jīng)成為摯愛經(jīng)典?！栋谅c偏見》在現(xiàn)代讀者心目中的地位尤其特殊。在英國廣播公司于2003年進行的一項關于英國最受歡迎小說的民意調查中，《傲慢與偏見》位居第二，僅次于J. R. R. 托爾金的《指環(huán)王》。雖然婚姻可能是《傲慢與偏見》受歡迎的主要原因，但小說之所以經(jīng)久不衰，是因為奧斯汀還捕捉了其他的普遍現(xiàn)象：金錢帶來的困擾，麻煩的姐妹，不中意的追求者，令人尷尬的母親，愛管閑事的鄰居，匆忙得出的結論，受到公開羞辱的創(chuàng)傷，不知道你愛的人是否也愛你的痛苦，以及對從此以后過上幸福生活這一歡喜大結局的渴望。

“奧斯汀女士有一種描述日常生活中事件、感受和人物的天分，在我看來，這種天分是我所見過的天分中最美好的。喧嘩吵鬧的場面我也能像現(xiàn)如今的其他作家一樣一揮而就;但是那種細膩的筆觸，讓平凡普通的事物和人物都變得妙趣橫生并忠實于描述對象和情緒感受的筆觸，我卻沒有。這樣一位有才華的人英年早逝，令人嘆息不已?！蔽譅柼亍に垢魈鼐羰吭?826年3月寫道。

18. sleep on：把（問題等）留到第二天再作

決定

19. Claire Tomalin：克萊爾·托馬林（1933～），英國作家與記者，因為撰寫查爾斯·狄更斯、托馬斯·哈代、簡·奧斯汀的傳記而著名。

20. in the wake of：緊緊跟隨……，在……之后

21. trumpet [?tr?mp?t] vt. 大聲說出，大聲宣告

22. soldier on：（不顧困難等）堅持下去

23. brute [bru?t] n. 殘酷的人，粗野的人

24. supplement [?s?pl?ment] vt. 增補，補充

25. perilous [?per?l?s] adj. （充滿）危險的，瀕臨毀滅的

26. decorum [d??k??r?m] n. 正派得體，端莊穩(wěn)重

27. sprightliness [?spra?tlin?s] n. 生氣勃勃，活潑

28. speculate [?spekj?le?t] vt. 推測，推斷

29. Addisons disease：愛迪生氏病

30. tuberculosis [tju??b??（r）kj??l??s?s] n. 肺結核

31. lymphoma [l?m?f??m?] n. 淋巴瘤

32. typhus [?ta?f?s] n. 斑疹傷寒

33. woe [w??] n. [常作～s]困難，災難，不幸

34. suitor [?su?t?（r）] n. 求婚者

35. meddlesome [?med（?）ls（?）m] adj. 愛管閑事的

36. snap [sn?p] adj. 迅速的;突然的，匆忙的

37. strain [stre?n] n. 筆調;風格，個性特點

38. Sir Walter Scott：沃爾特.斯各特爵士（1771～1832），蘇格蘭歷史小說家、戲劇作家和詩人