前言
读他人不可得之书。——周作人
前言:
刚才写了千字的感悟文字,结果莫名失去了。点错什么键了罢,一切都撤销了。
若使是天意,我认了。
我这次会认真理性的写正常的书评。
不会写那些沟通、误解、边缘的、过分滥情的、半中半外的批评文章了。
1
闹考(笑)【NAO KAO——文中的LIA LEE的生父】是否被公平对待,当她的女儿被政府”挟持“的呢?为何?
D13
答:本的讲义用了这两词语”abducting“”justified“,字典译作”挟持、拐骗“和”合乎情理的,合法的“。于是矛盾出现了:代表公众利益的组织根据确凿的法理对小孩进行了接管,对弱势人群而言自然是暴力强制的,这在民主美利坚不得不看做一个特例。(作者对此才能借题发挥)我们都知道,合情合理的不一定合法,反之亦然。非完美的法,是粗糙的强暴的硬性的。没有道德习俗那般,是有细腻的合意的柔性的。所以由题意不言自明:不通过生养家庭理解同意就强制接管自己的血肉,是反社会的。
若改成”诱导”义,那就从另一面来理解了。组织上考虑到拯救生命的简单宗旨,跳过或者忽略了冗杂难解的沟通问题,简单地自以为是地直接解决问题。然而其中孰强孰弱对有民主意识的观者来说,清浊自现。
2
医生对待洪族患者最好的方式是什么?
D14
若对得起那身神圣的白衣大褂,请那些天使或者神父们理解那些受折磨的灵魂。在他面前不是又一个病人,而是一个新的受伤害的人。你的职责就是救死扶伤【life-saving】,拯救生灵。
所以关切他们痛苦的躯体和灵魂【life or soul】,超越文化界限是国际人道主义者的天职。尊重患者的选择,他们是有权利决定自己生死的人,除了他们还有谁能作此决定呢?
西医不排斥东医,手术和化合物都无法解决那失魂的病症【soul loss】。文中解释是鬼上身【qaug dab peg】,而你不懂就要学会接受。特别是主治医师,必须要掌握医术的同时,在跨文化交际的领域有“感性的思考”。
3
描述对莉亚实施的宗教仪式场景。
D14
莉亚的葬礼,生父母很平静地接受了这个残酷的事实。他们希望她能在冥界活的开心,不必在这个满是药味的俗世受罪。在萨满教巫师的祈祷下,身着美国产藏青色丧服的母亲把莉亚的头放在自己的臂弯,温顺地梳理着她的头发,轻声耳语着什么。
逝者周围一圈堆放着冥币,作为牺牲品的小棕鸡被挥舞在空中。紧凑的脚板,硬实的眼珠,上卷的舌头,头骨将会是好的透明的保佑。【good auspices】她被亲人们包围着,她享受着被爱的光辉。
祭品被划破了喉咙,鲜血飞溅到塑料垃圾袋中。
一个更大的,深棕色的牺牲被抬进了房间。猪蹄绑着麻绳,公猪陪葬意味着他们灵魂上联系会是一场婚礼。巫师在脖颈处系上细绳,卷曲地包裹着父母,意味着他们永远在一起。他围着他们转圈,喋喋不休地大声祷念许久,以至于莉亚能听见。然后他一遍遍地敲起了锣鼓,召集中他熟悉的鬼魂。最后他把擦亮的半个水牛角丢在地上测度神灵是否听见他的祷告。当所有的水牛角平稳落地,他确信神灵听见了。
神猪被摆到祭坛上,附上一些冥币。巫师询问和感谢猪神的旨意,得到同意后,他松开了牵连。挥舞着马刀,呸的念叨:此乃金银神水,会冲干净那些晦气和疾病。
磨刀霍霍后,他把猪血涂抹在莉亚背后。他有节奏地与群魔舞蹈,右手拿发出声响的器具,左手执铃铛,好似回响着马具上系的铃铛声声。
他的助手戴着航空太阳镜配合着巫师,在他恍惚出神之际,急语着符咒。他神交中自言自语,前门关紧许久,屋中满是闷热,弥漫着香火,泼水也无济于事。天窗开启后,释放走了怪灵,灵魂呼唤者——作为牺牲的小鸡,一些米饭,一个鸡蛋,条状的佛像。
父亲亲吻着她的小鼻子,说着,你看上去很愉快。
这些仪式一生只能用两次:一是你啼哭闹着来到这世间,再就是安静地离开这尘世。
孩童们吟颂着,唱出对逝者的追思和生者的赞颂:我希望你一切好。
最后咏唱着:
我正在呼唤你
我为你备好了一切
你去哪了
你走哪去了
你是在探亲吗
寻花么
在老挝还是泰国
还是在天堂
你去过日月吗
回家吧,来寻你的亲人
我正呼唤你
经门而入
回归你家
回家回家……
4
美国妥当安置了红族人了么?
D13
美国对移民的红族人善后安置工作算是事后聪明之举【hindsight】。前任在泰美国难民协调专员承认这是灾难性的马虎对待。他说,“我们从一开始就知道他们的处境不同,但是我们就是不能为他们提供给养。我仍然不认为把洪族人带到这是个错误,但你现在回顾会说,‘我们怎能如此草率对待他们呢?’”
里根总统难民问题特使断然指出,“这是他们流入的地狱,说实话,不可能有比这还坏的了。”
虽然美国政府对洪族人上下层进行区别待遇,作为一个多元文化的汇聚地,世界主义的理想国。山姆大叔会关照你的:通过《你在美国的新生活》一书,他手把手地教你做人,做美国人;每个人会对投来异样的注视,因为你是异类,在新新人类之中你不过是活在信息时代的原始人种。
这种偏见随着你的入境而来,而我们得庆幸此书作者还保存着人道主义的关怀。一种超越民族和血脉的正见是难能可贵的,亦是对大众对外界陌生的文化族群认知的普及和启蒙。
同时洪族人的习俗对美国人而言难免不可理喻。洪族社群存在“角色缺失”的现象,你能想象,只因为星象就断然认定一个女人没有当母亲的资格,这是对自我认知是愚蠢的且有害的(stupid and corrosive to ego)还有一个在家乡当过营长的人花了5年的时间终于找到了在教堂当通讯员的兼职,他一家的生活费租金还要依赖妻子的珠宝厂的工资和孩子微薄的翻译费用。这是不可理喻的,他自己感叹,我们不过是美国的子女罢了。【we have become children in this country】
例如一些常见的有关洪族人笑话:洪族女人认为减速坎是洗衣服的搓板,而如此已经有人葬送在重型卡车之下;洪族人进行白人奴隶交易;洪族人卖女买妻等等。由此可见两个文明间的鸿沟是不可逾越的,美国对东南亚地区的“静战”也给当地人带来了难以愈合的历史疮疤和心灵伤害。所以,美国应该尊重洪族人自己的取向。
5
描述martin对LEE家的访问
D13
Marting 第一次拜访lia和她的家人是在1985的春天,他被指派去她的父母是否给与她服用定量的西药和镇静剂。这自然是不可能的。
第一次带着翻译家访,lia一家人表现异常冷漠,至少在马丁看来。马丁不像玩偶一样摆弄lia,用理解好奇的眼光去平视这三口人,末了他还好奇询问洪族人的风俗,这让lia一家感到受宠若惊。
也难怪他人认为洪族人费解,愚笨。【impenetrable,stupid】而马丁进行了一次从专家到新手的蜕变,这种谦逊的态度似乎对处理外族问题是一种积极的策略。
这似乎是一种反面的神奇力量,在这缘分之中的每一部分都成功把他人的闪光处变成渣滓。
6
解释美通过老挝的委托政权进行的战争?
通过扶持傀儡政权,美国意图如下:
The U.S. employed Hmong to fight for them against Laos. What does “Laos” mean?
[in Laos, there were two groups:the royalists and the communists]
The U.S employed Hmong to fight for them against the communists in Laos.
Royalists = people who want to protect the king / the monarchy / the crown / the throne
The U.S. fought the war by Hmong proxy in Laos. What does the war mean?
The U.S. had its Hmong proxies fight in Laos to protect the crown from the communists.
Reason? The U.S. was afraid of communist expansion throughout Asia / The U.S. was afraid that if Laos fell to
=was defeated by
communist forces, then the whole continent would become communist.
The U.S employed Hmong to fight for them against the communists in Laos.
[thesis: It was both diplomatically convenient and cheaper for the U.S. to use the Hmong as proxies rather than sending its own troops to Laos.]
7
老挝民主战争期间,洪族是如何受影响的?
During the Laotian civil war, the Hmong tried to hold onto their traditional culture, yet their efforts were in vain.
During the Laotian civil war, the Hmong suffered displacement and heavy casualties.
The Laotian Civil War caused enormous adverse effects / caused devastating effects on the Hmong, socially, culturally, and economically.
8
描述老挝民主战争的结局
9
描述从老挝逃亡的洪族人的血泪史
6-9D12
10
对比观照lia的生育和抚养的家庭环境
The biological family gave Lia better care about life, while her foster family gave her better care about medicine.
From a social perspective, the biological family gave Lia better care, whereas from a medical perspective, her foster family gave her better care.
I believe that both Lia’s biological family and her foster family try to protect her the best they can.
Both Lia’s biological family and her foster family try to protect her the best they can, and it is this commonality that draws them together
while in her foster family, Lia could get the medication she so desperately needed.
11
谁更理解lia的医疗环境,是他父母还是医生?
Her doctors understands better Lia’s medical condition, though they might not care much about the personal feeling of LIa and her family.
Lia’s doctors understand her medical condition better than her parents do, though they might not care as much about her and her family’s personal feelings.
Lia’s parents were better understands of Lia’s medical condition compared with her doctors.
Lia’s parents were more understanding of Lia’s medical condition than her doctors.
The doctors understood Lia’s condition better than her parents, as can be seen from _____. [explain it]
Eg: They used sophisticated technology to examine her and obtain exact data and results about her illness.
Although they had a strong desire to cure Lia, in fact, they had no idea what Lia’s real medical condition was.
10-11D11
12
CONQUERGOOD是如何成功使得洪族人流民达成愿望的?
Conquergood used symbols easily recognized by the Hmong as a way to connect with them and gain their trust.
American as he is, Conquergood did not insist that his patients rely solely on Western medicine. / He did not try to impose Western medicine, but rather used it in concert with traditional Hmong medicine.
In concert with = together with
Rather, he respected the Hmongs’ traditionS and used symbols easily recognized by theM as a way to connect.
For the Hmong, who believed that some Western doctors ate patients’ brains, accepting Conquergood was a difficult but critical step in getting adequate medical care.
13
Neil 呼吁lia被安置在收养处,此事是否合理?
Hmong medicine is nature-based theory that lets life flow as it may be, but Western one is modernized humanism-based medical science.
Hmong medicine is nature-based, whereas Western medicine is based on science.
Western medicine is based on empirical observation. [=it’s based on scientific evidence]
Encounters between the Hmong and Western medicine reveal mistrust / suspicion by both sides
Encounters between the Hmong and Western medicine are characterized by mistrust from both sides.
FOSTER CARE = A SUBSTITUTE / SURROGATE FAMILY = A NEW FAMILY
From my point of view, it is reasonable for Lia to be DECLARED a dependent child of the state.
11-13D10
14
若你是lia的父母或者是医护人员,你会对此做出不同行为吗?
见上对父母做法和对医患关系的评论
15
描述洪族人最恰当的形容词
14-15D9
鱼汤是洪族人的精华?论及所有一切事情,需要被告知的是这世界满是看起来不相关联的东西却的确紧密相连着。所有事物都不会孤立地存在。当你紧盯着一点时,你就失去了一大堆其他的东西。
——老挝格言
兼容并包
all-embracing all-inclusive
中国人评价:无畏,怪异,顽抗
——中国试图净化汉化洪族人,并把他们视为苗族的遗民
uncouth [un•couth || ʌn’kuːθ]
adj. 笨拙的, 不舒适的, 粗俗的
recalcitrant [re’cal•ci•trant || rɪ’kælsɪtrənt]
adj. 反抗的, 顽强的, 反对的
任何试图战胜,欺骗,统治,管理,强迫,威胁,同化,庇护洪族人的国家都以失败告终。
patronize (Amer.) [pa•tron•ize || ‘peɪtrənaɪz /’pæt-]
v. 资助, 赞助; 光顾, 惠顾; 庇护; 对…以恩人自居
assimilate [as•sim•i•late || ə’sɪmɪleɪt]
v. 消化吸收; 理解; 吸收; 使同化; 被吸收; 被同化; 被消化; 成为相似
proselytize (Amer.) [‘pros•e•lyt•ize || ‘prɑsɪlɪtaɪz /’prɒs-]
v. 劝诱改宗; 使改宗
洪族人的勇敢自信不低于其他任何民族,因为从未有祖国,也不知束缚与奴役。
——W ROBERT
servitude [ser•vi•tude || ‘sɜrvɪtuːd /’sɜːvɪtjuːd]
n. 奴役; 劳役, 苦役; 束缚; 役权
友好但从不摇尾乞怜,骄傲但不自大,热情有度【hospitable without being pushy】,对尊重他们的人报以个人自由尊重;人们不撒谎不偷盗。自给自足不艳羡嫉妒。不像那些拥有昂贵的摩托车打字机相机却说自己像洪族人一样不愿工作的外界人。
liberty [lib•er•ty || ‘lɪbə(r)tɪ]
n. 自由; 随意; 特权
fawn [fɔːn]
n. 幼鹿; 淡黄褐色
v. 摇尾乞怜; 奉承, 讨好
对一个洪族小男孩的描写:
聪明活泼勇敢坚强,演艺精湛的艺术能手,虽然在社会边缘辛苦地生存,忍受着几乎所有人的谩骂但是他心知自己事实上是优于那些诽谤者的。
detractor [de’trac•tor || -tə]
n. 诽谤者; 恶意批评者
PS:对考试没大用处,但是对深度阅读此书算是有些自己的思考罢。在本的带领下自己不知不觉地读了很多原著,很感激他的教导,因为真的自己能做到梦想的事情是很了不起的。
初稿2010年7月6日11:33:17
二改2010年7月6日15:23:10
定稿2010年7月6日16:35:56