The Nobel Prize in Literature 1954 was awarded to Ernest Hemingway "for his mastery of the art of narrative, most recently demonstrated in The Old Man and the Sea, and for the influence that he has exerted on contemporary style".
There isn't any symbolism. The sea is the sea. The old man is an old man. The boy is a boy and the fish is a fish. The shark are all sharks no better and no worse. All the symbolism that people say is shit. What goes beyond is what you see beyond when you know. --Ernest Hemmingway
海明威是20世紀美國文壇最為人所熟知的作家,其寫作風格受昔日擔任記者的影響,文字精簡。在其作品中,榮獲諾貝爾文學獎的英文經典名著《老人與海》,是海明威晚年最具代表性的作品。其內容沒有過多的角色,沒有浮華不實的敘述,以單純精練的筆觸描寫一位老人與大海及命運的搏鬥。《老人與海》於1952年問世以來,在文壇上一直享譽盛名,甚至讓海明威獨特的寫作風格在當時的美國文壇掀起一股仿效風潮。
在此部作品中,海明威用獨樹一幟的筆鋒刻畫出生動的場景,鮮活地表達出老人的內心對話與孤寂。讓人彷彿置身其中,嗅聞著大海的氣息;看著魚群在海中穿梭,心情也隨著老人的心境起伏跌宕。而其中最激動人心的,莫過於老人不願向命運低頭的堅毅及一份不輕易放棄的精神。在與大魚纏鬥的過程中,數度的困境和打擊,都無法讓他退縮。即使旁人投以嘲笑或憐憫,老人也不自暴自棄,仍踏著自己堅定的步伐,走在自己的人生路上。
這位老人正是海明威筆下典型的硬漢(Code Hero):
一位正直磊落的漢子,在沸沸騰騰、如牛負重、充滿磨難的世界裡,
仍能始終秉持著骨氣和勇氣,堅忍不拔。
A man who lives correctly, following the ideals of honor, courage, and endurance
in a world that is sometimes chaotic, often stressful, and always painful.
作者簡介
Ernest Hemingway (1899-1961)
is one of the most famous American writers of the 20th century. He received the Pulitzer Prize in 1953 for The Old Man and the Sea, and the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1954. His novel usually focuses on people living essential, dangerous lives--soldiers, fishermen, athletes, bullfighters--who meet the pain and difficulty of their existence with stoic courage. Many of his works are classics of American literature.
海明威(1899 - 1961)
是美國20世紀最著名的作家,出生於伊利諾州。在當時大環境的影響下,海明威高中畢業後就進入《堪城星報》擔任記者,這對他日後的創作影響甚遠。儘管他只在《星報》待了半年,但卻形成了他精簡的寫作風格。
自1923年起,海明威陸續發表了許多作品,其中以《太陽依舊升起》(The Sun Also Rises, 1926)、《戰地鐘聲》(For Whom the Bell Tolls, 1940)、《老人與海》(The Old Man and the Sea, 1952)最為人所熟知。《老人與海》更分別在1953年及1954年為他拿下普利茲獎和諾貝爾文學獎。
海明威的作品中普遍展現出不屈不撓的精神,有人認為海明威在作品中影射出自己的影子,道出寫作路上的艱辛。然而海明威晚年因百病纏身而抑鬱寡歡,結束了自己精彩的一生,令人惋惜。