“美国化”的尴尬——评索尔·贝娄的《口没遮拦的人》

《口没遮拦的人》为1976诺贝尔文学奖得主索尔·贝娄创作的短篇小说,作品集中反映了小说家对犹太族群和美国主流社会关系的思考。贝娄在小说中借"口没遮拦"的叙事人肖穆特之口,对比并深入分析了三位犹太裔美国人努力实现"美国化"的方式和结果,展示了"美国化"的尴尬,进而揭示出美国主流与边缘社会之间存在的鸿沟。小说中主人公对自我进行了反思,贝娄更是对"美国平等"提出了质疑,这种反思和质疑对于个人、族群乃至整个美国社会来说都具有深刻的警醒意义。

Embarrassment of "Americanization": On Saul Bellow's Him with His Foot in His Mouth

Him with His Foot in His Mouth, a short story by the 1976 Nobel Literature Prize Winner Saul Bellow, demonstrates the writer＇ s reflection upon the relationship between the Jewish ehtic group and American main-stream society. Through Shawmut the narrator, Bellow compares and contrasts three Jewish Americans＇ approaches and results of achieving ＂Americanization＂. In this way, Bellow reveals the huge gap between the mainstream society and the marginalized and questions ＂American equality＂, which is of great significance to individuals, ethic groups and the American society at large.