wgolding.lordoftheflies-第57部分

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is　my　main　criticism　of　what　is　in　many　ways　a　work　of　real　distinction；　and　for　two　reasons　it　appears　to　be　a　serious　one。　In　the　first　place　the　fault　is　precisely　that　which　any　fable　is　likely　to　incur：　the　inplete　translation　of　its　thesis　into　its　story　so　that　much　remains　external　and　extrinsic；　the　teller's　assertion　rather　than　the　tale's　enactment　before　our　eyes。　In　the　second　place　the　fault　is　a　persistent　one；　and　cannot　easily　be　discounted　or　ignored。　It　appears　in　expository　annotations　like　this；　when　Ralph　and　Jack　begin　to　quarrel：
　
　The　two　boys　faced　each　other。　There　was　the　brilliant　world　of　hunting；　tactics；　fierce　exhilaration；　skill；　and　there　was　the　world　of　longing　and　baffled　monsense。
　
　Less　tolerably；　it　obtrudes　itself　in　almost　everything…　thought；　action；　and　hallucination…that　concerns　the　clairvoyant　Simon；　the　〃batty〃　boy　who　understands　〃mankind's　essential　illness；〃　who　knows　that　Ralph　will　get　back　to　where　he　came　from；　and　who　implausibly　converses　with　the　Lord　of　the　Flies。　Some　warrant　is　provided　for　this　clairvoyance　in　Simon's　mysterious　illness；　but　it　is　inadequate。　The　boy　remains　unconvincing　in　himself；　and　his　presence　constitutes　a　standing　invitation　to　the　author　to　avoid　the　trickiest　problems　of　his　method；　by　menting　too　baldly　on　the　issues　he　has　raised。　Any　writer　of　fables　must　find　it　hard　to　ignore　an　invitation　or　this　kind　once　it　exists。　Golding　has　not　been　able　to　ignore　it；　and　the　blemishes　that　result　impose　some　serious；　though　not　decisive；　limitations　on　a　fiery　and　disturbing　story。
　
　
　
　
　
　Introduction1
　IAN　GREGOR　and　MARK　KINKEAD…WEEKES
　
　The　urge　to　put　things　into　categories　seems　to　satisfy　some　deep　human　need　and　in　this　matter　at　least；　critics　and　historians　of　literature　are　very　human　people　indeed。　A　brief　glance　at　the　English　Literature　section　of　any　library　catalogue　will　show　what　I　mean。　There　we　find　literature　divided　up　into　various　lands　of　writings；　and　within　the　kinds　we　nave　historical　periods；　and　within　the　periods　we　have　groups　or　movements；　and　within　the　groups　individuals　who　write　various　kinds。　。　。　。　Now　up　to　a　point　of　course　this　sort　of　classification　serves　a　very　useful　purpose。　We　need　a　map　if　we　are　going　to　do　any　exploring；　and　the　fact　that　it　is　the　countryside　we　have　e　to　enjoy；　not　the　map；　doesn't　make　the　map　any　less　necessary。　If　we　take　out　a　map　of　The　Novel　we　find；　if　it　is　a　general　one；　that　it　falls　into　three　sections…the　eighteenth…century　novel；　the　Victorian　novel；　and　the　modern　novel。　And　these　descriptions　point　not　simply　to　three　centuries；　but　to　decisive　changes　that　have　taken　place　within　the　form　of　the　novel。　These　changes　are　often　due　to　historical　circumstances；　and　sometimes　they　can　be　described　in　terms　of　the　ruling　ideas　of　the　age　or　the　literary　expectations　of　the　readers；　out　there　are　other　changes　and　shifts　in　fiction　which　seem　to　arise　from　the　very　nature　of　the　novel　itself。　A　shift　of　this　land　may　be　seen　in　a　useful　classification　into　〃fables〃　and　〃fictions。〃　It　is　a　little
　
　1。　This　essay　appears　as　the　Introduction　to　the　〃School　Edition〃　of　Lord　of　the　Flies　published　by　Faber　and　Faber；　Ltd。；　London；　1962；　pp。　i…xii。　It　is　reprinted　here　by　permission　of　Faber　and　Faber　and　the　authors。
　
　difficult　to　define　this　difference　satisfactorily　in　the　abstract；　but　it　is　fairly　easy　to　see　what　is　meant　in　practice。　When；　for　instance；　D。　H。　Lawrence　wrote　in　one　of　his　letters；　〃I　am　doing　a　novel　which　I　have　never　grasped。　Damn　its　eyes；　here　I　am　at　page　145　and　I've　no　notion　what　it's　about　。　。　。　it's　like　a　novel　in　a　foreign　language　which　I　don't　know　very　well；〃　he　was　almost　certainly　occupied　in　writing　a　fiction　and　not　a　fable。　In　other　words；　a　fiction　is　something　which　takes　the　form　of　an　exploration　for　the　novelist；　even　if　it　lacks　the　very　extreme　position　which　Lawrence　describes；　the　concern　is　very　much　with　trying　to　make　clear　the　individuality　of　a　situation；　of　a　person；　for　these　reasons　it　is　extremely　difficult　to　describe　a　fiction　satisfactorily　in　abstract　terms。　With　a　fable；　on　the　other　hand；　the　case　is　very　different　Here　the　writer　begins　with　a　general　idea…〃the　world　is　not　the　reasonable　place　we　are　led　to　believe；〃　〃all　power　corrupts〃　…and　seeks　to　translate　it　into　fictional　terms。　In　this　kind　of　writing　the　interest　of　the　particular　detail　lies　in　the　way　it　points　to　the　generalization　behind　it。　It　is　generally　very　easy　to　say　what　a　fable　is　〃about；〃　because　the　writers　whole　purpose　is　to　make　the　reader　respond　to　it　in　precisely　that　way。　Clear　examples　of　fiction　in　the　way　I　am　using　the　word　would　be　works　like　D。　H。　Lawrence's　Sons　and　Lovers　or　Emily　Bronte's　Withering　Heights；　clear　examples　of　fable；　Swift's　Gulliver's　Travels　or　Orwell's　Animal　Farm。　But　these　are　extreme　works　and　most　novels　have　elements　of　both。　Oliver　Twist；　for　instance；　is　certainly　a　fiction　in　its　portrayal　of　the　intensely　imagined　criminal　world；　but　it　also　moves　towards　fable　when　ft　describes　the　world　of　the　poorhouse；　and　the　people　who　finally　rescue　Oliver　from　that　world；　because　here　Dickens　is　moved　to　write　primarily　by　abstract　ideas；　the　educational　hardships　of　children；　the　wisdom　of　benevolence。　You　will　notice　I　said　that　Oliver　Twist　〃moves　towards〃　fiction；　〃moves　towards〃　fable；　and　in　this　kind　of　alternation　it　is　typical　of　many　novels　which　lie　between　such　extreme　examples　as　I　mentioned　above。　Now　when　we　turn　to　Mr。　Golding's　Lord　of　the　Flies　we　find　that　what　is　remarkable　is　that　it　is　a　fable　and　a　fiction　simultaneously。　And　I　want　to　devote　the　remainder　of　this　Introduction　to　developing　that　remark。
　When　we　first　begin　to　write　and　talk　about　Mr。　Golding's　novel；　it　is　the　aspect　of　fable　which　occupies　our　attention。　And　this　is　very　natural　because　the　book　is　a　very　satisfying　one　to　talk　about　Mr。　Golding；　our　account　might　run；　is　examining　what　human　nature　is　really　like　if　we　could　consider　it　apart　from　the　mass　of　social　detail　which　gives　a　recognizable　feature　to　our　daily　lives。　That　〃really〃　is　important　and　you　may　want　to　argue　about　it；　but　Mr。　Golding's　assumption　here　is　one　that　most　of　us　make　at　one　time　or　another。　〃Of　course；〃　we　say　of　someone；　〃he's　not　really　like　that　at　all；〃　and　then　we　go　on　to　construct　an　account　which　assumes　that　a　distorting　film　of　circumstance　hate　e　between　us　and　the　man's　〃real　self。〃　What　Mr。　Golding　has　done　in　Lord　of　the　Flies　is　to　create　a　situation　which　will　reveal　in　an　extremely　direct　way　this　〃real　self；〃　and　yet　at　the　same　time　keep　our　sense　of　credibility；　our　sense　of　the　day…to…day　world；　lively　and　sharp。　It　is　rather　like　performing　a　delicate　heart　operation；　but　feeling　that　the　sense　of　human　gravity　es　not　through　the　actual　operation　but　through　the　external　scene　…the　green…robed　figures；　the　arc　light　which　casts　no　shadow；　the　sound　of　a　car　in　the　street　outside。　And　it　was　in　Ballantyne's　Coral　Island；　a　book　published　in　the　middle　of　the　last　century；　that　Mr。　Golding　found　the　suggestion　for　his　〃external　scene。〃　This　is　not　a　question　of　turning　Ballantyne　inside　out；　so　that　where　his　boys　are　endlessly　brave；　resourceful　and　Christian；　Mr。　Golding's　are　frightened；　anarchic　and　savage；　rather　Mr。　Golding's　adventure　story　is　to　point　up　in　a　forceful　and　economic　way　the　terrifying　gap　between　the　appearance　and　the　reality。　We　do　not　need　to　know　Coral　Island　to　appreciate　Lord　of　the　Flies；　but　if　we　do　know　it　we　will　appreciate　more　vividly　the　power　of　Mr。　Golding's　book。　If　we　take　Ralph's　remark　about　〃the　darkness　of　man's　heart〃　as　ing　very　close　to　the　subject　of　the　book；　it　is　worth　just　remembering　that　this　book；　published　in　1954；　was　written　in　a　world　very　different　from　Ballantyne's；　one　which　had　seen　within　twenty　years　the　systematic　destruction　of　the　Jewish　race；　a　world　war　revealing　unnumbered　atrocities　of　what　man　had　done　to　man；　and　in　1945　the　mushroom　cloud　of　the　atomic　bomb　which　has　e　to　dominate　all　our　political　and　moral　thinking。
　Turning　from　these　general　considerations　of　Mr。　Golding's　fable　to　the　w