悲涼的觀照一一嚴歌苓小說的老年男性書寫

Detailed Study of Old Male Characters in Yan Ge-Ling’s Fiction

Abstract

LANGUAGE NOTE | Document text in Chinese; abstract also in English.

本文以嚴歌苓小説的老年男性書寫爲研究内容。作者如何通過叙述來演繹日暮黄昏的生命，爲論文重點所在。首先探討的是老年男性角色在愛情、婚姻追求上遇到的挫敗，接著論述其對親情的渴望，最後以自我的失落作結。在愛情、婚姻關係上，老年男主角往往波折重重，其中帶出的亦是老人常見的負面刻板形象„相對來説，在親情關係上，這些老年男性角色反而較能取得精神上的滿足，而和孫輩的親密關係，更往往成了箇中契機。自我價值的未能肯定，更是這些老年角色面對的困境。無論昔日人生是否璀璨，他們要爲今日的尊嚴取得認證，仍然困難重重。悲涼觀照下的老年生活，是否作家難能逃避的寫作情結？嚴歌苓筆下的老年男性形象，反映的又是否這種現象？

This essay explores the male in advanced age, as depicted in Yan Ge-Ling’s fiction. The emphasis is focused on the fiction’s narration of the lives and feelings of old male characters. This exploration of the inner male starts with their failing in love and marriage, continues with their yearning of family love and affection, and concludes with their loss of self-esteem. In love and marriage, the older males often face considerable difficulties, rooted mostly from the common old age stereotype. Comparatively speaking, they tend to be more successful in finding solace from their family, particularly through the channel of their grand descendents. Self insecurity is the greatest predicament of the old male psyche. Regardless of past glory, the old male desperately seeks respect and approval, but they face extreme challenges. With so much literary depiction of old age as being synonymous to misery, despair and discontent, can writers ever escape the old age stereotype? By examining the old male characters in Yan Ge-Ling’s fiction, this work seeks a reflection of this common literary phenomenon.