| 摘要: | 希臘及其古典文化在福斯特（E. M. Forster）的一些小說中時常扮演著神秘的角色。對這些小說中的人物來說，希臘就像義大利一樣也象徵解放和激情。然而，本計畫試圖證明希臘比義大利在福斯特的小說中具有更多層面的意涵。因此，本計畫的目標是探索希臘在三本福斯特的小說－《最長的旅程》（The Longest Journey, 1907）、《窗外有藍天》（A Room with a View, 1908）、與《莫里斯》（Maurice, 1971）－中所展現的複雜性與多層意涵。莫里斯在大英博物館中頓悟的獨白可以做為這項研究的基本框架。當莫里斯看到雅典衛城的模型時，他喃喃地說，「我明白了，我明白了，我明白了」（“I see, I see, I see.”）（第43章）。從莫里斯由迷惑至肯定的歷程來看，如果雅典衛城所代表的是希臘文化的精髓與精神，莫里斯的三重認知可導引出希臘文化的三個維度：文本／文化、地理／地誌和情慾／肉慾。首先，這些小說中所提到的希臘作家與作品建構了希臘文化，並體現其主要角色內心解放與激情的渴望。地理／地誌可視為文本／文化層面的延伸，小說中的角色對希臘的嚮往主要是受閱讀啟發，視希臘視為理想夢境。因此，對於小說中所提到的具體希臘地景將進行整體性的研究，以證明其所代表的價值，並確認其在小說中獨特的存在意義。最後，三本小說中的主角都企圖利用去或不去（to go or not to go）希臘來解決個人情感危機，賦予希臘成為實踐激情與解放的契機，同時也將地理／地誌層面推展至情慾／肉慾的維度。本計畫希望透過對以上三個維度的研究分析來證明，在福斯特的小說中，對英國人來說，希臘雖然神秘，但它有其具體與自主的意義框架。
Greece and classical Greek culture have played a mysterious role in E. M. Forster's three novels, beginning with Lucy Honeychurch's unfulfilled tour in A Room with a View (1908) but demonstrating greater complexity in The Longest Journey (1907) and Maurice (1971). Like Italy, Greece is closely connected with the notions of liberation and passion that fascinate and inspire many Forster's characters. However, Greece seems to transcend what Italy represents and acquire wider dimensions. Therefore, the goal of this project is to explore these dimensions and to draw out the full implications of Greece in these novels. To achieve the goal, an epiphanic monologue by Maurice at the British Museum will serve as a point of departure and help establish the basic framework of this study. When Maurice finally sees the model of the Acropolis at the British Museum, a sudden realization dawns upon him as he murmurs, "I see, I see, I see" (Chapter 43). If the Acropolis represents the essence of Greek culture, Maurice's triple repetitious affirmation might suggest that he succeeds in approaching the essence via three different dimensions. Based on Maurice's journey from confusion to certainty, this project will tentatively designate the three dimensions as follows: textual/cultural, geographical/topographical, and erotic/carnal. Greek and famous Greek writings are an essential part of the early twentieth-century English public school and university curriculum. To study and analyze particular Greek writings and writers mentioned in The Longest Journey and Maurice, which not only constitute a special portion of the Greek culture but also echo certain internal yearnings, will be the first stage of this project. As for the geographical/topographical aspect, to travel to Greece seems mostly inspired by readings and writings about Greece, and, therefore, this dimension can be seen as a logical extension from the textual/cultural one. In this section, specific Greek locations mentioned in the novels will be discussed as a whole to identify the values Greece stands for and to validate their unique presence in the novels. Finally, to go to Greece or not, which has become a dilemma for the main characters when facing the crisis of recognizing their sexual desire, constitutes a pivotal issue of passion and liberation and helps push the geographical/topographical dimension to the erotic/carnal level. To unravel the dilemma concerning whether or not to go to Greece and to identify the characters' tendency to relate Greece to their sexual crisis will be the main concern in the study of this dimension. This project thus hopes to sort out all the disparate textual evidence to establish a Greece that is not mysterious but has a solid and autonomous frame of reference in Forster's novels. |
