主题：Andrew Marr：我们英国人——英国诗歌文学简史 -- 万年看客

琼森的非凡诗才培养出了一整个诗歌流派，也就是俗称的“本帮派”（tribe of Ben）。与他亦敌亦友的约翰.邓恩则仅仅影响了少数几人。与琼森相比，邓恩的诗歌风格更古怪、更拧巴也更炽烈，尽管或许正因为如此今天他的名声才远远更大。现代社会的读者往往搞不清应当如何看待邓恩，因为他不仅是描写情爱肉欲的高手，也是一名虔诚的宗教诗人，而且这两个创作方向还经常搅合在一起并且毫不滞涩。诗人身处一个人人嘴上喊得响亮的宗教社会，可是他的这一类诗作不仅充满了对于上帝与救赎的迫切且生动的信念，同时也充满了同样迫切且生动的亵渎冲动。青年时期的邓恩惯于创作艳情诗歌，上了年纪之后则逐渐转而歌颂基督与教会。但是他从始至终都是同一个人。毕生当中他都有能力施展某种智识渴望，他的神经永远处于躁动当中，无论他做什么想什么都无法遮掩这一点。这方面的著名例子大概也是全世界诗歌史上描写性爱最出色的作品《献给就寝的情侣》（To His Mistress Going to Bed）。诗人显然迫不及待地想要将情人扒光：

Come, Madam, come, all rest my powers defy,

Until I labour, I in labour lie.

The foe oft-times having the foe in sight,

Is tir’d with standing though he never fight.

来，女士，来吧，我的精力蔑视休闲，

到我发力之前，我一直躺着有如临产。

经常望见对手的敌人由于久站而厌倦，

虽然双方还从未交战。

Off with that girdle, like heaven’s Zone glistering,

But a far fairer world encompassing.

Unpin that spangled breastplate which you wear,

That th’eyes of busy fools may be stopped there.

解下那腰带，仿佛璀璨的天河之带，

不过却环抱着一个远为精美的世界。

脱下你所围戴的那缀满珠饰的胸衣，

忙碌的愚夫们的目光会被定在那里。

Unlace yourself, for that harmonious chime,

Tells me from you, that now it is bed time.

Off with that happy busk, which I envy,

That still can be, and still can stand so nigh.

宽松你自己，因为那来自你的和谐

钟声告诉我现在是你的就寝时刻。

摘掉那幸福的束胸，它令我羡妒，

永远能挨在，永远能站在那近处。

Your gown going off, such beauteous state reveals,

As when from flowery meads th’hill’s shadow steals.

Off with that wiry Coronet and shew

The hairy Diadem which on you doth grow:

你褪去衣裙，袒露出如此美丽的形体，

仿佛山丘的阴影从开花的草原上逃逸。

取下那银丝打制的头饰，展现

那生长在你头顶上的柔发冠冕；

Now off with those shoes, and then safely tread

In this love’s hallow’d temple, this soft bed.

In such white robes, heaven’s Angels used to be

Received by men; Thou Angel bringst with thee

现在脱掉那双鞋，然后安全的踏入

这爱情的神圣殿堂，这柔软的床铺。

如斯白袍在身，好似天使的姿态，

受到众人迎觐；你这位天使随身带来

A heaven like Mahomet’s Paradise; and though

Ill spirits walk in white, we easily know,

By this these Angels from an evil sprite,

Those set our hairs, but these our flesh upright.

一方乐土，堪比回教温柔乡；

虽说恶灵也会白衣出游，我们却不慌。

区分天使与恶灵多么容易，

后者令人寒毛倒竖，前者让人金枪挺立。

Licence my roving hands, and let them go,

Before, behind, between, above, below.

O my America! my new-found-land,

My kingdom, safeliest when with one man mann’d,

请赐准我双手游走，任其出巡

身前身后，两股之间，上身以及下身。

哦，我的美洲，我新发现的大陆，

我的王国，专属一人之际最为稳固，

My Mine of precious stones, My Empirie,

How blest am I in this discovering thee!

To enter in these bonds, is to be free;

Then where my hand is set, my seal shall be.

我的宝石矿，我的帝国无与伦比，

何其有幸，我竟在这里找到了你！

闯进这些禁锢，便是获得自由

我的手落在哪里，总会将印记驻留

Full nakedness! All joys are due to thee,

As souls unbodied, bodies uncloth’d must be,

To taste whole joys. Gems which you women use

Are like Atlanta’s balls, cast in men’s views,

That when a fool’s eye lighteth on a Gem,

His earthly soul may covet theirs, not them.

一丝不挂！欢愉万般全都靠你。

恰似魂魄无形，肉身也不需着衣

便尝得所有的欢愉。女人戴珠宝

像神话的金苹果，在男人眼前抛，

那一刻蠢汉的眼光瞥到宝珠，

俗心不觊觎本尊，而是身外物。

……

To teach thee, I am naked first; why then

What needst thou have more covering than a man.

要教你，我便先脱，又如何？

有了男人，你还需多盖什么？【本诗参考了傅浩与诗生活论坛网友jb910的译文】

邓恩的笔触如此直接，他的想象力毫不留白，以至于极少有哪位文艺复兴时期的诗人能像他这样令今天的读者们惊骇万状。比方说他有的著名诗作《跳蚤》（The Flea）的主题是一只跳蚤。这首诗提醒我们，文艺复兴是一个极其邋遢的时代。当时的人们极少洗头洗衣服，人性也遭到了逼仄木板房的压迫。

Mark but this flea, and mark in this,

How little that which thou deniest me is;

Me it sucked first, and now sucks thee,

And in this flea our two bloods mingled be;

Thou know'st that this cannot be said

A sin, or shame, or loss of maidenhead,

Yet this enjoys before it woo,

And pampered swells with one blood made of two,

And this, alas, is more than we would do.

光看看这只跳蚤，看看在它体内，

你拒绝我的东西是多么微乎其微；

我，它先叮咬了，现在又叮咬你，

在这跳蚤肚里，我俩的血混为一体；

坦白承认此事，我并不能够说

是一桩罪过，或耻辱，或丧失贞节，

可是这家伙不经求爱便享用,

腹中饱胀两人的血混成一种，

而这，咳，比我们要做的还深重。

Oh stay, three lives in one flea spare,

Where we almost, nay more than married are.

This flea is you and I, and this

Our marriage bed and marriage temple is;

Though parents grudge, and you, we are met,

And cloisteredin these living walls of jet.

Though use make you apt to kill me,

Let not to that, self-murder added be,

And sacrilege, three sins in killing three.

待着吧，三个生命共存在一只跳蚤里，

在其中我们几乎，不，更甚于婚配。

这跳蚤就是你和我，它的腹腔

就是我们的婚床，和婚庆礼堂；

尽管父母怨恨，你也不从，我们照样相会

且隐居在这活生生墨玉般的四壁之内。

虽说出于习惯你总是想要扑杀我，

可是，别再给这加上自我毁灭

和渎圣——杀害三命的三重罪孽。

Cruel and sudden, hast thou since

Purpled thy nail in blood of innocence？

Wherein could this flea guilty be,

Except in that drop which it sucked from thee？

Yet thou triumph'st, and say'st that thou

Find'st not thy self nor me the weaker now;

Tis true; then learn how false fears be:

Just so much honor, when thou yield'st to me,

Will waste, as this flea's death took life from thee.

残忍而突然，你是否从此时此刻

染红了你的指甲，以无辜的鲜血？

这跳蚤有什么可以责难罪咎，

除了它从你身上吸取的那一小口？

然而，你得意洋洋，声称说

并未觉得自己，也没发现我变衰弱；

的确，那么该知道恐惧是多么虚幻不真；

当你委身于我时，将仅仅有那么点童贞

会损耗，一如这跳蚤之死从你那儿窃取的生命。【傅浩译】

这段诗文看着是有点瘆人，但是的确写得很聪明也很俏皮。邓恩还喜欢用同样的手法来处理乍看上去的宗教题材。在他的第十四篇十四行诗中，邓恩居然将被上帝彻底主宰的感受——沦陷于宗教狂热的感受——与城池遭到攻破甚至女性遭到强奸相提并论：

Batter my heart, three-person'd God, for you

As yet but knock, breathe, shine, and seek to mend;

That I may rise and stand, o'erthrow me, and bend

Your force to break, blow, burn, and make me new.

I, like an usurp'd town to another due,

Labor to admit you, but oh, to no end;

Reason, your viceroy in me, me should defend,

But is captiv'd, and proves weak or untrue.

Yet dearly I love you, and would be lov'd fain,

But am betroth'd unto your enemy;

Divorce me, untie or break that knot again,

Take me to you, imprison me, for I,

Except you enthrall me, never shall be free,

Nor ever chaste, except you ravish me.

砸烂我的心，三位一体的上帝；因为您

仍旧只敲打、呵气、磨光，试图要修补

为使我爬起、站立，就该打翻我，集聚

力量，粉碎、鼓风、焚烧，重铸我一新。

我，像被夺的城池，欠另一主子的税赋，

努力要接纳您，可是，哦，却没有结果。

理智，您在我身中的摄政，本应保卫我，

却被捕成囚，并被证明是懦弱或不忠实。

然而，我深深爱恋你，也乐于为您所爱。

可是我，却偏偏被许配给您的寇仇死敌；

让我离婚吧，重新解开，或扯断那纽带，

抢走我，归您所有，幽禁起我吧，因为

我永远不会获得自由，除非你奴役我，

我也从不曾保守贞洁，除非你强奸我。【傅浩译】

约翰.邓恩的作品之所以历久弥新，不仅因为其中充满了独出心裁的非凡意象，或者因为他的人生轨迹从风流放荡的一端通向了虔心宣教的另一端。他其实是一个身处夹缝当中的人。夹缝的一边是全新的知识，用不了多久这些知识就会在他的生平结束之后掀起一场科学革命——届时人们将会极其紧密地观测物质世界的各种效果并且借此探究物理定律；夹缝的另一边则是身为宗教信徒的希望，他希望上帝对世间确有安排，希望人生从头到尾都具有宗教意义。我们经常能够发觉邓恩具有某种十分新颖的本能：只需审视得更紧密一点，就能看到一个大不相同的身边世界。下面的诗文选自《第二周年：对于灵魂进程的解剖》（The Second Anniversary. Of the Progress of the Soul），在诗文当中邓恩详细描写了一句刚刚丢掉脑袋的尸体如何轻微地颤动痉挛以及凋败下去——在今天的读者们看来，这样的意象不仅瘆人，而且难以想象，但是在詹姆斯一世时期的伦敦这却是司空见惯的场景：

Or as sometimes in a beheaded man,

Though at those two Red Seas, which freely ran,

One from the trunk, another from the head,

His soul be sail’d to her eternal bed,

His eyes will twinkle, and his tongue will roll,

As though he beckon’d and call’d back his soul:

He grasps his hands, and he pulls up his feet,

And seems to reach, and to step forth to meet

His soul; when all these motions which we saw,

Are but as ice, which crackles at a thaw,

Or as a lute, which in moist weather rings

Her knell alone, by cracking of her strings...

有时不妨看看斩首的景象，

两道红海，恣意地流淌，

一道源自躯干，一道源自头颅，

灵魂已经航向了永恒安眠之处。

他的两眼还在眨动，舌头还在颤抖，

似乎在恳求灵魂不要高飞远走；

他双手攥拳，双脚胡乱踢腾，

似乎再迈一步就能与灵魂重逢；

等到我们眼前的一切运动，

恰似薄冰一般崩解消融，

又好比鲁特琴在潮湿天气，

发出怪声，因为琴弦收缩的关系……