人到中年,读书的范围反而窄了。不想读什么烧脑的书,所以小说读得多,另外,还喜欢读书信日记,因存其最本真的一面。
当年中国掀起董桥热时,我看过他的一些小品文,喜欢看他对英国文人、旧书如数家珍。他有两篇文章提到塞缪尔•佩皮斯(Samuel Pepys),其一是《佩皮斯日記》:
“……英国人都爱鲍斯韦尔的《约翰逊传》,爱佩皮斯的《日記》,说是最佳床边名著,写王政复辟,写查理二世加冕庆典,写鼠疫,写伦敦大火,旧派英国人熟得不得了。《日記》佩皮斯二十七岁写到三十六岁,全本用速記写成,原稿捐给剑桥大学,我去看过,真是天书。……柯林說佩皮斯性情中人,天生率真,《日記》里不怕写尽自己的过失自己的短处,一点不帶文人矫情虚伪。父亲是伦敦裁缝,母亲当家佣,兄弟姐妹十一人。佩皮斯早年肄业圣保罗中学,一六五○年进剑桥大学,一六五三年毕业。一六六二年钻研建设海軍课题,两次英荷战争贡献极大大,得查理二世信任,擢升海军大臣,出任国会议员,兴建三十艘軍舰恢复英、法、荷海上均势。一度整肃海军腐化风气,权贵忌恨,蒙冤下狱。不久官复原职,建树更著。佩皮斯退休后和科学家牛顿、建筑家雷恩、文学家德莱顿往来频密,撰写英国海军追忆录《Memoirs of the Navy,1690》,一九○六年经丹尼J. R. Tanner编校出版,影响不大,身后全靠這部青年時代的《日記》名垂青史。”
他还在《活出漂亮的孤独》一文里提及整理佩皮斯日记的女作家Claire Tomalin:“‘活在英国要活出孤独才活得漂亮!’……那句话我越老越明白。去年写出《Samuel Pepys: The Unequalled Self》的 Claire Tomalin 跟写悬疑小说《Spies》的丈夫 Michael Frayn 是英国享大名的文史夫妻。老太太整天埋头在家的书报堆中看书著书;老先生在住宅近布置了一间工作室,天天躲写作。……英国人内向,最懂得营造孤独也最懂得尊重孤独。”
读后很想一睹这本日记的风采 ,可惜手边一时找不到,也就丢到一边去了。这两天,网上看到Claire Tomalin出了一本回忆录《A Life of My Own》,又勾起了我关于佩皮斯日记的心思,于是找来他的日记节选《The Joy of Excess》,“不读是大罪,全读是受罪,节本读完喜欢了再读足本不迟。”本打算一天读完的,但实际断断续续地读了两三天。
董桥说这本日记是“十七世纪老英文,用字偶尔古奧,措辞偶尔古拙,”但读来发觉,17世纪的英语跟现在差别不大,或许因为这是日记,口语体,所以读来轻松,《项狄传》是18世纪的书,比这本日记还难读一点。
《The Joy of Excess》不知有无中译本,我且译成《饕餮的快乐》,因为这个选本选的都是与吃有关的日记,是企鹅出版社《Great Food》丛书之一。佩皮斯爱吃爱喝,日记里时常提及吃了什么、喝了什么,佩皮斯走到哪都是男男女女吃吃喝喝,非常有烟火味。而他用得最多的形容词是:merry、pleased、mighty merry、pretty pleased……,看得出他的日子过得非常惬意,吃得很愉快。有位读者评得很风趣:
Samuel Pepys was the man who knew everyone, went everywhere, did everything, and ate everything. If there was a lobster to be found in the Greater London area, you could be sure you'd find Mr. Pepys happily eating it (or accidentally leaving it behind in a coach).
我也是个好事者,读后大致统计了一下他吃的菜:
A dish of marrow-bones, a leg of mutton, a loin of veal, a dish of fowl, three pullets, and two dozen of larks, all in a dish, a great tart. A neat’s tongue. A dish of anchovies, a dish of prawns, and cheese. A dish of Mackrell. A Muske millon. A roasted haunch of venison. Ribbs of roast beef. Two barrels of Oysters. A roasted leg of porke. A gammon of bacon.boiled great oysters. A brace of stewed carps. A coller of brawne. A Jowle of salmon hot. Lobster. Crab. A dish of buttered eggs. Plum-porridg. A wild goose roasted. Prawn. Swan. A dish of roasted pigeons. A dish of four lobsters, lamprey pie. Turkey...…
太多了,不一一摘抄。一大发现是原来那时英国人也是什么都吃的啊:牛舌头、天鹅!原来那时候就有cheese-cake了!1667年8月11日,佩皮斯写道:eat some of the best cheese-cakes that ever I eat in my life;
佩皮斯喝的主要是葡萄酒,他经常因贪杯而头痛、呕吐,但仍不改。佩皮斯收藏有各种美酒,他得意地说:which I believe none of my friends of my name now alive ever had of his own at one time。
有一则日记提到中国茶:afterwards did send for a Cupp of Tee, a China drink of which I never had drank before. 此日记写于1660年9月前后,当时明朝刚亡,清朝尚未稳固,不过,中国茶已传入英国,不过看来当时英国人还没喝下午茶的习惯?
佩皮斯在日记里直率地记录吃得不痛快的时候,1661年1月1日,在他表兄Tho. Pepys家吃得不好,他写道:but his dinner a sorry, poor dinner for a man of his estate—there being nothing but ordinary meat in it. 1665年9月13日,他和一帮朋友去了Sir W. Hickes家,房子显得很寒碜,吃得也差(其实吃了牛肉、鸽子和鹿肉),于是他写道:He did give us the meanest dinner…and all in the meanest manner…to the basest degree.
关于他的亲人的记载:
对姐妹有点冷淡:1661年1月:and so home to dinner—where I found Pall (my sister) was home; but I do not let her sit down at table with me; which I do at first, that she may not expect it hereafter from me. 他对待姐妹的态度我有点不解,太傲慢了?可是仿佛以前并不这样,但佩皮斯没有明说如此冷淡的原因。
哥哥去世后,他的真心话:看着哥哥死去的时候,心里难过,但一转眼就将他抛开了: 1664年3月10日:but Lord, to see how the world makes nothing of the memory of a man an hour after he is dead. And endeed, I must blame myself; for though at the sight of him, dead and dying, I had real grief for a while, while he was in my sight, yet presently after and ever since, I have had very little grief endeed for him.
收到哥哥的来信,信中提到父母身体有恙,为父母的身体担忧:where I met with a sad letter from my brother, who tells me my mother is declared by the Doctors to be past recovery and that my father is also very ill every hour; ...Thence home and to bed, very much troubled about my father’s and my mother’s illness.
男人嘛,难免要提到女人,何况是最隐秘的日记呢。佩皮斯在日记里多次提到喜欢某位夫人,或某位女士,不过,并没有太出格。比如:
1664年2 月的一则日记:喜欢Bagwell的妻子。I liked thw woman very well and stroked her uner the chin, but could not find in my heart to offer anything uncivil to her, she being I believe a very modest woman. 看来人品还不太坏。
同年7月后的一则提到另一位年轻的Harman 太太, a pretty-bred and pretty-humored woman, whom I could love well, though not handsome, yet for her person and carriage and black eye, 黑眼睛,仪态万方,长得不漂亮,但有教养,幽默,他喜欢她。
1665年12月21日,一位叫Daniel的女人为他准备了晚餐,他让她陪他吃,吃完后又单独待了好久,他还吻了她的唇。I made her sup with me, and after supper were alone a great while and I had the pleasure of her lips—she being a pretty woman, and one whom a great belly becomes as well as ever I saw any. 我纳闷这好看的肚子会是什么样呢?
还有一些有趣的生活细节,比如,床太软睡不着:but the bed so saft that I could no sleep that hot night.
虽然佩皮斯身为海军大臣,但是了为请客,他妻子一大清早5点钟起床去菜市场买菜:1663年1月13日: So my poor wife rose by 5a-clock in the morning, before day, and went to market and bought fowle and many other things for dinner—with which I was highly pleased.
而最后做出来的菜有: a chine of beef, a hash of rabbits and lamb, and a rare chine of beef – next, a great dish of roasted fowl, and a tart; and then fruit and cheese.
还有一则有趣的日记。佩皮斯年纪轻轻就患有尿路结石,疼痛和血尿等症状一直折磨着他。据说1657年,佩皮斯还动手术取出网球大下的结石,但留有后遗症,他一生无子可能与此有关。1664年7月的一则日记中,他向朋友们请教如何能生孩子:I begin discourse of my not getting of children and prayed them to give me their opinions. 朋友们很高兴地给了他许多建议,他记了十条,很好玩:不要拥抱妻子太久;晚饭不要吃得太晚;喝Juice of sage;穿羊毛的Holland-drawers;让肚子暖和,后背凉(这条很奇怪);当他问是早上做爱好还是晚上做好时,朋友们说无所谓,重要的是他们夫妻想做的时候就做(when we have most mind to do it);妻子不要太严肃;他自己要喝Mum 和糖。Mrs. Ward建议他们换个方向睡,睡在脚那头,或至少让头低脚高……佩皮斯一一记下,并说第3、4、6、7和10条最重要。很好玩。
佩皮斯在日记里一般只报菜名,几乎没有做法,这与中国文人写吃还不一样。只有一则写了如何调制mightily sauce。1669年2月10日,他去约克公爵家吃饭,公爵介绍了一款sauce,说是非常美味,公爵吃什么都要蘸它,是西班牙大使教他怎么做的:which he eat with everything, and said it was the best universal sauce in the world – it being taught him by the Spanish Imbassador,做法如下:made of some parsley and a dry toast, beat in a mortar together with vinegar, salt, and a little pepper. 有时间我也可以琢磨着试一次。
关于英国历史上的大事件,比如1665年伦敦的大瘟疫,他在7月份的一则日记中轻描淡写道:这一周大约死了700人(above 700 dead of the plague this week)。
关于1666年伦敦大火,1666年9月2日:凌晨3点,佣人Jane叫醒他们,说市里起大火,with my heart full of trouble, 伦敦塔的上尉告诉他,大火起于布丁路的国王烘焙店,to the Lieutenant of the Tower, who tells me that it begun this morning in the King’s bakers house in Pudding lane, and that it hath burned down St. Magnes Church and most part of Fishstreete already. So I down to the waterside and there got a boat and through the bridge, and there saw a lamentable fire. 接着他们如何收拾细软,坐船逃难。总之,伦敦大火it was extremely dreadfull –
for it looks just as if it was at us, and the whole heaven on fire.
一本有趣的小书。
最后再附一张牛顿本人保留的《自然哲学的数学原理》第一版,上有佩皮斯大名。