楊志蒙

【摘要】在《孤獨及其所創(chuàng)造的》中，當代美國猶太作家保羅·奧斯特講述了一對非比尋常的父子關(guān)系。在這部傳記作品中，父親永遠處于逃避狀態(tài)，而兒子處于追尋狀態(tài)。通過這種逃避和追尋，保羅·奧斯特講述了在當時特定時間背景下這對猶太父子所面臨的問題，并倡導猶太人對過往的苦難釋懷從以實現(xiàn)救贖，同時呼吁人們關(guān)心周圍每一個人，尤其是孩子。

【關(guān)鍵詞】保羅·奧斯特；父子關(guān)系；缺席；追尋；救贖

1. Introduction

Paul Auster （1947- ）， is considered as one of the most famous contemporary Jewish writers. The Invention of Solitude （1982）， one of his representative works， is composed of two separate parts： Portrait of an Invisible Man， which is a biography of Austers father and The Book of Memory， which is an autobiography of Auster. The first part is a meditation on the nature of absence in relation to Austers recently deceased father， Samuel Auster. And the second part delivers Austers personal opinions concerning subjects such as coincidence， fate， and solitude. In general， the motif of father and son relation comes up repeatedly throughout the whole book.

2. The Absence of the Father

Soon after Auster is told of his fathers death， he decides to write about his fathers life. Austers father， Samuel Auster has been absent for his entire life. “Even before his death he had been absent， and long ago the people closest to him had learned to accept this absence， to treat it as the fundamental quality of his being.”（Auster ）

（1） The Behaviors of the Absence

The absence of Samuel Auster for Paul Auster consists of two aspects： the absence as a father and the absence as a man. Auster is lack of his fathers attention . His father， Samuel Auster is always busy at work and leaves no time for Auster. Austers father not only spends little time with Auster， but also is indifferent to Austers inner world. One time， Auster manages to persuade his father to take him to a football game. When the game reaches the climax， his father insists that they go home to avoid getting stuck in traffic. Nothing could convince him to stay. Even though his father knows what Auster wants and anticipates Austers great disappointment， he refuses to compromise. Another example， after watching the worst baseball game which Auster has played during his childhood， his father tells Auster that he has played a nice game. But in fact the game is terrible. His father seems indifferent to Austers failure and success. His father would not be proud of him for his achievement， nor be disappointed at his failure. To his father， Austers identity as his son is only a fact to accept. Auster and his father “were fixed in an un-moveable relationship， cut off from each other on opposite sides of a wall”. Samuel Auster is always absent as a father.

On the other hand， Samuel Auster is absent as a man. No one could truly understand him. The first evidence is Samuels indifference to his surroundings. Weeks after the whole Auster family move into a new house， Samuel goes directly to their old house instead of the new one. He sleeps for about an hour without noticing that everything has changed inside the house. Only when the new mistress of the house returns， does he notice his mistake. Samuel is a man of no consciousness and could not feel anything around him.The second evidence is Samuels unwillingness to look back into his life. After the divorce， Samuel lives alone in the house for fifteen years. He refuses to move out of the house not because he loves the house， but he is reluctant to look into his inner world. At last he is persuaded to move out of the house. But before he moves out， he dies suddenly. When Auster goes through Samuels things， he finds out that his father has done almost nothing to prepare for his departure. Going through his things means going through his life， Samuel would rather die than dig into his heart.

（2） The Reasons for the Absence

It is not for nothing that Samuel escapes from everything. The absence is a way of protection. When Samuel is young， he goes through a family tragedy. His father is killed by his mother in 1919. Due to their Jewish identities， the murder attracts great attention. His mother is an immigrant from Austria. In the late of 19th century and at the beginning of 20th century， influenced by the anti-semitism enthusiasm in Europe， the anti-semitism movement flourishes in the United States. The movement is mainly focused on the influx of European Jewish immigrants into the United States. The horrible scandal that a Jewish immigrant kills her husband causes a sensation at that time. Even after his mother has been released from the prison， the public interest towards the Jewish family does not fade away. In this way， Samuel faces triple damage： the murder of his father by his mother， the long-term absence of his father， and the public prejudice and excessive attention. Influenced by the family tragedy， Samuel keeps himself invisible to anyone to avoid being hurt.

During Samuels adolescence， he suffers greatly from the capricious life. Moving out of the original place， his mother has to support his four sons and one daughter. Out of poverty， the family moves constantly. Samuel has to attend two or three different schools in a single year. The frequent changes in life lead to his lack of friends. But he is also neglected by his mother as a dignified individual. His mother would take away the money without an apology， which Samuel has saved for a long time from his newspaper route. Besides， Samuel is once employed by Thomas Edisons laboratory as an assistant but is fired the next day because he is a Jew. Living in poverty， he has no friend for the frequent moving. As the youngest child in the family， he is not respected. As a Jew， he could not blend in the mainstream society. Without social identity， Samuel locks himself up and makes himself invisible.

In the late of 19th century and at the beginning of 20th century， the lives of most of the new Jewish immigrants are not satisfying. When they first come to the United States， they are considered as the burden of the society， while when their economic situations improve， they are considered as threats to the mainstream citizen. The rootless Jews are excluded by the society. As a Jew， Samuel suffers a lot.The absence is a way to self-protect from any harm.

3. The Pursuit of the Son

Although Samuel is indifferent to his son， Auster never stops the pursuit of his father. “You do not stop hungering for your fathers love， even after you are grown up.” Nevertheless， his attempts are without results. But Auster would always manage to find excuses for his fathers indifference. His father has once told Auster a tale of his adventure in South America. It is a glorious past with some romantic action. The intimate moment is used as an explanation for his fathers mysterious evasions and indifference to his son. “He was a romantic figure， a man with a dark and exciting past， and his present life was only a kind of stopping place， a way of biding his time until he took off on his next adventure.” It is a made-up story. But Auster goes on believing it even when he past the point when he should have discovered the truth. It gives Auster something to hold onto his father. Auster believes that there is a romantic and warm heart under the appearance of his fathers indifference. As the growth of age， different conflicts and contradictions come along， and Auster begins to think deeply about the relationship between his father and him.

（1） The Conflict between the Father and Son

Sometimes Samuel would take Auster to the Jewish restaurant， but Auster always feels uncomfortable. The restaurants are “dark places filled with old people， each table graced with a tinted blue seltzer bottle...I was brought up as an American boy， who knew less about my ancestors than I did about Hopalong Cassidys hat.” Growing up in the early 20th century when the anti-semitism movement reaches a peak， Samuel is bound by the ancient tradition of the Jews and could not blend in the society with his family tragedy. While Auster is born after the Second World War， the conditions of the Jews in the United States change greatly. Due to the deep sympathy for the miserable experiences of the Jews at the war， the Americans change the views towards the Jews. Therefore the social status of the Jews improves greatly. Auster has grown into an American boy with his habits and ideas quite different from the traditional Jewish immigrants.

Although Samuel is absent as a father， he is never an absent landlord. He spends most of his time on his work and is soft-hearted with the tenants. When Auster collects the rents together with his father， Auster is always welcomed with innumerable smiles. But unlike the tenants who are happy to meet Mr. Sams son， Auster feels painful. “I would hold onto my breath， not even to breathe， as if the smell were going to hurt me.” Samuel would sometimes give his sons clothes to the tenants. But when he sees a boy wearing his old clothes， Auster would be overcome with a feeling of shame. Samuel is out of reach for Auster， while Samuel is quite considerate to the poor tenants. The more considerate Samuel is to the tenants， the more painful Auster is. The closeness is beyond Austers reach， but is easily got by the tenants. So whenever Auster gets in touch with the tenants together with his father， it repels him.

Furthermore， Samuel is a hard worker while Auster dreams to be a poet. Samuel could not understand why a young man with two degrees from Columbia University should take a job as a poet and live in financial constraint. In Samuels eyes， work is something that brings in money. Writing is not a kind of work， but a hobby to pass the time. Once Samuel comes to visit Auster and happens to witness that Auster is paid with a huge amount of money by writing. For the first time， Auster has proved himself in front of his father. However， the job which has brought him victory is only one of the odd and idiotic jobs he has been doing for living. He accepts it only for the money. To a poet， the aim is not money， but the quality of his work. Besides， the money could not bring him a sense of achievement. However， the idiotic job has helped him proved himself in front of his father. The contradiction of success proves the insurmountable gap between Samuel and Auster.

（2） Substitute Fathers

Although the conflicts can not be solved， Austers pursuit of his father would never stop. Austers grandfather is a frantic baseball fan. During Austers adolescence， he spends plenty of time playing baseball. Due to the same love for baseball， Auster has transferred part of his thirst for his father to his grandfather. “Despite the agitation on the field， baseball offered itself to him as an image of that which does not move， and therefore a place where his mind could be at rest， secure in its refuge against the mutabilities of the world.” Baseball offers Auster a sense of security， and is closely connected with his grandfather. That is to say， his grandfather offers Auster a sense of security.It is his grandfather that fills in the gap of his fathers absence. His grandfather loves and cares about Auster. When his grandfather dies， Auster accompanies with him. However， when his father dies， he does not even see his face before the burial. To some degree， his grandfather replaces his father and fills in the gap.

Unlike his grandfather who accompanies Auster during his adolescence， S. is regarded as Austers spiritual father. S. has once been considered as a highly promising composer. Out of some political reasons， S. is blackballed by the music world. Auster has little in common with his biological father Samuel， nor could his inner dream as a writer be understood by Samuel. For S.s part， both his two grown sons disapprove S.s attitude towards life. S.could totally understand Austers ambition as a writer which his biological father would regard as a hobby. Besides， Austers father is an invisible man who adopts a self-enclosed manner of being in the world. This makes Auster feel superfluous to his life and nothing he could do to affect his fathers life. While S. is quite the opposite. S.s vulnerability and destitution allow Auster to become necessary to him. Auster could blend in S.s life rather than his fathers. With the death of his biological father Samuel， S. becomes more important to him. Auster and S. could comfort each other and understand each other.

The absence of his father Samuel makes Auster more eager to get his fathers love. With the growth of age， the conflicts between the father and son begin to appear： the conflicts between the traditional Jewish father and an American boy， and the conflict between the practical father and the son with artist pursuit. The conflicts could not be resolved and Austers thirst for his father would never fade away， thus Auster begins to find his fathers replacements. All these efforts are different kinds of Austers pursuits towards his father.

4. Redemption

（1） The Redemption of Paul Auster

Not only Auster is a victim of his fathers absence， but his father Samuel himself is a tragic victim. The tragic family disaster occurs in 1919 when the anti-semitism movement in the United States reaches the peak. Unaccepted by the society， he moves from one city to another with his family. Realized that his fathers absence is a way to protect himself， Auster decides to write down his fathers life. Besides， the writing is also another way to pursue his fathers love after his death. In The Book of Memory， there is a story throughout the book that Pinocchio finds and saves his father. Pinocchio could become a real boy only if he saves his father. It is a story of becoming rather than of birth. The story of Pinocchio is a story of a sons growth. The road of a sons pursuit of his father would not be easy to go. Just like Pinocchio endeavors to find and save his father， Auster tries his best to record his fathers life and achieves his salvation. “If I do not act quickly， his entire life will vanish along with him.” Through the biography of his father， Auster achieves his salvation as a son.

Shortly after his fathers death， Austers marriage is in crisis. He has to be separated with his son Daniel constantly. After the divorce， he could not spend a lot of time with his son. In one of Austers dreams， he is going to die and tells his ex-wife to give the unfinished autobiography to Daniel. The Book of Memory which is an autobiography of Auster is his personal account of concepts and feelings. To some degree， Auster is also an absent father， and he tries to record his feelings and tells Daniel his love for him through the book. Through his autobiography， Auster reveals himself and achieves his salvation. Portrait of an Invisible Man is dedicated to his father， and The Book of Memory is a book for his son. The first book records his fathers life and is also an explanation for his fathers evasion. The second book reveals his feelings and shows his love for his son.

（2） The Redemption of the Jew

In history， the Jews are expelled from many countries and are slaughtered in the Second World War. Although blending in the American society successfully， Auster could not forget his Jewish root. He travels through the world to find the traces of the suffered Jews. Out of the sympathy for the Jewish people and his identity as a Jew， Auster writes The Book of Memory. What should the Jews do when they face the atrocious racial slaughter？

Auster cites and analyzes the story of Jonah to express his ideas： the Jews should not take revenge， but learn to forgive and love. In the story of Jonah， Jonah is guided by God to go to Ninevah to address the Gods words. Ninevah people are the enemies of the Jew. If Jonah， who is a Jew， addresses the Gods words， the Ninevah people would ask the Gods forgiveness and then be saved. Jonah is unwilling to betray his own people， and refuses to address and run away. But he is punished by God and finally agrees to go to Ninevah. After the Ninevah people are saved， Jonah is unhappy. And God explains to Jonah the reason： everything is equal and should be equally treated. Jonah should treat his enemy and his fellow Jews equally. Auster conveys from the story that the Jews who are slaughtered during the war could be angry， but not take others lives for revenge.

Auster appeals to care for the suffered people especially children. Son has the power to save the father. Children are the future of the world. The father and son relation here is definitely not a traditional one， but stands for the world and the Jew or the world and the children. Auster writes the suffering of the Jew and denounces the atrocious behavior of the Nazi in the book. At the same time， Auster calls on the Jews to abandon the national resentment as well as the people in the world to treat everyone equally and love children who are the future of the world.

5. Conclusion

The motif of the father and son relation is repeated in Paul Austers books. The Invention of Solitude， an atypical biography work， describes the evasion of Austers father and Austers pursuit of his father. Due to his special Jewish identity， Paul Auster writes about his reflections on the sufferings and redemptions of the Jews. Through the explanation of the father and son relationship， Paul Auster also expresses his concerns about children and the suffered people in the world.

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