2022-8-25

一本舊書，《英文愛情詩選》的小冊子，是1902年紐約道奇出版社首版發行的，每頁都以彩色信箋的方式，匯集了古今英文愛情短詩一百零八篇。

讓我想起清末盛行一時的秋水軒尺牘來，可以讓普天下小學都沒有畢業的老光棍採花賊們，或借花獻佛，或比葫蘆畫瓢，一時間妙筆生花，文采飛揚起來：

• 弟向獲締交於季方，因得聞元方之賢，思一見為快。昨於會城邂逅遇之，覺大兄之才華器宇，更有勝於所聞者。正恨相見之晚，不期越宿分襟，又恨相違之速矣。

布嵴硬皮的封面，花簇錦繡的每一篇，這是在那個時代，一百二十年前，所能印製的，最為精緻的一本書，沒有之一。

開首第一篇，即是蔣懷特（John Whittier，1807-1892）的《我思故我在》（Beacuse, You See, I Love You）:

我思故我在

I’m sorry that I spelt the word:

   I hate to go above you,

Because, the brown eyes lower fell,

   Because, you see, I love you!

開口怕嘴笨

語言最傷身

我思故我在

閉目憶佳人

這一首小詩，節選自蔣懷特長詩《同桌的你》（In School-days）。當初錢鍾書圍城小說中的王爾愷手抄的蘇文執舊作，也大概是一樣的意思：從此無法開門，你關在我心裡。

• 難道我監禁你？還是你霸占我？你闖進我的心，關上門又扭上鎖。丟了鎖上的鑰匙，是我，也許是你自己。從此無法開門，永遠，你關在我心裡。

這是一個悽美的愛情故事，也是梁祝故事在西方的翻版：一位白髮蒼蒼行將就木的老人，在40多年後拖着病軀，到學校門口，去回憶和祭奠他兒時的舊愛，和當初相識時的甜美時光。

不僅僅如此，這首小詩的背後，還有女權主義的陰影，所以才感人至深。因為作者本人，就是一個女權和廢奴主義者。

• The poem In School-days was written in 1869 and Whittier may have drawn a bit on his own experience as a teacher in a one-room schoolhouse. The poem was praised by the public as well as by other poets with Henry Wadsworth Longfellow commenting：There is something more in education than is set down in the school-books. Whittier has touched this point very poetically in that little lyric of his. 

• Oliver Wendell Holmes said of the poem in a letter to Whittier, ...I had no sooner read them [the lines] that I fell into such ecstasy that I could hardly find words too high-colored to speak of them to my little household. I hardly think I dared read them aloud. My eyes fill with tears just looking at them in my scrapbook, now, while I am writing.