反思柯慈《緩慢的人》中的老年

Abstract

本篇論文探討柯慈（J. M. Coetzee）的後移民後小說《緩慢的人》（Slow Man）中的老年。這本小說描繪了老年人在應對需要照顧的的晚年現實的困境敘事。藉由考察這些掙扎背後的原因，讀者可以理解年老的敘述者被迫通過外部觀點來感知老年現實。若未能認知到自我認知與現實之間的差距，經歷老化的過程將不會順利進行。本論文借鑒了西蒙·波娃（Simone de Beauvoir）的老年研究《論老年》（The Coming of Age）以探討《緩慢的人》中自我認知和老年外在現實之間的差距。第一章研究柯慈其他小說中有關老年的敘事，以突顯《緩慢的人》中的老年主題的重要性。通過討論柯慈早期小說中的他者問題以及西蒙·波娃對於老化他者化的觀點，本章探討主角對老年認知的塑造和挑戰。第二章則分析無子女的後悔以及對老年依賴生活的抗拒，以觀察在面對老年現實時處理老化和做出應對的改變的掙扎。本論文的結論是，老年是一個複雜的現象。個人對老年的認知始終受到外在現實的挑戰。通過柯慈對老年敘事的描繪，自我轉變是適應老年現實的一種方式。本小說展示如何處理老年中的遺憾並做出應對的改變。根據老年的哲學思考，《緩慢的人》講述老年人在面對自己的年老感到沮喪時尋求新的人生意義的故事。

This thesis explores the theme of old age in J. M. Coetzee’s post-emigration novel, Slow Man (2005). The novel portrays the narrative of old age struggling to deal with old age that requires care. By examining the reasons behind these struggles, readers can understand that the aging narrator is forced to perceive the reality of old age through the outside points of view. Without recognizing the gap between self-perception and the reality, the process of experiencing aging is not smooth. This thesis takes Simone de Beauvoir’s research on old age, The Coming of Age, to look into the gap between self-perception and the external reality of old age in Slow Man. The first chapter examines the narratives of old age in Coetzee’s other novels to highlight the vital theme of old age in Slow Man. With discussions on Coetzee’s concern about otherness in his early fiction and Beauvoir’s thoughts of aging as otherness, this chapter investigates what shapes and challenges the initial perception of old age in the novel. The second chapter analyzes the regret of childlessness and the resistance to a dependent life in old age to explore the struggle of making changes in the face of the reality of aging. This thesis concludes that old age is a complicated phenomenon. One’s perception of old age is always challenged by the external reality. Through Coetzee’s portrayal of the narrative of old age, self-transformation is a way to adapt to the reality of old age. The novel demonstrates how to deal with regret in old age and make changes. With the philosophical thinking of old age, Slow Man tells a story of old age that one seeks the new meaning of life if feeling gloomy about old age.