小说与文学2020unherd.com
托尔金为英格兰构想的神话蓝图
Tolkien’s Mythic Plan for England
导读
这篇文章讨论托尔金为何要为英格兰补写一套神话，以及他的创作如何从语言、地方风景和既有神话中取材。对写作者来说，值得读的是它展示了一个宏大世界构建计划如何与“借用”“重组”和“填补文化空白”发生关系。
可以直接用的写作要点
- 01
不必追求凭空原创：像托尔金那样广泛借用语言、神话母题和情节元素，再用自己的结构重新编排，也能写出新鲜感。
- 02
把真实而具体的地方风景（比如被忽视的乡村、山丘边界）写进故事，能为虚构世界提供可触摸的质感。
- 03
先发现一个文化或时代缺少的叙事（如英格兰缺少宏大神话），再让作品去回应这个空白，主题会更自然。
- 04
警惕把故事写成直白寓言：让意义从人物和事件中生长，而不是先设定一个“信息”再套故事。
HN 评论精选
大量借鉴不可怕，关键在于重组能力能让旧材料产生原创感。
托尔金作品一个迷人的地方是，他的写作可以说“处处有来源”。他不仅使用不同语言中的词汇、不同神话的母题和不同诗歌传统的意象，还毫不客气地从乔治·麦克唐纳的作品里取用人物和情节（读读《幻境》或《公主与哥布林》就能体会他欠了多少）。可最终成果仍显得原创而新鲜。也许可以说，托尔金是20世纪的莎士比亚：一个什么也没发明、却在重新安排材料上无人能及的作家。
macleginn查看英文原文
One fascinating aspect of Tolkien’s oeuvre is that his writings are, how to put it, endlessly derivative. Not only did he use words from different languages, motifs from different mythologies, and images from different poetical traditions. He also mercilessly raided the writings of George MacDonald for characters and plot elements (try reading ‘Phantastes’ or ‘The Princess and the Goblin’ to appreciate just how freaking much he is indebted to him). And still the end result feels somehow original and fresh. Perhaps, one can say that Tolkien is 20th century‘s Shakespeare: a writer who invented nothing but who was absolutely unrivaled in re-arranging things.
具体而边缘的真实地点可以成为多位作家的灵感源，值得写作者重视。
很高兴看到文章提到伍斯特郡。更准确地说，是西伍斯特郡、靠近赫里福德郡边界的马尔文丘陵。C.S.刘易斯、埃尔加和伊夫林·沃也曾从马尔文丘陵获得灵感。伍斯特郡是英格兰一个安静、乡村化的角落，常被伦敦人忽略，他们更喜欢多塞特、康沃尔这类更“时髦”的郡。
osullivj查看英文原文
Good to see Worcestershire mentioned. To be more specific, it's the Malvern Hills in West Worcs, on the Herefordshire border [1]. CS Lewis [2], Elgar [3] and Evelyn Waugh [4] were also inspired by the Malverns. Worcestershire is a sleepy, rural corner of England often overlooked by Londoners in favour of more "fashionable" counties like Dorset & Cornwall. [1] https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-29787528 [2] https://www.malvernbeacon.com/home/gas-lamps-cs-lewis-and-jrr-tolkien [3] https://www.malvernbeacon.com/home/elgar-and-the-malvern-hills [4] https://www.newstatesman.com/books/2008/06/real-brideshead-madresfield
同一时代问题可以催生不同叙事方案；写作者可通过比较找到自己的立场和解决方式。
文章把托尔金与英格兰神话中最早故事到现代之间的空白联系起来，这很有意思。我刚读完《霍华德庄园》，福斯特也有类似观察——英格兰有女巫和仙女，却没有宏大的神话。福斯特是托尔金的同时代人；两人题材几乎完全不同，但有趣的是，现代性对他们都是大问题。《霍华德庄园》思考自耕农与帝国主义者之间的冲突与和解，而《魔戒》显然站在自耕农一边。可两部作品都需要第三种力量来完成解决——《魔戒》是王者阿拉贡，《霍华德庄园》是玛格丽特和威尔科克斯太太。这也显出两人世界观的差异：托尔金的解决是正义暴力，福斯特的解决是促成对立力量之间的连接。也许这也和时间有关。福斯特在一战前写作，还能相信承认人与人之间相互联系的力量；托尔金也许已不能。
sevensor查看英文原文
The article makes an interesting connection to the gap in England's mythology, between the earliest tales and the present day. I have just finished reading Howard's End, and Forster makes a similar observation -- England has witches and fairies, but no grand mythology. Forster was Tolkien's contemporary; although their subject matter could hardly be more different, it's interesting to see how modernity is a big problem for both of them. Howard's End meditates on conflict and reconciliation between the Yeoman and the Imperialist, while Lord of the Rings is clearly of the Yeoman's party. And yet, both works need a third force to bring resolution -- LOTR has kingly Aragorn, while Howard's End has Margaret and Mrs. Wilcox. It highlights their differences in worldview, that Tolkien's resolution is about righteous violence, while Forster's is about mediating a connection between opposed forces. Maybe this is down to a difference in time as well. Forster, writing before the Great War, could believe in the power of recognizing the connectedness of people to one another, and Tolkein perhaps could not.
托尔金反对寓言式解读，提醒写作者不要为了传达信息而牺牲故事本身。
托尔金完全厌恶这篇文章作者这样的人。关于任何内在意义或“信息”，作者意图里没有。它既不是寓言，也不是时事影射……喜欢寓言或时事指涉的人可以按自己的口味设计别的安排。但我由衷厌恶一切形式的寓言，自从我长大到能察觉它以来一直如此。
Causality1查看英文原文
Tolkien utterly detested people like the author of this article. As for any inner meaning or 'message', it has in the intention of the author none. It is neither allegorical nor topical.... Other arrangements could be devised according to the tastes or views of those who like allegory or topical reference. But I cordially dislike allegory in all its manifestations, and always have done so since I grew old and wary enough to detect its presence.
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