1909年诺贝尔文学奖颁奖典礼致辞-塞尔玛·拉格洛夫

　　Presentation Speech by Claes Annerstedt, President of the Swedish Academy, on December 10, 1909

　　History tells us that there was a time when Sweden fought for a world prize on the field of martial honour. The time of arms has passed, but in the international competition for peaceful prizes our people have for a long time held a position of esteem, and now the hour has finally come when Sweden can enter into literary competition with the great nations. The realm of the mind is determined by living powers that are not measured by population or golden millions but by the idealistic and ethical demands which they satisfy.

　　Geijer, Tegnér, or Runeberg, to mention only them, could justly have laid claim to the Nobel Prize, and the development which these great men have started has grown to fuller bloom. But among the writers of the younger generation who have contributed so much to our literature, there is one name that enjoys the special splendour of a star of the first magnitude. In the works of Selma Lagerl?f we seem to recognize the purest and best features of our Great Swedish Mother. Five years ago the Swedish Academy recognized the importance and strength of her achievement for Swedish poetry by awarding her the Gold Medal ?because of the imaginative wealth, idealism, and narrative talent that are evidenced in her works, which are beloved inside and outside the borders of Sweden?. This homage was strongly appreciated by all classes in our nation. Surely the same nation will be proud to hear today that the Swedish Academy has found Selma Lagerl?f’s literary achievement so important that her works should be counted among those considered the property of all mankind and that they are full of the idealism which Nobel required for the award of the Nobel Prize. It should not be thought that this decision was inspired by excessive national self-esteem, especially since many important foreign opinions have supported her candidacy. Nor would anybody consider it a lack of modesty if the Nobel Prize, which is now being awarded for the ninth time, remains in the country of its founder; on the contrary, such modesty could be interpreted as a lack of national self-confidence.

　　Few first novels have attracted so much attention as G?sta Berlings Saga (1891). The work was significant not only because it broke decisively with the unhealthy and false realism of the times, but also because of its own original character. Yet the work was not unanimously praised; if most people admired it greatly, some criticized it severely. There could be no better proof of its extraordinary character. One could not help admiring an imagination that had not had its peer since Almqvist’s days. However peculiar the characters and situations created by this imagination might be, they were covered by the marvellous bloom of artistic genius, and the presentation at times exhibited rapturous beauty. The reader was particularly moved by the profound feeling that in this work he was encountering a forgotten piece of what had once been Swedish country life; his heart was captured, just as the curious, radiant surface of the picture enchanted his senses. This first novel did have its weaknesses; how could it be otherwise! Where is gold found pure; when does a genius enter the world completely mature? But one thing was abundantly clear: a new genius of genuine Swedish nature was trying its wings.

　　Soon she was to enter the realm of her true heritage, the mystical world of fairy tales and legends. Only a soul that had fed on legends since the days of childhood, and that added love to a rich imagination, could dare to interpret the secrets of the invisible world that the visionary always sees beside or rather beneath the visible world. The visionary quality that is so characteristic in Lagerl?f’s writings has been stronger in her than in anyone since the days of St. Birgitta. Just as refractions in the hot air of the desert create a vivid fata morgana for the wanderer, so her warm and colourful imagination possesses a wonderful power of giving to her visions the force of living reality, which is instinctively recalled by whoever listens to her poetry. This is particularly true of her description of nature. For her, everything, even what is called inanimate nature, has its own, invisible, but real life; and therefore her artist’s hand is not content with representing the outward beauty of nature. Her loving eye follows the inner life whose silent language has been caught by her fine ear. That is why she has succeeded in eliciting beautiful secrets from fairy tales, living folk legends, and saints’ stories; secrets that had been hidden from the wordly-wise but which true simplicity perceives because, as the poet has the old grandmother say, it ?has eyes to see the secrets of God?.

　　As a painter of peasant life she is completely original and can compete with the best of other countries. T?sen fr?n Stormyrtorpet (1908) [The Girl from the Marsh Croft] is inimitable in its realistic and faithful descriptions, and it contains a new and deeper beauty in the irresistible power of unselfish love which underlies the whole work. And there are many other pieces of equal beauty. But Selma Lagerl?f’s talent comes out most clearly in the proud achievement that bears the name Jerusalem (1901-02) [The Holy City]. The deep spiritual movements that have from time to time aroused the peasant population of our country have rarely been traced so clearly as in this description of the pilgrimage of the people of Dalekarlia to the Holy Land. The reader sees things as dearly as if he himself were experiencing how this strong breed with its serious and introspective character goes its way, brooding heavily over the riddles of life. And it is not surprising if these people, torn between belief and superstition, in the painful struggle between their love of the inherited soil and their fear that they may not walk with God, finally abandon home, since they believe that the bells on high admonish them to march toward the holy city. But it is no less natural if these children of voluntary exile, in the midst of their delight at having seen the earth that had been touched by the foot of the Saviour, are deep in their hearts consumed by the desire for the simple green soil far north in old Dalarna. The sound of rivers and forests is always in their ears. With loving perception the poet has sounded the secret depth of their souls and a bloom of purest poetry transforms the realistic and faithful description of their touching and simple lives. The introduction to Jerusalem, entitled ?Ingemarss?nerna? [Ingemar’s Sons], movingly intimates that the lives and deeds of the fathers work like a force of destiny on later generations.

　　Selma Lagerl?f’s style deserves our full appreciation. Like a loyal daughter, she has administered the rich heritage of her mother tongue; from this source come the purity of diction, the clarity of expression, and the musical beauty that are characteristic of all her works.

　　Purity and simplicity of diction, beauty of style, and power of imagination, however, are accompanied by ethical strength and deep religious feeling. And indeed it could not be otherwise in someone to whom the life of man is a ?thread on God’s great loom?. In poetry of such elevation the air is always pure; more than one of her beautiful legends reflect the simplicity and loftiness of Scripture. But what makes Selma Lagerl?f’s writings so lovable is that we always seem to hear in them an echo of the most peculiar, the strongest, and the best things that have ever moved the soul of the Swedish people. Few have comprehended the innermost nature of this people with a comparable love. It is her own heart that speaks when in T?sen fr?n Stormyrtorpet the strict judge, whose severe features have increasingly brightened at the sight of the sacrificial love of the young girl, finally says with deep emotion to himself: ?That is my people. I shall not be angry with them since there is so much love and fear of God in one of their humblest creatures.? Such an intimate and profound view is possible only for one whose soul is deeply rooted in the Swedish earth and who has sucked nourishment from its myths, history, folklore, and nature. It is easy to understand why the mystical, nostalgic, and miraculous dusk that is peculiar to the Nordic nature is reflected in all her works. The greatness of her art consists precisely in her ability to use her heart as well as her genius to give to the original peculiar character and attitudes of the people a shape in which we recognize ourselves.

　　We are acting according to the will of the founder if we honour those who have had such success in appealing to the best sides of the human heart, and whose name and achievement have penetrated far beyond the borders of Sweden. Nor should anyone who bears a famous literary name, whether inside or outside the country, be envious if the Swedish Academy today pronounces that it has awarded this year’s Nobel Prize in Literature to Sweden’s distinguished daughter, Selma Lagerl?f

　　译文

　　1909年12月10日，瑞典学院院长克莱斯·安纳斯特泰特发表演讲

　　历史告诉我们，曾经有一段时间，瑞典在军事荣誉领域争夺世界冠军。武器时代已经过去，但在和平奖的国际竞争中，我国人民长期以来一直占有崇高的地位，现在瑞典终于可以与伟大国家进行文学比赛了。心灵的境界是由生活的力量决定的，这些力量不是由人口或金百万人来衡量的，而是由他们满足的理想主义和伦理要求决定的。

　　盖耶尔、特格纳尔或鲁内伯格，仅举一提，就可以公正地宣称获得诺贝尔奖，而这些伟人开始的发展也已发展到更盛开的地步发展。但是，在为我们的文学做出巨大贡献的年轻一代作家中，有一个名字享有第一颗巨星的特殊辉煌。在塞尔玛·拉格洛夫的作品中，我们似乎认识到了我们伟大的瑞典母亲最纯洁、最好的特征。五年前，瑞典学院通过授予她金质奖章来表彰她为瑞典诗歌所取得的成就的重要性和力量——因为她的作品中体现出富有想象力的财富、理想主义和叙事天赋，这些才华在瑞典国内外都深受喜爱。这一敬意受到我们国家各阶层的强烈赞赏。今天，瑞典学院发现塞尔玛·拉格洛夫的文学成就如此重要，以至于她的作品应该算作全人类的财产，而且这些作品充满了诺贝尔奖获得者所需要的理想主义，这当然是同一个国家引以为豪的。不应认为这一决定受到过度的民族自尊的启发，特别是因为许多重要的外国意见支持她的候选资格。如果诺贝尔奖（现已第九次颁发）继续留在其创始人的国家，谁也不会认为这是缺乏谦虚：相反，这种谦虚可以解释为缺乏民族自信心。

　　很少有第一部小说能像《格斯塔·柏林传奇》（1891年）那样引起如此多的关注。这项工作之所以重要，不仅是因为它果断地打破了时代的不健康与虚假现实主义，还因为它本身的原创性。然而，这项工作并没有得到一致好评：如果大多数人非常欣赏它， 有些人严厉批评它。没有比这更好的证据可以证明它非凡的性格了。人们不禁欣赏一种自阿尔姆奎斯特时代以来一直没有同龄人的想象力。无论这种想象所创造的人物和情境多么奇特，它们都被艺术天才的奇妙绽放所覆盖，而呈现有时表现出狂喜的美。读者特别感动的是，在这部作品中，他遇到了一段被遗忘的瑞典乡村生活：他的心被捕捉到了，就像好奇的，容光焕发的画面表面陶醉了他的感官。第一本小说确实有它的弱点：怎么会是这样呢！哪里是黄金发现纯洁：天才什么时候进入这个世界完全成熟？但有一件事是非常清楚的：一个真正的瑞典性质的新天才正在尝试它的翅膀。

　　不久，她就进入了她真正的遗产——童话和传说的神秘世界—— 的境界。只有一个从童年时代起就以传说为食，并且为丰富的想象力增添了爱的灵魂，才敢解释有远见的人总是在可见世界旁边或更确切地说在可见世界下面看到的无形世界的秘密。自圣比尔吉塔时代以来，拉格洛夫作品中如此具有远见卓识的品质比任何人都更强。正如沙漠热空气中的折射为流浪者创造了一个生动的法塔摩根娜，所以她温暖多彩的想象力拥有一种奇妙的力量，赋予她的视觉活现实的力量，这是本能地回忆谁听她的诗。她对自然的描述尤其如此。对她来说，一切，甚至所谓的无生命的自然，都有它自己的，看不见的，但现实的生活：因此，她的艺术家的手不满足于代表大自然的外在美。她慈爱的眼睛跟随着内心的生活，她的细耳朵抓住了沉默的语言。这就是为什么她成功地从童话故事、活生生的民间传说和圣人的故事中引出了美丽的秘密：秘密，已经隐藏在字面上，但真正的简单感知，因为，正如诗人有老祖母说，它有眼睛看到上帝的秘密。

　　作为一名农民生活的画家，她完全独创，可以与其他国家的佼佼者竞争。Tésen frón Stormyrtorpet （1908） [来自马什克罗夫特的女孩] 在其现实和忠实的描述中是不可比拟的，它包含了一个新的和更深的美在无私的爱不可抗拒的力量，这是整个工作的基础。还有很多其他同样美丽的作品。但塞尔玛·拉格洛夫的才华最清楚地出现在以耶路撒冷（1901-02年）为名的骄傲成就中。不时引起我国农民群众的深刻精神运动，很少像达莱卡利亚人民到圣地朝圣那样清晰。读者认为事情就像他自己正在经历的这种坚强的品种，其严肃和内省的性格如何去它的方式，沉思着生活的谜语。如果这些人在信仰和迷信之间挣扎，在对继承土地的热爱和恐惧之间痛苦地斗争，他们可能无法与上帝一起行走，最终放弃家园，这并不奇怪，因为他们相信，高高的钟声告诫他们向圣城前进。但是，如果这些自愿流放的儿童，在看到被救世主脚触动的地球的喜悦中，被老达拉纳北边的简单绿色土壤的渴望所吞噬，那么，这同样是自然的。江河和森林的声音总是在他们的耳边。诗人用爱的感知，吹响了灵魂的秘密深处，最纯洁的诗歌的绽放，改变了他们感人而朴素的生活的现实和忠实的描写。耶路撒冷的介绍，题为"英格玛斯纳纳夫[英格玛的儿子]，动人地暗示着父亲们的生活和事迹就像命运的力量一样在后人身上运作。

　　塞尔玛·拉格洛夫的风格值得我们充分赞赏。像一个忠诚的女儿，她管理着她母语的丰富遗产：从这个来源来词的纯洁性，表达的清晰度，和音乐之美，这是她所有作品的特点。

　　然而，词语的纯洁和简单、风格的美和想象力的力量伴随着道德力量和深厚的宗教情感。事实上，在一个人身上，人的生命不可能是上帝伟大织机的线索。在这样的高海拔诗歌中，空气总是纯净的：她美丽的传说中，不止一个反映了圣经的简单和高雅。但是，塞尔玛·拉格洛夫的作品之所以如此可爱，是因为我们似乎总是从这些作品中听到最奇特、最强烈、最美好事物的回声，这些回响曾经感动过瑞典人民的灵魂。很少有人能理解这个有着可比爱的人最内在的本性。正是她自己的心在泰森弗伦·斯托姆托佩特说出了严格的法官，当看到小女孩的牺牲之爱时，她的严肃特征越来越亮丽，最后她深有感触地对自己说：这是我的人民。我不会生他们的气， 因为他们最卑微的生物之一有那么多的爱和恐惧。这种亲密而深刻的观点只有在灵魂深深植根于瑞典大地，从神话、历史、民间传说和自然中吸取营养的人才有可能。很容易理解为什么北欧特有的神秘、怀旧和神奇的黄昏会反映在她的所有作品中。她艺术的伟大恰恰在于她能够用她的心，以及她的天才，给人民原始的特殊性格和态度一个我们认识自己的形状。

　　如果我们尊重那些在吸引人类心灵最好的一面方面取得如此成功，并且其名字和成就已经渗透到瑞典境外的人，我们就是按照创始人的意志行事的。如果瑞典学院今天宣布将今年的诺贝尔文学奖授予瑞典杰出女儿塞尔玛·拉格洛夫，那么无论在国内还是国外，任何有著名文学名字的人也不应该羡慕

　　摘自诺贝尔讲座，文学1901-1967年，编辑霍斯特·弗伦茨，埃尔塞维尔出版公司，阿姆斯特丹，1969年