683《狂人日記》作為預言

中學時期讀過魯迅先生的《狂人日記》, 是中國第一部白話文現代小說,1918年5月刊登於《新青年》雜誌, 後來收納於《吶喊》作卷首語。《狂人日記》是以一位狂人的眼光, 看當時的封建制度, 如何控制著人的生活。

故事以狂人在被治好「瘋狂」之前的眼光, 看社會如何迫使他變成「正常」,藉此把封建制度如何令到每一個生活在其中的人,都變成同時為施害者及受害者, 窒息著人性及個人生存的空間。狂人被治好, 就是被這制度所同化而成為施害者的一員。

魯迅先生是中國共產黨一直以來極之推崇的文化先鋒, 死於1936年共產黨還在未曾當家管治中國, 被國民黨壓迫時期, 因此他從不批判共產主義, 更沒有批評共產政權。不過, 他在《狂人日記》所描述的制度, 和今天中國相比較, 卻又何其相似。可以說,若把《狂人日記》當作是百多年前對今天的中國, 作出的一個預言來讀的話,相信不少人都會感到驚奇, 魯迅先生竟然是一位先知。

本期出版時, 正值六四34周年記念。每年在這些日子, 我都想到這一段歷史, 心情亦受影響。差不多每年, 我都寫下對六四的感受。

香港34年前數百萬人上街參與抗議的經歷, 到今天連籌備悼念的團體都已解散, 而曾擔任組織這些活動的領袖,有不少仍在囚。今日有人問律政司長當天持蠟燭至維園悼念六四, 是否違反國家安全, 會否因此身陷囹圄,卻無清楚答案。同樣若今年在澳洲仍有港人談論記念六四,要是這人日後回港, 會否被視為違反了中國國家安全法而被拘留, 相信亦無人能回答。

不過, 鐵一般的事實是, 今天在澳洲不少來自香港及中國的華裔澳洲人,六四確是影響著他們人生的重大歷史事件。要這事件從這些人的腦海中消失, 只能是他們都變成魯迅筆下, 被治好了的狂人, (或是等他們再老一些, 全都患上老人痴呆症?)才會發生。不過, 這些人今天, 又不是生活在四千年專制管治文化下的中國, 而是生活在崇尚個人自由、嚮往平等的民主法治社會的澳洲,他們會變成治好了的狂人嗎?

我相信不會吧。

周偉文, 社長

‘Diary of a madman’ as a prophecy

In high school I read about Lu Xun’s ‘Diary of a madman’ which was one of the first Chinese contemporary novels as published in the May 1985 edition of the ‘New Youth’ magazine and cited as preface of the his book ‘Scream’. The story was about how a madman perceived feudal system in mastering people’s living.

The book described a madman was ‘cured’ by the feudal system which could make everyone in it to turn into a perpetrator as well as a victim at the same time, while suffocating humanity and personal space. The madman became normal as he became the one causing other people to suffer under the system.

The Chinese Communist Party paid high regard to Mr. Lu Xun as a cultural revolutionist who died in 1936 before the Party took over the country. Under the oppression of Kuomintang, he never went against Communism and the Party. But the situation he described in the book was not far away from China nowadays. Surprisingly Mr. Lu could be a prophet foretelling China in his ‘Diary of a madman’ written over a hundred years’ ago.

Here comes the 34^th anniversary of the June 4^th incident. This time every year stirred up my emotion. I wrote on this topic almost every past year.

34 years ago millions of people rallied on the street; for now all those organising bodies had gone and many of the organising leaders are in jail. When Secretary of Justice of Hong Kong was asked whether holding candles in the Victoria Garden on June 4^th could violate the National Security laws and be prosecuted, no clear answer was offered. If today someone in Australia here talks up about June 4^th remembrance, would he be arrested on return to Hong Kong in the future under the National Security Law of the PRC? Who knows?

But undeniably many immigrants from Hong Kong and China now in Australia had been highly impacted by the June 4^th incident. To erase this memory, they really need to be a madman turned normal as portrayed by Lu Xun (or until they all got dementia). But they are not living under the feudal system as in China 4000 years ago; so can they become a ‘cured’ madman in this society of freedom, justice and democracy in Australia?

I don’t think so.

Mr. Raymond Chow, Publisher