動用武力

動用武力
動用武力
原名	The Use of Force
作者	威廉·卡洛斯·威廉斯
類型	短篇小說
語言	英語
發行資訊
出版時間	1938年
出版地點	美國

《動用武力》（英語：The Use of Force）是美國作家威廉·卡洛斯·威廉斯的短篇小說^[1]。作品首次出版於1938年短篇小說集《帕塞伊克河畔的生活》，後亦收錄於作者1984年小說集《醫生故事》中^[2]。

雖然作者的短篇小說多數無名，但《動用武力》自1950年來便納入各類作品選，躋身美國文學經典之列^[3]。作品亦有「威廉斯最知名故事」之稱^[4]。

故事梗概

故事以第一人稱自白的視角，敘述鄉村醫生在農舍為女孩瑪蒂爾達診斷的故事。瑪蒂爾達發燒三日，醫生懷疑她患上致命的白喉，要檢查她的喉部。然而她十分頑固，拒絕配合醫生，百般抵抗口腔檢查，並將木製壓舌板咬碎。醫生屢次失敗後怒火中燒，用近乎武力的手段，向女孩嘴裡塞入了湯匙。最終醫生撬開口腔發現，瑪蒂爾達的扁桃體已然發炎^[5]^[6]。

分析

我左手抓住小孩的頭，想把木壓舌板塞到嘴裡。她拼命地反抗，緊閉著嘴巴！而這時，對著一個孩子，我也變得狂怒了。我想冷靜下來卻做不到……而最糟的是，我也喪失了理智。狂怒的我想撕碎小孩來快活。我為此而臉紅……^[a]

《動用武力》節選，為多篇文學批評引用^[7]^[8]

主題方面，小說探討了武力的複雜性。作家羅伯特·F·基什認為小說探討了武力與反抗：力量存在於白喉這種強大疾病的的背後，也存在於女孩的意志、憤怒和美麗之中^[9]。評論家佩舍爾和佩舍爾則指出：醫生欣賞女孩倔強的固執，或許因為同樣的性格，他也用執著征服了病人^[10]。霍華德則認為小說提出了道德問題，必要時是否應該動用武力保護無知者^[11]。小說還展現了理智和情感的衝突。醫生起初以職業態度來為瑪蒂爾達診斷，但最終理智不敵情緒，把戰勝女孩當成了目標^[12]；而對此，醫生亦懷抱愧疚之情^[13]。

評論談到了性暴力相關問題。作家吉什認為這是小說的潛在主題：「威廉斯在《動用武力》中植入了他熟悉的性暴力暗示……在小說中性暗示方面，無論威廉斯還是他筆下的敘事者都不純潔」^[14]。佩舍爾和佩舍爾的評論則稱，標題警示了類似強姦的可怕侵犯，但因為女孩身體身體不健康，故而消彌了這種負面暗示^[15]。

藝術手法方面，小說以醫生的主觀視角展開，採用自由間接引語記錄對話，即直接採用寫出直接引語，不加引號也不轉換人稱^[16]。Howard Allen認為小說運用了象徵和諷刺手法：例如從木製壓舌板到金屬湯匙，象徵著醫生怒火的升級；而醫生對女孩的第一印象是文靜，但結果正好相反^[17]。

注釋

^ 原文：I grasped the child’s head with my left hand and tried to get the wooden tongue depressor between her teeth. She fought, with clenched teeth, desperately! But now I had also grown furious—at a child. I tried to hold myself down but I couldn’t...the worst of it was that I too had got beyond reason. I could have torn the child apart in my own fury and enjoyed it. It was a pleasure to attack her. My face was burning with it...

參考

^ Williams, William Carlos. The Use of Force. Goodreads. [2024-06-08]. （原始內容存檔於2023-11-02）.
^ The Use of Force. Encyclopedia.com. [February 5, 2015]. （原始內容存檔於2016-07-02）.
^ Slate, 1968 p. 160: 「...needs no defense in academic circles…Endorsed by critics and teachers who print it in anthologies.」 And p. 161: 「...enshrined in college texts」 since 1950.
^ Gish, 1989 p. 71
^ Gish, 1989 p. 71-72: Plot summary
^ Allen, 2023
^ Peschel and Peschel, 1984 p. 156
^ Perloff, 1980, p.194
^ Gish, 1989 p. 72:
^ Peschel and Peschel, 1984 p. 157: Ellipsis for brevity, meaning is unaltered.
^ Allen, 2023
^ Allen, 2023
^ Gish, 1989 p. 72:
^ Gish, 1989 p. 71
^ Peschel and Peschel, 1984 p. 157: Ellipsis for brevity, meaning is unaltered.
^ Gish, 1989 p. 71-72
^ Allen, 2023

Gish, Robert F. 1989. William Carlos Williams: A Study of the Short Fiction. Twayne Publishers, Boston, Massachusetts. Gordon Weaver, General Editor. G. K. Hall & Co. pp.71-72 ISBN 0-8057-8307-5
Peschel, Richard E. and Peschel, Enid Rhodes. 1984. When a Doctor Hates a Patient: Case Histories, Literary Histories from the Michigan Quarterly Review, 23 no. 3 (Summer 1984) in William Carlos Williams: A Study of the Short Fiction by Robert F. Gish, Twayne Publishers, Boston, Massachusetts. Gordon Weaver, General Editor. Pp.152-158 ISBN 0-8057-8307-5
Slate, J. E. 1968. William Carlos Williams and the Modern Short Story from The Southern Review 4, no. 3 (July 1968) in William Carlos Williams: A Study of the Short Fiction, by Robert F. Gish. Twayne Publishers, Boston, Massachusetts. Gordon Weaver, General Editor. G. K. Hall & Co. pp.160-169 ISBN 0-8057-8307-5
Allen, Howard. 2023. Analysis, Themes and Summary of "The Use of Force" by William Carlos Williams （頁面存檔備份，存於網際網路檔案館） from Owlcation (6 October 2023).

這是一篇關於短篇小說的小作品。您可以透過編輯或修訂擴充其內容。

[7] 原文：I grasped the child’s head with my left hand and tried to get the wooden tongue depressor between her teeth. She fought, with clenched teeth, desperately! But now I had also grown furious—at a child. I tried to hold myself down but I couldn’t...the worst of it was that I too had got beyond reason. I could have torn the child apart in my own fury and enjoyed it. It was a pleasure to attack her. My face was burning with it...

[1] Williams, William Carlos. The Use of Force. Goodreads. [2024-06-08]. （原始內容存檔於2023-11-02）.

[2] The Use of Force. Encyclopedia.com. [February 5, 2015]. （原始內容存檔於2016-07-02）.

[3] Slate, 1968 p. 160: 「...needs no defense in academic circles…Endorsed by critics and teachers who print it in anthologies.」 And p. 161: 「...enshrined in college texts」 since 1950.

[4] Gish, 1989 p. 71

[5] Gish, 1989 p. 71-72: Plot summary

[6] Allen, 2023

[8] Peschel and Peschel, 1984 p. 156

[9] Perloff, 1980, p.194

[10] Gish, 1989 p. 72:

[11] Peschel and Peschel, 1984 p. 157: Ellipsis for brevity, meaning is unaltered.

[12] Allen, 2023

[13] Allen, 2023

[14] Gish, 1989 p. 72:

[15] Gish, 1989 p. 71

[16] Peschel and Peschel, 1984 p. 157: Ellipsis for brevity, meaning is unaltered.

[17] Gish, 1989 p. 71-72

[18] Allen, 2023

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