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Text | Double wood
"Take out an offal and forget that a person is alive, but it has nothing to do with the body."
This is the poem "Forget what can never be forgotten" by Ye Qing, a young female poet who has passed away in Taiwan, a simple text that expresses sincere emotions.
Love, an indispensable element in literature, is one of the happiness we will always pursue in life.
Has love always been beautiful? I hope so that everyone who loves each other should be able to get happy love.
But why is it that the more poignant the love story, the more it can be remembered by us?
"Liang Shanbo and Zhu Yingtai" is also remembered by everyone because of the tear-jerking, life-and-death love tightly grasps the secret desire in our hearts, we all need to be loved, even if the result is only a tragedy.
So what is true love? I believe that no one can come up with an answer that convinces everyone.
The novel collection "One Day Lover" uses twelve short stories to present us with those illusory, betrayal, and self-righteous love illusions in love.
After reading this book, perhaps for love, for the desire and unbearable hidden in the depths of our hearts that cannot be faced directly, we can show some courage to face it.
One Day Lover is one of the "Eastern European Specials" published by Flower City Press, written by the Czech writer Ivan Klima.
Ivan Klima, a Czech-Jewish writer, spent three years with his parents in Nazi concentration camps at the age of ten. As an adult, he worked as an editor in several magazines or publishers, writing both plays and novels.
For twenty years, his works were completely banned in the Czech Republic and could only be circulated in the form of "underground literature" among readers at home and abroad, and became widely popular.
Together with Javier and Kundera, Klima is known as the "troika" of Czech literature.
In 2002, Klima was awarded the Medal of Outstanding Contribution of the Czech Republic, followed by the Kafka Prize, becoming the first Czech recipient of the award.
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" data-track="178" >01 "Miriam" is tied to hunger in love</h1>
The first short story in the collection, Miriam, tells the story of an ordinary boy who takes place in a jewish town. The story goes like this:
"I" lived as an ordinary boy in the Jewish ghetto of the town, where we lacked food and had to rely on a uniform ration every day to survive.
One day I went to the food distribution point to pick up my brother and I's lunch food, one-eighth liter of milk.
The milk was distributed by a girl in a white apron who took the recipient's voucher and would then use a small measuring instrument to fish a little milk out of the milk bucket and pour it into the tin can that the recipient had brought with him.
·Ai Shang Shu Gallery· The image comes from pixbay
When I stood in front of her, she smiled at me. I knew her, but I never really paid attention to her.
She poured two spoonfuls of milk from the bucket into my tin can with the largest measuring instrument, then added two more spoonfuls and continued to smile at me.
I said thank you vaguely and left, drinking two-thirds of the milk as soon as I went out, afraid that she would chase her out and take back the unconventional handout.
Although I drank so much, I still had more portions than my brother and I used to.
At night, I was as frightened as ever, I was afraid that the SS would rush into my tiny room and take me away, just like the other vanished people. I looked out the window at the branches and leaves, and they grinned like devils at me.
The next day I clutched my washed tin can and lined up in line.
When it came time for me, it took me a great deal of effort to look up at her face, and she smiled at me and poured three spoonfuls of milk into my tin can as if it were a normal thing.
As soon as I went out, I took my special portion, drank three-quarters of it, and watched as the others came out carrying tin cans, and the milk they had received barely covered the bottom of the can.
At this time, my heart began to fill with a kind of sensual and happy excitement.
At night, fear approached me with the night, but now it was not as fearful as before. Just close my eyes and I can see an image of her smiling face and loving gaze looking at me.
I knew she was supposed to be in love with me.
On the third day, I took the full jar of milk, and from the soft smile on her face I knew I wasn't mistaken, and I began to be unable to hide my feelings.
No one but me was able to get a full can of milk from her, doesn't that mean she loves me?
I started talking to people I knew about her, and my friends said her name was Miriam, and she lived on the same floor as me, and I even knew her room number.
Talking to my friends made me more and more emotional, and I planned to meet her and express my feelings.
But why should I, a dirty, skinny child with disheveled hair and ragged clothes, deserve the admiration of such a girl?
I flipped out my festive outfit, and although the collar of the shirt was a little tighter and the legs and sleeves of the suit were shorter, I really had no other clothes to take out.
I washed my face, washed my neck, wet my hair, and carefully divided the strips and standard head slits. I felt so handsome at this point that I walked toward her room.
Miriam, I have never heard a name better than this in my life.
I was thinking about my angels in my heart, fantasizing about our conversations, and standing in front of her door I imagined her and my heart being able to open the door and appear in front of me.
At this time, an old lady appeared from the corner, holding a plate of dirty potatoes in her hand. It seems that the time has come to distribute dinner.
On the fourth day, I saw Miriam again by the milk bucket. She took my jar, smiled at me, and gave me three spoonfuls full of milk again.
Miriam, I've never experienced this feeling, I can't help it. I went out and drank two-thirds of the milk against the wall, and that was the message of love to me.
In the evening I put on the ill-fitting suit, got my hair done, and took the puppet I had made of the old box and the rag strips, intending to meet Miriam.
I wandered in front of her house, fantasizing about the scenes and conversations when we met.
On the fifth day, I wondered if she would be angry that I hadn't shown her heart to her, and she wouldn't not love me?
When I took the three-scoop tin can from her hand, I was relieved, and my love for her grew stronger. I will love her to the death, and no one will love her as much as I do.
In the evening, the SS began to hand out eviction notices, and since then every day people have received expulsion notices.
Fear and doom descended on the Jewish ghetto, and thousands of people, pinned to small notices on their chests, walked helplessly to the train station.
Yet every day I still get three spoonfuls of milk from Miriam, and for me it is love, hope, and promise.
Every day people disappeared, all my friends and most of the acquaintances were taken away, and the streets were empty. I don't want to linger at her door anymore, I want to confess to her.
Today, I'm lined up and I'm going to say what's on my mind when I meet her. She took my jar and poured a spoonful for me with the smallest spoon.
She looked at me without a hint of a smile, and I wondered if she wouldn't have recognized me. Finally she smiled apologetically and with some sadness. Inside the jar I was handed was a thin layer of liquid that covered the bottom of the jar.
I walked out the door, all I knew was that she didn't love me anymore. I couldn't even hold the almost empty tin can and fainted on the ground.
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" data-track="366" >02 "I" and Miriam's love</h1>
So, is "my" feeling for Miriam love in the end?
Personally, I don't think it's actually love.
First of all, "I" knew Miriam as a person before, but she hadn't attracted me.
This shows that Miriam is actually a very ordinary person in the eyes of "me", no different from other girls. This can be seen in the protagonist's impression of her.
The text of the novel describes Miriam's first appearance at the food distribution point as follows: "I naturally knew her, but I didn't really pay attention to her. Her hair was jet black and her face was covered with freckles. ”
Think about ourselves, if there is a member of the opposite sex attracting us, will our impression of the object of the heartbeat be so bland?
You know, love inherently comes with the effect of a pink filter, and a person of the opposite sex who attracts us is equipped with the protagonist's halo special effect, which will never be so ordinary in our eyes.
It should be that a glance and a smile are as brilliant as summer flowers, and they can catch our eyes at any time.
Therefore, the protagonist should not have looked at Miriam before, she is purely a passerby for the protagonist.
Secondly, the next day the protagonist really looked at the girl with his heart and became deeply impressed with her.
The description of "I" as Miriam in the novel is in two simple sentences: "It took me a lot of effort to get up and look at her face." Its eyes were big and long, like two almonds, almost as black as substitute coffee. ”
This shows that the protagonist did not find out until this day what the girl's eyes really looked like, and even a person who did not have an impression on her appearance, will we fall in love with her?
I believe the answer is no. And "I" didn't think it was until the night of horror that it was because the girl was in love with me that she gave me more milk than the share.
In the end, it is only in the third day of discussion with friends that the protagonist arouses the so-called "love" for the girl.
It was also on this day that the protagonist learned that the girl's name was Miriam, and she lived on the same floor as herself, as well as the girl's room number. What does this mean?
This shows that the protagonist has lived in this building for so long, he doesn't even know that this girl lives next to him, so what is the love that comes from?
So does the girl know him? It seems to me that it must be known, otherwise "I" am entitled to more food.
There are so many boys here, only the protagonist has this special treatment, which can only show that the protagonist is a very special existence in the hearts of girls.
So, if there is really love between the two, it is also the girl Miriam who loves the protagonist, and she fell in love with the boy when the protagonist did not look at her.
As for the protagonist, if it were not for Miriam in charge of his food distribution, it is estimated that he would still be as dismissive of her as before.
Then why does the protagonist "I" "feel" that he loves the girl Miriam? Let's look at this problem on a psychological level.
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" data-track="367" >03 Psychological needs and emotional attachments</h1>
Maslow's hierarchy of needs is one of the theories of humanistic science, proposed by american psychologist Abraham Maslow in his 1943 paper On Human Motivation Theory.
The book divides human needs like a ladder from low to high into five levels: physiological needs, security needs, social needs, respect needs, and self-actualization needs.
Let's first look at the physiological needs:
Breathing - water - food - sleep - physiological balance - secretion - sex
As can be seen from this, food is one of our most basic survival needs. What fun, love, spiritual pursuit, must first make way for food.
That is to say, hunger can dominate our actions as an actor in the absence of food, and in an extreme hunger environment, our primary action goal must be to find food to survive first.
Historically, the list of cannibalistic cases that occurred every time during the Great Famine has also confirmed this.
In the novel, Miriam gives the protagonist a share of food that exceeds that of others against the background of extreme lack of food, ensuring that the protagonist's life is not threatened by hunger.
At this point, she meets the most basic needs of the protagonist, and it is in this way that the protagonist has a deep impression and dependence on her.
Next, when we are full, our protagonist is gradually less afraid in the terrible night, after all, his personal safety was not substantially threatened at that time, and the previous fear is estimated to be inseparable from hunger and panic.
Therefore, the protagonist "I" can have the spirit to start looking for the third level of needs "social needs".
The third level: the need for emotion and belonging:
Friendship – love – sexual intimacy
Of course, people need to be cared for, at present, our protagonist "I" is taken care of by the girl Miriam and is well fed, and there are friends and relatives around him, so now all he lacks is love. So where does love come from?
At present, the only young girl he has contacted is Miriam, and Miriam just happens to like him, so the choice is not so difficult. Moreover, Miriam also controlled his food sources, which was arguably his most important reliance.
Whether from a survival point of view or a psychological point of view, then it is not surprising that he projects his dependence on the resources of survival onto specific people, and the illusion of love is generated.
So if this can't be said to be love, what should it be? I think this should fall under the category of "emotional attachment."
As for what makes us feel so dependent?
Normal emotional attachment is innate, and from the time we are babies, we are born close to our parents or anyone who takes care of us, thus establishing our first relationship in life.
The importance of our first human relationships is not only that we can survive as babies, but also that our yet-to-be-mature brain systems can learn adult functions to organize themselves.
When parents invest in us, our baby's positive emotions (such as satisfaction or happiness) are encouraged to develop, and potentially negative emotions (such as frustration and fear) are alleviated.
This practice can give us a sense of order and security as babies, and eventually this practice will be deeply imprinted in our subconscious memory as babies.
Our ability to build emotional bonds with others comes from this stage of infancy.
Therefore, it is not surprising that the "I" as the protagonist gets food and security from Miriam, and shifts from the dependence of survival to "love".
The book "One Day Lover" has many short stories that can make us think deeply, and those stories about love, marriage, conscience, loyalty and betrayal, spirit and flesh, etc., are very close to our hearts.
Life has no answers, but there are stories that can give us some lessons.
Perhaps, for Miriam, the protagonist "I" is as written in Ye Qing's poem "Variations one":
Scenery is your poem
The scenery is yours
The view is you
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" data-track="368" > previous issues</h1>
"Masquerade Villa" | A "stage play" unveils the most appropriate mask of human nature
"I Will Go Alone" | Take advantage of the sunshine and live well
"Ten Thousand People Like the Sea" | Life Thirty Nothing is more free than being yourself
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" data-track="369" > author profile</h1>
AiShang Shu Gallery, founded in 2016. Focus on sharing classic good books and book collections.
Words are warm, pen and ink are fragrant, and love is still reading and growing up with you.
At present, in the long-term call for papers, we look forward to your submissions
—End—
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Words are warm Love shang and grow up reading with you
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