Editor's Note
With a crappy Chinese, an odd outfit, a humble look, a begging look, what can such a teacher bring to his students? How do students react to such a teacher? From the perspective of a child, the author, Ryunosuke Wasagawa, describes the embarrassment of the teacher, the ridicule of the teacher when he was young, the understanding of the husband when he is older, and his own guilt. This is just as the Japanese literary critic Seiichi Yoshida commented on it: The literature of Ryunosuke Wasagawa can be seen as the crystallization of the conscience, feelings, nerves, and tastes of the intellectual class of the small citizens in the Taisho period.
Text reading
Dr. Mori
>>> Maori: Explain the object of writing. Sir: Show respect for the character.
Ryunosuke Wasagawa
(1) The first time I met Mr. Maori was on the afternoon of the day he took office. Footsteps came from the corridor, and there was an unprecedented silence. (Write on the side of the student's novelty and waiting for the new teacher.) The man who opened the door and came in was a short man, reminiscent of a juggling clown from a festival: a bare bald head no different from an ostrich egg painted in a textbook; an odd morning dress that was so pale that it was almost forgotten that it had once been black; a solemn purple tie was solemnly tied under a somewhat dirty lapel. (The description of appearance highlights the comical appearance of Mr. Maori, as well as the lack of income and sloppiness in life, laying the groundwork for the misunderstanding of the students later.) At the same time, the word "solemn" shows Mr. Maori's serious attitude towards teaching work. ）
(2) Make a strong laughing sound from all corners. However, the kind and pale round face of the gentleman showed a kind smile:
(3) "Guys! (Reflects Mr Māori's respect for his students.) This is in stark contrast to the laughter of the students above. ）
(4) We have never enjoyed the treatment of "all of you", waiting with bated breath for a long speech. However, Mr. Maori looked around the classroom and said nothing, the corners of his mouth nervously trembling, and the excited gaze of a somewhat domestic animal from time to time showed a restless look, as if pleading. (The depiction of the appearance shows mr. Maori's excitement about being able to engage in education, but at the same time worrying about his incompetence and anxiety, so he pleads with the students to approve of his teaching.) ）
(5) "In the future, I will teach you the optional reading lessons. ”
(6) We were very disappointed that the opening statement ended so abruptly. The gentleman named a classmate and called him "Jun". (Heartfelt respect for students.) The student stood up and translated a verse with the dexterity typical of a Tokyo middle school student. Needless to say, even some minor malfunctions in pronunciation have been carefully corrected. His pronunciation is extraordinarily contrived and can be roughly correct and clear. (The detailed description reflects Mr. Maori's careful and meticulous teaching, and he is very responsible.) ）
(7) However, when the gentleman began to translate, the laughter came and went. His Japanese vocabulary is so few that it is hard to believe that he is Japanese: "Robinson finally decided to breed. what?" It is...... There are so many zoos....yes, monkeys. "Even monkeys are like this, when they encounter slightly more complicated sentences, without going around in a few circles, they simply can't find a proper translation. The gentleman frequently put his hand on the neckline, raised his head in confusion, glanced at us in panic, and immediately pressed his hands to the bald head and buried his face deep on the table. The already diminutive body, like a deflated balloon, shrank into a clump. (Using detailed descriptions such as movements and demeanor, the teacher's embarrassment and embarrassment due to his unfamiliarity with this Chinese words are written.) It also reveals the author's sympathy for Mr. Maori when he recalls this incident many years later, and it is also his confession after his self-psychic dissection, which is in line with the writing style of Ryunosuke Wasagawa. The laughter grew more and more unbridled, and even the students in the front row openly laughed.
(8) From the recess, we laughed loudly, deliberately imitating Mr. Mister's posture and tone, and even I, as the class leader, was surrounded by five or six classmates, proudly pointing out Mr. Mistreal's mistranslation. (The students' behavior betrays contempt and disrespect for Mr. Maori, with a deliberate emphasis on my behavior as class president, and contains the guilt I felt for mr. Maori when I remembered what I did years later.) The author uses the first-person writing method, based on the reality of life that the author has personally experienced, and exposes the boredom of his own heart, "we", and the unique badness of the teenager through the attitude towards Mr. Maori, so that the novel is filled with a sad and disillusioned atmosphere, with the characteristics of a strong Japanese private novel. ）
(9) "This morning I was on the tram and saw my husband sitting in the middle. But near the place of changing cars, he shouted 'Conductor, conductor!' I thought it was funny and embarrassing. ”
(10) "I heard that he came to work in a suit and clogs on his feet when it rained. ”
(11) "Always hanging under the waist of the white handkerchief bag, 80% of it is a box lunch, right?" ”
(12) "I heard that when someone saw him grabbing the handle on the tram, the woolen gloves were full of holes. (In the form of character dialogue, he writes Mr. Maori in the eyes of everyone: he is forced to teach because of life, not aspiring to education.) Once again, the students ridiculed and despised him. The dialogue of many characters not only superficially explains the reason why Maori came here, but also makes the article full of depressing feelings. ）
>>> (1)-(12) mainly recounts the situation of mr. Maori at the first meeting and the ridicule of Mr. Maori by the classmates, laying the groundwork for Mr. Maori to be accused by his classmates later.
(13) One morning, Mr. Maori, as usual, pulled up his sharp voice and enthusiastically taught "Ode to Life". No one listened carefully, and a judo player in the neighboring seat spread out a martial arts novel under the textbook. As he was speaking, the gentleman suddenly talked about the problem of life: "You don't understand life yet, but in this way, you are happy." At our age, we have a great understanding of life, but there are many things that are distressed. In my case, I had two children, so I had to send them to school. Once in school... Well...... What about tuition fees..." Everyone snickered again. The judo player in the neighboring seat suddenly dropped the novel, stood up in a menacing manner and asked, "Sir, we are here to learn English, and if you continue to talk like this, I will immediately go to the playground." When he finished, he tried his best to straighten his face and sat back in his seat in anger.
(14) I have never seen such an embarrassed expression, like being struck by lightning, half-open mouth, animal-like eyes flashing a low look. He straightened the purple tie with his hand:
(15) "I was wrong, solemnly apologize." Indeed, you are here to learn English. I was wrong, okay? ”
(16) A crying smile repeats the same thing over and over again, and the wear and tear on the shoulders and waist of the jacket is more conspicuous. With each lowered head, his bald head became more and more like an ostrich egg. The judo player glanced back at me, smiled slyly, and immediately read the novel hidden below. (Through language, demeanor, and detail, Mr. Maori's sincerity is written, in stark contrast to the ignorance and vulgarity of the students.) This contrast is also intended to expose the evil in "our" heart, the dissection of the self. ）
(17) The gentleman was more incoherent than usual in translating the verses of Nalangferro. "Life is real, life is sincere." The round face with a bad look was sweating, as if he was constantly pleading for something. However, there are not a few people like me who yawn recklessly. The diminutive gentleman kept waving his textbook and shouting in a hoarse voice:
(18) "Life is real, life is sincere. (Mr. Maori's true inner expression, borrowing Longferro's words, shouted out his true feelings in his heart.) In the face of "the crisis and disillusionment of survival", Mr. Maori still insists on dissecting himself and trying to save himself from this disillusionment. ）
(19) After a semester, we have not seen Mr. Maori again, and we have not even meant to be happy, and even the existence of Mr. Maori itself has been completely forgotten. (Highlighting our indifference to Mr. Maori as students, it also implies the author's deep guilt.) ）
>>> concentrated on writing about the students' accusations against Mr. Maori, highlighting the students' disrespect and lack of understanding of the teacher.
(20) In the fall of college, I casually walked into a café to taste coffee and casually looked at the mirror in front of me.
(21) I was surprised by a customer in the mirror. Although it was only a side face, the ostrich egg-like bald head, the antique morning dress, the purple tie...
(22) The sharp voice is still the same, busy explaining what to the waiters. "This adjective refers to this noun, you know?" There was a book on the table. Mr. Maori kept poking at the page with his fingers and went out of his way to explain. The waiters huddled together, each one concentrating. (The same dress, unchanged for decades, writes out that Mr. does not pursue material things.) The careful and patient presentation reflects Mr. Maori's love of teaching. At the same time, the state of learning of the waiter at this time is in stark contrast with that of us at that time, which is intended to criticize our disrespect and lack of appreciation for Mr. Wang's teaching in that year. ）
(23) "What? Relational nouns? There are no so-called relational nouns. Is it a relational pronoun? Yes, yes..."
(24) I could not help but feel a kind of warmth, and quietly got up, and the round face with a very bad appearance turned to this side, and the animal-like eyes met my gaze in the mirror. However, the expression of the old encounter did not appear in the gentleman's eyes, but only the pitiful expression of pleading. (The look of a domestic animal, writing that Mr. Wang's eyes are still as clear as ever.) For Mr. Maori, teaching English is his lifelong passion, but the world often does not understand, so he has a "pitiful look of pleading", hoping to be understood by students and the world. I silently walked to the accounting office to pay.
(25) "Someone over there is teaching English, was it invited by the café?" ”
(26) "Where the invitation is, but every night they come to teach." I heard that it was an old and decaying Mr. English, and I didn't hire him anywhere, probably to kill time. Ask for a cup of coffee, just spend the night here, we don't welcome him. (The accounting room's words show that not only the students cannot understand Mr. Maori, but the whole society or the world may not understand Mr. Maori.) The students believe that Mr. Maori is forced to make a living, and the accounting office believes that Mr. Maori is to kill time. It further highlights the pain of Mr. Maori's loyalty to education but no one understands, and it also better reflects the nobility of the character's personality. This also reflects the characteristics of Japanese private novels that reconcile themselves as the goal of effort, and the characters strive to overcome the "crisis and disillusionment of survival" and save themselves from the "uneasiness of life and the crisis of survival". ）
(27) I seem to understand sir now. Suddenly, I didn't know whether to cry or laugh. I put up the collar of my coat and hurried out of the café. (My thoughts and hurried departure reveal my guilt and remorse for my attitude towards him as a teenager, and my admiration for his noble personality devoted to education.) The gentleman still kept a sharp voice in the chilling light. ("It's so bright that it chills people's hearts," revealing the author's heartache that the world does not understand Mr. Maori.) ）
(28) "Because the word is instead of a noun, it is called a pronoun. Pronouns, get it? (The full text ends with Mr. Maori's teaching discourse, which is intriguing.) ）
>>> (13)-(28) The above section describes the goodbye mr. Māori at the coffee shop, and the author transforms the previous ridicule into respect and understanding for mr. Māori.
The whole text is clearly thought out, from the ridicule at the first sight of the situation - the difficulty of daily getting along - the understanding when we meet again, showing the author's change in understanding of Mr. and also reflecting the maturity of the author's mind.
(Translated by Liu Guangyu, with deletions)
Knowledge construction
Character description angles //
The novel is a literary genre that focuses on shaping the character image and reflects social life through the narration of the complete storyline and the description of the specific environment. The shaping of the character image is crucial in the novel, and the shaping of the image is inseparable from the description of the character. Generally speaking, the angle of character and description is divided into positive description and side description. Positive depiction is mainly a detailed description of it from the perspective of language, action, appearance, psychology, and demeanor. The profile description is mainly through the reaction and evaluation of others to shape this character image.
In this article, the image of Mr. Maori is portrayed in a positive and negative way. The front side is mainly carried out by his language, movements, demeanor and dress, while the side is mainly the ridicule of his classmates and the answers of coffee shop employees. Through these descriptions, the image of a depressed teacher who lives an embarrassing life but is obsessed with teaching and loves the cause of education is activated.