摇尾乞怜与狐假虎威 日本悲剧的根源

 　　In 2009, after half a century of nearly unbroken rule, the Liberal Democratic party was finally drummed out of office by a new force in Japanese politics. The Democratic Party of Japan, led by Yukio Hatoyama, promised a new contract with the Japanese public and a new relationship between elected officials and the powerful bureaucracy. Yet when Hatoyama went to Washington the following April, he was shunned¹.

　　在几乎未曾间断地执政半个世纪后，自民党(LDP)最终在2009年被日本政坛的新力量赶下台。由鸠山由纪夫(Yukio Hatoyama)领导的日本民主党(DPJ)，承诺与日本民众签订新契约，并在民选官员和势力强大的官僚体系之间建立新的关系。然而，当翌年4月鸠山访问华盛顿时，他遭遇了冷遇。

　　The ostensible² reason was that Hatoyama had displeased³ Washington by reneging on a deal to build a new US Marine⁴ base on Okinawa. However, according to R Taggart Murphy, professor of international political economy at Tokyo’s Tsukuba university, Hatoyama was attempting much more than that: he wanted to regain⁵ the sovereignty that Japan had lost when it became a virtual “protectorate” of the US after 1945. “Japan cannot be an ally of the United States — or anyone else — until it is first a sovereign state,” Taggart Murphy writes. In this view, one shared by many on both the Japanese right and the left, Japan remains⁶ essentially⁷ an occupied nation, subject to a US-written constitution and honeycombed by US military bases. Rather like Hatoyama, he recommends Japan taking responsibility for its own defence and seeking a new accommodation with China.

　　表面上的原因是，鸠山拒绝履行冲绳美国海军基地新建协议，触怒了华盛顿。然而，东京筑波大学(University of Tsukuba)国际政治经济学教授塔R?塔格特?墨菲(R Taggart Murphy)认为，鸠山想要的比这多得多：他想收回日本1945年后成为美国事实上的“保护国”时所丧失的主权。墨菲写到：“在首先成为一个主权国家之前，日本无法做美国（或任何其他国家）的盟国。”这种观点（得到日本右翼和左翼的很多人认同）认为：日本本质上仍是一个被占领国，要遵守一部由美国制定的宪法，本土遍布美国军事基地。跟鸠山的观点相像，墨菲建议日本自己担负国防责任，并寻求与中国取得新的和解。

　　日本悲剧的根源.jpg

　　Taggart Murphy knows his Japanese history. His theories about Japan’s political economy — of which more later — shed interesting light on the country. They can, however, be taken to extreme. In the case of Hatoyama, the author contends that he was brought down by Washington. Certainly, the US was disturbed by Hatoyama, who casually⁸ announced in an essay that he wanted to recast Japan’s relationship with the US and China, omitting to mention this sea-change in foreign policy to his allies in the US. But while US diplomats⁹ may have schemed against him, to lay his demise¹⁰ squarely at Washington’s door is too much. (To be fair, as well as the Pentagon and Japan-handlers in Washington, the author also blames the LDP, the Japanese bureaucracy, Beijing, Pyongyang and the 2011 earthquake. Only the kitchen sink, it seems, was not in on the conspiracy¹¹.)

　　墨菲了解日本历史。他关于日本（当代）政治经济史的理论提供了一些有意思的观点，有助于我们了解这个国家。但是，有些观点可能有些过头。就鸠山来说，作者认为他是被华盛顿搞下台的。当然，美国被鸠山弄得心神不宁——他在一篇文章中漫不经心地地宣布，要重塑日本与美国以及中国的关系，但却没有向他在美国的盟友事先提及这一外交政策突变。虽然美国外交官可能曾密谋对付鸠山，但把他的下台完全归咎于华盛顿有点太过了。（平心而论，除五角大楼以及华盛顿负责处理日本事务者之外，作者还指责自民党、日本官僚体系、中国政府、朝鲜政府以及2011年那场地震应该为鸠山下台负责。看起来只有厨房里的水槽没有参与这场阴谋。）

　　The book’s intellectual foundations owe much to Karel van Wolferen, whose classic The Enigma¹² of Japanese Power (1989) revolutionised the way people thought about Japan. In Taggart Murphy’s hands, the crux¹³ of the theory is that power relations have not properly evolved from the quasi-feudal system that operated for more than 250 years when Japan was an isolated¹⁴ shogunate. Then the nominal¹⁵ head of state was the emperor, though in reality he was little more than a figurehead. The Meiji Restoration of 1868, which overthrew¹⁶ the existing order in order to protect Japan from encroaching colonialism, supposedly restored the emperor to his rightful position. Unlike in Europe, this was not a bourgeois¹⁷ revolution mounted from below, but a putsch organised by a clique¹⁸ of samurai. Japan, in other words, has never properly destroyed the old order, a state of affairs perpetuated¹⁹ when the US occupation ducked its chance to topple the emperor.

　　这本书的知识基础大大得益于卡雷尔?范沃尔夫伦(Karel Van Wolferen)，后者关于日本的经典著作《日本：权力结构之谜》(The Enigma of Japanese Power,1989）彻底改变了人们对日本的认识。在墨菲笔下，这一理论的核心是，权力关系还没有真正超越半封建体制，这一体制在日本还是个孤立的幕府国家期间运转了超过250年。那时，名义上的国家元首是天皇，尽管实际上他不过是一个傀儡。1868年的明治维新 (Meiji Restoration)为保护日本免受殖民主义入侵而推翻了原有秩序，据信恢复了天皇应有的地位。与欧洲不同，这不是一场自下而上的资产阶级革命，而是由武士集团组织的一场政变。换句话说，日本从来没有完全摧毁其旧秩序，而美国在占领期间放弃废除天皇的机会，使这一状态得以永久化。

　　There is much useful rumination²⁰ here. The section on the Tokugawa shogunate (1600-1868) is particularly well done, and there are also many colourful, often acerbic²¹, observations about modern Japan — a foreigner working for a Japanese company, for example, is likened to a rap artist joining a string quartet. The tragedy of Japan, says the author, stems from the fact it merely grafted²² the trappings of a modern state on to its existing system. To this day, he contends, there continues to be a “yawning gap between the political reality in Japan and the fictions with which that reality” is understood.

　　本书中有很多有益的思考。关于德川幕府时代(Tokugawa shogunate,1600-1868)的章节写得格外好，书中对现代日本也有许多生动（往往也很尖刻）的评论——例如，书中将一个效力于日本企业的外国人比作加入了弦乐四重奏的说唱歌手。作者说，日本的悲剧源于它只是把现代国家的外表嫁接到了原有的体制之上。他说，时至今日，“日本政治现实与人们对这种现实的臆想之间仍存在巨大差距”。

　　For the author, this gap explains more or less everything. It is why, for example, there are endless debates in parliament about matters that have long been decided²³ upon behind closed doors. It is why it took a foreigner, unfamiliar²⁴ with honour codes, to blow the whistle on the fictional²⁵ accounts at Olympus. It is also why the salaryman can believe he is “a soldier for a cause” but can also recognise that ultimately he is an “exploited cog in a faceless, industrial machine”.

　　在作者看来，这种差距几乎可以解释一切。例如，它解释了为什么议会要对早已秘密决定的事情进行无休止的辩论。它也解释了为什么举报奥林巴斯(Olympus)账目造假的是一个不熟悉日本荣誉守则的外国人，以及为什么一个工薪族既可以相信自己是“献身事业的士兵”，也可以承认自己最终是“千篇一律的工业机器上一颗被剥削的螺丝钉”。

　　This latter example reveals the author’s propensity²⁶ to see in every facet²⁷ of modern Japan the ghosts of an unreconstructed past. The alienation²⁸ of labour he describes could apply equally to almost anywhere. Similarly, many other features of the country, from teenage fashion to sexual relations, are shoehorned into an overarching theory with sometimes illuminating²⁹ or far-fetched consequences.

　　后面那个例子显示出，作者倾向于认为，那段未得到重建的历史的幽灵存在于现代日本的方方面面。他所描述的劳动异化(alienation of labour)可能同样适用于几乎任何地方。类似地，这个国家的许多其他特征（从青少年时尚到两性关系）都被硬塞进一个包罗一切的理论中，得出的结论有时发人深省，有时有些牵强。

　　Shinzo Abe, the nationalist prime minister, becomes yet another throwback — one of the “vampires” from the darkest period of Japan’s history, in Taggart Murphy’s description. For this sorry state of affairs, the author concludes, Washington has only itself to blame. It “cavalierly” destroyed Japan’s best hope of revamping its political system and of repairing poisonous relations with China. Yet this is to credit the Democratic Party of Japan with a revolutionary agenda that it simply did not possess. It is also to depict³⁰ modern Japan, for all its many faults, in too unrelentingly gloomy a light.

　　日本的民族主义首相安倍晋三(Shinzo Abe)则成为另一大倒退的象征——用墨菲的话来说，他是来自日本历史中最黑暗时期的“吸血鬼”之一。对于这种糟糕的状态，作者认为，华盛顿只能怪它自己：美国“傲慢地”摧毁了日本改造其政治体制以及修复糟糕的日中关系的最好机会。然而，作者这样说相当于认为日本民主党有一份革命议程，但实际上它根本没有。此外，尽管现代日本存在种种缺陷，但作者这样说也未免过于无情和悲观，没有公允地反映现代日本的真实面貌。

　　Japan and the Shackles³¹ of the Past, by R Taggart, Murphy OUP USA RRP?20/RRP$29.95, 472 pages

　　《日本及其历史枷锁》(Japan and the Shackles of the Past)，R?塔格特?墨菲著，牛津大学出版社美国部(OUP USA)出版，建议零售价20英镑或29.95美元，472页

　　David Pilling is the FT’s Asia editor and author of ‘Bending Adversity: Japan and the Art of Survival’ (Allen Lane)

　　注：戴维?皮林(David Pilling)是英国《金融时报》亚洲版主编，著有《弯折逆境：日本与生存艺术》(Bending Adversity: Japan and the Art of Survival)，由艾伦莱恩出版社(Allen Lane)出版。

1 shunned   

v.避开，回避，避免( shun的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• She was shunned by her family when she remarried. 她再婚后家里人都躲着她。
• He was a shy man who shunned all publicity. 他是个怕羞的人，总是避开一切引人注目的活动。 来自《简明英汉词典》

2 ostensible   

adj.(指理由)表面的，假装的

参考例句：

• The ostensible reason wasn't the real reason.表面上的理由并不是真正的理由。
• He resigned secretaryship on the ostensible ground of health.他借口身体不好，辞去书记的职务。

3 displeased   

a.不快的

参考例句：

• The old man was displeased and darted an angry look at me. 老人不高兴了，瞪了我一眼。
• He was displeased about the whole affair. 他对整个事情感到很不高兴。

4 marine   

adj.海的；海生的；航海的；海事的；n.水兵

参考例句：

• Marine creatures are those which live in the sea. 海洋生物是生存在海里的生物。
• When the war broke out,he volunteered for the Marine Corps.战争爆发时，他自愿参加了海军陆战队。

5 regain   

vt.重新获得，收复，恢复

参考例句：

• He is making a bid to regain his World No.1 ranking.他正为重登世界排名第一位而努力。
• The government is desperate to regain credibility with the public.政府急于重新获取公众的信任。

6 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

7 essentially   

adv.本质上，实质上，基本上

参考例句：

• Really great men are essentially modest.真正的伟人大都很谦虚。
• She is an essentially selfish person.她本质上是个自私自利的人。

8 casually   

adv.漠不关心地，无动于衷地，不负责任地

参考例句：

• She remarked casually that she was changing her job.她当时漫不经心地说要换工作。
• I casually mentioned that I might be interested in working abroad.我不经意地提到我可能会对出国工作感兴趣。

9 diplomats   

n.外交官( diplomat的名词复数 )；有手腕的人，善于交际的人

参考例句：

• These events led to the expulsion of senior diplomats from the country. 这些事件导致一些高级外交官被驱逐出境。
• The court has no jurisdiction over foreign diplomats living in this country. 法院对驻本国的外交官无裁判权。 来自《简明英汉词典》

10 demise   

n.死亡；v.让渡，遗赠，转让

参考例句：

• He praised the union's aims but predicted its early demise.他赞扬协会的目标，但预期这一协会很快会消亡。
• The war brought about the industry's sudden demise.战争道致这个行业就这么突然垮了。

11 conspiracy   

n.阴谋，密谋，共谋

参考例句：

• The men were found guilty of conspiracy to murder.这些人被裁决犯有阴谋杀人罪。
• He claimed that it was all a conspiracy against him.他声称这一切都是一场针对他的阴谋。

12 enigma   

n.谜，谜一样的人或事

参考例句：

• I've known him for many years,but he remains something of an enigma to me.我与他相识多年，他仍然难以捉摸。
• Even after all the testimonies,the murder remained a enigma.即使听完了所有的证词，这件谋杀案仍然是一个谜。

13 crux   

adj.十字形；难事，关键，最重要点

参考例句：

• The crux of the matter is how to comprehensively treat this trend.问题的关键是如何全面地看待这种趋势。
• The crux of the matter is that attitudes have changed.问题的要害是人们的态度转变了。

14 isolated   

adj.与世隔绝的

参考例句：

• His bad behaviour was just an isolated incident. 他的不良行为只是个别事件。
• Patients with the disease should be isolated. 这种病的患者应予以隔离。

15 nominal   

adj.名义上的；(金额、租金)微不足道的

参考例句：

• The king was only the nominal head of the state. 国王只是这个国家名义上的元首。
• The charge of the box lunch was nominal.午餐盒饭收费很少。

16 overthrew   

overthrow的过去式

参考例句：

• The people finally rose up and overthrew the reactionary regime. 人们终于起来把反动的政权推翻了。
• They overthrew their King. 他们推翻了国王。

17 bourgeois   

adj./n.追求物质享受的(人)；中产阶级分子

参考例句：

• He's accusing them of having a bourgeois and limited vision.他指责他们像中产阶级一样目光狭隘。
• The French Revolution was inspired by the bourgeois.法国革命受到中产阶级的鼓励。

18 clique   

n.朋党派系，小集团

参考例句：

• The reactionary ruling clique was torn by internal strife.反动统治集团内部勾心斗角，四分五裂。
• If the renegade clique of that country were in power,it would have meant serious disaster for the people.如果那个国家的叛徒集团一得势，人民就要遭殃。

19 perpetuated   

vt.使永存（perpetuate的过去式与过去分词形式）

参考例句：

• This system perpetuated itself for several centuries. 这一制度维持了几个世纪。
• I never before saw smile caught like that, and perpetuated. 我从来没有看见过谁的笑容陷入这样的窘况，而且持续不变。 来自辞典例句

20 rumination   

n.反刍，沉思

参考例句：

• EA is the theory of rumination about human EA conception. 生态美学是对人类生态审美观念反思的理论。 来自互联网
• The rumination and distress catalyze the growth process, Dr. 这种反复思考和哀伤反而促进了成长的过程。 来自互联网

21 acerbic   

adj.酸的，刻薄的

参考例句：

• His lyrics are as acerbic and poignant as they ever have been.他的歌词一如既往的犀利辛辣。
• He sent back an acerbic letter.他回复了一封尖刻的信。

22 grafted   

移植( graft的过去式和过去分词 )； 嫁接； 使（思想、制度等）成为（…的一部份）； 植根

参考例句：

• No art can be grafted with success on another art. 没有哪种艺术能成功地嫁接到另一种艺术上。
• Apples are easily grafted. 苹果树很容易嫁接。

23 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

24 unfamiliar   

adj.陌生的，不熟悉的

参考例句：

• I am unfamiliar with the place and the people here.我在这儿人地生疏。
• The man seemed unfamiliar to me.这人很面生。

25 fictional   

adj.小说的，虚构的

参考例句：

• The names of the shops are entirely fictional.那些商店的名字完全是虚构的。
• The two authors represent the opposite poles of fictional genius.这两位作者代表了天才小说家两个极端。

26 propensity   

n.倾向；习性

参考例句：

• He has a propensity for drinking too much alcohol.他有酗酒的倾向。
• She hasn't reckoned on his propensity for violence.她不曾料到他有暴力倾向。

27 facet   

n.(问题等的)一个方面；(多面体的)面

参考例句：

• He has perfected himself in every facet of his job.他已使自己对工作的各个方面都得心应手。
• Every facet of college life is fascinating.大学生活的每个方面都令人兴奋。

28 alienation   

n.疏远；离间；异化

参考例句：

• The new policy resulted in the alienation of many voters.新政策导致许多选民疏远了。
• As almost every conceivable contact between human beings gets automated,the alienation index goes up.随着人与人之间几乎一切能想到的接触方式的自动化，感情疏远指数在不断上升。

29 illuminating   

a.富于启发性的，有助阐明的

参考例句：

• We didn't find the examples he used particularly illuminating. 我们觉得他采用的那些例证启发性不是特别大。
• I found his talk most illuminating. 我觉得他的话很有启发性。

30 depict   

vt.描画，描绘；描写，描述

参考例句：

• I don't care to see plays or films that depict murders or violence.我不喜欢看描写谋杀或暴力的戏剧或电影。
• Children's books often depict farmyard animals as gentle,lovable creatures.儿童图书常常把农场的动物描写得温和而可爱。

31 shackles   

手铐( shackle的名词复数 )； 脚镣； 束缚； 羁绊

参考例句：

• a country struggling to free itself from the shackles of colonialism 为摆脱殖民主义的枷锁而斗争的国家
• The cars of the train are coupled together by shackles. 火车的车厢是用钩链连接起来的。