與歷史創傷相遇：試論《達樂薇夫人》一書中的戰爭與記憶政治

Traumatic Encounter with History: The War and the Politics of Memory in Mrs. Dalloway

本文探討創傷書寫與記憶之間錯綜複雜的關係。作者引用晚近興起的創傷理論辯證《達樂微夫人》（Mrs. Dalloway）一書中所呈現的歷史是一種陰魂不散的歷史觀。伍爾夫（Virginia Woolf）描寫的不只是戰後歸來的軍人薩提馬思（Septimus）受創的紊亂心靈，而是以文化，社會政治，及心理層面書寫戰爭創傷帶給個人及整個社會的衝激。因此，第一次大戰所帶給人的心靈創傷，仍是餘威無窮，繼續糾纏戰後的英國社會。薩提馬思受創的心靈本身就是一場歷史夢魘，他的存在象徵過去的傷痕尚未癒合，而這樣的歷史夢魘是不見容於極欲擺脫戰爭傷痕的英國社會。 因此，整個英國社會似乎有意無意間鼓勵薩提馬思自殺，以便解決及遺忘過去的傷痕。然而，小說的結尾無法有效舒發創傷的衝激。薩提馬思的肉體雖然在小說中消失，他卻如鬼魅般糾纏達樂薇夫人的宴會。漂浮如鬼魅，薩提馬思糾纏『達樂微夫人』這部小說，就如心靈的創傷亦牢牢糾纏著他不放。因此，創傷的概念讓讀者重新審視敘事，記憶，與遺忘之間的關係。

In this essay—“Traumatic Encounter with History: the War and the Politics of Memory in Mrs. Dalloway”—I discuss the problematic issue of memory in the narrative of trauma. Drawing on recent trauma studies, I argue that Mrs. Dalloway offers a version of history as haunting, in which Woolf depicts not only the chaos of Septimus's shattered mind but also situates the aftermath of war in relation to a larger society. I argue that postwar British society is troubled by the overwhelming flood of dangerous emotions resulting from the traumatic impact of an event on the scale of World War I. Representing the nightmare of history as well as the troubling and unresolved effects of the past, Septimus is subtly encouraged by society to kill himself so that the past can be resolved and forgotten. However, my reading indicates that the novel's ending, as a long-waited discharge of traumatic excitations in the wake of Septimus's death, does not offer consolation; instead, the ending is deceptive. Though written off physically from the novel, Septimus returns to ghostly haunt Mrs. Dalloway's party. In other words, Mrs. Dalloway offers a version of history as haunting, in which the effects of the war are most definitely not put to rest. Trauma therefore serves to introduce the problem of the relation of narrative to remembering and forgetting. To sum up, Woolf responds to the legacy of shell-shock by focusing on the cultural, sociopolitical, and psychological contexts of trauma.