從費城到長島威廉·科貝特的美國書寫

From Philadelphia to Long Island William Cobbett’s American Writings

威廉•科貝特(William Cobbett)以其在英國議會改革上的激進立場而聞名。他曾於一七九二年至一八〇〇年居住在美國（賓夕法尼亞州），並於一八一七年至一八一九年再次移居美國（長島）。與大多數在戰爭時期改變立場的英國「變節者」不同的是，科貝特的政治轉變從保守走向激進，而這個轉變也體現在這兩個時期的著作之中。在他第一次旅居美國期間，科貝特使用「豪豬彼得」(Peter Porcupine)這個筆名出版了多本小冊子，如〈關於約瑟夫•普里斯特里博士移民的觀察〉(“Observations on the Emigration of Dr. Joseph Priestley”)、〈給民主黨人的一塊骨頭〉(“A Bone to Gnaw for the Democrats”)和〈一點簡單英語〉(“A Little Plain English”)。在這些著作中，他猛烈抨擊美國的親法派人士，包括約瑟夫•普里斯特里(Joseph Priestley)、詹姆斯•湯姆森•卡倫德(James Thomson Callender)以及民主共和黨人，將他們視為企圖破壞美國政府的雅各賓派。科貝特自視為英國的捍衛者，同時也是保護美國免受法國大革命影響的屏障。他的這些小冊子構成了一種植根於英國保守主義和留存文化的跨大西洋反雅各賓論述。在他第二次旅居美國的期間，科貝特轉變為激進改革派，與新興的民主理念相合，譴責英國政府的腐敗。他所撰寫的兩本旅行見聞《在美國的一年生活》(A Year’s Residence in the United States of America)與《移民指南》(The Emigrant’s Guide)將美國描繪成一個政治與經濟自由的國家。英國和美國作為相互的對比參照，形塑成為一個跨大西洋的意識形態對比架構。如同保羅•賈爾斯(Paul Giles)所論，政治認同是由國族體系之間的相互對立與映照所形成。科貝特在這兩個時期的著作皆促成了這樣的關聯性，藉此尋求跨大西洋的政經替代模式。

Well known for his radical stance on parliamentary reform in Britain, William Cobbett lived in America from 1792 to 1800 (Pennsylvania) and again from 1817 to 1819 (Long Island). Unlike most British“apostates”during the wartime period, Cobbett followed a distinct path in his transformation from conservative to radical, a shift reflected in his writings from both periods. During his first sojourn in America, writing under the pseudonym“Peter Porcupine,”Cobbett published pamphlets such as“Observations on the Emigration of Dr. Joseph Priestley,”“A Bone to Gnaw for the Democrats,”and“A Little Plain English,”viciously attacking French sympathizers in America, including Joseph Priestley, James Thomson Callender, and the Democratic-Republicans, whom he viewed as Jacobins seeking to destabilize the American government. Positioning himself as a defender of Britain and a protector of America from revolutionary France, Cobbett’s pamphlets contributed to a transatlantic anti-Jacobin discourse rooted in British conservatism and residual cultural values. In his second stay in America, Cobbett became a radical reformist, condemning the corruption of the British government and aligning with emergent democratic ideals. His two travelogues, A Year’s Residence in the United States of America and The Emigrant’s Guide, depict America as a land of political and economic freedom. As reciprocal counterpoints, Britain and America form a transatlantic framework of ideological contrast, in which, as Paul Giles suggests, political identity is shaped through mutual opposition and reflection between national systems. Cobbett’s writings from both periods engage this contrast to explore alternative models of political and economic systems across the Atlantic.