朱迪絲・克爾文本中兒童與寵物關係裡的時間與永恆

Time and Timelessness in Judith Kerr’s Child-Pet Relationship

本文探討了線性和循環敘事之間的相互作用，這些敘事在朱迪絲・克爾（Judith Kerr）的阿默圖畫書系列（Mog picturebook series）中構建了對童年的獨特描繪。它探討了家貓阿默（Mog）如何作為情感催化劑塑造兒童主角尼基（Nicky）的社交和情感發展，同時保留童年純真和家庭和諧的記憶。阿默以克爾家貓為原型，於1970年首次亮相，她與托馬斯（Thomas）家族的持久聯繫引起了一代又一代年輕讀者的共鳴。本文借鑒浪漫主義的童年觀念、敘事學和歷史背景，討論了該系列中的時間二元性。它應用瑪麗亞・尼古拉耶娃（Maria Nikolajeva）的神話和線性時間框架（2000）來分析阿默如何影響尼基的漸進發展以及他在語言和視覺文本中反覆出現的童年經歷。通過熱拉爾・熱奈特（Gerard Genette）的迭代頻率（1980）、阿默的象徵性死亡以及皮埃爾・諾拉（Pierre Nora）對記憶和歷史的反思（1989）進一步探討了永恆童年的建構。該文繼而透過阿默與二戰海軍貓西蒙（Simon）的關係，探討阿默英雄主義的文化維度，以追溯阿默的敘述如何與英國戰時記憶互動。這項分析闡明了圖畫書如何利用兒童與寵物的關係來協商童年時期的時間和永恆性，揭示了文學想像力與對動物的文化態度之間的相互作用。

This article explores the interplay between linear and cyclical narratives that construct a distinctive portrayal of childhood in Judith Kerr’s Mog picturebook series. It examines how the domestic cat, Mog, functions as an emotional catalyst shaping the social and emotional development of Nicky, the child protagonist, while preserving memories of childhood innocence and domestic harmony. Based on the Kerr family cat, Mog debuted in 1970, and her enduring bond with the Thomas family has resonated with generations of young readers. Drawing on Romantic conceptions of childhood, narratology, and historical contexts, the discussion addresses temporal duality in the series. It applies Maria Nikolajeva’s framework of mythic and linear time (2000) to analyze how Mog influences both Nicky’s progressive development and his recurring childhood experiences in the verbal and visual texts. The construction of timeless childhood is further explored through Gerard Genette’s iterative frequency (1980), Mog’s symbolic death, and Pierre Nora’s reflections on memory and history (1989). The article then considers cultural dimensions of Mog’s heroism through her relationship to Simon, an honored World War II naval cat, to trace how Mog’s narrative engages with British wartime memory. This analysis illuminates how picturebooks employ child-pet relationships to negotiate time and timelessness within childhood, shedding light on the interaction between literary imagination and cultural attitudes toward animals.