译者说|生命的单选题

_本文原题：生命的单选题

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死亡是一件奇怪的事情。人们终其一生都在假装它不存在，尽管这是生命最大的动机之一。我们其中一些人有足够时间认识死亡，他们得以活得更努力、更执着、更壮烈。有些人却要等到它真正逼近时才意识到它的反义词有多美好。另一些人深受其困扰，在它宣布到来之前就早早地坐进等候室。我们害怕它，但我们更害怕它发生在身边的人身上。对死亡最大的恐惧，在于它与我们擦肩而过，留下我们独自一人。

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Not going gently
不再温柔
When love means saying goodbye
【译者说|生命的单选题】爱在离别时
The protagonist of Rick Gekoski’s novel faces a murder charge for helping his wife die
里克·杰寇斯基(Rick Gekoski)小说中的主人公因帮助妻子死亡面临谋杀指控
Jul 11th 2020 |
Darke Matter. By Rick Gekoski. Constable; 336 pages; ￡16.99
THE HERO of Rick Gekoski’s debut novel at first seemed to be a misanthropic crank. James Darke, a retired English teacher, spent months at home wallowing in gloomy thoughts, replaying wistful memories and berating the cruel and idiotic ways of the world and his fellow man. When it emerged that Darke was broken by the loss of his wife, the story and its protagonist acquired heft. A coming-of-old-age tale unfolded into a poignant yet hard-hitting meditation on grief, with a richly complex character at its centre.
里克·杰科斯基(Rick Gekoski)首部小说的主人公起初似乎是个厌世的怪人。詹姆斯·达克(James Darke)是一名退休的英语教授，数月闭门在家，沉浸在阴郁的思绪中，反复回忆痛苦的往事，痛斥世界的残忍和同胞的愚蠢。当达克因妻子的去世而心碎时，这个故事和它的主角让大众产生了共鸣。这是一个关于老年的故事，以一个复杂的人物为中心，展开了对悲伤深刻而有力的沉思。
Three years on and Mr Gekoski has written a supremely accomplished tragicomic sequel. If “Darke” depicted a painful journey into the light, “Darke Matter” charts forward steps and glances back at the abyss, while exploring a murky moral issue. It is more ambitious than its predecessor, and the author pulls it off in style.
三年过去了，杰科斯基写了一部非常成功的悲喜剧续集。如果说《黑暗》描绘了一段痛苦的光明之旅，那么《黑暗的物质》则描绘了前进的步伐和回头的深渊，同时探索了一个黑暗的道德问题。这本书比上一本书更加雄心勃勃，而且形成一种风格。
When the novel opens Darke is bracing himself for the first family Christmas without his wife, Suzy. He is no longer an “urban hermit” and has reconnected with his daughter, Lucy. But he is still angry, jaded and bereft, and reluctant to open his door. One day he gives in to insistent knocking and finds two police officers outside. Soon he is taken in for questioning about the circumstances of Suzy’s death.
小说一开始，达克正准备迎接没有妻子苏西陪伴的第一个家庭圣诞节。他不再是一个“城市隐士” ，并与他的女儿露西重新建立了联系。但他仍然愤怒、疲惫、无助，不愿打开自己的家门。一天，他终于屈服于持续不断的敲门，发现门外有两名警察。很快，他就被带走审问苏西的死因。分页标题
Darke, it transpires, relieved his beloved wife’s suffering by administering “a fatal draught”. He has no regrets. In his view the terminally ill should be allowed to die with dignity: to have, as he puts it (quoting John Keats), an “easeful death”. When he is charged with murder he is compelled to overcome his “people-phobic” instincts to rally support and argue his case. But does he have the stomach to fight for his beliefs?
据说，达克给他心爱的妻子服了一剂“致命的药水” ，减轻了她的痛苦。他不后悔。在他看来，身患绝症的人应该被允许有尊严地死去：用他的话来说(引用约翰济慈的话) ，是“安详地死去” 。当他被指控谋杀时，他被迫克服“恐惧人类”的本能，以赢得支持，为自己的案子辩护。但他有勇气为自己的信仰而战吗?
Once again, Mr Gekoski’s flawed and vividly drawn hero is the book’s driving force. Darke’s bilious temperament and no-nonsense attitude are a regular source of humour. His acerbic commentaries target Christmas trees, potted plants, parks, politicians, trains, infants and “that flatulent haggis Walter Scott”. The bravura set pieces include a poetry evening with “a bunch of superannuated, sofa-bound littérateurs”.
杰科斯基笔下这位虽有缺陷但形象生动的英雄，再一次成为了这本书的推动力。达克暴躁的脾气和严肃的态度是他幽默的源泉。他尖刻的评论把目标对准了圣诞树、盆栽、公园、政客、火车、婴儿和“那个胀气的哈吉斯·沃尔特·斯科特” 。壮观的场景包括一个诗歌之夜，有“一群老去的、喜欢沙发的文学家” 。
The only wrong note in Darke’s otherwise commanding voice is an occasional wordiness (“her liquacious, loquacious spirit”). But his heart is laid bare in his contemplation of the woman who still haunts him. It is good to have him back.
达克原本会发出声音的唯一错误注释是偶尔的言语（“她是多嘴，喋喋不休的人”）。但是他对仍然困扰着他的女人的沉思使他的内心暴露了出来。让他回来真是太好了。
作者介绍
里克 · 杰寇斯基（Rick Gekoski）
作家、珍藏书书商、学者，多重身份的他被称作“世界最杰出的出版人（bookman）之一” 。他曾著有多部非虚构作品，广受好评，包括《守岁》（STAYING UP），《托尔金的袍子》（TOLKIEN'S GOWN），《失去的，偷走的，切碎的》（LOST, STOLEN OR SHREDDED）等。《被时间遗忘的人》是他的第一部小说作品，深邃、独特的文学视角，让这部作品备受瞩目，广受好评。

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