搜索

复制

有一位老外亨利·菲尔丁在《弃儿汤姆·琼斯的历史》中打了一个有趣的比方。他说：作家不应该自视为以私人身份设宴待客，或发放食物救济穷人的绅士，而应自视为开餐馆的老板。前一种情况下，食物依主人之意而定，即使准备得极为草草，被招待的人难以下咽，他们也不便挑剔和抱怨。对于餐馆老板，情形就不一样了。每一位光临的顾客都有资格对食物提这样那样的要求。

菲尔丁说，一个作家，就像一个诚实为怀的餐馆老板，为了避免因菜肴不合心意的情况，必须勤恳谨慎地把饭菜做好；还需要备好菜单，把自己所能提供的，让客人一览无余。客人看过菜单，知道在这里能享用到什么，于是坐下来，安心品尝，或者不满意，就可以走开。

菲尔丁这里说的是写作者对读者的态度——诚恳，敬业，怀抱善意，把最好的东西拿出来。孔子说“游于艺”，在我看来，是“游荡”于艺，游荡在喜爱的书籍中，徘徊容与，不忍舍离，好比一条不系之舟，“纵然一夜风吹去，只在芦花浅水边”。

比如你去有名的公园和花园，看见常青的灌木被剪得整整齐齐，草坪分割成块，像几何学家画出来的。花木错置其间，长短相形，高下相倾，姹紫嫣红，井然有序，既赏心悦目，又如梦似幻，这当然是高级的艺术。在一些不起眼的楼间空地，在一些人家的庭院，看到几丛懒洋洋但十分健康的绿植花卉，偶尔还有蔷薇和杜鹃，旁边散乱地生着狗尾巴草、可食用的灰灰菜和野蒿，也觉得很喜欢，它们虽不精致，却自然，有生气。这种杂乱让人觉得放松，是宽容的气氛。各种生命——植物以及其间的鸟和昆虫，按照习性和喜好去存活和发展，使人觉得也是艺术。

好文章不拘小节，随心所欲。可恣意放纵，也可甘愿在蜗居里做道场，可无法而法，也可墨守成规。总之是用一种妥帖如意的方式把要说的话说出来，如同量体裁衣。

有人用过：“把心思用在读书上，不过是想从别人绞尽脑汁、苦思冥想的结果中找点乐趣。”这是很贴心的话。如果一本书能给人一点阅读的乐趣，这本书就值得了。

记者张三清的第四部作品正在写作中，写的都是接地气的凡人小事，约有百余篇。通过阅读这些文章，你会进入一个时代，一个属于涿州的时代。

把他的前三部书再次公示，是：《追忆流逝的岁月》；《那些年，那些事儿》；《聊聊涿州名人·一百单八将》；第四本初定名《群英荟萃》。

（刘会军 2023年末于涿州）

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

In his essay "The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling," the American writer Henry Fielding made an interesting comparison. He said: Writers should not consider themselves as hosting a private dinner party or distributing food to the poor as gentlemen, but should think of themselves as restaurant owners. In the former case, the food is at the discretion of the host, and even if it is prepared hastily and the guests find it difficult to swallow, they cannot complain or be picky. For the restaurant owner, the situation is different. Every customer has the right to make demands about the food.

Fielding said that a writer, like an honest restaurant owner, must diligently and carefully prepare the food to avoid dissatisfaction. They also need to have a menu ready, showcasing everything they can offer, allowing customers to see for themselves what they can enjoy here. Customers who have seen the menu know what they can enjoy here and can sit down, taste peacefully, or leave if they are not satisfied.

Fielding's words speak to the attitude of the writer towards the reader - sincerity, dedication, goodwill, and offering the best. Confucius said "enjoying the arts," in my opinion, it means "wandering" in the arts, wandering in beloved books, lingering, reluctant to leave, like a boat that is not moored, "even if blown away by the wind overnight, only to stay on the edge of the marsh reeds."

For example, when you go to famous parks and gardens and see evergreen shrubs neatly trimmed, lawns divided into geometric shapes, like those drawn by a geometrician, with flowers and trees arranged in order, it is both pleasing to the eye and dreamlike - this is certainly high art. In some inconspicuous spaces between buildings and in some courtyards, you can see a few lazy but very healthy green plants and flowers, and occasionally roses and azaleas, with dog-tail grass, edible weeds, and wild mugwort growing around them. It feels very pleasant, they may not be exquisite, but they are natural and lively. This kind of disorder makes people feel relaxed, it is an atmosphere of tolerance. All kinds of life - plants, birds, and insects among them, survive and thrive according to their habits and preferences, making people feel that it is also an art.

A good article is not bound by trivialities, it is free-spirited. It can be unrestrained, or it can be content to practice in seclusion, it can be unconventional, or it can adhere to rules. In any case, it is about expressing one's thoughts in a suitable and satisfactory manner, like tailoring.

Some have said, "Devoting one's mind to reading is just a way to find some pleasure in the results of others' hard work and contemplation." This is a very heartfelt statement. If a book can give someone a little reading pleasure, then that book is worth it.

The fourth work of the journalist Zhang Sanqing is currently in progress, and it is all about down-to-earth and ordinary matters, with over a hundred articles. By reading these articles, you will enter an era, an era belonging to Zhuozhou.

His first three books were: "Recalling the Passing Years"; "Those Years, Those Things"; "Chatting about the Heroes of Zhuozhou: One Hundred and Eight Generals." The tentative name for the fourth book is "Great Gathering of Heroes."

(Liu Huijun, the end of 2023 in Zhuozhou)