SHAKESPEARE: IHLABATHI NJENGENQANABA
NguBill Bryson
I-Atlas / HarperCollins, iphepha le-199, i-19,95 yeedola
NgokukaBill Bryson, isixa se-inki kaShakespearean, esilinganiswe ngokugqibeleleyo, siphantse sahlekisa. … ILayibrari yeCongress eWashington, D.C., iqulethe malunga namawaka asixhenxe emisebenzi eShakespeare — amashumi amabini eminyaka ukufundwa ukuba ifundwe ngomlinganiselo omnye ngosuku. Kodwa nantsi enye, ebhalwe nguMnumzana uBryson ngokwakhe, hayi kakhulu kuba umhlaba ufuna enye incwadi kuShakespeare, uyavuma ngokuqinisekileyo, kuba olu luhlu luyenza.
Olu luhlu luchaphazelekayo luBomi obuPhambili, obuzichaza njengobomi omfutshane ngababhali ababalaseleyo kumanani emibhalo engcwele. (Umhleli jikelele, uJames Atlas, ngumlingisi womdlalo.) Yiyo ke le nto, uMnu.Bryson eqala uhambo: [Ukuze] sibone ukuba ingakanani iShakespeare esinokuyazi, siyazi ngokwenyani, evela kwirekhodi.
Impendulo emfutshane koku ayininzi. Asazi, umzekelo, kanye xa wazalwa okanye indlela yokupela igama lakhe okanye nokuba wakhe washiya iNgilane okanye ukuba ngoobani abahlobo bakhe. Ukwabelana ngesondo kwakhe, Mnu.Bryson ugqibe, kuyimfihlakalo engenakulungiseka.
Iyaqhubeka kwaye iya phambili i-disclaimer: Sazi okuncinci okuxabisekileyo…. Asazi ukuba wayengumntu onjani. Esisithunzi ebomini bakhe, uyanyamalala, konke kuphele…. Kwaye u Shakespeare: Ihlabathi njengeSigaba ayikokutyhafa okuqhubekayo, kuba uMnu.Bryson uchwayitile njengoko esiya malunga nokufumana ubulumko, iingcinga ze-cockamamie, uphando olwenziweyo kunye nezifundo ezinzulu kodwa ezinesiphene. NjengoBonisa uMhlophe etshayela iiNtsuku ezisixhenxe, ubetha umlozi ngelixa esebenza.
UMnu Bryson uqala ngokusixelela ukuba uShakespeare wenzani (okanye akazange) abukeke. Nasi isivakalisi sakhe sokuqala, malunga nomnini weShakespeare ngoku kwiGrafi yeSizwe: Ngaphambi kokuba angene kwimali eninzi ngo-1839, uRichard Plantagenet Temple uNugent Brydges Chandos Grenville, uMlawuli wesibini waseBuckingham kunye noChandos, wakhokelela ubomi obungapheliyo. Kwangoko, umbhali wamisela ubumnandi kunye nelanga lakhe: Ukuba isithathu sabathakathi besipheka le ncwadi ngembiza, bekuzobakho incuntswana kaP. Wodehouse, isuphu kaSir Osbert Lancaster kunye nekomityi kaSir Arthur Conan Doyle. Umntu unokuqina ngenjongo kwaye aqhume ngaxeshanye, kuyabonakala; umntu angabhala incwadi enomdla kakhulu.
Shakespeare: Ihlabathi njengeSigaba ijolise kubafundi ngokubanzi, hayi abaphengululi bakaShakespeare, nangona le yokugqibela yenza ukubonakala ngoku, ayisoloko ikukukhanya okucengacengayo, kodwa ihlala izonwabisa. Kuza kuba ngabafundi ukuba baphinde baphinde baphinde batyhile oko uMnu. Ngokuhambelana nale migca, isahluko sokugqibela-Abenzi-mabango-siyathandeka ngakumbi, njengoko umbhali egxotha iithiyori ezahlukeneyo zobunye ubunyani bemidlalo. IBard ayinakuba nommeli ozinikele ngakumbi. Umzekelo, kukho isimangalo sikaMnumzana Bryson esimangalisayo nesichanekileyo sebango likaChristopher Marlowe: Wayeneminyaka eyiyo… wayenetalente efunekayo, kwaye ngokuqinisekileyo wayenokuba nokonwaba ngokwaneleyo emva kowe-1593, ecinga ukuba wayengafanga kakhulu ukuba angasebenza. Kuyamangalisa ukuba uMnu.Bryson ngoku uluhlobo lwe-über-academic, ebizwa njenge-chancellor yeYunivesithi yase-Durham yase-Bhritane kwi-2005, kwaye ekhuthele kakhulu ekulondolozeni ubomi basemaphandleni eMerrie England.
Ntoleyo, ngokuka Mnu. Bryson, ibingonwabanga kakhulu ngomhla kaShakespeare. Kuba emva kokuba esixelele into esingayaziyo ngoShakespeare, kunye nezinye iinyani esizenzayo, uMnu.Bryson uqhubeka nokubeka umxholo kwisifundo sakhe ngokubonisa ixesha lakhe. Apha, apho iinyani zininzi, umbhali ukwisiqalelo sakhe. Usinika amaphepha kunye namaphepha oluhlu malunga no-Elizabethan, kunye nobomi beJacobean: malunga nokutya, iimpahla, iindlela zokuprinta, ukuziqhelanisa neqonga, ulwimi kunye nokubhalwa kwayo, ukusetyenziswa kunye nokuziphendukela kwemvelo, nokunye okuninzi. Kufana nokuba undityelele, kwaye xa umntu othile esithi, Uthanda ntoni ?, uqhubeke ngokuchaza indlu yam ngokweenkcukacha, kubandakanya uluhlu lwezinto ezikuyo, inkcazo yesicwangciso sokuqala somgangatho, kunye nekopi yomanyano imithetho. Sifunda ngoShakespeare, ngamanye amaxesha amancinci-kodwa asizange, njengokuba kunjalo, kwigumbi kunye naye.
Umnumzana Bryson uyahamba maxa wambi ehlekisa ngee-tangents, esenza intetho e-parenthetical kwaye ngenye indlela uyathandeka kwaye uyancokola, njengendwendwe elungileyo. Ukonwaba kwenkampani yakhe akunakho, ukuboleka isigaba kuye, kugxininiswe kakhulu.
Akangomgxeki ongumbhali okanye unjingalwazi wesiNgesi, ukanti umntu unqwenela, ngamanye amaxesha, ukuba abhale kancinci malunga nokubhala kunombhali. Kuphela apha naphaya, njengakwisahluko esinesihloko esithi Ukudlala, ngaba sinoluvo lokonwaba okunzulu akufumanayo ngokufunda uShakespeare, ngokuchasene nokubulala emva kwakhe. Kudla ngokuthiwa, Mnu. Bryson ubhala athi, into ebeke uShakespeare ngaphandle kukwazi kwakhe ukukhanyisa ukusebenza komphefumlo njalo njalo, kwaye wenza oko ngokugqwesileyo, ukulunga kuyayazi, kodwa eyona nto ibonakalisa umsebenzi wakhe-yonke into, kwimibongo kunye nemidlalo nkqu nokunikezelwa, kuwo onke amacandelo omsebenzi wakhe-ngumbulelo ofanelekileyo nonokuthenjwa wokudluliselwa kwamandla kulwimi.
Njengokuba sisazi ngomkhamo othile ukuba uShakespeare wayeyazi njani into ayaziyo, sikwazi ngokufanayo kwinqanaba elithile malunga noMnu. Bryson, kuba ubonelela ngoludwe lweeNcwadi ezikhethiweyo ekuthethwa ngazo kwisicatshulwa. Kukho ishumi elinesithathu lala, elokuqala ukwenzeka ukusukela ngo-1910, elona lakutsha nje lisuka ku-2006. Kodwa ke ngokubaluleka kwale mithombo ngabantu abatyelelwa nguBryson (phakathi kwabo ingcali kwezomfanekiso, umgcini wogcino-mpepha kwi-National Archives eNtshona London nase uluhlu lwabaphengululi) kunye neendawo ahamba kuzo. Njengoko usazi, ukongeza ekubeni ungumbhali we Imbali emfutshane phantse yayo yonke into (2003), UMnu.Bryson ngumbhali wokuhamba othandwa kakhulu, kwaye into ayenzileyo apha ayisiyonto imbi yokuhamba kolo hlobo.
Kule ncwadi uhamba-ixesha. I-expat yaseMelika eyazalelwa eDes Moines, eIowa, eBriton ngokuzikhethela, uBill Bryson ngumkhenkethi ozimiseleyo nosoloko ehleli, kwaye kuyonwabisa kakhulu ukumkhapha xa eza kungena ngenkulungwane ye-16.
UNancy Dalva, umbhali omkhulu kwi-2wice, uphononongo lweencwadi rhoqo Umjongi. Unokufikeleleka kuyo ndalva@observer.com.
