Negotiation and Adaptation: The Transcultural Practice in The Garden of Evening Mists

商与调适：《夕雾花园》的跨文化实践

Abstract

The Garden of Evening Mists (2012), written by Malaysian Chinese writer Tan Twan Eng, is set mainly in Malaya during the 1940s and 1950s. It tells the story of the relationship between the Straits-born Chinese, Teoh Yun Ling, who had been imprisoned in an internment camp during the Japanese Occupation, and a Japanese gardener, Nakamura Aritomo, who lived in seclusion in Cameron Highlands and taught her how to build a Japanese garden to commemorate her deceased sister. The story depicts their evolving relationship from initial rejection to becoming mentor and apprentice, and finally intimate lovers. As the aging Yun Ling discovers her health declining, experiencing frequent headaches and memory loss, she decides to retire early from her position as a judge and return to Yugiri, where she once lived with Nakamura Aritomo. She embarks on a journey of memorizing and remembering. Through Yun Ling’s reminiscence of the past life and her reflection on the real life, it can be found that she changes her attitude towards Japanese culture from conflict to gradual acceptance, as well as the rethinking of her Chinese culture. In the multicultural Malaysia, Yun Ling’s negotiation and adaptation with different cultures demonstrate the characteristics of transcultural practice.
Keywords: Tan Twan Eng, The Garden of Evening Mists, transcultural practice,
Malaysian Chinese literature

摘要
马来西亚华裔英语作家陈团英的《夕雾花园》（2012）以二十世纪四五十年代的马来亚为主要背景，讲述了日据时期曾经被关押在日本拘留营的海峡华人张云林和隐居在金马伦高原的日本园艺师中村有朋之间的故事。云林为了纪念在战争中去世的姐姐，跟随中村有朋学习日式造园技艺。二人的关系经历了从相互排斥到成为师徒再到发展成亲密爱人的演变过程。当年老的云林发现自己的身体出现状况，时常头疼并且记忆力消退时，她决定提前退休离开法官席，回到曾经与中村有朋生活过的夕雾花园，开启一场“忆”与“记”的旅程。通过云林对过往生活的追忆与现实生活的反思，可以发现她对于外来的日本文化由冲突到逐渐涵化的转变过程，以及在这一过程中对于自身原有的华人文化的再思考。在马来西亚的多元文化环境下，云林与不同文化之间的协商和调适，具备跨文化实践的特征。
关键词：陈团英，夕雾花园，跨文化实践，马来西亚华人文学