《鼠疫》 第一部 书评 《鼠疫》是一篇道德故事，是说教般的布道。而且，它也应该被如此考虑。要想用适用于大多数小说的标准来评论这个故事，就要冒因其道德说教而指责它的风险，而这种说教确切说来正是它最强的一项优势。 ——斯蒂芬· 斯班德（纽约时报书评） 半个世纪前，加缪在旷世灾难中窥探人性本质；几年前中华大地上的一场非典之役，拉近了我们和这个故事的距离——相似的经历，相似的感受，为您带来穿越时空的共鸣。 旷世灾难小说，加缪带您窥探人性之本质。 这部纪事中所叙述的不同寻常的事件发生在20世纪40年代某一年的奥兰城。由于这些事件有些特别，大家都认为它们与这座城市简直格格不入。奥兰给人的第一印象就是它的普通，只是一个法属阿尔及利亚沿海的大港口及省会罢了。 必须承认的是，这个城市本身是丑陋的。它有着一副自满、平静的外表，需要花些时间才能发现它与世界其他众多商业城市之间有何不同之处。怎样才能想象出这样一幅画面，比如说，一个没有鸽子、没有树木和花园的城市，一个从未有过鸟儿展翅或树叶沙沙响的城市——总之，一个毫无特点的地方？只有通过天空，才能辨认这里的一年四季。带来春天讯息的只有那清新的空气，或是小贩们从郊区运来的一篮篮鲜花。这里的春天是在市场里叫卖的。夏天，太阳炙烤着房子，墙壁上布满了灰色的尘埃，人们只有放下百叶窗，呆在屋里，才能熬过那些炎热的日子。但是，秋天却大雨滂沱、满地泥泞。只有冬天的天气着实不错。 或许，了解一个城市最便捷的方式可能就是探察这个城里的人们怎么工作，怎么相爱，怎么死去。在我们这个小城里（不知是否是气候的影响），这三种活动全都是狂热而又随意地进行着。事实上，每个人都感到厌烦，但又尽力培养一些生活习惯。我们的老百姓们努力工作，但只是为了发财。他们对商业最感兴趣，如他们自己所说，人生的首要目标就是“做生意”。当然，他们也不会放弃诸如谈恋爱、海水浴、看电影等更为简单的生活享乐。但是，他们非常理智地把这些娱乐消遣安排在周六下午或周日，而在一周的其他日子，他们则尽力赚钱。傍晚下班后，在固定的某个时间，人们在咖啡馆聚会，在同一条林阴大道上散步，或者站在阳台上呼吸夜晚的空气。年轻人的热情强烈而又短暂；至于年长些的人们，他们的嗜好不过是打打保龄球，参加宴会和“社交聚会”，或是去俱乐部打牌狂赌一番。 毫无疑问，有人会说这些生活习惯并非是我们这个城市所特有的。其实我们同时代的人都这么生活。人们从早到晚地工作，然后把业余生活的时间耗在牌桌上、咖啡馆里或闲谈上，这在当今社会确实是最常见的事情了。然而，仍然有些城镇和乡村的人们时而会透出一丝与众不同的地方。这一般不会改变他们的生活。但是，他们已经有了这样的迹象，这就很好。而奥兰小城看起来似乎没有这种迹象。换句话说，它是个十足现代的城镇。因此，没有必要详细描述这座城里人们的恋爱方式。这里的男男女女要么短暂地在所谓的“爱的行为”里纵情欢愉，要么安于平淡的婚姻生活。除了这两个极端，几乎没有中间状态。这也没什么特别的。和其他地方一样，在奥兰，由于缺乏时间和思考，人们只能是相爱而不懂爱。 在我们这个城市，更为特别的地方在于垂死时人们可能经历的困难。也许“困难”二字用得不好，“难受”会更恰当些。生病总是不舒服的，但是，可以这么说，有些城市会在你生病时给你支持。在那里，你多少可以感觉自然放松。一个病人需要一些关心，想获得些支持，这很自然。但是在奥兰，严酷的气候、繁忙的生意、乏味的环境、短暂的黄昏以及各种享乐的本质等等都要求人们有个健康的身体。一个病人在那里会感到不自在。想想当全城的人们坐在咖啡馆里，或是拿着电话谈论着装船、提货单、贴现的时候，一个垂死之人关在灼热的重重围墙之后，那会是怎样的一种境况呀！即使在现代社会，在这样一个干燥炎热的地方，这种死亡将至的难受也是显而易见的。 这些有点随意的观察或许可以让人对这个城市有个很好的了解。但是，我们不能过分夸大这一切。的确，这一切都表明这个城市的外表及城中的生活都是平凡无趣的。但是，一旦人们习以为常，日子也就不难打发了。而且，既然习惯是这个城市所推崇的，那么一切就都朝着好的方向发展。从这个角度来看，这里的生活不太有趣，这是毋庸置疑的。但至少这里从未有过社会不稳定的现象。坦率、友好、勤劳的本城居民总是能获得游客们理所当然的尊重。没有树木，没有魅力，没有灵魂，奥兰城归于表面的宁静；只消一会儿工夫，人们便会满意地进入梦乡。 应该加句公道话，奥兰有着独特的风景，它处在一个光秃秃的高原中间，四周被阳光明媚的山丘围绕，前面是个造型完美的海湾。可令人感到遗憾的是，这座城市背着海湾而建，因此人们得走上一段路才可能看到海。 这章没有结束^.^，请点击下一页继续阅读！ 知道了奥兰的日常生活，人们就不难相信，我们这座城里的居民们一点儿都不能理解发生在那年春天的事，而这些事情正是本书所要记录的重大事件的先兆（这是我们后来才意识到的）。对于一些人而言，这些事件看起来很自然；可对另外一些人而言，一切都难以置信。但是，很显然，一个叙述者是不能将这些不同的看法统统考虑在内的。他要做的只是在他知道确实发生了某件事，且这件事深切影响了全体人民的生活，还会有千万名见证人发自内心证实他所记录的真实情况的时候，说一句：“事情就是这样”。 要是他没有机会收集到大量信息，要是他没有受外力所驱亲身经历他要叙述的事件，那么这位叙述者（到时候读者就会知道他的身份）无论如何也没有能力来完成这项工作。正是由于这个原因他才充当起史学家的角色。当然，一个史学家，即使是业余的，在工作中总是需要一些资料——个人收集的或二手的——给他以指导。现在这位叙述者拥有三种资料：首先是他亲眼所见的；其次是其他见证人所说的（因为他的工作，他能了解这篇纪事中提到的所有人物的个人看法）；最后就是那些他后来掌握的文字记载。他可以在任何有需要的时候引用这些资料，并以自己认为最好的方式加以利用。他也可以…… 但是，也许该结束这段开场白和上面的几句忠告了，让我们言归正传吧。发生在头几天的事情还需先详细说说。 第一章 四月十六日早晨，伯纳德·里厄医生离开他的诊所时，感觉脚下踩上了个软软的东西。那是只躺在台阶中间的死老鼠。他当即就把老鼠一脚踢到一边，并未多想，然后继续下楼。当他来到大街上，他才突然想到死老鼠不该躺在台阶上，于是回头叫看门人把老鼠弄走。直到他看到看门人米歇尔老先生的反应，他才意识到这个发现有些不寻常。他自己只是觉得出现这只死老鼠有些奇怪，仅此而已，而看门人却感到很震惊。这一点他很肯定：“这里根本没有老鼠。”医生告诉米歇尔，确实有只老鼠，可能是死的，躺在二楼楼梯口，但根本没用，米歇尔的看法是不会动摇的。他坚持自己“这幢楼里根本没有老鼠”的说法，因此这只老鼠一定是有人从外面带进来的。很可能是某个年轻人搞的恶作剧。 当天晚上，当里厄医生站在大门口，从口袋里摸钥匙，准备上楼回家的时候，他看见一只大老鼠从阴暗的过道尽头朝他走了过来。它步伐迟疑，全身湿淋淋的。这个家伙停了一会儿，像是想稳住身子，然后它朝着医生挪过来，又停了一会儿，接着轻轻地叫着，在原地打了几个转，最后身体歪向一边倒在了地上。它的嘴微微张着，鲜血涌了出来。注视了这只老鼠一会儿，医生上楼去了。 他想的并不是老鼠。看到那喷涌的鲜血，他想起了整天萦绕在他心头的事情。他那病了一年的妻子明天就要去往山区疗养院了。在卧室里，他看见妻子按他的吩咐正在躺着休息，为明天的旅途劳顿养精神。妻子朝着他微笑。 “你知道吗？我感觉好多了！”她说。 医生低头凝视着在床头灯的亮光中那张转向他的脸。他的妻子三十岁了，长时间的生病让她满脸病容。但里厄在凝视她时，心里只有一个念头：“她多么年轻呀，简直就像个少女！”但也许正是因为这微笑弥补了一切。 “现在好好睡吧。”他劝道，“护士十一点来，你看，你们得赶十二点的火车。” 他吻了吻她那有点湿润的前额。她微笑着目送他走到门口。 第二天，即四月十七日，八点钟，医生正要出去的时候，看门人拦住了他。看门人告诉他那些年轻的坏家伙又在大厅里扔了三只死老鼠。这些老鼠很显然是用带有硬弹簧的补鼠器捕来的，因为它们浑身是血。看门人拎着老鼠的爪子，盯着来往行人，在门口呆了好一会儿，想在那些坏家伙咧嘴一笑，或是说些玩笑话的时候将他们逮个正着。然而这只是徒劳而已。 “但我一定会逮住他们的。”米歇尔乐观地说。 怀着满腹疑惑，里厄决定开始去郊区巡诊，那里居住着他最贫穷的病人。那些地区的垃圾要到上午晚些时候才清理，他开车沿着尘土飞扬的、笔直的街道行驶时，瞥了几眼排在人行道旁的垃圾桶。仅仅在一条街上，他算了一下，竟有十二只老鼠被丢在烂菜及其他垃圾堆中。 医生看的第一个病人是位慢性哮喘病患者。他住在临街的一间屋子里，吃饭睡觉都在这里，这时正呆在床上。他是位表情严肃、满脸皱纹的西班牙老人。他身体前面的被子上放着两个装着干豆的锅子。医生进来时，这位老人正坐起来，仰着脖子，呼哧呼哧喘着粗气。他的妻子端来一碗水。 医生给他打针时，他说：“医生，它们出来了，你注意到了吗？” “他说的是老鼠。”他妻子解释说，“隔壁的人发现了三只。” “它们出来了，垃圾桶里到处都是。它们是饿坏了呀！” 里厄很快就发现那个地区的居民都在热烈谈论着老鼠的事情。巡诊结束后，他就开车回家了。 米歇尔先生告诉他：“先生，楼上有份你的电报。” 医生问他有没有再发现老鼠。 “没有，”看门人回答说，“再也不会有了。你看，我一直守在这里。那些年轻人也不敢再来了。” 里厄从电报中得知，他母亲明天要过来。儿媳不在家这段时间，她要帮儿子照料家务。医生回到家，发现护士已经来了。他看了看妻子。她穿着量身定做的一套衣裳，还搽了胭脂。他朝妻子微笑。 “真好看，”他说，“你美极了。” 不久后，他把她送上卧铺车厢。她环视了一下车厢。 “对我们来说，这太奢侈了，不是吗？” “应该这样的，”里厄说。 “那些四处流窜的老鼠，到底是怎么回事？” “我说不清楚。这确实很奇怪，不过都会过去的。” 接着，他仓促地请她原谅自己，他觉得本该更好地照顾她，而自己太不称职了。她摇摇头，像是要他别再说了，但他又说：“不管怎样，你回来后，一切都会好起来。我们会有一个新的开始。” “一定会的！”她的眼睛闪着亮光，“让我们有个新的开始。” 然后，她转过脸去，像是透过车窗注视着外面月台上行色匆匆、你推我挤的人群。他们听到了火车的汽笛声。他轻轻地叫了一下妻子的名字，她回过身来，脸上布满了泪水。 “不要这样。”他轻声说。 她含着泪，又露出了笑容，带着一丝紧张。她深吸了一口气。 “你走吧！一切都会很好的。” 他把她抱在怀里，然后下到月台上。透过车窗，他看到的只有她的微笑。 “亲爱的，”他说，“照顾好自己。” 但她听不见他说的话。 离开月台，接近出口时，他遇到了警局地方治安官奥顿先生，一手拉着他的小儿子。医生问他是否要出门。 奥顿先生个子很高，皮肤黝黑，有点儿过去所谓上流人物的架势，又有点像丧仪人的助手。 “不，”治安官回答说，“我是来接我太太的，她去探望了我的家人。” 火车鸣笛了。 “现在这些老鼠——”治安官开口问道。 里厄很快地转身看了一下火车，又回过身来朝着出口处。 “老鼠吗？”他说，“没什么大不了的。” 后来他回想起来，那一刻给他留下的唯一印象是，一个铁路工人胳膊下夹着一个装满死老鼠的盒子走了过去。 那天中午刚过，里厄正要开始接诊，一个年轻人来访。医生了解到，这人是个新闻记者，早上已经来过了。他叫雷蒙·朗贝尔。他个子不高，宽肩膀，神色坚毅，目光锐利，给人一种任何情况下都能达到目的的印象。他穿着一身运动服。他开门见山地表明了来意。他来自巴黎一家著名日报，报社派他来报道一下阿拉伯人目前的生活状况，特别是卫生状况。 里厄回答说状况并不好。但是，在进一步交谈之前，他想知道这位记者是否能如实报道。 “当然。”朗贝尔说。 “我的意思是，”里厄解释说，“你是否能毫无保留地报道对于现状的谴责之声？” “毫无保留？噢，不，我做不到。但事情没有这么糟吧？” “没有，”里厄平静地说，事情并没有这么糟。他提出这个问题，只是想知道朗贝尔是否能据实报道而不是搪塞了事。“既然要有所保留，我无话可说，”他接着说，“因此我不会提供你所需的信息。” 记者笑着说，“你说的话如同出自圣茹斯特之口。” 里厄继续平静地说，他对圣茹斯特一无所知。他的语气像一个厌倦了自己所生活的世界的人所用的语气——尽管他很爱他的同胞——但他本人绝不做不公正的事情，也决不向真相妥协。 朗贝尔耸耸肩，盯着医生，好一会儿说不出话来。之后，他边起身边说：“我想我能理解你。” 医生送他出门。 “你能这样看问题，这很好。”医生说。 “是的，是的，我能理解，”朗贝尔带着一丝不耐烦的语气说，“很抱歉打扰你了。” 握手道别时，里厄提出若是朗贝尔想在报纸上登些稀奇古怪的故事，他倒是可以谈谈此时市里出现的大量死老鼠。 “啊！”朗贝尔叫了起来，“这的确让我很感兴趣。” 下午五点，医生又要出门去巡诊，在楼梯上他与一个又矮又壮、还算年轻的人擦肩而过。这人大脸盘，皱纹很深，眉毛很浓。在这幢楼的最高层，那个住着几个西班牙男舞蹈演员的家里，他见过这人几次。他叫让·塔鲁。此时他正抽着烟，眼睛盯着面前楼梯上一只老鼠在作垂死时的最后抽搐。他抬起头，用灰色的眼睛看了看医生；打过招呼后，他说道，这些老鼠爬到洞穴外死掉，真是件非常奇怪的事情。 “非常奇怪，”里厄应和道，“而且这到底会令人心烦的。” “在某种程度上是这样的，医生，只是在某种程度上罢了。我们以前从未见过此类事情，仅此而已。我个人觉得这事有趣，是的，非常有趣。” 塔鲁用手捋了捋头发，又看了看老鼠，发现它已不动了，于是他朝里厄笑了笑。 “不过，医生，这的确令看门人头疼，不是吗？” 情况果真如此，里厄下一个遇见的人就是看门人。他倚靠在临街大门口旁边的墙上，面容憔悴，脸上失去了平日里的红润。 里厄告诉他最近又发现了死老鼠，这老头说：“是的，我知道。我看到它们三三两两地出现。不过这条街上其他房子里的情况也是如此。” 他神情沮丧，看起来忧心忡忡，茫然地搓着脖子。里厄问他是不是不舒服。看门人是不会连自己感到身体不适都说出来的。不过，他的健康状况确实欠佳。但在他看来，这只是内心担忧引起的，他会说这些该死的老鼠令他“大吃一惊”之类的话。要是不再到处出现死老鼠，他也就放心了。 第二天早上——那天是四月十八日——当医生从车站将母亲接回家时，他发现米歇尔先生看起来身体状况更加不好了。地窖到楼顶的楼梯上零零散散躺着十几只死老鼠。街坊邻居的垃圾桶里也装满了老鼠。 医生的母亲对此反应很平静。 “有时会这样的。”她低声说。她身材矮小，满头银发，黑眼睛透着温柔。“伯纳德，很高兴又见到你了，”她又说，“无论怎样，这些老鼠是不会影响我的心情的。” 他点点头。确实，有母亲在，什么事情看起来都好办。 但是，里厄还是给市政府办公室打了个电话。他认识那里灭鼠除害工作相关部门的负责人，问他是否听说了许多老鼠死在外面的事情。是的，负责人默西埃知道整件事情。实际上，在离码头不远的他的那些办公室里就发现了五十只老鼠。老实说，他很焦虑，他问医生是否认为情况严重。 里厄没有明确表态，但他认为卫生部门应该采取一些行动。默西埃表示赞同。“那么，如果你觉得这值得一做，我会下令的。” “当然值得一做。”里厄回答说。 他的女佣刚刚告诉他，在她丈夫工作的大工厂里已经捡到了几百只死老鼠了。 大约就是在这个时期，城里的居民开始不安起来。因为，从四月十八日以后，工厂和仓库里发现了大量的已经死去或垂死挣扎的老鼠。有时，人们只好将那些垂死的老鼠弄死以结束它们的痛苦。从郊区到市中心，在医生出诊经过的每一条大街小巷里，老鼠堆积在垃圾桶里或成排地躺在排水沟里。那天的晚报提到了这件事，并责问市领导们是否会采取行动，会采取什么应急措施来对付这件特别讨厌的事情。事实上，市政府根本未做任何打算，只是召集开会，就这一情况进行讨论。卫生所奉命每天清晨收集死老鼠。收集完毕后，两辆市政卡车将死老鼠运往市垃圾焚化炉焚毁。 但是，此后的几天，情况变得更加糟糕了。街上的死老鼠越来越多，每天早上卡车的负载也越来越重。到第四天，老鼠开始纷纷爬出洞外，然后成批死去。白天，它们从地下室、地窖和下水道成群地爬出来，无助地摇来晃去，原地踮着脚打转，然后死在惊恐的看客脚下。夜晚，在过道和巷子里，人们可以清晰地听见它们垂死的低声哀叫。到了早上，排水沟里可见一排排的老鼠尸体，每只老鼠的尖嘴上都带着像朵红花似的血块；一些已经肿胀腐烂，另一些则鼠须直竖，身体僵硬。甚至在最繁忙的市中心，也可以看到死老鼠一小堆一小堆地摞在楼梯口和院子里。也有些老鼠孤零零地死在市政大厅里、学校操场上，甚至咖啡馆的露台上。城里居民惊愕地发现，武器广场、林阴道、海滨大道等热闹的地方也散落着令人讨厌的老鼠尸体。每天清晨全城被彻底清扫后，情况会有短暂的缓解。可到了白天，渐渐地又会有越来越多的老鼠出现。夜晚外出的人们经常会感觉到脚下踩着了一团软绵绵的仍有余温的老鼠尸体。这就像是我们的房屋所坐落的大地正在清洗它的分泌物，挤出表面的是一直在它内部作祟的脓肿和脓血。这座小城一直都很平静，而现在却出人意料地大乱起来，就像一个健康之人突然感到体温骤升，热血在血管中似野火般燃烧，可以想象这座小城的惊恐程度。 事态发展得很严重，朗斯多克情报信息局（能够及时准确地收集各种情报信息的机构）在一个发布信息的宣传类广播谈话节目中首先就宣布，仅仅在四月二十五日这一天，收集焚毁的老鼠就不少于6231只。这个惊人的数字使人们对于每天在眼皮子底下出现的场景有了更清楚的认识，这引起了公众的惊慌。之前，人们只是对一件愚蠢而令人讨厌的怪事有所抱怨。而现在，他们却意识到这个影响范围尚不能确定、根源也不知晓的奇怪现象有些威胁性了。只有里厄医生的那位患气喘病的西班牙老人仍然搓着手，露出一脸苍老的笑容说：“它们出来了，它们出来了。” 四月二十八日，当情报信息局宣布已收集到八千只老鼠的时候，惊恐的情绪在全城蔓延开来。有人要求采取严厉措施，有人谴责当局行动迟缓，而那些有海滨住房的人则谈论着要搬过去住，尽管还不到该搬去的季节。可第二天，情报信息局却宣称这一现象已突然终止，卫生所只收集到少量老鼠。人们也都松了口气。 这章没有结束^.^，请点击下一页继续阅读！ 可就在当天中午，里厄医生正在住所前停车时，看见看门人从街那头朝他走过来。他拖着身子往前挪，低着头，手脚奇怪地外张着，一颤一颤地像个上着发条的玩偶。老头靠在一位教士的肩膀上，医生认识这位教士。他是帕纳卢神父，一位博学而活跃的耶稣会教士，以前见过几次面。这人在市里威望很高，即使在那些漠视宗教的圈子里也是如此。里厄等着这两人走上前来。米歇尔先生烧得两眼发亮，喘着粗气。老人解释道，自己感到“有点不适”，于是出来透透气。但他开始感到全身疼痛——脖子、腋下、腹股沟——于是不得不往回走，并叫帕纳卢神父扶他一把。 “只不过有几个肿块而已，”他说，“我一定是有些劳累过度了。” 医生把手伸出车窗，摸了摸米歇尔的脖子底部。那里有个木头结节似的硬块。 “马上去躺下休息，量量体温。我下午来看你。” 看门人走后，里厄问帕纳卢神父对这奇怪的老鼠事件有何看法。 “哦，我想它们得的是瘟疫。”戴着大圆形眼镜的神父笑眯眯地说。 午餐后，里厄正在重新看那份妻子从疗养院发来的电报，告知她已到达，这时电话铃响了。打来电话的是他的一个老病人，一位市政府职员。他患上主动脉瓣狭窄症有很长一段时间了，因为他穷，里厄从不收他的诊费。 “医生，谢谢你还记得我。但这一次是别人。我的邻居出事了。请你快过来。”他听起来上气不接下气。 他飞快地想了想。是的，他可以晚些时候去看那位看门人。几分钟后，他走进了位于郊区的费代尔布街上的一栋小房子里。在又暗又臭的楼梯上他刚走到一半，就看见了约瑟夫·格朗，那个职员，正急急忙忙下楼来接他。他大约五十岁，高个子，驮背，肩膀很窄，四肢瘦长，蓄着淡黄色的小胡子。 “他现在好点儿了，”他对里厄说，“我本以为他完了。”他使劲擤了擤鼻子。在顶楼，也就是三楼，里厄看到左边有扇门上用红粉笔写的“请进，我上吊了”。 他们进了屋。一条绳子从吊灯上垂下来，下面是一张侧翻在地上的椅子。餐桌已被推到了角落里。而绳子则空荡荡地挂在那里。 “我及时把他救下来了。”格朗说话好像总在字斟句酌，尽管他说的都是最简单的话语。“我正要出门，听到有响声。当我看到门上的字时，我还以为这只是一个——一个玩笑。就在这时，我听见了一声奇怪的呻吟。这呻吟可以说是让我的血一下子冷了。” 他挠挠头。“依我看，这一定是件痛苦的事情。很自然，我就进房间了。” 格朗推开了一扇门，他们站在门槛上，这是间明亮而简陋的卧室。靠墙摆着一张铜床，床上躺着一个矮胖子，喘着粗气。他那充血的双眼注视着他们。里厄突然停下了步子。在这个男子呼吸的间歇中，他好像听到了老鼠的吱吱声。但在卧室角落里他没有发现什么动静。然后，里厄朝床边走去。显然这人并没有从太高的地方掉下来，摔得也不太突然，因为他的脊椎还完好无损。但自然有些窒息难受。需要照个x光片。于是，医生给他打了一针樟脑油，并且告诉他过几天就没事了。 “谢谢，医生。”这个男子喃喃道。 当里厄问起格朗是否已经报警时，格朗低下头来。 “哦，事实上，我没报警。我当时认为首要的事情是——” “那么，”里厄打断他的话，“我会去的。” 但病人焦急地坐起身子。他说他感觉好多了，确实没必要报警。 “不用怕，”里厄说，“这只是常规做法。不管怎样，我得报警。” 这个男子重重地倒在床上，开始啜泣起来。 格朗在他们说话的时候抚弄着他的小胡子，这时他走到床前。 “科塔尔先生，”他说，“你要理解。假如你又想上吊的话，人们会归咎于医生的。” 科塔尔流着眼泪说他再也不会那样做了，他只是一时糊涂，但一切都过去了，他现在只想一个人静一静。里厄正在开药方。 “很好，”他说，“我们暂时别再说这个了。过一两天我再来看你。不过别再干傻事了。” 在楼梯口，里厄告诉格朗他得去报告，但他会要求警官过几天再来调查。 “不过，今晚要让人看着点儿科塔尔，”他又说，“他有亲属吗？” “这个我不清楚。不过我可以留在他身边。我和他不熟，但帮助邻居是应该的，不是吗？” 里厄下楼时特意瞥了一眼阴暗的角落，问格朗在他们这里老鼠是否已经绝迹。 格朗对此一无所知。他确实听到了一些关于老鼠的议论，但对这样的传闻并没有太在意。“我有别的事情要操心呢。”他接着说。 里厄急着要离开，他在格朗说话时已同他握手道别。他要给妻子回封信，还想先去看望一下看门人。 卖报的在高声叫嚷着最新消息——老鼠已经不见了。但里厄发现他的病人靠着床沿，一手按着肚子，一手按着脖子，正往污水桶里吐着浅红色的胆汁。吐了好一会儿，他重新躺下，大口地喘着气。他的体温达39.4c，脖子和四肢上的淋巴结都肿大，大腿上长着两块黑斑。他抱怨着肚子痛。 这章没有结束^.^，请点击下一页继续阅读！ “就像着火似的，”他埋怨说，“这混蛋在我心里烧得厉害。” 他那发热而干裂的嘴里很难吐出几个字来，鼓鼓的眼睛看着医生，因为头痛而眼里含着泪。他妻子忧心忡忡地看着一声不吭的里厄。 “请问医生，”她说，“这是什么病呀？” “这可能是——啥病都有可能。现在还不确定。让他少吃点儿东西，多喝些水。” 看门人总在抱怨嗓子太干。 里厄一回家就打电话给他的同行理查德，城里最好的医生之一。“没有，”理查德说，“我没发现有什么特别之处。” “难道没有因局部发炎而引起发烧的病例吗？” “等等！我这有两个淋巴结肿大的病例。” “这有什么不正常吗？” “嗯，”理查德说，“这要看你认为什么才算‘正常’了。” 但在当晚，看门人的体温上升至40c，说着胡话，总在念叨着“那些老鼠”。里厄试图做个固定脓肿的处理。在松节油的烧灼下，老头儿大声嚎叫：“这些畜生！” 淋巴结已经肿得更大了，摸上去就像嵌在肉里一个个硬包。米歇尔太太已经完全精神崩溃了。 “守着他，”医生说，“有事给我打电话。” 第二天，即四月三十日，天蓝蓝的，有点儿薄雾。暖风轻轻地吹着，带来一股从远郊传来的花香。清晨大街上的嘈杂声似乎比往日更响亮、更快乐。对于小城里的每个人来说，这一天带来了充满活力的新生活的希望，扫去了一星期来笼罩全城的恐惧的阴霾。里厄也心情开朗地下楼去看看门人，他收到了妻子的第一封来信，感到很开心。 米歇尔老头的体温已降到37.2c，尽管看起来还很虚弱，他在微笑着。“医生，他好些了，不是吗？”他妻子问。“嗯，现在说还有点儿太早。” 到了中午，看门人的体温一下子窜到了40c，他不断地胡言乱语，又呕吐起来。脖子上的淋巴结痛得不能碰，看起来他好像要拼命地让头远离身体。他的妻子坐在床脚边，双手放在被子上，轻轻地握着他的双脚。她眼巴巴地看着里厄。 “听着，”里厄说，“我们得把他送到医院去进行特殊护理。我去打电话叫救护车来。” 两小时后，在救护车里，医生和米歇尔太太俯身看着病人。他那张糊上了厚厚一层疮的嘴里不断地吐出些胡言乱语。他不停地说：“那些老鼠！那些该死的老鼠！”他脸色发青、嘴唇发白、呼吸急促。由于淋巴结肿痛，他张着四肢，深陷在铺位里，仿佛想让床裹着他的身体，又像是地下深处有某种声音在召唤着他，这个痛苦的老人好像承受着某种无形的压力而感到窒息。他的妻子啜泣着。 “医生，难道就没任何希望吗？” “他死了。”里厄说。 第二章 可以说，米歇尔的死标志着第一个阶段的结束，充满了令人困惑的预兆。另一个相对更加艰难的时期开始了，这时先前的震惊逐渐转变为恐慌。在后来发生了一系列事件后，我们的市民们回顾前一阶段时意识到，他们以前做梦也没想到在这个小城可能会发生大批老鼠死在光天化日之下，看门人死于怪病这样的怪事情。在这一点上，他们以前的想法是错误的，因此必然要加以修正。当然，如果事态发展仅仅到此为止，无疑又可以像以往那样习惯成自然。然而，不仅仅是佣人或穷人们，还有其他一些市民也开始步米歇尔的后尘相继死去。也就是在这个时候，人们开始感到恐惧，又因为恐惧而开始思考。 不过，在详述下一阶段情况之前，且让笔者谈谈另一位见证人对于前面已描述过的第一阶段的看法。琼·塔鲁，我们在故事开头提到过的那个人，几个星期前来到奥兰，正住在市中心的一家大旅馆里。表面上看，他有私人收入，不做生意。尽管市民们与他逐渐熟识起来，但是没人知道他来自何方，也没人了解他为什么来到奥兰。他经常出现在公共场所，而且在早春时期，每天都会去某个海滩。他显然喜欢游泳。他很幽默，时常面带微笑，似乎很喜欢一切正当的娱乐却不沉迷其中。实际上，他唯一为人所知的习惯是喜欢和本城众多的西班牙舞蹈家和音乐家们来往。 他的笔记本里记载着我们在最初这段奇怪的日子里共同经历的事情，有点像纪事。但这种纪事很特别，因为作者描述得似乎很保守，乍看起来人们定会认为塔鲁习惯于从望远镜的另一端以别样的角度来观察人和事。在那些混乱的日子里，他把一般历史学家不关注的事情记录了下来。显然，人们可能会责怪他性格古怪，怀疑他是否心理正常。然而，不可否认的是，这些有点儿像每日随笔似的笔记给这一时期的纪事提供大量的看起来微小实则却非常重要的细节，而这些细节的古怪离奇也使读者不会匆忙地对这个单身汉作出判断。 让·塔鲁从他来到奥兰之日起就开始了他的记录。记录一开始就对这个本身很丑陋的城市流露出一种出奇的满意。里面细致描绘了装饰市政府的两只铜狮，也对这里缺乏树木、房屋简陋、城市布局荒谬的状况作了恰当的评论。塔鲁的描述中还夹杂着一些他在公交车上和马路上听到的谈论，但从不加以评论——只是下文提到的关于一个名叫坎普斯的人的对话除外。这是两个公交车售票员之间的闲聊。 “你认识坎普斯，对吧？”其中的一个售票员问。“坎普斯？那个留着黑胡子的高个儿小伙子吗？”“就是他。一个铁路扳道工。”“哦，是的，我想起来了。”“唉，他死了。”“啊？什么时候死的？”“在那场老鼠事件后。”“不会吧！他是怎么死的？”“我说不清楚。某种热病吧。当然，他本来身体就不好。腋下又长了脓肿，这要了他的命，大概是这样。”“但是，他看起来与别人没有两样啊。”“我可不这么认为。他的肺不好，却常常在市乐队吹长号。他的肺可受不了吹长号这种活儿。” “哦，一个肺部虚弱的人吹这样的大乐器对身体没什么好处。” 记下这个对话后，塔鲁提出了疑问：坎普斯为什么明知参加市乐队对身体不好却仍要参加？又是什么难以理解的动机促使他冒着生命的危险参加周日早上的游行演奏？ 我们猜测，塔鲁对他房间窗户对面的阳台上每天出现的那小小的一幕很有好感。他所住的旅馆房间朝着一条小巷，那里总有几只猫在墙影下睡着觉。每天午饭时间刚过，大多数人都呆在屋里睡午觉的时候，街对面的阳台上就会出现一个行动矫健的矮老头。他有着军人般的架势，身材挺拔，喜欢穿军队式的服装；一头雪白的头发总是梳得整整齐齐的。他靠在阳台上，朝下面喊：“小猫眯！小猫眯！”声音既高傲又亲切。那几只猫咪睡眼惺忪地抬头朝他眨眨眼，但并没有移动身子。然后，他开始将些纸撕成碎片，撒落到小街上去。这些飘飘洒洒的白纸蝴蝶引得这些猫上前，抬起爪子想抓住最后的纸屑。接下来，老头会对准这些猫使劲吐唾沫，一旦唾沫弹击中了猫，他就会高兴得笑起来。最后，塔鲁似乎已经完全着迷于这个城市的商业魅力了，这里的市容、活动，甚至各种娱乐都像是受到商业支配似的。这种特质——他在笔记里用的是这个词——得到了塔鲁的赞赏。确实，他的一段赞美之辞还用上了这样的感叹作为结束语：“总算不虚此行！” 在这位旅客这一时期的笔记里，只有这些段落似乎流露出了他的真情。如不细读，这些文字所蕴含的意义与真诚很可能会被忽略。例如，在描述一个旅馆出纳员因为发现一只死老鼠而记错账目的事情后，塔鲁又写了几句：“问题是：怎样才能不浪费时间呢？答案：一直都要非常清楚什么是浪费时间。做到这一点的方法：在牙医的候诊室里，坐在不舒服的椅子上呆上几天；在自家阳台上度过整个周日下午；参加用自己听不懂的语言讲授的讲座；选一条路程最远又最不方便的路线乘火车去旅行，当然是一路站着；在剧院售票处前排队而没买到票等等。” 然后，紧接在这些奇怪的想法和表达之后，笔记又详细地描述了这个城里的公交服务，包括车的外形结构、它们模糊不清的颜色以及车里永恒不变的肮脏——这种描述以一句不知所云的“很怪”作为结束。 下面再看看塔鲁对于老鼠事件的评论。 “对面的矮老头今天很不高兴。猫都不见了。死老鼠散落在街头的情景本该激起它们捕猎的本性，总之，它们都消失不见了。在我看来，它们不可能去吃死老鼠了。我记得猫是厌恶死东西的。尽管如此，它们可能仍旧正在地窖里忙着追捕老鼠——因此造成矮老头的困境。他的头发梳得不那么整齐，人看起来也不那么灵敏，不那么像军人了。他看上去忧心忡忡的。过了一会儿，他进屋去了。但进屋前他又吐了口唾沫——毫无目标。 “今天城里有一辆电车因为车上发现了死老鼠而中途停了下来。（问题：死老鼠是怎么到车上去的？）两三个女人立即下了车。死老鼠被扔出车去。车继续往前行驶。 “旅馆里的守夜人，一个头脑冷静之人，告诉我这些老鼠一定是灾难的先兆。‘当老鼠离开船时……’我回答他说，轮船中有这种情况是正常的，但在城市里，这种情况还从未有过。但他依然坚持自己的观点。我问他我们可能会有什么‘灾难’。他也说不上来；灾难总是突然降临。不过要是发生地震，他也不会感到吃惊。我认为这是有可能的，于是他又问我这是否吓着我了。‘我唯一感兴趣的是，’我对他说，‘求得内心的安宁。’他完全理解我的意思。 “我发现在这个旅馆吃饭的一家人很有趣。父亲是个瘦高个，总是穿着黑衣服，打着硬领结。他头顶光秃秃的，两边有两撮灰白的头发。他有着圆圆的小眼睛、窄窄的鼻子和僵直的嘴，就像一只很有修养的猫头鹰。他总是第一个到达餐厅门口，侧身让他的妻子——一个小黑鼠般的女人——先进来，然后自己进来，一双儿女紧跟其后，打扮得像两只上台表演的小狗。到了餐桌旁，等妻子坐下后，他才坐下，直到这时两只小狗才可以坐上椅子。他对家人不用昵称，对妻子彬彬有礼地说些恶毒话，对两个孩子则直率地表达自己的看法。‘尼科尔，你举止太不得体了。’ 小主，这个章节后面还有哦^.^，请点击下一页继续阅读，后面更精彩！ “小女孩就要哭出来了——这是必然的。这天早上，小男孩对老鼠的事情很起劲，想要说说这事。 “‘菲利普，不要在吃饭时谈老鼠。以后我不许你提这个词。’‘你父亲说得对，’黑鼠附和着说。 “两只小狗埋头到盘子里去了，猫头鹰就敷衍地点点头表示感谢。 “尽管有这个典型的例子，但城里大家都在谈论老鼠事件，当地的报纸也介入了。本市新闻栏目的话题通常多种多样，而现在整栏都是反对市政当局的内容。‘我们的市政官员们知道这些腐烂的老鼠尸体对人们构成了严重的威胁吗？’旅馆经理成天只谈此事。不过，他也有个人的隐忧，在一家三星级宾馆的电梯里发现老鼠在他看来简直是末日。我安慰他说：‘可是，要知道，大家都面临这种状况。’ ‘就是这样，’他回答说，‘现在大家都一样，人人自危。’ “是他第一个给我讲起这种引起慌乱的奇怪热症的爆发。他的客房女佣中有一人患上了这种病。 ‘不过可以肯定，这不会传染。’他连忙向我保证说。我告诉他这对我无所谓。‘啊，我知道，先生。你和我一样，是位宿命论者。’ “我从未发表过这样的言论，而且，我也不是宿命论者。我这样告诉他……” 从这时起，塔鲁在笔记中开始较为详细地记述令众人极度焦虑的奇怪的高烧症。他记下了那个矮老头终于在老鼠停止出现后又见到了那些消失多日的猫，并且正耐心地改进他的唾沫攻击术，接着塔鲁又提到听说已经出现了十几个高烧病人，大多都不治身亡。 为了更好地理解故事叙述者后面的讲述，这里有必要插入一段塔鲁对里厄医生的描写。据笔者判断，这个描述非常精确。 “看起来三十五岁左右。中等个子。宽肩膀。近乎长方的脸盘。黑色的眼睛目光沉稳，下颌突出。鼻子大而坚挺。黑色的头发，剪得短短的。嘴角微翘，嘴唇很厚，通常紧闭着。他皮肤黝黑，胳膊和双手也是黑黑的，还总穿着黑色但得体的西装，让人想起西西里的农民。 “他走路很快。过马路时，他走下人行道也不改变步伐，但是十有八九他会在跨上对面的人行道时轻轻一跳。他心不在焉，开车时常常是车子转弯后转向灯还亮着。他从不戴帽子。看起来知识渊博。” 第三章 塔鲁记录的描述是正确的。里厄医生只是明显感觉事态已经变得严峻了。叫人把看门人的尸体运走之后，他曾打电话给理查德，询问他对腹股沟淋巴结炎症的看法。 “我一点儿也看不懂，”理查德说，“有两个病人已去世了，一个是在发病后两天，另一个是在发病后三天死去的。而我在第二个病人得病的第二天去看望他时时，他看起来病情已有所好转。” “如有别的病例，请告诉我。”里厄说。 他又打电话问了其他几个同行。询问的结果是，他了解到几天内已出现大约二十例相同的病例。所有的病例几乎都是致命的。于是，他建议奥兰医学联合会会长理查德叫人把新发现的病人隔离开来。 “对不起，”理查德说，“我办不到。只有省长才能颁布这样的命令。而且，你有什么理由认为这有传染危险？” “没有什么明确的理由。不过这些症状确实令人担忧。” 但是理查德反复说“这些措施不在他的权利范围之内”。他最多只能向省长汇报这一情况。 他们在谈论这些事情的时候，天气却变得更加糟糕起来。看门人死后的第二天，天空乌云密布，骤然下了几场倾盆大雨，每场骤雨过后就是暴热。大海也变了，它失去了往日的深蓝色，在黑压压的天空下闪着刺眼的白光。这讨厌的春日的潮热让所有人都盼着干净的、干燥的炎炎夏日。在这座如蜗牛般隆起在高原上、几乎全城背海的城市上空，笼罩着一种无精打采的气氛。被包围在一排排的白墙之间，走在两旁尽是布满灰尘的店铺的街道中，坐在肮脏发黄的电车上，人们感觉到处都像是被这种天气给困住了。但是，里厄的那个年老的西班牙病人却没有这种感觉，他倒是非常欢迎这种天气。 “热得难熬，”他说，“但这对支气管倒不错。” 天气的确“热得难熬”，但就像发烧似的。确实，全城都在发烧，这至少是里厄挥之不去的印象，那时他驾车去费代尔布街参加科塔尔自杀未遂的调查。他觉得自己的这种感觉毫无理由，因而把它归咎于精神疲劳。他那时有太多的烦心事。事实上，他该控制一下，让自己的头脑镇定下来。 他到达目的地时，发现警官还没有到。格朗在楼梯口迎接他，叫医生上他家去等着，把门开着。这个市政府职员有两间房，陈设都很简单。唯一引人注目的是一个书架和一块小黑板，书架上面摆放着两三本字典，黑板上写着已被檫得看不太清的几个字：“花香四溢的林阴大道”。 格朗告诉医生说科塔尔昨晚睡得很好。但早上起来时，科塔尔感觉头很痛，心情也很低落。格朗自己也显得疲惫和心烦。他在房间里不停地走来走去，把放在桌上的一个夹满稿纸的文件夹打开来又合上去。 同时，他又告诉医生说他真的不太了解科塔尔，只是认为他有点小积蓄。科塔尔是个古怪的人。长期以来，他们之间的关系只是在楼梯上遇见时打声招呼罢了。 “我只跟他谈过两次话。几天前，我在楼梯口打翻了一盒带回家来的彩色粉笔。这些粉笔有红色的，有蓝色的。这时科塔尔走出房来，帮我把粉笔捡起来。他问我拿彩色粉笔作什么用。” 格朗向他解释说自己想温习一下拉丁语。中学时他学过拉丁语，但现在已忘得差不多了。 “你瞧，医生，有人告诉我了解拉丁语可以更好地理解法语词的真正含义。” 因此，他把拉丁语单词写在他的黑板上，用蓝粉笔重抄一遍单词中代表性、数、格变化的部分，又用红粉笔再抄一遍单词中永不变化的部分。 “我不确定科塔尔是否完全听得懂，但他显得很感兴趣，并向我要了一支红粉笔。这使我感到很惊讶，但毕竟——当然，我猜不到他会用它来干什么。” 里厄想问他们第二次谈话的内容。正在这时，警官带着警员来了，说是想先听格朗说说。医生注意到格朗在提到科塔尔时，总是称他为“不幸的人”，甚至一度用上“他那冷酷的决定”这种词。在谈论这次企图自杀的动机时，格朗在用词上显得有点谨慎起来。最后他用了“内心的痛苦”一词。警官问科塔尔的行为方式上是否有什么地方显示出他所谓的“自杀企图”。 “昨天他来敲我家的门，”格朗说，“来问我要火柴。我给了他一盒。他说他很抱歉打扰了我，又说他希望我不会介意，因为我们是邻居。他向我保证一定会归还火柴，但我叫他留着。” 警官问格朗是否注意到科塔尔有什么异常之处。 “我觉得他的异常之处是，他似乎总想开口对我说些什么。但他应该是看到了我一直在忙。”格朗转向里厄，有点儿不好意思地接着说：“一件私事。” 警官又说他必须去见见病人，听听他的说法。里厄认为最好先让科塔尔有个准备。当里厄走进科塔尔的房间时，看到他正穿着一件灰色的法兰绒睡衣坐在床上，脸上带着惶恐的神情盯着门口。 “警察来了，是吗？” “是的，”里厄说，“但是别紧张。只需完成几项常规调查，之后就没你的事了。” 科塔尔回答说，这完全没有必要，况且他也不喜欢警察。 里厄表现出有些生气的样子。 “我也不喜欢警察。只需尽量简短而真实地回答一些提问就完事了。” 科塔尔没说什么，里厄就转身朝门口走去。他刚跨出一步，这个矮胖子就叫他回来，并在他走到床边时抓住他的双手。 “他们不会为难一个病人，一个上吊过的人，是吗，医生？” 里厄低头看了他一会儿，然后向他保证说从来就没有这样的事，况且无论如何他都会保护他的病人。科塔尔似乎松了口气，于是里厄出去叫警官进来。 警官宣读了格朗的证词后，就叫科塔尔说说他自杀的真实动机。他没有抬眼看警官，只是回答说那正是因为“内心的痛苦”。警官接着追问他是否还想“再犯”。科塔尔激动起来，说他当然不会再这么做了，只想别人不要来烦他。 “我要提醒你，先生，”警官气愤地说，“现在是你在烦别人。”里厄朝他做了个手势，叫他不要再说下去，他也就没再说什么。 “白白浪费了一个小时！”警官走出去关上房门后，叹了口气说，“你想啊，自从大家议论这个高烧症的事情以来，我们警察要考虑些别的问题。” 他接着问医生这座城市是否面临严重威胁，里厄回答说他不清楚。“那一定是天气的缘故，”警官下结论说，“就是这样。” 这毫无疑问是天气的缘故。日子慢慢地过去，每样东西摸起来都感觉很黏，而里厄每次出诊后都感觉他的忧虑在不断增加。当天晚上，郊区那个老病人的邻居按着腹股沟开始呕吐，发着高烧胡言乱语起来。淋巴结肿得比米歇尔的大得多。其中一个正在流脓，很快就溃烂得像个熟透了的果子。里厄一回到家，就给行政区的医药库打电话。在他当天的工作记录上只写着：“答复说没药。”这个城市各个地方都有人叫他去看类似的病人。很显然，必须割开这些脓肿。划开一个十字切口，淋巴结就流出带血的脓水来。病人四肢尽力向外叉开，继续流着血。腹部和腿部出现黑色的斑块，有时淋巴结停止出脓，继而又重新肿大起来。通常病人都会在一种腐烂的臭气中死去。 对老鼠事件曾经大事渲染的地方报纸，现在对这些情况却只字不提。因为老鼠死在街上，人死在屋里。而报纸只关注街面上的事。在这个时候，省政府和市政府的官员们开始聚在一起商议起来。假如每个医生只遇到一两个这样的病例，没有人会想到要采取行动。而一旦把这些数字都加起来，总数却是很惊人的。不到几天工夫，病例迅速增长起来，那些关注这种怪病的人都清楚一场真正的瘟疫到来了。正是在这个时候，里厄的一位年纪比他大得多的同行卡斯特尔来找他。 第二部 第八章 从这时起，可以说我们所有市民都关注起这场鼠疫来。在此之前，尽管身边发生的这些奇怪的事情令人惊讶，但城里的每一位市民都尽可能照常做着自己的事情。而且，毫无疑问，人们本可以继续这样生活下去。然而，一旦城门关闭，人们就意识到,包括笔者在内的所有人都可以说是同舟共济，而每个人也只得适应新的生活状况。因此，一种诸如与心上人分离的痛苦这样普通的个人情感突然变为全城居民共有的情感，而且这种情感——夹杂着恐惧——是人们要面对的长期放逐的巨大痛苦。 事实上，封城的最突出的后果之一就是毫无准备的人们所面对的这种突如其来的分离。有些母子、情侣和夫妻前几天还想当然地认为这会是一次短暂的离别，他们说完几句无足轻重的话就在月台上吻别了，因为他们被人类对不久的将来的盲目自信所蒙蔽，以为几天后，最多几周后肯定又会再见面，短暂的离开对他们的日常事务几乎没有任何影响——但所有的这些人最终发现自己在毫无征兆的情况下被无情地分开，彼此不能再相见，甚至不能彼此通信。因为实际上，在官方命令发布之前几小时，封城就已经开始，自然无法考虑个人的困境问题。疫病无情袭击的第一个影响可以说真的就是迫使市民们像没有个人情感一样地行事。在禁止离城的命令实施那天的上午，省府周围围满了人。他们提出的请求具有同样的说服力，但同样都不可能予以考虑。是的，我们需要几天时间才能意识到我们完全被逼入了困境；“通融”、“帮忙”、“优先”等词都已失去了意义。 甚至连通信这样令人稍感安慰的事也不被允许。情况是这样：不仅本城与外界的正常交通联系被阻断，而且——根据又一次疫情报告——一切通信都被禁止，以免信件向外传带病菌。起初几天，有些幸运者尽力说服了守卫城门的哨兵，将信件传递了出去。但这只是宣布发生鼠疫的初始阶段，那时哨兵们认为屈从于仁爱之情是自然的事。后来，当这些哨兵意识到事态的严重性时，他们就断然拒绝承担这种不能预见可能后果的责任。最初还允许同别的城市电话联系，但这导致公用电话处拥挤不堪，电话线路忙不过来，以致禁止通话了几天，然后又限制只有在诸如死亡、结婚和出生等“紧急情况”下才可通话。因此，人们只好重新借助起电报来。 以前以友谊、感情或者情爱联系着的人们发现自己只有在十来个字的电报里重温旧梦了。而由于实际上电报中所能使用的词汇很快被用尽，长时间的共同生活或热切的思念很快就浓缩为几句平凡的套语交流，如：“我好。永远想你。爱你。” 但是，我们中间还有少数几个仍坚持写信，并且花了很多时间想方设法与外界取得联系，而这些计划到头来总是一场空。即使在少数情况下计划成功了，我们也无法知晓，因为我们没有收到任何回音。一连几个星期，我们都只能一再重复地写着同样的信，重抄着同样的新闻片段，发出同样的个人呼吁。这样过了一段时间，原先发自肺腑的生动语言也失去了任何意义。之后，我们继续机械地抄着信件，试图通过这些毫无生气的词汇来表达对我们所经历的折磨的看法。而从长远来看，相对于这些毫无结果、反反复复的独白、这些与墙壁进行的枯燥对话来说，平凡无趣的电报套语也渐渐地显得更为可取了。 又过了几天——当人们清楚根本没人能出得了城时——人们开始请求是否可以让鼠疫发生前已经离城的人回来。当局经过几天考虑之后同意了这个请求。但是当局要求回来的人无论如何都不许再次离城。一旦回来，无论发生什么，他们都得呆在城里。一些家庭——实际上为数极少——没有认真考虑就急切地要那些离家的亲人们回来，全然不顾地拍电报要他们抓住这次返家的机会。但那些困于鼠疫的人们很快意识到这样做会让亲人们面临可怕的危险，因而宁愿忍受亲人不在身边的痛苦。在疫病最严重的时期，我们只看到一个自然情感战胜对死亡恐惧的事例。这个事例也许有些出人意料，它并非发生在一对无论忍受什么痛苦也要厮守在一起的年轻情侣身上。这两人是结婚多年的卡斯特尔医生和他的老伴。卡斯特尔太太在鼠疫发生前几天离家去了邻城。他们并不是恩爱老夫妻的典范；相反，笔者有理由说，很可能这对夫妇自己都不确定是否对他们的婚姻感到满意。但是这次无情而又持续的分离使他们意识到彼此无法分开生活，而一旦有了这种意识，鼠疫的危险也就算不上什么了。 这是一个例外。对大多数人而言，分离显然必须持续到疫病消失为止。因此对于我们大家每个人来说，支配着自己生活的感情——我们自以为很熟悉的感情（奥兰人的感情是简单的，这在前文已提到过）——呈现出一种新的面貌。一直完全信任妻子的丈夫们惊讶地发现自己变得嫉妒多疑起来。情侣们也是如此。那些本来自诩风流如唐璜的男人们变成了忠贞的典范。那些以前对身旁的母亲看都不看一眼的儿子们开始怀着深切的悔恨想象着刻在记忆深处那些在外的亲人脸上的每一道皱纹。这种突然而彻底的分离以及对未来的全然不知令我们感到意外。对离别不久却已相隔甚远的亲人那种默默的思念令我们不知所措。实际上，我们的痛苦是双重的：首先是自身所受的痛苦，其次是想象的在外的亲人，儿子、母亲、妻子或情人所受的痛苦。 这章没有结束^.^，请点击下一页继续阅读！ 在其他情形下，我们这些市民本可能会通过更多的活动、更多的交际来寻找排遣。但是这场鼠疫却使他们无事可做，只好在城里枯燥无味地转来转去，日复一日地沉浸在回忆带来的虚幻慰藉之中。因为他们漫无目的地行走时，总是走到那么几条相同的街道上，因为小城很小，而这些街道都是在以前快乐的日子里他们同现已不在身边的亲人们一起走过的。 这样，鼠疫给我们这个城市带来的第一个影响是流放的感觉。笔者确信，他在这里写下的是自己的感受，这也是许多朋友们承认的共同感受。 毫无疑问，这是一种流放之感——内心深处始终存在的空虚感，那些期望时光倒流或是时光飞逝的痴心妄想，还有那些焦心的记忆利箭。有时我们陶醉于幻想之中，设想自己在等候亲人回来时响起的门铃声或楼梯上熟悉的脚步声。但是，尽管我们可能故意在平时旅客乘晚班火车应该到家的时间呆在家中，或是试图暂时忘记火车不通的事实，这种自欺欺人显然不能持久。我们必须面对火车不通这个事实的时刻总是会到来的。这时，我们意识到这种分离注定要继续下去，我们只有接受未来的这段日子。总之，我们又回到囚房般的家中，陪伴我们的只有对过去的回忆，即使有人寄希望于未来，也很快就放弃了这种想法——尽可能快地——一旦他们感受到幻想给幻想之人带来痛苦。 值得一提的是，市民们很快就放弃了要是在以前很可能会形成的习惯——设法推算流放可能持续的时间——即使是在公共场所也是如此。原因是这样：最悲观的人推算出可能的流放时间，比如说，六个月，他们对这半年暗无天日的日子事先做好准备，并鼓足勇气接受现实，竭尽全力来勇敢地忍受这漫长岁月的考验——当他们做好了这一切，他们遇见的某个朋友、报纸上的某篇文章、某种模糊的臆测或是一闪而过的远见都会提示他们，没有理由不相信疫病会持续半年以上，它为什么不会持续一年，甚至超过一年呢？ 这时他们的勇气、意志和耐力突然垮了下来，以致他们感到自己永远无法脱身于沮丧的深渊。因此他们强迫自己不再去想可能的解禁日期，不再去展望未来，也可以说强迫自己只看眼下的日子。但是这种谨慎，这种不愿勇敢面对困境挑战的做法自然效果不佳。因为，当他们回避自认为不能忍受的精神崩溃的时候，他们也剥夺了自己忘却鼠疫、想象日后团圆的幻想时刻，这些幻想在鼠疫爆发后常常出现。这样，他们在希望与失望之间，在毫无目标的生活和毫无结果的回忆里浮沉，就像一群漂泊不定的幽灵，只有甘愿扎根于痛苦的境地才能获得人的肉体之身。 因此，他们也开始体会到一切囚徒和流放者无可救药的悲伤，那就是生活在无用的回忆之中。他们不断怀念的过去甚至也带有一种悔恨的味道。因为，他们真想把与现在他们等候归来的亲人以前在一起时能做而未做的事情加进回忆中去；所有的活动都是如此，甚至在囚禁生活相对快乐的时候，他们也总是徒劳地幻想着自己和身在外地的亲人在一起。这样，他们的生活里总是有种缺憾。对过去感到憎恨，对现在感到心焦，对未来感到绝望，我们像极了那些受到人类法律制裁或仇恨报复而生活在铁窗之后的囚徒。因而，逃避这种难以忍受的空虚感的唯一方法是再次让火车在幻想中驰骋，让寂静中充满动听的门铃声；现实是门铃顽固地沉默着。 那么，如果说这是一种流放，对大多数人来说，这是一种困在自己家中的放逐。虽然笔者体验的只是一般的流放生活，却不能不提一提像记者朗贝尔这类人所经历的加倍的离别之苦，因为这些被鼠疫困住的游客们被迫呆在这里，既见不着亲人，又远离家乡。在所有的流放者中，他们的感受最深。虽然他们在时间上承受的痛苦与大家一样，但他们还承受着空间上的痛苦。他们饱受思乡之苦，时时用头撞击着将他们与远在天涯的家乡隔离开来的疫区房屋的高墙。无疑，这些人经常整天都在尘土飞扬的城内孤独地徘徊，默默地呼唤着只有他们才知道的故乡乐土的黄昏与清晨。飞翔的燕子、黄昏的露珠或是那些太阳撒在僻静街道上的奇光异彩等飞逝而过却令人心烦意乱的迹象给他们徒增沮丧。对于这个能使人们摆脱一切的外部世界，他们闭上双眼不去观望，尽力沉浸在过于逼真的幻想之中，想象着一个沐浴在奇异光芒之下的世界，那里有两三座山丘、喜爱的树木、女人的微笑，这为他们构造了一种独一无二的境界。 最后，专门来谈谈分隔两地的情侣的情况，这是笔者最感兴趣，恐怕也是笔者最有资格谈论的——他们心里承受着各种情感的折磨，尤其是悔恨。因为目前的状况使他们能够用一种极度客观的态度来重新审视以前的情感。而且，在这些情况下，他们通常不难发现自己的缺点。他们首先认识到自己很难想起不在身边的爱人的清晰画面。他们开始意识到自己全然不知对方的生活方式，责怪自己以前对此不仅太不了解，还装腔作势地以为，对恋人来说，不在一起时老占用着对方的时间是一种冷淡，而不是快乐的源泉。一旦意识到这一点，他们就能追溯过去的爱情，并发现它的不足之处。平时我们大家都自觉或不自觉地知道任何爱情都可以变得更完美。而我们或多或少都甘愿让自己的爱情停留在一般水平。但回忆不愿意作出妥协。毫无疑问，这场降临全城的飞来横祸不仅是给我们带来了不应承受的苦难，令我们可能愤慨不已。它还使我们自己给自己制造痛苦，并且甘愿接受被挫败的现状。这就是疫病转移人们注意力、混淆是非的伎俩。 小主，这个章节后面还有哦^.^，请点击下一页继续阅读，后面更精彩！ 这样，每个人都甘愿活在当下，孤独一人在广袤而冷漠的天空下过日子。这种被遗弃的感觉也许能及时让人的脾气变得好一些，但却开始让人陷入一种无用的境地。比如说，有些市民开始受制于某种奇怪的奴役，让他们任凭天气阴晴的摆布。看他们的样子，你会觉得好像他们是生平头一次变得所谓对天气如此敏感。一线阳光足以令他们喜形于色，而雨天则让他们的脸庞和心情都阴沉下来。几个星期以前，他们还没有受到天气这种荒谬的奴役，因为他们不需独自面对生活。在某种程度上，和他们一起生活的亲人在他们狭小的世界里占据着最显著的位置。但从现在起，一切都变了。他们似乎任由善变的老天爷摆布——或者说，他们承受着痛苦却又毫无理性地抱着希望。 而且，在这种极度孤单的情况下，没人可以指望邻居来帮忙。每个人只得独自承受苦难的重负。如果我们中间有人偶尔想释放压力，或吐露些心声，那么无论对方作何回答，结果通常会伤害了他自己。他会明白他和谈话者之间没有共同语言。他自己表达的是多日来内心所受的痛苦，他想描绘的是在激情与悔恨的煎熬中逐渐形成并凝固的形象，而对方根本不明白，以为他说的只是普通的情感，那种随处可见、人人皆有的伤感。不管得到的回答是善意的还是恶意的，总是事与愿违，因此人们不想再与彼此交流。但至少有些人是这样，他们难以忍受沉默，而既然他人不能推心置腹地与之交谈，他们只好人云亦云，通常聊聊一般的故事、奇闻轶事和每天的报纸。所以，在这样的情况下，即使是最真实的悲伤也只得用最普通的套语来表达。鼠疫的囚徒们只有用这些话语来取得看门人的同情或引起听众的兴趣。 但是——这一点最重要——不管这些流放者因为空虚感到多么痛苦，心里有多么沉重，可以说他们在鼠疫的初期还算感觉是幸运的。因为就是在全城市民开始感到恐慌的时候，他们一心也只想着期待重逢的亲人。爱情的自我主义使他们免受一般的痛苦，如果他们想起鼠疫，只会想到这可能会造成与亲人的永久分离。因此，在疫病发作最厉害的时候，他们依然保持一种漠不关心的态度，简直可以是一种泰然自若。绝望让他们不再感到恐慌，因此，塞翁失马，焉知非福。比如说，即使他们中间有人被这场疫病夺去了性命，他自己也没有时间意识到这一点。当他与记忆中的影子进行绵长而无声的交流时，突然被死神揪了出来，然后直接被抛入永久的沉寂之中。他根本没有时间多想任何事情。 第九章 当市民们正在设法适应这种突如其来的隔离生活时，鼠疫已使城门口安放了守卫，使前来奥兰的船只改变了行程。封城以来，没有任何车辆进过城。从那天起，人们感觉汽车仿佛都在绕城而行。 从林阴大道高处俯瞰，港口也呈现出一种奇怪的景象。一直以来使这里成为整个海岸线上主要港口的商业活动突然销声匿迹了。只有几艘等候检疫的船只还停泊在海湾里。但码头上闲置着的大吊车、侧倚着的翻斗车、无人理会的成堆的袋子和桶——这一切都证明贸易也因鼠疫而衰败了。 尽管有着如此不同寻常的景象，我们市民显然还很难明白究竟发生了什么。 人们有着共同的感受，比如恐惧和分离之感，但仍旧把个人利益放在首位。还没有一个人真正认识到疫病的含义。 大多数人主要感到的是生活常规遭到了扰乱，个人利益受到了影响。他们感到焦虑和生气——但这些并非人们面对鼠疫时该有的情绪。比如，他们的第一反应便是责怪当局。报刊所反映的群众的批评——难道现在采取的措施不能放宽些？——迅速遭到省府的反驳，这有些出人意料。迄今为止，报纸和朗斯多克情报信息局都没有收到过有关疫病的官方统计数字。如今省府每天都把数据提供给该局，并要求每周公布一次。 然而公众对此所作的反应也没有想象中的那么迅速。因此公布的鼠疫第三周已有302人死亡这样的消息并没有激发公众的猜想。首先，这302人可能并非都死于鼠疫。其次，这座城里没人知道通常情况下每周的平均死亡率。本城的人口大约为20万。大家不知道现在的死亡率是否真的有那么不正常。事实上，从来没人太愿意关心这类数据——尽管它的意义很明显。总之，公众缺乏比较的标准。只有随着时间的流逝，死亡率的稳步上升不容忽视时，公众才开始意识到真相。第五周的死亡人数为321人，而第六周为345人。这些数字至少说明了问题。但是，尽管它们令人担忧，却还没有耸人听闻到足以改变人们的看法，人们依然认为这只是一场令人不快但一定为时不长的意外。 因而，人们依然像以往一样，在城里到处闲逛，或在咖啡馆的露台上闲坐。一般来说，他们还不乏勇气，谈笑风声多于唉声叹气，对显然只是暂时的不悦似乎还能欣然接受。总之，人们在尽力撑着场面。但是，接近月底的时候，大约是在后面将要谈到的祈祷周里，更严重的事态发展改变了城里的整个面貌。首先，省府采取措施来控制交通和食物供给。汽油实行配给，粮食买卖受到限制。规定用电量也要减少。只有日用品可通过陆运或空运运入奥兰。这样，交通车辆逐步减少，直至马路上几乎看不到私家车。奢侈品店一夜之间都停业了，另一些店则贴出“货物售罄”的布告，而成群的顾客在店门口排队等候。 这章没有结束^.^，请点击下一页继续阅读！ 奥兰呈现出一片新奇的景象。行人更多了，即使不是在高峰时刻，也有很多人挤在大街上或是咖啡馆里，因为商店和许多办事处都关闭了，人们闲着无事可做。眼下他们还没有失业，他们只是在度假。因此，在天气晴朗的日子里，下午快三点钟的时侯，奥兰就像是一座正在举行公众庆祝活动的城市：关上店门，停止交通，以便给制造欢乐的民众留出活动的空间。 电影院自然会利用这种状况，轻而易举地大赚一笔。不过，它们遇到了一个难题——交换影片的问题，因为这个地区影片的轮流放映已经中断。 两周后，各电影院不得不相互交换影片，又过了更长一段时间后，电影院只好循环放着同样的片子。尽管如此，它们的收入并没有减少。 在这个酒类贸易占据首位的城市里，酒类库存非常可观，因此咖啡馆同样也能满足顾客的需求。而且，说实话，酒喝得可真多。一家咖啡馆想到了一个绝妙的主意，贴出了这样的广告：“最能抵御感染之物莫过于一杯好酒”，这坚定了人们本来就很流行的那种酒精能有效防止传染病的看法。每天半夜快到两点，许多被逐出咖啡馆的醉汉们步履蹒跚地走在大街上，大声宣告着他们的乐观主义。 但所有的这些变化，从某种意义上说，是如此怪异，又出现得如此突然，以至于人们认为这些变化不可能会持久。因此，大家依然关注着自己的个人情绪。 封城两天之后，里厄医生走出医院时在街上遇见了科塔尔。这个矮个子满意地微笑着。里厄祝贺他气色不错。 “是的，”科塔尔说，“我身体很棒。我这辈子要数现在最健康了。不过，请告诉我，医生。这该死的鼠疫怎样了？看起来变得相当严重了，对吗？”医生点了点头，而科塔尔继续活力充沛地说：“现在它没有理由停止蔓延。从当前状况来看，这座城市将被这一切搅得乱七八糟。”他们俩一起走了一小段路。科塔尔说起他那个街区里的一个储备了大量罐头食品以图厚利的一个杂货商。当救护人员前来接他去医院时，他把几十个肉罐头藏在床底下。“他死在医院里。在鼠疫里，钱是没用的，这毫无疑问。”科塔尔有着一肚子这种有关鼠疫的真真假假的故事。其中有一个故事说的是一个带有鼠疫症状、发着高烧的男子冲到大街上，扑向他遇到的第一个女人，搂住她，大叫着他“得病了”。 “真有他的！”科塔尔评论着。但他接下来所说的似乎与他愉悦的语气不相符。 “无论怎样，我们大家很快都会成为疯子，这是确定无疑的。” 就在同一天下午，格朗终于向里厄倾吐了他的秘密。看到桌上里厄太太的照片，格朗好奇地望着里厄。里厄告诉他，自己的妻子正在外地疗养。“从某种意义上说，”格朗说，“这是种幸运。”医生赞同地说这确实是种幸运，但是，他接着又说，重要的是他的妻子能够康复。 “是的，”格朗说，“我懂你的意思。” 接着，格朗变得非常健谈，这是里厄认识他以来的头一次。尽管他说话时还是咬文嚼字，但几乎总能找到适当的字眼。确实，好像他对当时所说的话早已思考了很长时间似的。 他十几岁时就与附近的一个贫穷的年轻姑娘结了婚。事实上，他就是为了结婚才辍学，找了现在的这份工作。他和珍妮都从未到过他们那个区以外的地方。在他追求珍妮的日子里，他常常到珍妮家去看她，而她的家人往往取笑这位害羞的、沉默寡言的追求者。她父亲是一位铁路工人。下了班，他常常坐在窗边的角落里，一双大手平放在大腿上，沉思地注视着来往的行人。他的妻子总是忙着家务，珍妮帮着她。珍妮个子非常娇小，格朗每次看见她过马路时总是很紧张，因为驶过她身边的车辆就像是庞然大物。圣诞节前有一天，他们一起出去走走，走到一个装饰精美的橱窗前驻足欣赏起来。珍妮心醉神迷地看了好一会儿，转过身来面对着他。“哦，太美了！”他紧紧握住她的手腕。就这样，他们俩互定终身了。 接下来的事，在格朗看来，就很一般了。就和其他许多普通的夫妇一样。结婚，再浓情蜜意一小段时间，工作。工作太忙，爱情也就淡忘了。由于格朗所在的办公室主任食言，珍妮也只得外出工作了。读者读到这里，需要些想象力才能理解格朗想要表达的意思。主要是因为劳累，他渐渐迷失了自我，越来越少说话，也让他的妻子失去了被爱的感觉。一个过度工作的丈夫，生活贫困，前途逐渐渺茫，夜晚在家时相对无言——怎么可能还有激情在这样的条件下生活下去？珍妮可能已经感到痛苦了。但她仍然忍受着。当然，也许有人可以长时间受苦而不自知。就这样一年年过去了。后来，有一天，她离开了他。她当然不是独自一人离开的。“我爱过你，但现在我感到太累了。我不因离开你而感到幸福，但人们不一定为了幸福才追求新的起点。”这就是她在信中所说的大意。格朗也感到痛苦。而且，他本来——像里厄提到的那样——也可以有一个新的起点。但他没有，他已经失去了信心。只是，他情不自禁地想着她。他本来想给她写封信来为自己辩解。 “但这并不容易，”他对里厄说，“对此我已想了许多年。在我们相爱时，我们不需要说什么就能相互理解。但是爱情不是恒久不变的。有段时间，我本应该找些话来留住她——但我没能做到。”格朗从口袋里掏出一块方格子抹布似的东西大声地擤了擤鼻涕。然后，他又擦了擦他的胡须。里厄无言地注视着他。“请原谅我，医生，”格朗马上接着又说，“但是——我该怎么说呢？——我觉得你值得信任。这就是我能向你谈起这些事情的原因。不过，你看，我太激动了。” 显然，格朗根本就没有关心鼠疫。 当晚，里厄给妻子发了份电报，告诉她封城了，要她继续照顾好自己，他惦念着她。 有天晚上——封城后三周左右——当里厄从医院出来时，看到一位年轻人正在大街上等着他。 “你记得我，对吧？” 里厄觉得见过此人，但又不能确定这人到底是谁。 “我在事件发生前拜访过你，”年轻人说，“为了了解阿拉伯人居住区的生活情况。我叫雷蒙·朗贝尔。”“啊，是的，当然记得。现在你可大有文章可做了。”朗贝尔看起来不如他们初次见面时那样自信，他说他来并不是为了这件事。他想知道医生是否能帮他点儿忙。 “我很抱歉，”他接着说，“但是我在这里确实没有熟人，而我们报社的地方代表完全是个废物。” 里厄说他得到市中心的一家诊所去，提议两人一起走过去。他们顺着黑人居住区的狭小街道往前走。夜晚就要来临了，但是过去一到这个时刻就很吵闹的城市，现在却异常安静。唯一的声音便是回响在余辉未尽的天空中的几声军号声。不管怎样，军队还在作出正常值勤的样子。其间，当他们沿着两边是蓝色、淡紫色和淡黄色墙头的坡度极大的狭小街道往下走着的时候，朗贝尔不断地说着话，似乎情绪非常激动。 他说他把妻子丢在了巴黎。她并非真是他的妻子，但就跟妻子一样。刚封城时他给她发过一份电报。那时他以为这种状况不会持久，只想设法寄封信给她。但邮局官员拒绝了这一请求，当地报社的同行们说他们对此无能为力，省府办公室一位职员则当面嘲笑他。他只好排了两个小时的队才得以获准发了一份电报：一切都好。不久再会。 但他第二天早上醒来时，突然想到毕竟不能确切地知道事态会持续多久。于是他决定立即离开奥兰。由于他的职业便利，他得以运用一些影响力见到了省府办公室的一位高官。他解释说他来奥兰纯属偶然，他与这座城市没有任何联系，没有理由留在这里，因此，他当然有权离开这里，即使出城后要接受一段时间的检疫隔离。官员说他十分理解对方的处境，但不能作任何特例处理。不过，他会看看能否做些什么，尽管他很可能不能立即作出决定，因为当局非常关注目前局势。 “但是，该死的，”朗贝尔大叫着说，“我不是这里的人呀！” “确实如此。但无论怎样，让我们还是希望这场疫病很快就会过去吧。”最后，他安慰朗贝尔说，作为一名记者，他可以在奥兰找到极好的报道题材。确实，如果仔细想想，无论事情有多糟糕，都有它好的一面。对此，朗贝尔只能愤怒地耸耸肩，走出了办公室。 朗贝尔和医生走到了市中心。 “这真是该死的傻话，医生，不是吗？事实上，我不是为写报道而生的。而是很可能为了与一个女人一起生活而来到这个世界的。这非常合情合理，不是吗？” 里厄谨慎地回答说朗贝尔所说的可能有些道理。 中心大街已不如往常那样人群拥挤。少数几个行人正急着赶回远方的家。没有人面带笑容。里厄猜想这是朗斯多克情报信息局最新的通报所造成的。市民们在事后二十四小时就会恢复信心。但在公布当天，数字在人们的脑海里是挥之不去的。 “事实上，”朗贝尔突然说，“她和我一起生活的时间很短，但我们很合得来。”里厄没说什么，朗贝尔接着说：“我知道我打扰你了。对不起。我只想知道你能否为我出一张证明，证明我没有患上这种该死的疾病。我想，这也许可以使事情变得更好办些。” 里厄点点头。这时一个小男孩撞在他腿上摔倒了，他扶小男孩站起来。他们继续往前走，来到了武器广场。蒙着一层尘土的棕榈树和无花果树垂头丧气地耷拉着树枝，树丛中象征共和国的雕塑也蒙上了一层污垢和尘土。他们在雕塑旁停下了脚步。里厄把两只脚踩在石板上跺了跺，想除去脚上的一层白灰。朗贝尔则帽子歪歪地戴着，松松地系着领带的衬衫领口敞开着，胡须也没有好好剃过，脸上露出一种阴沉而倔强的表情，那是年轻人感到自己深受伤害的表情。 “我理解你，这点请不要怀疑，”里厄说，“但是你必须清楚，你的要求是站不住脚的。我不能为你出具证明，因为我不清楚你现在是否患有这种疾病，而且，即使我清楚，我又怎能证明你在离开我的诊所去往省府办公室这段时间不会受到传染？况且，即使我——” “即使你——？” “即使我给你出了证明，那也没用。” “为什么没用？” “因为城里像你这种情况的人成千上万，却不可能获准离城。” “假使他们没有染上鼠疫呢？” “这个理由并不充分。哦，我知道这很讨厌，但我们都身陷其中，也只得接受现实了。” “但我不是这里的人。” “不幸的是，从现在起，你同大家一样，都是这里的人了。” 朗贝尔提高了些嗓门。 “但是，真该死，医生，难道你不明白这种普通的人类情感问题吗？还是你不知道一对情投意合的人分隔两地的滋味？” 里厄沉默了一会儿，然后说他对此非常理解。他衷心希望朗贝尔可以获准回到他妻子的身边，也希望身处两地的情侣们可以再次相聚。只是法令就是法令，鼠疫已经爆发了，他也只能该做什么就做什么。 “不，”朗贝尔痛苦地说，“你不能理解。你是在讲大道理，而不是感情。你生活在抽象的世界里。” 医生抬头望着象征共和国的雕塑，然后说他不清楚他是否在讲大道理，但他知道他讲的是摆在大家面前的事实——这两者并不一定是一回事。 记者整了整领带。 “那么，我知道了，我不能指望你帮忙了。很好。但是——”他用一种不服气的语气接着说，“我会离开这个城市的。” 医生反复说他非常理解，但这一切都与他无关。 “很抱歉，但这确实与你有关。”朗贝尔再次提高了嗓门，大声说，“我来找你就是因为有人告诉过我，你在起草这些已经颁布的法令中起了很大作用。当时我想，你这个帮助系铃的人至少可以解一次铃。但是你却无动于衷，你从不关心任何人，你没有为分居两地的人着想。” 里厄承认，在某种意义上说，这是事实，他确实不愿考虑这些事情。 “啊，我明白了！”朗贝尔大叫着说，“你马上就要说些公众利益的话了。但公众利益也是以每个人的个人利益为基础的。” 里厄似乎突然如梦初醒。 “哦，得了！”他说，“就是这样，但事情不仅仅是这样。匆忙下结论是没有用的。但你没有理由发火。我向你保证，假如你能想到一个让自己摆脱隔离的办法，我将万分高兴。只是，我的工作职责不允许我这样做。” 朗贝尔不耐烦地扬起头。 “是的，是的，我不该发火。而且我也占用了你太多的时间。” 里厄要朗贝尔随时把事情的进展情况告诉他，而不要因为他没帮上忙而对他耿耿于怀。他又说，他相信他们还是有些共同话语的。朗贝尔看起来很困惑。 “是的，”他沉默了一阵之后说，“我也是这么认为的——不管我说过什么，也不管你说过什么。”他顿了顿说，“不过，我还是不能赞同你的看法。” 他把帽沿往下一拉，遮挡住双眼，然后快步走开了。里厄目送他走进塔鲁住的那家旅馆。 过了一会儿，医生轻轻地点了点头，似乎对头脑里闪过的某种念头表示赞同。的确，记者不愿自己的幸福受到阻碍是正确的。但生活在这样一个抽象的世界里，他责备自己又是否正确呢？“抽象”这个词真的能用来描述鼠疫在城里蔓延、死亡人数升至每周五百人时他在自己的医院里度过的这些日子吗？是的，这样的灾祸中有抽象和不现实之处。但是，当抽象观念开始涉及生死问题时，你就得认真对待它了。而且里厄十分清楚：这不是最容易办到的事情。比如说，他负责的那所辅助性医院——现在已有三所这样的医院了——管理起来就不轻松。 他叫人把通往手术室的接待室装修了一下，以作接收病人之用。接待室的地面被挖成了一个浅浅的水池，水里加了甲苯基酸，池子中央有个砖砌的小平台。将病人抬到平台上，迅速地脱去衣服，然后将衣物丢进消毒水里。病人洗过身子，擦干后，穿上医院的粗布睡衣，被送到里厄那里检查，然后被送入病房。这个医院，一个被征用的学校，现在有五百张病床，几乎都住满了。里厄亲自监督患者的接收工作，然后给患者进行注射血清、切除腹股沟肿块，以及核查统计数值等工作，最后回去进行下午的门诊。到了晚上，他才出门去巡诊，直到深夜才回家。前一天晚上，他母亲把他媳妇的电报递给他的时候，他的双手直发抖。 “是在抖，”他说，“但是只要坚持下去，我就不会紧张了，你会看到的。” 他体格健壮，因而至今还并非真的感到疲劳。只是，首先是他的出诊开始让他感到极大的压力。一旦诊断为瘟疫，病人就得马上被运走。于是又得开始讲“抽象”的大道理，与病人家属进行斗争，因为他们知道，要等到病人死了或是痊愈了才能再相见。“可怜可怜吧，医生！”正是洛雷特太太，塔鲁所住旅馆客房女佣的母亲，提出这样的请求。这种请求毫无用处，他当然可怜她。但这有什么用呢？他必须打电话，然后救护车的警笛音很快就会响彻大街。（起初邻居们还常常开窗看看。后来他们就会很快把窗户关上。）接下来又是一幕挣扎、啼哭、恳求的场面——总之，都是些抽象的东西。在那些被高烧搞得神经紧张的病人家里，出现了许多疯狂的场面。但结果总是一样。病人被带走了。然后，里厄也可以走了。开始几天，他只是打过电话之后就接着赶去看别的病人，并不等救护车来。但他刚一走，病人家就关上门，宁愿同鼠疫病人在一起也不愿分离，因为他们非常清楚事情的结果。接下来就是叱责、尖叫、用力敲门、警察干预，然后是出动军队，病人被强行带走。因此，头几周里，里厄只好陪着病人，直到救护车来了才走。后来，当每个医生都有一个志愿者警官陪同出诊时，里厄才能马上离开，赶往下一个患者家。但起初，每天晚上的情况都像他被请去看洛雷特太太的女儿那天晚上一样。他被领进装饰有扇子和假花的小房间里。病人的母亲带着勉强的笑容迎接他。 这章没有结束^.^，请点击下一页继续阅读！ “哦，我希望这不是大家都在谈论着的那种发烧。” 掀开床单和衬衣，医生默默地仔细观察病人大腿和肚子上的红斑，以及肿胀的淋巴结。那母亲看了一眼就发出尖叫，难以自制地痛哭起来。每天晚上，母亲们看到四肢和腹部上致命的症状就会胡思乱想、号啕大哭起来；每天晚上，她们的双手紧紧抓住里厄的胳臂，然后就是些无济于事的话、许诺和哭泣；每天晚上，越来越近的救护车的警笛声总是引起各种徒劳的悲伤的场面。除了会有很多这样的场面一再上演之外，里厄已没有什么其他的盼头。的确，像抽象观念一样，鼠疫是一成不变的；也许只有一样东西在变，那就是里厄自己。那晚他站在象征共和国的雕塑下时就有这种感觉。当他注视着朗贝尔走进那家旅馆的大门时，他只觉得一种无望的冷漠正慢慢地侵入全身。 令人筋疲力尽的几周过去之后，看到夜幕降临后市民们涌上街头毫无目的地闲逛时，里厄知道自己不再需要狠下心来对抗自己的同情心了。当同情心于事无补时，人们就渐渐失去了同情心。而且，在这种心灵渐渐自我关闭起来的感觉中，医生在那段不堪重负的日子里找到了一种慰藉，他唯一的慰藉。他知道，这将有助于他更轻松地完成他的任务，因此，他感到高兴。当他凌晨两点回到家，他面对母亲时脸上茫然的表情令他母亲感到震惊；她为里厄当时唯一能做的减轻压力的做法感到痛心。要与抽象观念作斗争，就得让自己的心硬起来。但怎能期望朗贝尔理解这一点呢？ 抽象观念对朗贝尔来说就是阻碍他获得幸福的东西。实际上，里厄得承认，在某种意义上说，这位记者是对的。但是，他也知道，抽象观念有时比幸福更重要。而那时，也只有在那种情况下，必须要考虑这种抽象观念。这也是朗贝尔将要面临的处境，就像很久之后里厄医生从朗贝尔那里听到的更多关于他自己的叙述中了解到的一样。这样，里厄得以在一个不同的层面继续他的生活，而且，在这里，个人幸福与关于鼠疫的抽象观念之间的沉闷斗争也在展开——这构成了本城居民很长一段时间里的全部生活。 第十章 然而，有些人看到的是抽象，另一些人却看到了事实。伴随着瘟疫的再次肆虐以及帕纳卢神父一次言辞激烈的布道，鼠疫爆发后的第一个月在无望中结束了。这位神父就是在米歇尔老头刚发病那会儿踉跄着走回家时搀扶过他的耶稣会教士。帕纳卢神父因为经常向奥兰地理协会的杂志投稿而成名。这些稿件主要是有关古代碑文问题，在这方面他是个权威。不过他也曾就现代个人主义的话题作过一系列演讲，在这方面他赢得了更多的听众，他们都是非专业人士。在演讲中，他表明了自己是一名坚定的斗士，捍卫着至真至纯的天主教教义，让它既远离现代放荡主义，又远离过去的蒙昧主义。在这些场合，他从不畏惧用一些逆耳忠言来痛斥听众。因此，他在当地享有盛誉。 在鼠疫发生将近一个月的时候，奥兰城教会权威决定拿起最适合自己的武器来与鼠疫作斗争，于是组织了一次祈祷周活动。这种群众表示虔诚的宗教活动以周日的大弥撒结束。这场弥撒是为纪念圣罗克——一位被鼠疫夺去生命的圣人而进行的，而帕纳卢神父则被邀请去进行布道。两周前他就停下了关于圣奥古斯丁和非洲教会的研究工作，这工作为他在所属修道会中赢得了很高的地位。这位天性热情而充满激情的神父全身心地投入到教会安排给他的这项任务当中。在这次布道之前，人们已经对这个话题谈论已久，而且这次布道本身也标志着这一时期中的一件大事。 参加祈祷周活动的人很多。但是，不要以为奥兰市民平时就特别虔诚。比如说，在星期天早晨，海水浴就常常跟去教堂做祈祷较着劲。也不要认为他们是受到巨大的感召而突然改变了心性。这只是因为，首先城封了，港口不准进入了，他们不可能再去洗海水浴；此外，他们处于一种非常特别的心境之中，尽管他们在内心深处根本没有意识到发生在他们身上的问题的严重性，但他们也能感觉到，由于一些很明显的原因，情况确实有点变化。然而，有很多人仍然盼望着这场传染病很快就会过去，他们和他们的家人都会安然无恙。因此，他们觉得还没有义务在生活习惯上作任何改变。对他们而言，鼠疫只是一个不速之客，有一天它一定会不期然地离去，正如它悄然来临一样。他们感到害怕，但远还没有到绝望的地步，还没有到把鼠疫看作他们生活的全部这样的阶段，也还不到忘却昔日生活的时刻。总之，他们在等待情况出现转机。对待宗教——如同对待许多其他问题一样——鼠疫使他们的思想处于一种奇特的状态，既不冷漠，也不热情。也许，用“客观”一词来形容最为恰当。大多数参加祈祷周活动的人一定会附和里厄医生听过的一个常去做礼拜的人所说的话：“不管怎样，这没有任何坏处。”甚至连塔鲁在笔记中记录了中国人在类似情况下用敲鼓的方法来驱赶瘟神之后，又指出，事实上，没有办法说明敲鼓是否比防疫措施更有效。他只是加了这些话：为了解决问题，我们首先需要弄清楚瘟神是否真的存在，不清楚这一点，谈论任何其他的想法都是没有用的。 这章没有结束^.^，请点击下一页继续阅读！ 不管怎样，整个祈祷周期间，教堂里确实总是挤满了信徒。头两三天，许多人还呆在外面，在门廊前花园里的棕榈树和石榴树下，远远地聆听着在邻街不断回响着的此起彼伏的祷告声和乞灵声。可是一旦有人带头，他们就开始走进教堂，胆怯地加入到祈祷当中。而在周日布道那天，大批人群涌入教堂中殿，连台阶上和教堂周围都挤满了人。前一天，天空就已乌云密布，而现在正下着倾盆大雨。站在外面的那些人撑着雨伞。教堂里弥漫着一股浓浓的炉香和湿衣服的味道。这时，帕纳卢神父步入讲道台。 他中等个子，身材健壮。当他靠在讲道台边，用粗大的双手抓住木栏时，人们看到的只是一个巨大的黑色躯干，再往上，红润的面颊上架着一副钢丝边眼镜。他的声音洪亮而富有激情，可以传得很远，而他一开口就以清楚有力的声音对会众说：“我的兄弟们，苦难已经降临到你们身上，我的兄弟们，你们是罪有应得。”连门廊外矗立在雨中的人群都发出一阵骚动。按严格的逻辑来说，神父接下来所说的话，似乎和这个扣人心弦的开场白并不连贯。只有继续听讲道，听众方才明白，帕纳卢神父运用巧妙的演讲技巧，有如当头一棒，道出了他整个讲道的主旨。说完了第一句话，神父马上引用了《出埃及记》中关于埃及发生瘟疫的原文，说：“在历史上第一次出现这种灾难是为了打击天主的敌人。法老违反天意，而瘟疫迫使他屈服。天主降灾，使那些狂妄自大和顽固抗主的人臣服于他的脚下，有史以来一直如此。仔细想想吧，朋友们，跪下吧。” 雨下得越来越大，暴雨敲打着窗户的声音使教堂内显得更加肃静，而神父的话打破了这种沉寂。有几个听道的人，犹豫了片刻后，从他们的座位上滑下，跪倒在地。其他人认为应该效仿，于是从教堂的一端到另一端，全体听道的人一个接一个地都跪了下去。除了偶尔有几声椅子的嘎嘎声，再没有其他声响。这时帕纳卢直起身来，深吸了一口气，用强劲有力的声音继续他的讲道。 “如果瘟疫降临到你们头上，那是因为你们思考的时候到了。正义之人不必惧怕，但恶者则该发抖。因为鼠疫是天主的连枷，人间是天主的脱粒场，天主会毫不留情地摔打庄稼，直到麦粒从麦杆上脱下为止。麦杆总是比麦粒多，受上天召唤的人当中只有极少数人受苦。但这种不幸并非天主所愿。这个世界纵容罪恶已经太久，依靠天主的怜悯与谅解已经太久。人们以为只要忏悔就够了，什么罪过都可以犯。每个人都有恃无恐，到时候，他只要停止罪行，然后忏悔就行了。从现在一直到那一天，最容易做的就是得过且过，仁慈的天主会安排余下的事情。很久以来，天主都是以仁慈的目光俯视着这座城市，但他已不耐烦再等了，他已期待太久，现在他已掉转脸去了。因此，失去了天主的灵光，我们在黑暗中，在浓浓的瘟疫的黑暗中前行。”会众中有人像一匹不耐烦的马似的哼了一声。停顿了一小会儿，神父以更为低沉的声音继续他的讲道。 “在《金色传奇》中，我们读到，在翁伯托国王时期，鼠疫在意大利肆虐，在罗马和帕维亚地区尤为猖獗。情况非常可怕，活着的人几乎不够埋葬死者。当时有一位善神现身，给一个手持巨大猎矛的恶神下令，吩咐他击打房屋。他在一幢房子上击打多少下，这幢房子里就得死多少人。” 这时，帕纳卢朝着教堂入口处伸出两条短短的胳臂，好像是在指着飘摇雨幕后的什么东西似的。 “我的兄弟们，”他大喊道，“现在那致命的狩猎正在进行，正侵袭着我们的街道。看，那位瘟神就在那里，像路西法一样美丽，像魔王一样神气！他正在你们的屋顶上空徘徊，右手握着长矛，摆好了出击的姿势。左手伸出来，指向你们的某幢房子。也许就在此刻，他正指向你们的家门，红色的长矛撞击着壁板，甚至就在此时，瘟疫正走进你们的家中，坐在你们的卧室里等着你们回家。它不慌不忙，全神贯注，正在等待时机，一切就像已被安排好了一样无法逃避。世上没有任何力量，不——记住我的话——一旦它将手伸向你们，哪怕是自吹自擂的人类科学也不能将你们从它手中拯救。结果，你们就像在血染的脱粒场上被痛苦地打下来的麦粒一样，和麦杆一起被扔掉了。” 讲到这里，神父用他出色的口才重新提起那个连枷的象征。他要他的听众们想象一根巨大的长矛在城市上空挥舞，随意地击打一下，然后再鲜血淋漓地举起，将鲜血和痛苦一起撒向地面，“作为来日收获真理的种子”。 讲完这一长段话后，帕纳卢神父停顿了一下。他的头发散乱地披在额前，浑身颤抖着，双手带动着讲道台也抖动了起来。再次说话时，他的声音更加低沉，但带有强烈的谴责的语气。 “是的，认真思考的时候到了。你们天真地以为每周日来朝拜一次天主就够了，其余日子就可以自由自在了。你们认为一些小礼节，一些跪拜动作就足可以抵消你们罪恶的冷漠了。但天主是不会被愚弄的。他热切地想要向你们表达他的爱，而这种短暂的相见不能使他心满意足。他希望见到你们的时间更长，次数更频繁，这是他爱你们的方式，实际上，这是爱的唯一方式。这就是为什么他让灾难降临到你们头上，因为他已厌烦了等待。有史以来，他都是这样对待一切冒犯了他的城市。现在你们正在接受教训，该隐及其子孙、所多马和蛾摩拉的人民、约伯和法老以及所有顽固抗主的人都得到过这样的教训。自从城门将你们和鼠疫关在一起开始，你们像上述那些人一样，已经开始用新的眼光来审视人类和天地万物了。现在，你们终于明白，该是认真思考根本问题的时候了。” 小主，这个章节后面还有哦^.^，请点击下一页继续阅读，后面更精彩！ 一股潮湿的风刮进教堂中殿，蜡烛的火焰摇曳着，闪烁不定。在浓烈的蜡烛味、咳嗽声和喷嚏声中，帕纳卢神父一面以非常巧妙、令人赞赏的方式重新提起他的开场白，一面继续以平静的、几乎不带感情的声音说：“我知道，你们当中有很多人都在揣测我的讲话是何用意。我要把你们引向真理，让你们感到高兴，是的，高兴——尽管我说了刚才那番话。现在不再是用一只友爱的手或是用些友好的劝告就可以让你们走上正确道路的时候了。今天，真理就是命令。一支红色的长矛正坚决地指向那条小道，那条救赎之路。因此，兄弟们，上天的仁慈最终显露无疑，他在一切事物上都安排了善恶两面：愤怒和怜悯，瘟疫和你们的救赎。这场正在残害着你们的鼠疫，也能超度你们，为你们指明道路。” “很久以前，阿比西尼亚的基督徒们把瘟疫看作是一种上天所赐的获得永生的有效方法。那些没有得病的人把自己裹在瘟疫病人用过的床单里以求必死。我承认，这种要求救赎的疯狂做法不值得推荐。这是一种草率的行为——实际上，是一种我们强烈反对的自行其是。没人可以强迫天主的意志或是让指定的时刻快点到来，加速天主早已安排好的、不可更改的命令的做法只会导致走向异端。但我们仍然可以从那些阿比西尼亚教徒的热忱中汲取有益的教训，尽管他们过度热忱了。他们的这种做法有背于我们的开明精神，但让我们瞥见了明亮的永生之光，虽然只是一团弱小而安静的火焰，在人类痛苦的黑暗深渊隐隐散发着光芒。这道光也照亮了那条通向解脱的昏暗之路。它显示了万无一失、能变恶为善的的上天意志。今天，它又一次引领我们通过这条充满恐惧和呻吟的黑暗道路，把我们引向神圣的安宁，那一切生命的本源。朋友们，这就是我要带给你们的巨大安慰，希望你们离开这座天主的圣堂时，带走的不仅仅是愤怒的话语，还有使你们内心感到安慰的福音。” 大家以为布道已经结束了。外面，雨停了，充满水气的阳光给教堂前的广场抹上了一片金黄。街上隐隐传来说话声，还有汽车的嘈杂声，这是苏醒的城市之声。会众们在一片压抑着的骚动声中小心翼翼地收拾他们的东西。 但是，神父又说了几句话。他说，在阐明了鼠疫是天主用来惩罚人类罪恶的手段之后，在他结束发言之际，鉴于事件的悲剧性，他不打算再说什么了，因为那样就太不合时宜了。他希望，而且也相信，大家现在真正看清了自己的状况。但是，在离开讲道台之前，他想告诉人们他在一本关于马赛大鼠疫的老纪事书中读到的一些东西。在这本书中，作者马蒂厄·马雷大发感叹，他说自己已被打入地狱，承受着既无助又无望的煎熬。哦，马蒂厄·马雷是瞎子！帕纳卢神父感到他从来没有像今天这样深切地体会到天主赐予所有人的神圣的帮助和基督教的希望。他唯一的希望是，不管这些黑暗的日子有多可怕，不管痛苦的人们发出怎样的呻吟，我们的市民都会向上天发出虔诚教徒的祈祷，一种爱的祈祷。其余的事情，天主自会作出安排。 第十一章 很难说这次布道是否对我们的市民起到了任何作用。奥顿先生，那位地方治安官，向里厄医生保证，他发现神父的观点“绝对无可辩驳”。但并非每个人都持有如此绝对的观点。对某些人来说，这次布道只是让他们明白了他们是因犯了什么不知名的罪而被判处了一段不确定期限的惩罚这一事实。有好些人设法适应这种监禁，继续过着以前那种平凡的生活，而另一些反抗者则一心想要逃离这座牢笼。 起初，人们还或多或少能从容地忍受同外界隔绝这一事实，就像他们本可以忍受任何仅仅扰乱了他们某些生活习惯的暂时性的麻烦一样。但是，由于他们突然发觉自己正在遭受苍穹之下的某种监禁，开始炎炎夏日里的煎熬，他们模糊地感觉到目前的局势已威胁到自己整个的生活。于是到了晚上，当凉爽的空气使他们的精力得以恢复之时，这种像囚犯一样被监禁的感觉有时会促使他们干出一些鲁莽的事情来。 值得注意的是——不知是否出于巧合——从布道的这个星期日开始，恐惧般的情绪深深地影响着这个城市，足以使人猜想到市民们正是在这个时候开始明白他们的真实处境。从这个角度来看，这个城市的气氛有些变了。但是，实际上，究竟是气氛变了还是心理变了，还是个问题。 布道后没几天，当里厄在去往市郊的路上与格朗谈论着这一变化的时候，他在黑暗中撞上了一个站在路中央左右摇晃、止步不前的男子。正在这时，亮得越来越晚的路灯突然都亮了起来，里厄及同伴身后的一盏灯照亮了这位男子的脸。他紧闭双眼，无声地笑着。大滴大滴的汗水从那张笑得不断抽搐的脸上流淌下来。 “整个一个疯子。”格朗说。 里厄挽住格朗的胳臂，带着他继续往前走，这时他发觉格朗正在剧烈地哆嗦着。 这章没有结束^.^，请点击下一页继续阅读！ 第三部 第十七章 被鼠疫囚禁的人们就这样在一周又一周的抗争中煎熬着。也有一些人，如朗贝尔，依然报有幻想，以为自己仍是自由之人，还有选择的权利。但事实上，到了这个时候，也就是八月中旬的时候，鼠疫可以说是已经吞噬了一切事物和一切人。不再有个人命运了，有的只是集体的命运，即鼠疫和鼠疫中大家的共同感受。这些感受中最强烈的就是流放和分离之感，以及由此引发的恐惧和反抗情绪。因此，笔者认为，在这个时候，在这个炎热和疫情都达到顶峰的时候，很有必要概述并举例说明一下活人的极端行为，死人的埋葬情况，以及情侣们的两地相思之苦。 就是在这个时候，这座疫城刮起了大风，一连刮了好几天。奥兰居民特别怕风，因为这座城市建在高原上，毫无天然屏障，所以大风可以势不可挡地横扫大街小巷。城里已经数月没有下过一滴雨了，到处都蒙上了一层灰色外衣，大风一刮，便纷纷脱落、尘土飞扬。尘土和纸屑四处回旋，打在行人的腿上，大街上也变得越来越空荡荡了。只能看到少数行人低着头，用手帕或手捂着嘴，在街上快步往前走。到了晚上，以前大家想着每一天都有可能是自己的末日，于是成群结队地聚在一起，竭力把日子拖得越长越好，现在却只能看到人们三三两两地往家赶或往喜欢的咖啡馆赶。因此，几天来，一到黄昏——一年里的这个时候黄昏来得更早些——大街上几乎空无一人，只听得见大风刺耳的呼啸声。从那看不见的、波涛汹涌的大海传过来一股盐和海藻的味道。在苍茫的夜色中，这座人迹罕见的城市笼罩在尘埃之中，充斥着海水的苦涩味，大风的呼啸声不绝于耳，就像是座被诅咒的孤岛。 迄今为止，在人口更多、条件更差的城市郊区，死于鼠疫的人数要远远多于市中心。但是，鼠疫骤然间发起了新的一轮进攻，开始侵入了商业区。居民们将疫病的传播归咎于大风，正如旅馆经理所言“大风在散播病菌”。不管是出于何种原因，反正市中心的居民们每晚都能听到救护车叮当叮当地驶过，次数越来越频繁，就像是瘟神在他们窗前拉响了低沉而无情的警报，这时他们意识到已经轮到自己受苦了。 当局想把疫情特别严重的地区隔离开来，除了工作上的绝对需要之外，任何人不得跨出警戒线一步。这些隔离区的居民们当然会认为这些禁令是针对他们的，因此，相比之下，他们倒是羡慕那些住在其他区的居民所享有的自由。而后者一想到还有很多人不如自己自由时，在沮丧之时也能振作起来。“不管怎样，还有比我更糟糕的人”这句话表达出了那段日子里唯一的慰藉。 大约在同一时期，火灾一次又一次地爆发，尤其是在西城门附近的居民区。调查发现，这些火灾是那些结束检疫隔离后回到家里的人造成的。他们因痛失亲人、过度忧虑而精神恍惚、纵火烧屋，以此幻想着自己正在以这种方式来消灭瘟神。这些火灾不断发生，使得整个地区经常处于危险之中，又加上火借风势，真是很难应付。当局试图说服那些好心的纵火犯，让他们相信官方对他们居住的房屋所采取的消毒措施能有效地消除感染的危险，但没有任何效果，于是只好颁布极为严厉的刑罚来惩治这类纵火罪。但震慑住这些不幸之人的，很可能并不是刑罚本身，而是人们的这种普遍的看法：判处监禁就等于是判处死刑，因为本市监狱中的死亡率极高。不得不承认，这样的看法是有理可循的。显而易见，鼠疫发起最猛烈攻击所选择的或是必然的对象似乎就是那些过着集体生活的人：士兵、囚犯、修道士和修女。尽管有些囚犯是单独监禁的，但监狱就像是个集体，证据就是，在本市的监狱中既有囚犯，也有看守人员死于鼠疫。鼠疫眼里没有任何值得尊敬之人，在它专横的法则之下，上至典狱长，下至最卑微的在押犯都被判了刑，而这也许是第一次在监狱里实现了绝对公平。 当局试图推行一种等级制度来矫正这种身份平等现象——他们想给那些在执行任务期间死亡的监狱看守人员颁发勋章——但这种想法终成泡影。由于已经颁布了戒严令，从某个角度来看，可以把这些死去的看守人员看作是现役军人，给他们追授军功章。尽管囚犯们对此毫无异议，但军界却提出强烈抗议，而且相当合乎逻辑地指出，这可能会很遗憾地使公众思想产生混乱。政府接受了这种观点，认为最简单的解决办法就是给死去的看守人员授予“抗疫勋章”。即便如此，由于不可能收回已经错发了的第一批军功章，军队仍然感到不满意。况且，抗疫勋章有它的不足之处，在精神方面所起到的作用不如军功章，因为在鼠疫期间获得这种性质的勋章简直是太容易了。这样一来，大家都不满意。 另一个问题是，监狱管理不能按照修道院的程序，更不能按照军队的程序。城里两家修道院里的修道士们已经全部撤出，暂时住在虔诚的教徒家中。同样，一有机会，士兵们便一小批一小批地搬出营房，住进了学校或公共建筑里。这样，疫病显然迫使市民们在一座孤城里团结在一起，同时又使已经长期存在的团体分崩离析，使其成员回到个体的相对孤立的状态。这也使公众内心感到更加不安起来。 这章没有结束^.^，请点击下一页继续阅读！ 事实上，人们不难想象，这些变化，加上大风，使得某些人的心里也燃起了熊熊大火。城门口频繁发生冲突，而且发动攻击者现在已是全副武装了。双方相互射击，死伤了几人，逃出城去几人。之后城门口加强了守卫，这类冲突便很快平息了下来。但这些冲突仍然足以引发一股暴动思潮，尽管影响范围并不大。那些出于卫生防疫原因而被焚或被封的房屋遭到了抢劫。不过，这些极端行为看起来不像是事先预谋好的。通常是某种偶然的刺激因素导致一些向来行为端正的人作出这些举动，并立刻有人纷纷效仿。所以，有时可以看到这样一幕：某个发狂的家伙在房主的眼皮底下冲进燃起熊熊烈焰的房子里，而痛苦的房主则呆呆地站在房子旁看着燃烧的火苗。看到房主没有反应，许多旁观者也会学着第一个人的样子冲进屋去。不一会儿，阴暗的大街上到处都是奔跑的人们，在行将熄灭的火光的映照下，他们弓着背，整个身子都变得像侏儒般矮小，肩上扛着各种物件和家具，正是这类事件迫使当局宣布实行戒严，并实施与之相关的法规。两名抢劫犯被击毙，但不知这样做是否会对他人产生很大的影响。每天都有很多人死去，处决两个人根本不能引起注意——这简直就是沧海一粟。事实上，这种场面仍在不断出现，而当局对此却表现得视而不见。似乎对民众产生些影响的唯一措施便是宵禁。从十一点开始，奥兰全城一片漆黑，就像一个大坟场。 月夜里，长长的、笔直的街道和肮脏的、灰白色墙面呈现一片无力萧条的景象，在月色下发出微光，到处都看不到树木的影子，四周一片寂静，没有脚步声或犬吠声的打扰。这座静悄悄的城市只是一些巨大的、纹丝不动的立体建筑物的聚合，唯有默不作声的伟人铜像那石质或金属质地的面庞使人悲伤地想起他们曾经的模样。在毫无生气的广场和街道上，这些俗气的神像在阴沉的夜幕下摆出一副霸道的样子；这些不动声色的大怪物似乎象征着我们不可改变的命运，或者至少是这个死气沉沉的城市的最终命运——鼠疫、石块和黑暗已使城里的一切声音都归于沉寂。 但是，黑暗也笼罩着人们的心灵，关于埋葬情况，真相和小道消息都不可能让市民们感到安心。笔者不得不讲述一下葬礼的情况，这里要解释一下理由。他很清楚自己可能因此而受到指责，他这样做是有理由的，那就是，在这段时间里经常举行葬礼，而且在某种程度上说，他和所有的市民一样不得不关注这些埋葬事宜。无论如何，人们都不要认为笔者对此类仪式怀有一种病态的兴趣。正相反，他更感兴趣的是活人的社会，海水浴便是一个具体的例子。但是海滨浴场已经禁止入内，而且随着时间的推移，活着的人们越来越有可能终有一天要与死人为伍。这的确是明摆着的事实。当然，人们可以一直不去面对这讨厌的事实，闭上眼睛不去看它，也不去想它，但事实终究是事实，回避最终无法抵御事实。比如，当你的亲人需要安葬时，你又怎能继续对葬礼事宜置之不理呢？事实上，这里的葬礼最显著的特点就是迅速。一切程序都是被简化的，一切复杂的丧葬仪式都是被禁止的。鼠疫患者死时家人不在身边，而且守尸礼节又被禁止，因此夜间死去的病人得单独搁上一夜，而白天死去的病人则立即安葬。当然，死者家人会得到通知，但多数情况下，由于他们曾经和病人住在一起，现在正在接受检疫隔离，所以根本来不了。不过，如果死者生前没有和他的家人住在一起，他的家人就会受邀在某个固定的时间前来送葬，也就是说，他的家人会在起程前往公墓之时赶来，那时尸体已被擦洗干净并放入棺材了。 我们假定这些程序都在里厄医生负责的辅助医院中进行吧。这家由学校改成的医院的主楼后面有一个出口。过道旁有间大库房，里面停放着许多灵柩。死者家人一来就可以看到走廊上有副灵柩已封了棺。接下来便是最重要的程序：家长在官方出具的表格上签字。然后灵柩被抬上汽车——一辆真正的灵车或是一辆改装过的救护车。送葬者则坐上一辆出租车——那时只有少量出租车还准许经营，于是车辆沿着城市外围的路线风驰电掣一般向公墓驶去。车辆在城门处停了一会儿，由警官在官方通行证上盖上一个戳，没有这个戳就无法获得市民们所谓的“最后的安身之地”。警察让开后，车辆往前开到一块墓地旁停了下来，那里有许多墓穴空着，等着放入灵柩。一位牧师前来迎接送葬者，因为现在不允许在葬礼上举行宗教追思仪式。伴随着祈祷声，有人将灵柩拖出灵车，绑上绳子，拖到墓穴旁，拉去绳子，再重重地将其安放到墓穴底部。牧师一开始洒圣水，第一铲土就落在了棺盖上，土屑四溅。救护车已经开走了，正在喷洒消毒水消毒，而当一铲铲土落地的声音越来越沉闷、灵柩上的土层越堆越高时，死者家人也坐上出租车匆匆离去了。一刻钟之后，他们便回到了家里。 小主，这个章节后面还有哦^.^，请点击下一页继续阅读，后面更精彩！ 这样的整个过程以最快的速度完成，也把危险性降至最低。不可否认，至少在最初阶段，死者家人对这种闪电式的葬礼自然感到有些气愤。但在鼠疫期间，显然无法考虑这类情绪问题。为了效率，一切都得牺牲。一开始，居民的精神因为这种简化程序而受到打击——希望举行一个“得体的葬礼”这种愿望比人们想象的还要普遍——幸好食物问题随着时间的推移变得迫切起来，于是居民将注意力转移到更迫切的需求上来。人们把大量精力都花在填表、寻找日用品和排队上，以至于根本无暇顾及周围的人们怎样死去，以及自己有朝一日将怎样离开人世。这样，日常生活中越来越大的困难本来是种折磨，结果却因祸得福。正如前面所提到的那样，要是鼠疫不再肆虐，一切本当不坏。 但接下来灵柩变得越来越少了，裹尸布和公墓中的穴位也不够用了。对此得采取些措施了，而最实用的一种方法显然就是对尸体进行合葬，必要时，救护车在医院和公墓之间得多跑几趟。有段时间，在里厄工作的医院里，只剩下五个灵柩。全部装满之后，救护车将它们一起运走。到了公墓，灵柩被清空，铁青色的尸体被装在担架上，然后被放置在特设的棚子里等待下葬。与此同时，被清空的灵柩洒过灭菌液后，又被运回医院。这样的操作过程不断地重复着。这套方法运转十分有效，而且得到了省长的赞赏。他甚至对里厄说，相比史书中记载的瘟疫中由黑人拉运尸车而言，这种做法的确有了很大进步。 “是的，”里厄说，“尽管埋葬情况大致相同，但我们对此还做详细的登记。你看，这就是进步。” 尽管这套方法被证实为行之有效，目前所施行的最后一项仪式却有些令人不快，因此省府不得不禁止死者亲友亲临埋葬现场。他们最多只能走到公墓门口，而官方甚至连这都不允许。原因在于，最后一项埋葬仪式已经有了些变化。在公墓的尽头，在一块种了些乳香树的空地上挖好了两个大坑。一个用来埋男尸，另一个则用来埋女尸。从这点来看，当局还是考虑了必要的礼仪的，只是后来迫于形势，这仅存的得体之举也被抛到了一边，即尸体不分男女地统统被抛入葬尸坑。所幸的是，发生这种不成体统的事情之时，鼠疫已接近尾声了。 我们现在要谈的是男女分坑时期的情况，那时当局对此非常重视。在两个葬尸坑的底部，厚厚一层生石灰沸腾着，冒着热气。坑边上，一堆小山似的生石灰不断往上吐着泡泡，一遇到空气便爆开了。当救护车运输完毕，担架就一字排开被抬到坑边。让赤裸的、有点扭曲变形的尸体一具接一具地滑到坑底，大致排整齐，然后洒上一层生石灰，再覆盖上一层土，土层只有几英寸厚，以便给后来者留下空间。第二天，死者的直系亲属被叫来在登记册上签字，这显示了人有别于其他狗之类的动物；人死之后会被登记在册并备案。 所有的这些工作显然需要大量人手，而里厄常常会有人员快不够用了的感觉。一开始有许多挖埋尸坑、抬担架的这类服务人员死于鼠疫，接着又有许多志愿者丧了命。无论预防措施有多严密，迟早都会感染上。不过，话虽这么说，但真正令人惊讶的是，在整个鼠疫期间，干这些事情的人手始终不曾缺过。在疫情达到最高峰之前不久的那段日子是最危急的时期，医生感到焦虑万分是情有可原的。那时，无论是办事人员还是里厄称之为干粗活的人都极缺。但很反常的是，等到全城鼠疫肆虐之时，疫病的流行倒使人员短缺的情况有了好转，因为城里的经济活动遭到了破坏，许多人都失业了。虽然这些失业者中极少有人能胜任管理工作，但是对干粗活的人员的招收工作却变得容易多了。的确，从那时起，贫困的压力大于对死亡的恐惧，尤为重要的原因是，这项工作因要冒风险而报酬丰厚。卫生机构手上一直都有一长串申请工作的人员名单，一有缺额，就立刻通知排在名单最前面的几个人，而这些人只要还健在，就一定会应召前来工作。省长一直都在犹豫着是否要启用那些判了有期或无期徒刑的囚犯来做这项工作，这样一来，就不必采取这种讨厌的做法了。正如他所说，只要有失业人员，我们就等得起。 就这样，直到八月底，死去的市民还都能被运到他们的最后安身之地，可能礼仪上不甚周全，但至少秩序井然，而当局也感觉自己对死者及其亲友尽到了责任。不过，现在我们恐怕还得介绍一下我们采取最后措施前的这一阶段的情况。从八月开始，鼠疫造成的死亡人数不断攀升，已经大大超过了那个小公墓所能容纳的数量。推倒墓地围墙，将死者埋入邻近的土地等权宜之计仍无济于事，还得尽快另想办法。首先采取的措施便是在夜间进行埋葬工作，程序显然简化不少。救护车里堆放的尸体数量越来越多。少数夜行者在宵禁时间开始后还违规（或出于工作原因）逗留在外围地区，他们经常看到那些长长的白色救护车飞驰而过，夜幕笼罩下的大街上不断回荡着沉闷的嘟嘟的车鸣声。尸体被急急忙忙地抛入坑中，刚一到位，一铲铲的生石灰便已盖到了他们脸上，再盖上一层黄土。随着时间的推移，这些尸体便被埋葬在越来越深的坑里，谁也不晓得他们的身份。但是不久后，人们又不得不想出别的法子来拓展地盘。所采取的一项紧急措施便是将那些本已安眠于地下的尸体从墓穴里挖出来，再将这些挖出来的尸骨残骸运往火葬场焚化。不久之后，鼠疫患者的尸体也只得送去焚化了事。这样，城外东郊的旧火葬场又被重新利用了起来。东城门的岗哨因此又往外挪动了些。那时，有位市府职员提出了一个想法，极大地帮助了当局排忧解难，他建议将那些现已停用的以前在沿海公路上行驶的电车重新利用起来。于是电车的机车和拖车内部都进行了改装，一条通往火葬场的公交支线也被开通了，终点站便是火葬场。在夏季季末及整个秋季期间，人们每天都可以看到一长列奇怪的没有装载乘客的电车沿着海滩峭壁上的公路摇摇晃晃地行驶在地平线上。当地的居民很快就明白了这是怎么回事。尽管悬崖栈道上成天都有巡逻队，仍然有三三两两的人设法在路边的岩石间穿梭以掩人耳目，当电车驶过时把鲜花扔进敞开的拖车车厢中去。在炎热的夏日夜晚，这些装载着鲜花和尸体的车辆所发出的叮当声不绝于耳。 这章没有结束^.^，请点击下一页继续阅读！ 开始几天，城市东区上空笼罩着一股奇臭无比的浓烟。所有的医生都认为，这种臭气虽然难闻，但没有一点害处。但是，该区居民却坚信病菌会从天而降，扬言要整体搬迁，于是当局只好特意安装一套设备以使烟雾改道，这才使居民们平静了下来。从此以后，只有在刮大风的日子里，从东边吹来一股淡淡的、令人恶心的味道时，人们才会想起生活已经完全变了样，才会想起鼠疫每晚都在吞噬着市民的生命。 这就是瘟疫所造成的最严重的后果。所幸的是，疫情没有继续恶化下去，否则人们很可能会质疑管理策略、官员能力，甚至火葬场的焚尸能力是否能应付得了当前的形势。里厄知道，当局已经设想过一些极端的解决方式，比如将尸体抛入大海，他的脑海中也浮现过这样的画面：悬崖边的浅滩上歪七竖八地躺着可怕的尸骨残骸。他也清楚，如果死亡率再次上升，效率再高的组织也会束手无策：尸体将堆积如山、当街腐烂，让当局无计可施。在公共广场上，市民们将会看到垂死者怀着一种完全可以理解的仇恨或某种疯狂的渴望的心情死死地抱住活人。 就是这些事实和担忧使得我们的市民深切地感受到流放和分离之感。在这方面，笔者很遗憾自己不能记录下这一时期真正引人注目的事情——一些像老故事中那些激动人心的英雄事迹或难以忘怀的壮举。原因在于灾难是最耸人听闻的，又因为历时长久，巨大的不幸也变得非常单调乏味。在那些经历过这场灾难的人们的记忆里，鼠疫那段可怕的日子并不像是点亮了混乱天际的、无法扑灭的熊熊烈火，贪婪至极，而更像是某种恐怖的东西，迈着缓缓的、周密计划好的步伐，所到之处，一切皆毁。 不，这场真正的鼠疫与鼠疫刚爆发时萦绕在里厄心头的夸张的想象场景没有任何的共同点。鼠疫总体上说是一个狡猾的、持久不衰的对手，它有条不紊、竭尽全力地对市民发动进攻。顺便说一句：为了不歪曲事实，更为了不违背自己的想法，笔者尽力做到客观。他不会为了达到艺术效果而放弃真实，除非为了故事的连贯性才会进行一些艺术加工。正是出于这种考虑，他得承认，尽管最普遍、最深重的痛苦的根源仍是别离——他有责任更加详细地描述鼠疫后期的这种分离之感——不可否认的是，即使是这种痛苦也已不再那么强烈了。难道是我们的市民，甚至是那些深受两地相思之苦的人们，已经渐渐适应了这种没有亲人相伴的生活？这种看法可能不太正确。更确切的说法应该是，他们无论在身体上还是感情上都渐渐憔悴了。鼠疫刚开始时，他们还清晰地回忆得起不在身边的人，并苦苦思念着他们。然而，尽管心上人的音容笑貌仍萦绕心头，尽管与心上人曾经共度的快乐时光（正如他们事后回忆的）仍历历在目，在相隔如此遥远的情况下，他们根本无法想象在他们陷入回忆之时，对方可能正在做些什么。总之，这时候是记忆有余，想象力不足。在鼠疫的第二个阶段里，他们的记忆也模糊了。并不是他们已经遗忘了心上人的面容，而是——其实结果也差不多——失去了心上人的肉体，他们便再也无法在记忆的镜子中看到它了。 就这样，在最初的几周时间里，他们往往还会抱怨说心上人只是个影子，慢慢地他们发现这个影子也模糊了起来，连记忆中微弱的几抹生活的色彩也褪去了。而到了最后，分离的时间久了，他们就再也无法想象他们曾经的缠绵，再也无法理解那种两个人完全粘在一起的生活了。 从这一点来看，他们已经适应了鼠疫这种状况，大家越来越能面对鼠疫中平庸的生活了。人们都不再拥有崇高的情感，大家的情感都是平凡而单调的。“鼠疫也该收场了。”人们这样说，因为身陷灾难之中，人们盼望它早点结束是很自然的，而且事实上人们也是这么想的。但人们说这话时，已经没有了鼠疫初期那种冲动与怨气，人们只是在思想处于混沌状态之时表达了那种依然萦绕心头的清晰的想法。开始几周那种强烈的反感已被一种普遍的沮丧情绪所取代，这种沮丧并非是逆来顺受，尽管这仍然可以说是对现实所作出的一种暂时的、消极的默许。 我们的市民们已安于现状，正如人们所言，他们已经适应了这种状况，因为除此以外，别无他法。他们自然还带着一副悲伤痛苦的样子，但已经感觉不到痛苦的煎熬了。当然，有些人，就像里厄，却认为真正令人沮丧的是习惯于绝望比绝望本身还要更糟糕。在这以前，那些与心上人相隔两地的人们并非是完全不幸的；在他们痛苦的漫漫长夜里一直都透着一道希望的曙光，但现在这道曙光也已消失不见了。他们呆在大街的角落里，咖啡馆中，或是朋友家里，无精打采，心不在焉，露出厌倦的神情，整座城市也因为这些人而看起来就像是一间火车站候车室。那些有工作的人们则和着鼠疫的节拍，默默地坚持着他们的工作。每个人都不骄不躁。那些背井离乡者第一次可以用常人的语言畅所欲言地谈论他们的心上人，他们也能以看待疫情的最新统计数据那样的角度来看待别离。这种变化是很显著的，因为在这以前，他们不会将个人的不幸与全城人共同的不幸混为一谈，但现在他们认为两者是合二为一的。没有回忆，没有希望，他们活着只为了直面现实。事实上，此时此刻就意味着他们生活的全部。不可否认，鼠疫渐渐地不仅剥夺了所有人爱的能力，还有与人为善的能力。这是很自然的，因为爱情需要一些对未来的憧憬，但现在人们所面对的只有现实而已。 不过，我们所说的只是大致的情况。因此，我们必须加上一句：尽管所有的别离者最后都会达到这种境界，但在时间上也有早有晚。而且，即使他们最后变得完全漠然了，霎时的清醒，瞬间的回忆还是会给这些背井离乡之人带来新的、更强烈的痛苦。有时的确会出现这种旧创复发的状况，比如，他们在设想鼠疫结束之后的生活时就会这样。或者，有时他们会突然触景生情，莫名其妙地被一种强烈的妒忌心理所刺痛。另一些人在一周中的某些日子里会重新振奋起来，摆脱那种倦怠情绪——一般是在周日或周六下午，因为以前，当心上人还在身旁时，这段时间他们一贯会去参加某些娱乐活动。傍晚的降临，预示着往事又要在脑海里重现，这种悲伤的情绪便涌上他们的心头，不过有时也不会出现这种情况。宗教信徒进行反省的傍晚时分是囚犯和背井离乡之人最难熬的一段时间，因为他们除了内心的空虚之外别无其他可供反省的内容。这时他们心里感到空荡荡的，不一会儿，他们又重新陷入麻木不仁的境地，重新置身于鼠疫的囹圄之中。 显然，所有这些意味着要放下最关乎个人的私事。在鼠疫初期，令他们魂牵梦绕的尽是些与他人毫不相干、与己戚戚相关的私生活的点点滴滴，于是每个人的生活在那时也许是头一次显示出了那种独特性。而现在，他们开始急众人之所急，想众人之所想，他们心中的爱情甚至也变得抽象起来，不过是种普通的情感而已。他们已经完全听任鼠疫的摆布，甚至有时候他们还渴望鼠疫能让他们陷入长眠，他们不断地想：“要是我患了鼠疫，就这样长睡不起多好啊！”但事实上，他们已经睡着了，这整个时期对他们而言不过是场梦而已。城里的居民都像是梦游者，只是偶尔在深夜里，当他们身上那些表面上已经愈合的伤口突然重新裂开时，他们才会清醒一下。惊醒过来之后，他们有些茫然又好奇地触摸一下伤口，撇一撇嘴，痛苦便又重新涌上心头，眼前突然浮现出心上人那悲伤的面容。一到清晨，他们又得回到正常状态——换句话说，他们又得面对鼠疫。 人们也许会问，这些鼠疫中的别离者到底给人留下什么印象呢？答案很简单，他们没给人留下什么印象。或者也可以说，他们看起来与其他人一样，没什么特别的。他们和城里的其他人一样，有些懒散，又有些孩子气的冲动。他们不再有丝毫的批判精神，而是摆出一副沉着冷静的样子。比如说，你会看到他们当中最聪明的人也会装模作样地和其他人一样看报纸听广播，希望能找到些依据来说明鼠疫很快就会结束。他们在读了某个记者坐在书桌旁疲惫得直打哈欠时随意撰写的报道后，要么看起来对未来报有幻想，要么就显示出过分的恐惧。与此同时，他们不是喝喝啤酒，便是照顾病人，不是无所事事，便是筋疲力尽，不是在办公室里整理归档文件，便是在家中听听唱片，表现得和其他人别无二致。换句话说，他们已经不再挑三拣四了，鼠疫已经消除了一切歧视。没有人会挑剔所购买的衣服和食物的质量问题，从这一点上可见一斑。每件东西都是来者不拒。 最后值得一提的是，那些与心上人两地相隔的人们已不再拥有鼠疫刚刚爆发时他们享有的那种奇怪的特权了。他们的爱情自我主义已经消失，由此得到的好处也因此而化为乌有。至少现在看来，情况非常明了，灾难已成为关乎每一个人的事情。那城门口不断回响着的枪声，那标志着生死节奏的盖印戳所发出的有规律的按压声，那些档案与火苗，惊慌失措与繁文缛节——伴随着这一切的是虽不体面却被登记在册的死亡。在浓浓的毒烟和救护车低沉的鸣笛声中，我们大家和流亡者一样，啃食着发馊的面包，下意识地等待着与亲人的重逢和内心重获安宁的奇迹的出现。毫无疑问，我们的爱情尚且存在，却发挥不了作用。我们心中的爱情已失去了活力，就像犯了罪、判了刑那样的无所作为。爱情已经变成一种毫无目标的忍耐，一种执拗的期盼。从这个角度来看，某些市民的态度与那些在食品店门外排着长队的人们的态度极为相似。同样的煎熬，同样的忍受，既看不到尽头，也看不到希望。无论怎样，如果要对城里这些与亲人分离的人们的心绪有个正确的了解，就必须再次想象一下那沉闷乏味的傍晚，当暮色降临到这座灰尘满地、缺树少阴的小城中时，大街上便挤满了成群的男男女女。这时候，最具特色的是，从沐浴在晚霞中的露台上能听到的声音不再是车辆发出的噪音——这通常是城市里唯一能听到的声音——而是混成一片的低沉的说话声和嘈杂的脚步声。人们聚在一起打发着时间，不绝于耳的脚步声和着鼠疫在闷热的天空中发出的奇怪的呼啸声。于是永不停歇、令人窒息的嗡嗡声逐渐充斥全城，一晚又一晚，悲切而又忠实地体现了一种盲目的坚忍，而它已经取代了我们所有人心中的爱情。 第四部 第十八章 从九月到十月，鼠疫在奥兰疯狂肆虐，整座城市都死气沉沉的。除了“掰着指头过日子”没有别的事可干，成千上万的男男女女就靠这个捱过一周又一周，似乎永无出头之日。薄雾、热潮和阵雨轮番袭击着大街小巷。一群来自南方的欧椋鸟和画眉鸟悄无声息地掠过苍穹，绕城而过，就像帕纳卢神父描述的——瘟神在屋顶上空挥舞着那根古怪的长矛，呼呼作响，吓得它们不敢靠近。十月初，倾盆大雨把街道冲洗得干干净净。而我们始终没有什么重要事情可做，只是无尽的等待而已。 就是在这段时间，里厄和他的朋友们开始感到疲惫不堪。事实上，卫生队的队员们已经再也无法忍受这种劳累了。里厄发现，不仅仅在同事们身上，而且在自己身上都发生着这种变化，大家似乎对周围的一切都出奇地漠不关心。例如，有些人以前十分关注有关鼠疫的所有消息，现在却对此毫无兴趣。朗贝尔临时负责管理一个鼠疫隔离站——此站设在他所住的旅馆里——他对在他那里隔离观察的人数了如指掌，对自己制定的办事程序烂熟于心：一旦出现鼠疫病征，病人需立即转院治疗。他也非常清楚他那个隔离站里用在隔离病人身上的抗鼠疫疫药效的相关数据。但是，他说不出每周有多少人死于鼠疫，甚至不清楚死亡人数到底是上升了还是下降了。而且，无论如何，他仍然期盼有一天自己可以“成功逃跑”。 至于其他人员，由于他们夜以继日地工作，几乎是连轴转，他们既不看报，也不听广播。如果有人告诉他们某种意想不到的疗效，他们会装作很感兴趣的样子，但实际上却是置若罔闻，人们不禁会想起大战时的那些士兵，他们成天只想着完成任务，累得筋疲力尽，甚至对决战或是停战的军号声都不再指望了。 尽管格朗还在继续对鼠疫相关数据进行机械的统计，但他肯定说不出这样做到底有什么意义。他不像里厄、朗贝尔和塔鲁他们那样看上去就精力充沛，他的身体向来不好。而现在，他除了要承担市政府的工作，还要在里厄这里做秘书工作，晚上还要继续自己的写作。人们可以看到，倦意就写在他的脸上，不过他还在继续扛着，因为有那么两三个信念在支撑着他，而其中的一个信念就是，鼠疫一结束，他会彻底休个假，至少一星期，并利用这段时间投入到他那项使人“脱帽致敬”的工作中去。他有时也会多愁善感，每到这时，他就会向里厄倾诉自己对珍妮的思念。他想知道她现在身在何方，她看到报上的消息时是否偶尔会想到他？有一天，里厄用十分平淡的语气同格朗谈起自己的妻子——这令里厄自己都感到惊讶，因为以前他从未与任何人这样谈过。 他不大相信妻子发来的电报——电报中都是些要他安心的话——于是他决定给那家疗养院的主任医师发个电报问问情况。他从回电中得知妻子病情加重，但院方正在尽全力控制她的病情进一步恶化。他一直都把这个消息埋在心底，一定是心理压力太大，他才向格朗谈起这事来。格朗原本先是对医生谈起珍妮，之后又问起里厄太太的情况，在听了里厄的回答后，他说：“你知道，现在这种病的疗效是非常显著的。”里厄对此表示赞同，只是又说他开始感觉到与妻子分开得太久了，而且，他本可以帮助妻子早日康复的。但是，以目前的情况来看，她一定感到非常孤独。说完之后，他突然沉默下来，只是含糊其辞地回答了格朗提出的几个问题。 其他人的状况也大致相同。塔鲁算是更扛得住一些，但他日记中的记录显示出他虽然仍旧喜欢对事物打探个究竟，却不像以往那样兴趣广泛了。事实上，在这段时期，唯一令他感兴趣的显然只有科塔尔一个人。晚上，在里厄家里——因为旅馆被改成了隔离站，他已经住进了医生家——当格朗和医生谈论当天的疫情数据时，他对此并不太关心。他会很快将谈话转到他感兴趣的话题上去，即奥兰的日常生活琐事。 卡斯特尔则显得比其他任何人都更疲惫。有一天，他过来告诉里厄说，抗鼠疫血清已经准备就绪，于是两人决定在奥顿先生的小儿子，一个看起来毫无希望的病人身上进行首次实验。当医生正在宣布最新统计数字时，他突然发现卡斯特尔已经倒在椅子上睡熟了。这位老朋友脸上的异样令里厄感到震惊。以前，卡斯特尔的脸上总是露出一种慈祥而又带些讥讽的微笑，显示出无限的青春活力。现在，他的脸上完全变了样，微微张开的嘴边流着一滴口水，透露出他年事已高，精力不济。看到这一切，里厄感到如鲠在喉。 正是在这样的时候，里厄就会感到自己的疲惫。他的感情也变得有些失控。他一直都压抑着自己的情感，但现在却变得很难受、很脆弱，偶尔感觉自己的情绪像是要一发不可收拾了似的，要完全被自己的感情俘虏了。他唯一能做的便是勒住情感的缰绳，硬下心肠保护自己。他知道这是他继续坚持下去的唯一办法。毕竟，他已经没有什么幻想了，即使还有点儿残余也被疲劳磨灭了。他很清楚，在这个看不到尽头的时期里，他的职责不再是给人治病，而是诊断。发现、观察、描述、登记，然后宣告病人患有不治之症——这就是他目前所发挥的作用。有时候，病人的女眷会拽着他的袖子大哭着说：“医生，你会救他的，对吧？”但是他那时的职责并非挽救生命，他要做的只是下令将病人进行隔离。他在那些人脸上看到的是怎样的一种憎恨呀！“你没有心肝！”有个女眷曾经这样说过他。她错了，他有。正是这颗心二十小时看着他，让他时刻观察着那些本想继续活下去的人们不断死去。正是这颗心使他在每个早晨都能精神焕发。但在目前的状况下，他的心只能让他做到这一步。而这颗心又怎能足以救人性命呢？ 这章没有结束^.^，请点击下一页继续阅读！ 不，在那些繁忙的日子里，他提供给他人的不是救护——只是信息而已。这显然称不上是一个男人真正的职业。然而，说到底，在那人心惶惶、惨遭鼠疫屠戮的人群中，谁还会有机会来做些真正有男子气概的事情呢？事实上，疲劳却使里厄因祸得福。要是他没有这么累，他就会更敏感，也可能会因为那种四处弥漫的死亡气息而极度伤感。但是，一个每天只睡四个小时的人是不会多愁善感的。他很客观地看待事物，可以说，他对待事物的态度过于公正——这种公正令人生厌，毫无变通。而其他人，也就是那些病入膏肓的人们，也都有着和他一样令人沮丧的觉悟。在鼠疫发生前，他被当作是救星而受到欢迎。他给病人开几片药，或是打一针就可以治好病，而病人也会挽着他的胳膊走向病房。这样做尽管有感染的危险，却令人愉悦。现在，截然相反，他去病人家时要带上士兵，必须用枪托砸门，病人的家人才会开门。如果可以的话，他们倒想拖着他，拖着整个人类和他们一起走向死亡。是的，人确实离不开自己的同胞；每当他离开这些不幸的人们时，他都会心生怜悯，而他其实也和这些人一样无助，也同样应该得到他人的怜悯。 不管怎样，在那段似乎看不到尽头的日子里，这就是医生心里的想法，而且这些想法里还夹杂着对他妻子的思念。这也是他那些朋友们的想法，从他们脸上的表情就看得出来。但是，参加抗疫战争的人们感到越来越扛不住了，但由此产生的最危险的后果并非他们对外界事物及他人情感漠不关心，而是他们的个人生活变得松懈懒散起来。他们中间开始有这么一种趋势：任何看起来不是绝对必要的事情，或是他们力所不及的事情，他们都懒得去做。这样一来，这些人就越来越不遵守以前自己制定的卫生规则，经常省去一些本该进行的消毒程序，有时甚至不采取预防传染的措施就赶到患肺鼠疫的病人家里，因为他们都是临时被叫去病人家，有时又离卫生站很远，他们不愿费神返回去注射必要的防疫药物。这是真正的危险；他们全力以赴进行的抗疫斗争使自己更易受到疫病的感染。总之，他们是在碰运气，而并非人人都能走运。 但是，城里却有一人看上去既不疲惫，也不沮丧。事实上，他露出了一副满意的神情。这人就是科塔尔。尽管他与里厄和朗贝尔保持着联系，但关系还是有些疏远，然而，他却乐于发展与塔鲁的关系，只要塔鲁有空，就会去看他。他这样做有两方面的原因：一方面，塔鲁了解他的一切；另一方面，塔鲁总是真诚地接待他，让他感觉很自在。这是塔鲁了不起的地方之一，不管工作有多累，他总是乐于倾听，和蔼可亲。甚至有几个晚上他似乎已经筋疲力尽了，但第二天他又精神焕发。“我跟塔鲁很谈得来，”科塔尔曾经对朗贝尔说，“因为他很通人情。他总是很体谅人。” 也许就是出于这个原因，塔鲁在这个时期的日记内容逐渐集中到了科塔尔身上。很显然，塔鲁试图在日记中如实地或者按照自己的理解全面地描绘科塔尔这个人，并且记录下科塔尔所有的想法和做法。这篇题为“科塔尔及其与鼠疫的关系”的系列记录写了好几页纸，笔者认为有必要在这里简要介绍一下它的内容。 日记中有段话概括了塔鲁对科塔尔的印象：“他是个正在成长起来的人物。他友好亲切，富有幽默感。”科塔尔对事态的发展根本就不感到心烦。有时，他会在塔鲁面前用这类话来表达他真实的想法：“情况还在恶化，对吧？不过，毕竟大家是同舟共济的。” “显然，”塔鲁评论道：“他和其他人一样都面临着死亡的威胁，但这正是关键所在，他与其他人生死与共。其次，我非常确信他并不真的认为自己会面临感染的危险。他显然头脑中有这种思想——这也许从表面上看不出来——一个正在遭受某种重大疾病或被死亡焦虑所折磨的人是不会再受到其他疾病或忧虑困扰的。‘你是否已经注意到，’他曾经问我，‘一个人是不会同时患上两种病的？假设你患有像癌症或是百日痨这样的不治之症——那么，你就不会患上鼠疫或是斑疹伤寒；生理上是绝对不可能的。事实上，情况还不仅仅是这样；难道你听说过一个癌症病人死于车祸这样的事吗？’这种说法，不管它是否正确，却使科塔尔心情愉悦。他最担心的事就是自己被隔离，他宁愿和大家一起被围困，也不愿做个孤独的囚徒。鼠疫一来，警察盘问、侦察、逮捕令等都自然化为乌有了。可以说，现在根本就没有警察的概念。过去的或是现在的罪行都不存在了，罪犯也不存在了——只有被鼠疫‘判了刑’的人在期盼着它任性的恩赐，这些人当中就有警察。” 因此，科塔尔（如果塔鲁的判断可信的话）有充分的理由以一种体贴、宽容而满意的态度去看待周围的市民们所表现出来的惊慌与痛苦，这从科塔尔的话中可见一斑：“尽管说吧，朋友们，但这一切我早就经历过了！” “我对他说过，”塔鲁继续写道，“要使自己不脱离群众，就一定要做到问心无愧，而他却对此大皱眉头。‘如果是这样的话，每个人都得孤立无援了。’过了一会儿，他又补充说：‘你爱怎么说就怎么说，塔鲁，但我得对你说：使人们凝聚在一起的唯一途径就是让他们都患上鼠疫。你还是看看你周围的情况吧。’我当然懂得他的意思，我也清楚目前的生活对他来说一定是非常舒适的。人们对情况变化所作的反应跟他以前一样，他怎么会视而不见呢？人人都试图与众人为伍；人们有时乐于帮助迷路者，有时又大发脾气；人们涌入高级饭店，乐滋滋地呆在那里不愿离去；每天，人们在电影院门口排着长队，把剧院和歌舞厅挤得满满的，像汹涌的潮水一样涌入广场和大街；人们害怕与人接触，但是对人类热情的渴望又促使男男女女相互依偎，耳鬓厮磨。科塔尔显然早已经历过这一切——但有一个例外，那就是他没有找过女人。看看他那副模样吧！我猜想当他想上妓院时，他就努力克制自己，那可能会坏了他的名声，有朝一日会对他自己不利。” “总之，鼠疫使他感到荣幸。鼠疫让一个讨厌孤独却孤独的人成了它的同谋。是的，‘同谋’这个词用在他身上恰如其分，看看他有多享受其中吧！他很高兴看到周围的一切：那些整日神经紧张、惶惶不安的人迷信、敏感、盲目恐惧；他们想要尽力回避鼠疫这个话题，却又不停地谈及鼠疫；他们知道鼠疫的早期症状为头痛，因而稍有头痛就惊慌失措；还有，他们极度紧张与敏感，稍有怠慢就会生气，丢了一粒裤子纽扣也会伤心落泪。”塔鲁常常在晚上和科塔尔一块儿出去，于是他的笔记里有了这样的记叙：他俩如何在黄昏时分一起挤入大街上黑压压的人群之中；他俩如何在昏暗的路灯下摩肩接踵地夹杂在若隐若现的人堆里；他俩如何跟随着人群去寻欢作乐的胜地，有人陪伴的温暖似乎可以摆脱鼠疫的冰冷气息。这就是科塔尔几个月前在公共场所苦苦追寻的豪华奢侈的生活，也是他一直梦寐以求却无法实现的花天酒地的生活——现在全城市民都趋之若骛。尽管价格在疯涨，人们从未像今天这样挥金如土，尽管日用品都供应短缺，人们从未像现在这样将大把的金钱花在奢侈品上。尽管现在失业现象严重，各种娱乐场所却成百倍地增加。有时，塔鲁和科塔尔会跟在某对恋人身后走上一段。以前，恋人们会尽量避人耳目，掩盖彼此的热情；而现在，他们却在人群中紧紧依偎，在大街上逛来逛去，爱得忘乎所以，旁若无人。科塔尔喜滋滋地看着这一切。“太棒了，亲爱的！”他叫道，“加油！”甚至他的声音都变了，大声嚷嚷着。正如塔鲁所写的那样，在这种群体性狂热的气氛中，在这种大把大把扔小费的闹声中，看着眼皮底下恋人们的公开调情，科塔尔正在“成长”起来。 但是，在塔鲁看来，科塔尔的这种态度并没有多少恶意。他所说的“这一切我都经历过”与其说是在显示他的得意，不如说是表明了他的不幸遭遇。“我认为，”塔鲁写道，“他开始由衷地喜欢上了这些身陷囹圄、被困城中的人们。比如，他一有机会就会向人们解释鼠疫并非那么可怕。‘你听听他们在说些什么，’他对我说，‘鼠疫过后，我要做这事，我要做那事。’他们都是在自寻烦恼，而非随遇而安。他们甚至看不到自己从中获得的好处。就说我自己吧，难道我能说“在我被捕后，我要做这做那”吗？被捕只是个开始，而不是结束。但是鼠疫……你想知道我的意思吧？他们太急躁，只因他们不能顺其自然。我这样说并非信口开河。’” “是的，他并非信口开河，”塔鲁继续写道，“他很理解这里的居民生活中的异常状况，尽管他们本能地渴望与人交往，但又由于不信任而彼此疏远，没有办法让自己屈从于这种渴望。因为他们都知道不能轻信自己的邻居，邻居可能会在他们毫无觉察之中，乘他们毫无戒心之机，把鼠疫传染给他们。假如有人像科塔尔那样花上些时间就在人群中，甚至在朋友当中发现了某个告密者人，那么他也可以理解这种心理。他也会同情这些整日经受思想折磨的人们，他们认为鼠疫可能会在他们最没意料到的时候将它那冰冷的手落在他们的肩头，可能正当他们庆幸自己未被传染之时，鼠疫就突然来临了。尽管有这种可能，科塔尔在恐怖的气氛中却感到自由自在。不过，我猜想正是因为他已经历过这一切，他才不会像其他人那样沉浸在忐忑不安的痛苦之中。可以这样说：像我们所有这些还没有丧命于鼠疫的人一样，他也十分清楚，他的自由和他的生命随时都可能毁于一旦。但因为他已亲身体验过生活在恐惧之中的滋味，他认为其他人尝尝这种滋味也很正常。或许也可以这样说：在他看来，像现在这样大家分担恐惧比他以前一人独自忍受恐惧要好受多了。他错就错在这一点上，这也使他比别人更难被人理解。不过，虽然如此，他却因此比别人更值得我们去了解。” 这章没有结束^.^，请点击下一页继续阅读！ 塔鲁在笔记的末尾还讲述了一个故事，它反映了生活在这座疫城里的科塔尔和其他居民身上都存在的一种奇怪心理。这个故事几乎可以再现这个时期极度狂热的气氛，因此笔者认为它很重要。 有一天晚上，科塔尔和塔鲁一起去市歌剧院观看格卢克的歌剧《俄耳甫斯》的演出。塔鲁是应科塔尔的邀请前去剧院的。这个巡回演出剧团是在春天时来到奥兰进行系列演出的。鼠疫爆发后，这个剧团被困在这里艰难度日，于是与歌剧院签定了一个演出协议：除非另有通知，剧团每周表演一次。因此，几个月来，每到周五，歌剧院里便会响起俄耳甫斯旋律优美的哀歌和欧律狄刻微弱无力的恳求。然而，这部歌剧依然很受欢迎，歌剧院也总是场场爆满。坐在票价最高的座位上，科塔尔和塔鲁一低头就可以看到正厅前座部分坐满了奥兰上流社会的人士。看着他们优雅地进场入座时小心的模样真是件有趣的事情。在耀眼的舞台灯光下，当乐师们小心翼翼地出场时，可以清晰地看见身着晚礼服的人们从一排座位走到另一排座位，温文尔雅地向朋友们鞠躬致意。在举止优雅的轻声交谈中，他们又恢复了自信，而他们行走在城里阴暗的街道上时是没有自信的；晚礼服的魅力确实让人忘却了鼠疫。 在整个第一幕中，俄耳甫斯因为痛失爱妻欧律狄刻而动情哀歌，而几个身穿希腊束身外衣的女演员则唱着优美的和声评论着俄耳甫斯的悲惨命运，他们不断交替传唱的正是爱的圣歌。观众席中响起了一些掌声，以示欣赏。只有少数人注意到俄耳甫斯在第二幕的演唱中带有一些不应有的颤音，而当他向冥王动情哭诉以乞求怜悯时，他的声调也有些夸张。他有些动作不稳，但行家们也以为这种失误是表演者巧妙的艺术处理，虽说有些过头，但却展现了他唱词中的感情。 直到第三幕中俄耳甫斯和欧律狄刻唱二重唱时——欧律狄刻和她的爱人诀别之时——歌剧院里这才一片惊讶。这位男演员似乎等的就是观众的这种反应，或者更有可能的是，因为正厅前座传来的嘈杂声认可了他所表达的情感，于是他选择在这个时刻穿着古装，张开双臂，分开双腿，异样地蹒跚着朝台前的脚灯走去，并在道具羊圈的中央倒了下去。这些羊圈总是格格不入，但此刻，在观众们看来，它们显得尤为蹩脚。也就在这个时刻，乐队停止了演奏，起初，观众们起身，开始缓慢而安静地退场，就像刚做完礼拜离开教堂，或者像参加完遗体告别仪式走出殡仪馆。女人们提着裙子、低着头，男人们则挽着女伴，带着她们避开后排的那些翻椅。但是，渐渐地，人们加快了步伐，窃窃私语变成了大声叫喊。最后，人们蜂拥向出口，在关卡处挤作一堆，接着又惊恐地尖叫着涌入大街，乱作一团。 科塔尔和塔鲁只是站在座位前，亲眼目睹了他们当时生活中戏剧性的一幕：这个舞台上四肢外张的演员就是鼠疫的化身，而剧院里那些豪华的小装饰品、遗留在红色丝绒椅上的折扇和花边织物此时已变得毫无意义。 第十九章 在九月初的那段时间里，朗贝尔一直都尽心尽力地在里厄身边工作着。那天他要去男子中学门口再次与冈萨雷斯和那两个年轻人会面，他也只请了几小时的假。正午时分，冈萨雷斯如约前来，与记者正说着话，那两个小伙子笑着朝他俩走了过来。年轻人说他们上次不走运，但愿将来会有好运。总之，这周没轮到他们值班。朗贝尔还需耐心等到下一周，到时他们再试一试。朗贝尔说做这事确实需要“耐心”。冈萨雷斯提议下周一他和朗贝尔再碰个头，到时朗贝尔最好搬到马塞尔和路易斯家里去住。“你和我再见个面。要是我没来的话，你就直接到他们家去。我会把他们家的地址告诉你。”但马塞尔，抑或是路易斯告诉他，最好现在就带这位朋友去他们家，他日后也就一定可以找到他们家了。如果他不过分挑剔的话，那里的食物足够他们四个人吃的。这样，他做事就会轻车熟路了。冈萨雷斯认为这是个好主意，于是他们四人就朝港口走去。 马塞尔和路易斯住在海军船坞的外围，离那个通往悬崖栈道的城门口很近。这是一个西班牙式小屋，有几扇喷涂着亮丽油漆的百叶窗和几间阴暗的空屋子。这两个小伙子的母亲是一位笑容可掬、满脸皱纹的西班牙老大妈，她给大家做了米饭。冈萨雷斯感到很惊讶，因为城里缺米已有些时日了。“我们是在城门口设法弄到大米的。”马塞尔解释说。朗贝尔尽情地吃喝了一顿，而冈萨雷斯还说他真是个“他妈的大好人”。事实上，记者一心只想着下周早些到来。 结果，他还得等上两周，因为为了减少值班班次，每轮值班时间延长至两周。就在这两周期间，朗贝尔不知疲倦地拼命干活，几乎是闭着眼睛从早忙到晚。他很晚才上床睡觉，而且总是一上床便沉睡过去。生活从闲散突然变为忙碌，这种转变使他没了想法，也没了精力。他几乎不提他即将潜逃出城的事。只有一件事值得注意：一周后，他坦白地对医生说，他头一回喝醉了酒。那发生在头天夜里，走出酒吧时，他觉得自己的腹股沟胀得厉害，伸展双臂时腋下也感到疼痛。“我患上鼠疫了！”他想。而他唯一的反应——正如他坦率地向里厄所说的那样，这是种奇怪的反应——就是跑到城市高处的一小块平地上，那里看不到海，但可以看到比较开阔的一片天，他就在那里大声呼喊着他妻子的名字，声音响彻城市上空。一回到家，当他发现自己身上并没有任何感染的征兆时,他为自己之前的那种失控而感到难为情。但里厄却说，受目前形势的影响，人们可能会作出那样的举动，他对此非常理解。“或者说，毕竟，人们很有可能会有这种心理倾向。” “今天上午奥顿先生向我谈起了你，”当朗贝尔向里厄道声晚安想要告辞时，里厄突然这样说，“他问我是否认识你，而我告诉他我们认识。于是他说：‘如果你们是朋友，那你就劝劝他不要和走私者们打交道吧。那一定会引起人们的注意的。’” “什么——意思？” “这意味着你最好赶紧走。” “谢谢。”朗贝尔与医生握手道别。 走到门口，他又突然转过身来。自从爆发鼠疫以来，里厄还是第一次看到朗贝尔露出笑容。 “那你为何不阻止我离开这里呢？你很容易做到这一点的。” 里厄像平常那样从容地摇了摇头。他说，这是朗贝尔自己的事。既然朗贝尔已经选择了幸福，那么，他里厄就没有反对他的理由。里厄感觉自己也无法判断朗贝尔这样做到底是对还是错。 “既然如此，那你为什么还叫我赶紧走呢？” 这下里厄也笑了。 “可能是因为我也想为幸福出点儿力吧。” 第二天，尽管他们大多数时间仍在一起工作，但谁也没有旧话重提。在接下来的那个周日，朗贝尔搬到那幢西班牙小屋去住。那家人给他在客厅里支了张床。由于那对兄弟不回来吃饭，加上他又被告之要尽量少出门，他大多数时间都是独自一人呆在屋里，只是偶尔会和那两位小伙子的母亲聊聊天。她个子纤瘦，身着一袭黑衣，有着一张布满了皱纹的深棕色的脸和一头洁白的头发；她总是忙个不停。她不爱说话，当她看到朗贝尔时，只是朝他亲切地微笑。 为数不多的一次，她开口问他是否担心会把鼠疫传染给他妻子。他回答说可能会有传染的风险，但风险很小，但如果他呆在这里，那他们很有可能再也无法相见了。 老大妈微笑着。“她可爱吗？”“很可爱。” “漂亮吗？” “我觉得漂亮。” “啊，”她点点头说，“就是出于这原因呀。” 朗贝尔想了想。这确实是个原因，但不可能只是出于这一个原因。 这位老大妈每天上午都要去做弥撒。她问朗贝尔：“难道你不信天主吗？” 朗贝尔承认他不信天主，于是她又说“就是出于这个原因”。“是的，”她接着说，“你是对的。你应该回到她的身边。要不然——你还有什么指望呢？” 大多数时间，朗贝尔都是在屋子里转来转去，或者茫然地望着粉刷了的墙壁，或者无聊地摸摸墙上的扇子，它们是墙上唯一的装饰，又或者数数桌布边缘垂着的羊毛小球。晚上，小伙子们回来了；他俩话不多，只是说时机还不成熟。晚饭后，马塞尔弹着吉他，大家喝着茴香酒。朗贝尔看起来心事重重。 周三那天，马塞尔宣布说：“就在明天午夜行动。请准时做好准备。”他解释说，与他们一起值班的另外两个人中有一人患了鼠疫，而与这个患者同住一屋的另一人正在接受隔离观察。因此，在两三天内，只有马塞尔和路易斯两人值班。他们会在当晚安排好最后的细节问题，而朗贝尔可以放心，他们会帮忙帮到底的。朗贝尔对他们表示感谢。 “高兴吗？”老大妈问。 他嘴里说是，但心里却想着别的事。 第二天，气温很高，天气闷热潮湿，一层热气遮住了太阳。死亡人数又有所上升。但这位西班牙老大妈仍然很镇静。“世上的罪恶太多，”她说，“所以你又能指望什么呢？” 同马塞尔和路易斯一样，朗贝尔光着膀子。但是，即使这样，他还是汗流浃背。在百叶窗紧闭、光线昏暗的屋子里，他们的上身就像是精心打磨过的红木一般。朗贝尔就像一只困兽似的在屋子里一声不吭地转来转去。下午四点时，他突然说他要出去。 “要记住，”马塞尔说，“午夜准时行动。一切都已安排妥当。” 朗贝尔去了医生家里。里厄的母亲告诉他，可以在城北的医院里找到医生。与以往一样，医院门口总有一群人转来转去。“走，到那边去！”一个长着金鱼眼的警官每隔几分钟就大声嚷嚷一次。人群在不断走动，但总是围成一个圈。“聚集在这儿是没有用的。”这位警官的上衣已经被汗水湿透了。人们知道这样做“没用”，但他们不顾炎热，还是继续呆在那里。朗贝尔向警官出示了他的通行证，警官就让他去塔鲁的办公室。 办公室的门朝院子开着。他与刚从办公室出来的帕纳卢神父擦肩而过。塔鲁坐在一张黑色的木桌旁，挽着衣服袖子，正用手帕擦着臂弯里的汗珠。这间办公室，一间白色小屋，弥漫着药品和湿布的味道。 “你还在这儿？”塔鲁问。 “对。我想和里厄聊一聊。” “他在病房里。喂！要是你自己能解决问题的话，你可以不去找他吗？” “为什么？” “他太忙了。我要尽量减轻他的工作。” 朗贝尔仔细地看了看塔鲁。他变瘦了，两眼无光，脸上写满了倦意，宽宽的肩膀也塌了下来。这时响起了敲门声。一个戴着白口罩的男护士走了进来。他把一小摞病历卡放在塔鲁的办公桌上，隔着口罩嘟噜着说了声“六个”，接着便走了出去。塔鲁看看记者，接着又给他展示了那些摊成扇形的病历卡。 小主，这个章节后面还有哦^.^，请点击下一页继续阅读，后面更精彩！ “整齐的小卡片，对吧？唉，它们却代表着死亡。昨晚又有人死去了。”他皱着眉头，把病历卡收了起来。“留给我们唯一的事情便是结账啦！” 塔鲁收拾好桌上的东西，站了起来。 “我想，你马上就要动身了吧？” “今晚，午夜时分。” 塔鲁说，他很高兴听到这个消息，并要朗贝尔多加保重。 “你说的是——真心话吗？” 塔鲁耸了耸肩膀。 “我这把年纪的人说的都是真心话。撒谎太累了。” “对不起，塔鲁，”记者说，“我很想见见医生。” “我知道。他比我更通人情。好吧，请跟我来。” “不是这样的。”朗贝尔结巴着说，话音突然打住了。 塔鲁盯着朗贝尔，接着，出人意料地，他的脸上露出了一丝笑容。 他们沿着一条小走廊往前走，走廊两边的墙壁上涂着浅绿色的墙漆，反射出蓝绿色的光，就像在水族馆一样。他们就要走到走廊尽头那两扇玻璃门前时，可以隐约看见门后有人走动，而塔鲁把朗贝尔带进了一个四周摆满了壁橱的小房间。塔鲁打开一个壁橱，从消毒器里取了两只纱布口罩，递给了朗贝尔一只，并叫他戴上。 记者问这样做是否真的有用。塔鲁说这样做不起作用，但可以让别人放心。 他们将玻璃门推开。映入眼帘的是间很大的屋子，尽管天气炎热，所有的窗户都关着。天花板上的几个吊扇嗡嗡作响，搅动着长长的两排灰色病床上空那混浊而又炎热的空气。屋里呻吟声或尖叫声此起彼伏，汇成了单调的好似哀乐的副歌。从装有木栅栏的高高的窗口泻进来一股耀眼的光线，几个穿着白大褂的男子在病床间慢慢地走动着。病房里的酷热使朗贝尔感到很难受，他几乎没有认出那个弯腰站在一个不断呻吟着的病人身边的人就是里厄。医生正在切开病人的腹股沟，而病床两边各有一名护士帮着把病人的两腿分开。不久后，里厄直起身子，把手术器械放进了助手递过来的一个托盘里，呆在原地站了一会儿，低头凝视着这个正在接受包扎的病人。 “有消息吗？”塔鲁走到医生身旁时医生问他。 “帕纳卢准备接替朗贝尔在隔离观察站的工作。他已经做了许多有用的工作。朗贝尔走后剩下的工作就只差重组第三分队而已。” 里厄点了点头。 “卡斯特尔已经准备好了第一批血清，”塔鲁接着说，“他赞成马上投入试用。” “太棒了，”里厄说，“这是个好消息。” “还有，朗贝尔来了。” 里厄四处张望了一下。当他看到记者时，他露在口罩上面的那双眼睛眯了起来。 “你为什么过来？”他问，“你不是应该在别的地方吗？” 塔鲁解释说，朗贝尔已定好当天午夜动身，对此朗贝尔加了一句：“不管怎样，想是这么想的。” 每当他们中间有人透着口罩说话时，口罩外面的纱布就会鼓起来，而罩着嘴唇的那块地方也变得湿润起来。这样的谈话让人有种不真实的感觉，这就像是雕像间的谈话。 “我想同你聊一聊。”朗贝尔说。 “好的。我就来。请到塔鲁的办公室等我。” 过了一会儿，朗贝尔和里厄坐在了里厄汽车的后座上。塔鲁握着方向盘，发动汽车时四下看了看。 “快没油了，”他说，“明天我们就要艰难步行了。” “医生，”朗贝尔说，“我不走了。我想留下来跟你们干。” 塔鲁没作任何回应，他继续开车。里厄似乎还没有摆脱疲劳。 “那她怎么办呢？”他的声音低得几乎听不到。 朗贝尔说，他已经仔细考虑过了，他的想法并没有改变，但如果离开这里，他会为自己感到羞耻，而这又会影响他和他所爱的那个女人之间的关系。 里厄打起精神，说那完全是胡说八道，选择幸福并没有什么可耻的。 “当然，”朗贝尔回答说，“但如果只想着自己的幸福，那可能就有些可耻了。” 这时，一直没有吭声的塔鲁头也不回地说，如果朗贝尔想要分担别人的不幸，那他就没有时间去顾及自己的幸福。因此他得作出选择。 “不是这样养的，”朗贝尔反驳道，“我一直觉得自己是个外乡人，我与你们这些人毫无关系。但由于我的亲眼所见，我明白自己也是这里的一分子，不管我愿意还是不愿意。这是大家的事情。”看到没有一人回答，朗贝尔好像有些生气了。“你们和我一样都很清楚这一点，该死的！否则你们在你们的医院里忙什么？你们明确地作出了选择，放弃了幸福吗？” 里厄和塔鲁还是一言不发，接下来大家都沉默不语，直到汽车驶近医生家。朗贝尔重又提起他问的最后那个问题，语气却更重了。 就在这时，里厄朝他转过身去，费力地从靠垫上直起了身子。 “请原谅我，朗贝尔，只是——唉，你的问题我真不知道怎么回答。不过，只要你愿意，就留下来跟着我们干吧。”车子一个急转弯打断了他的话。接着，他凝视着前方说：“世界上没有什么东西值得人们为之背弃自己的所爱。但我就是这样做的，尽管我也不清楚这是为什么。”他又把身子倒在了靠垫上。 这章没有结束^.^，请点击下一页继续阅读！ “这就是现实，”他疲惫地说，“我们对此无能为力。所以，就让我们面对现实，得出结论吧。” “什么结论？” “啊，”里厄说，“人们不可能在医治病人的同时就知道结果。因此，还是让我们尽快给人治病吧。这才是当务之急。” 午夜时，塔鲁和里厄正在向朗贝尔解释他将要负责监管的那个区的地图。塔鲁瞥了一眼自己的手表。一抬头，他和朗贝尔两人的目光碰到了一起。 “你已经告诉他们了吗？”他问。 记者将目光移开。 “在我来这之前，”他费力地说，“我已经叫人给他们送去了一张便条。” 第二十章 十月底，卡斯特尔研制的抗鼠疫血清首次投入试用。老实说，这是里厄最后的办法了。如果试验失败，医生就确信整座城市将会任由瘟疫摆布；这场鼠疫或者继续肆虐，时间不可预知，又或者可能突然间自行消失。 在卡斯特尔前去拜访里厄的前一天，奥顿先生的儿子病倒了，而全家人都不得不接受隔离观察。因此，这位刚结束隔离的母亲又再一次陷入孤独之中。这位地方治安官遵从官方的规定，一发现他的小儿子身上出现了病征，就立即派人去请里厄医生。里厄进屋时，这对父母正站在儿子的床边。男孩正处于极度衰竭的阶段，在医生给他作检查时，他也没有发出一点儿声音。里厄一抬头就看到治安官正注视着他，还有他身后那位母亲苍白的脸。她用手帕捂着嘴，睁着两只大眼睛注视着医生的一举一动。 “他患了鼠疫，对吧？”治安官用平淡的声调问道。 “对。”里厄低头又看了看孩子。 这位母亲的眼睛睁得更大了，但她还是一言不发。奥顿先生也沉默了一会儿，接着才更小声地说：“嗯，医生，我们应该按要求行事。” 里厄不去看奥顿太太，她这时还在用手帕捂着嘴。 “能否借用一下你的电话？”他有点局促不安地说，“不用很长时间。” 治安官说他这就带医生去打电话。但在临走前，医生转向奥顿太太。 “我确实感到很遗憾，但恐怕你还得作些准备。你知道该怎样做。” 奥顿太太似乎有些惊慌失措。她盯着地板。 “我知道，”她接着慢慢地点了点头，低声说，“我会马上准备好的。” 走之前，里厄突然问起奥顿夫妇是否需要他帮忙。这位母亲默默地看着他。而此时治安官却将目光移开。 “不需要，”他说，费劲地吞了一口唾液，“但是——请救救我的儿子。” 隔离在鼠疫初期只是一种形式，但现在里厄和朗贝尔已经重新非常严格地组织起了隔离。 特别是他们坚决要求病人的家人都要分开隔离。假如有一个家庭成员不知不觉地染上了鼠疫，就不能让传染的风险进一步增加。里厄向治安官解释了这一点，治安官也认同了这种做法。然而，治安官与他妻子相互之间的深情一瞥却使里厄意识到，这对夫妻突然面临这种分离时是多么难舍难分。奥顿太太和她的小女儿可以住在朗贝尔负责的隔离医院里。但是，对于这位治安官，他只能住进当局在市体育场里用公路局提供的帐篷搭建起来的隔离营里，别无他处。当里厄为这种简陋的住宿条件而感到抱歉时，奥顿先生却回答说，规定对所有人都是一视同仁的，因此大家都应该遵守。男孩被送到辅助医院，住进了一间摆放了十张床的病房，那里以前是间教室。大约二十个小时后，里厄确信男孩的病没有指望了。感染在男孩的体内逐步扩散，他的身体已经无力反抗了。他那瘦弱的四肢关节处满是淋巴腺肿块，虽然很小，还刚刚形成，却非常疼痛。这病显然是无法医治了。 在这种情况下，里厄毫不犹豫地决定在男孩身上试用卡斯特尔研制的血清。当天晚上晚饭后，它们实施了接种，在这个漫长的过程中男孩没有丝毫反应。第二天黎明，大家围拢到病床前，观察这被寄予厚望的试验性接种的效果。孩子脱离了完全不省人事的状态，正在床上翻来覆去地抽搐着。从清晨四点钟开始，卡斯特尔医生和塔鲁一直都在观察、记录着每个阶段病情的起色。在床头，塔鲁健硕的身体微微弯着，而在床尾，卡斯特尔坐在那儿，似乎非常平静地阅读着一本皮质封面的书籍，里厄则站在他身旁。天越来越亮了，其他人也一个接一个地来到这间曾是教室的病房里。最先到的是帕纳卢，他在床的另一头面对着塔鲁靠墙站着。他的脸上流露出悲伤与长期疲惫的神情，几个星期来他一直忙个不停，从没休息过。他那有点突出的前额上布满了深深的皱纹。接着格朗也来了。这时已是七点，他气喘吁吁地走来，向大家表示道歉；他只能呆一会儿，但想知道是否已经观察到任何明确的疗效。里厄没有吭声，用手指了指孩子。孩子闭着眼睛，咬紧牙关，痛苦不堪地僵着身子，他的脑袋则在长枕上不停地来回转动着。房间另一头的墙上挂着一块黑板，当光线足以照亮黑板上被抹去了一半的方程式的字迹时，朗贝尔进来了。他来到孩子邻床的床尾，从口袋里掏出一包香烟来。但他瞥了一眼孩子的脸之后，又把烟放回到口袋里。 小主，这个章节后面还有哦^.^，请点击下一页继续阅读，后面更精彩！ 卡斯特尔坐在椅子上，从眼镜的上方看了看里厄。 “有他父亲的消息吗？” “没有，”里厄说，“他住在隔离营里。” 里厄双手抓住床架横杆，目不转睛地看着这个饱受折磨的小家伙。孩子的身子突然绷得紧紧的，弓到腰部时又似乎有点松弛了下来，接着四肢慢慢地展开成x形。那盖着军用毛毯的赤裸的小身体散发出一股受潮羊毛和汗臭的气味。男孩又咬紧了牙关。渐渐地他才松弛了下来，四肢也向床中央并拢了起来，但他依然紧闭双眼，一声不吭，而呼吸似乎变得急促起来。里厄看了看塔鲁，而塔鲁却很快低下了他的目光。 他们看过孩子们死去——数月来，鼠疫已不再选择特定的侵害对象了——但他们还从未像今天这样，从黎明开始就一刻不停地看着孩子遭受折磨。不用说，对这些无辜的孩子所遭受的痛苦折磨，他们似乎一直都认为——这事可恶之极。但在这以前，可以说，他们只是抽象地觉得这很可恶，他们从未像今天这样长时间地看着一个无辜的孩子垂死挣扎。 就在这时，男孩又突然抽搐起来，他的肚子似乎正被什么东西啃咬着，嘴里发出一声长长的尖厉的号叫。好一阵子，他都奇怪地弓着身子，不断地痉挛着，他那脆弱的身子似乎被鼠疫的狂风刮弯了腰，又被卷土重来的一阵高烧击裂开来。狂风一过，一切暂时平静了下来，他也稍微放松了些。高烧似乎已经退去，他就像被抛弃在潮湿的瘟疫的海滩上，喘着气，无力地躺在那里，看起来就像死了一般。当高烧第三次向他袭来，使他微微坐起些身子时，他似乎在高烧的威逼之下弓着身子缩到床沿，四肢不停地颤抖着。他的头疯狂地摇来摇去，过了一会儿，他突然把毯子给掀掉了。大颗大颗的眼泪从红肿的眼皮底下涌了出来，又顺着铅灰色的凹陷的脸颊流了下去。这阵发作过后，这个完全筋疲力尽的孩子伸着瘦骨嶙峋的两条腿和两天内就瘦得皮包骨头的两只胳膊，平躺在这张乱糟糟的床上，摆出一副怪异的钉死于十字架的造型。 塔鲁俯下身去，用他的大手轻轻地拭去小脸蛋上的眼泪与汗水。卡斯特尔刚把他的书合上，这会儿正凝视着孩子。他刚一开口，就因为嗓音太粗而不得不清了清嗓子才继续往下说。 “里厄，今天早晨孩子的病情没有任何缓解，是吗？” 里厄摇了摇头，但他接着又说，这孩子的忍耐力比想象的要强。靠墙站着的帕纳卢低声说：“这样一来，假如孩子终究会死去的话，他受苦的时间反倒更长。”病房里的光线更亮了。其他九张床上的病人在摇晃着、呻吟着，但似乎都在刻意压低着自己的声音。只有一位住在病房尽头的病人在尖叫着，每隔一段时间就发出些叫喊声，似乎更像是惊叫而不像痛苦的哀号。的确，似乎病人也已不像当初那样极度恐惧了，现在他们对这种疾病抱着一种悲观顺从的态度。只有这孩子还在继续拼尽全力与之抗衡。里厄时而不时地为孩子号号脉——这样做并非有什么用处，更多的是为了摆脱自己这种无望的情绪——当他闭上自己的双眼时，似乎感觉到孩子的躁动使自己也热血沸腾起来。那个时候，他觉得自己与这个饱受折磨的孩子已融为一体，因此试图用尽自己所剩的全部力量去扶持这个孩子。但是，他们两人这种心跳同步的状态仅仅维持了几分钟就不协调了，这孩子躲开了他，他再次感到无能为力。随后，他松开孩子那纤细的手腕，回到原地站着。映在病房白色墙面上的阳光正从粉红色变成了黄色。新的一天里的第一股热浪正透过窗户向屋内袭来。格朗转身离开时说他还会回来，但大家几乎没有听见。大家都在等待着。孩子依然双眼紧闭，但似乎变得平静了些。他那爪子似的双手无力地垂放在床的两侧。然后，他抬起双手，去抓盖在他膝盖上的毯子，又突然蜷起双腿，直到大腿抵至腹部才停止不动。他第一次睁开了双眼，凝视着突然站到他跟前来的里厄。那张小脸，好似一张灰色的粘土面具，绷得紧紧的，嘴巴慢慢张开，发出了一声长长的尖叫，这叫声几乎没有因呼吸而间断，于是整个病房充斥着一种强烈的、愤怒的抗议声。这不像是一个孩子发出的声音，而像是那里所有病人发出的集体抗议声。 里厄咬紧牙关，塔鲁则掉过头去。朗贝尔走过去站到了卡斯特尔的身旁，而卡斯特尔也合上了摊开在他膝盖上的那本书。帕纳卢低头看着孩子那张小嘴，孩子的嘴里满是鼠疫产生的污秽物。孩子还不断地发出那种愤怒的号叫声；这声音响彻了人类的数个世纪。帕纳卢跪倒在地，在那不可名状、连续不断的哀号声中，在场的所有人自然而然地听到他用沙哑却很清晰的声音说： “主啊，救救这孩子吧！” 但孩子仍在不停地哀号着，而其他病人也开始骚动起来。住在病房尽头的那位每隔一段时间就叫喊一声的病人现在加快了叫喊的节奏，那些断断续续的喊叫现在变成了一声长号，而其他人的呻吟声也变得越来越大，一阵呜咽在病房里泛滥，淹没了帕纳卢的祷告声，而里厄依然紧紧抓住床架横杆，双眼紧闭，因疲劳和憎恶而感到头晕目眩。 当里厄睁开双眼时，发现塔鲁在他身旁。 “我必须走了，”里厄说，“我再也听不下去了。” 但就在这时，其他病人突然安静了下来。医生这才发现孩子的哀号声越来越弱，现在已经一声不吭了。他周围的病人又开始呻吟起来，但声音更小了，就像是从远方传来的刚刚结束的这场斗争的回声。这场斗争已经结束了。卡斯特尔已走到病床的另一头，他说一切都结束了。孩子依然张着嘴，却默不作声，他躺在乱糟糟的毯子中间，小小的身子缩成一团，脸颊上还留着湿漉漉的泪痕。 帕纳卢走到孩子的病床边，做了个祝福的手势。接着他拿起他的长袍，沿着病床间的过道走了出去。 “你又得一切从头来过吗？”塔鲁问卡斯特尔。 老医生勉强微笑着慢慢地点了点头。 “也许吧。不管怎样，孩子还是坚持了很长一段时间。” 里厄已经在往病房外走了，他走得那么快，表情那么奇怪，于是，当他走到门口正要从帕纳卢身边走过去时，神父伸手拉住了他。 “等等，医生。”帕纳卢说。 里厄猛地转过身来对着神父。 “啊！无论如何，这孩子是无辜的，你我都清楚这一点！” 里厄把帕纳卢甩在身后，继续大步向前走，穿过了学校的操场。他坐在几棵褪了色又发育不良的树下的一条木长凳上，将正要流进眼睛里的汗水擦去。他想大骂几句——任何语言，只要能解开被钢铁捆住了的心灵的束缚。热浪透过无花果树的树枝间隙滚滚袭来。一层白色的雾气很快遮住了早晨那蔚蓝的天空，空气也变得更加闷热了。里厄疲惫不堪地靠坐在长凳上。他抬头凝视着参差不齐的树枝和微微发亮的天空，呼吸慢慢地顺畅起来，疲劳也渐渐地消失了。 他听到身后有人说：“刚才你说话时为什么发火？我们所看到的情景，你受不了，我也受不了。” 里厄扭过头去看着帕纳卢。 “我知道。对不起。但疲劳就是一种疯狂。有时候，我唯一的感觉就是觉得自己要发疯了。” “我很理解，”帕纳卢低声说，“这事真是令人厌恶，因为它超出了我们人类所能理解的极限。但也许我们应该去爱那些我们不能理解的东西。” 里厄缓缓地站起身来。他盯着帕纳卢，这目光中凝聚了所有的力量和热情来抵御他的疲倦。接着，他又摇了摇头。 “不，神父。我对爱有另一种完全不同的理解。到死我也不会去爱令孩子们深受折磨的这一切。” 神父的脸上掠过一丝忧虑。“啊，医生，”他悲伤地说，“我只知道什么叫‘上帝的恩典’。” 里厄筋疲力尽地坐回到长凳上。疲劳的感觉又回来了，但在极度的疲倦中，他更为温和地对神父说： “我对此不能理解，这我清楚。但我不想与你谈论这事。我们正在为共同的事业而并肩工作着——这超越了渎神和敬神的界限。而这才是唯一重要的事。” 帕纳卢在里厄身边坐了下来。他显然深受感动。 “对，对，”他说，“你也是在为了拯救人类而工作着。” 里厄试着微微一笑。 “‘拯救’这个词对我来说太大了。我的目标没这么高。我关心的是人的健康，对我而言，人的健康是最重要的。” 帕纳卢似乎犹豫了片刻。“医生——”他刚一开口就不再往下说了。汗水也顺着他的脸颊流了下来。 他喃喃着说了声“再见”就站了起来。他的眼眶湿润了。他转身要走时，若有所思的里厄突然站了起来，朝他走近了一步。 “再次请你原谅。我发誓以后不再这样发火了。“ 帕纳卢伸出他的手，遗憾地说： “不过——我没有说服你！” “这有什么关系？你知道，我所憎恨的是死亡和疾病。不管你愿不愿意，我们都在一起面对它们并与之斗争着。”里厄依然握着帕纳卢的手。但他并没有正视神父，只是说：“你看，现在连天主也不能将我们分开了。” 第二十一章 自从帕纳卢与里厄并肩工作以来，他整天都呆在医院里或是到疫区去。他选择与同事们一起投入到他自认为是义不容辞的工作——第一线的抢救工作中去。从那时起，他时常与死神擦肩而过。尽管从理论上说，接种了疫苗就有了免疫力，但他很清楚，死神随时都可能夺去他的生命，而且他也想过这一切。表面看来他一直都很镇静。但从他亲眼看到一个孩子死去的那天起，他似乎有了些变化。他的脸上呈现出思想日益紧张的迹象。有一天，他微笑着对里厄说，他正在写一篇小论文，题目为《一个神父可以请医生看病吗？》。里厄认为神父想要阐述的东西比他表面上提出的这个问题要更严肃。当医生说他很想拜读一下这篇文章时，帕纳卢告诉里厄，不久后他将在男教徒弥撒仪式上作一次布道，那时他至少可以阐述自己对于这个问题的一些看法。 “医生，我希望你也能来。你会对这个话题感兴趣的。” 帕纳卢神父作第二次布道的那天，狂风肆虐。说实话，这次的会众比第一次布道时要少，在一定程度上是因为这种活动对这里的市民来说已经没有什么新奇感了。的确，鉴于他们所面对的异乎寻常的状况，“新奇”这个词已经没有任何意义了。此外，大多数人认为他们并没有完全放弃宗教礼仪，或者说，他们并没有一边参加宗教仪式，一边过着极不道德的生活，他们不过是用一些多少有些过分的迷信活动代替了平时的宗教活动。因此，他们宁愿佩带用以预防疾病的圣洛克的护身符，也不去参加弥撒。 这章没有结束^.^，请点击下一页继续阅读！ 第五部 第二十五章 尽管疫情突然减弱令市民们既感到意外又感到兴奋，但他们也不敢高兴得过早。尽管他们越来越希望能彻底摆脱鼠疫的折磨，但几个月以来的可怕遭遇已经让他们学会了谨慎，也让他们越来越不指望鼠疫能马上结束。尽管如此，大家仍然在谈论疫情的这一新情况，内心也开始产生了一种虽未明说却仍诚挚的渴望。其他一切都不重要；虽然每天还有人死去，但更重要的是这个难以置信的事实：每周的死亡总数呈下降趋势。有迹象表明，市民们在暗中期待着能重新回到美好的健康时代，因为尽管他们没有公开表明自己的希望，但现在都开始谈论——当然，说话时刻意带着一种无所谓的口气——鼠疫结束后要怎样去安排他们的新生活。 大家一致认为，恢复往日舒适的生活环境不是一朝一夕的事情；破坏起来容易，重建起来难。但是，人们认为食物供应一定会稍有改善，这将缓解目前每个家庭最为操心的问题。但事实上，这些小小的愿望里却蕴藏着一些荒诞的奢望，而每每有人意识到这一点，他们就会急忙补充说，无论人们有多乐观，都不能指望鼠疫会一夜之间就结束了。 果然，鼠疫没有“一夜之间”就结束了，但疫情减缓的速度还是比人们合理预想的要快些。一月份的第一个星期出现了罕见的持续寒冷天气，冷空气似乎凝结在城市上空。但天空却呈现出从未有过的蔚蓝，连日来，这座城市沐浴在清冷却灿烂的阳光之中，而鼠疫在这不再结霜的空气里也失去了威力，一连三周公布的死亡人数都大大减少了。因此，在较短的一段时间里，鼠疫几乎丧失了它好几个月积蓄起来的全部力量。它放过了那些看似难逃厄运的受害者，如格朗和送到里厄那儿的女孩；它在一些地区猖獗两三天，同时却在另一些地区销声匿迹；周一它夺去了更多病人的生命，而到了周三，它却让全部病人几乎都逃脱了——总之，它时而来势汹汹，时而又萎靡不振——所有这一切都让人们觉得，它由于疲惫和厌倦而渐渐委顿下来，它以前拥有的那张自制而又无情、几乎百发百中的王牌也渐渐失去了威力。卡斯特尔的血清以前一直没什么疗效，现在却突然屡屡成功了。事实上，医生们以前试用过却未曾奏效的各种疗法现在似乎全都灵验了起来。鼠疫像是被逼入了死角，那些以前用来抵抗它的迟钝的武器似乎因为它突然的衰弱而变得锋利起来。只不过，鼠疫偶尔又会振作起来，对三四个有望康复的病人施以盲目而致命的打击——这少数几人真是够倒霉的，在这最充满希望的时刻倒被鼠疫夺去了生命。本已离开隔离营的地方治安官奥顿就是这种情况，塔鲁说奥顿先生“运气不佳”，不知他指的是奥顿的死，还是指奥顿的一生。但是，总的来说，疫病正在全线撤退。官方公报先是流露出一丝隐隐约约、缺乏热情的希望，现在却已肯定了大家的这种想法：胜利在望，鼠疫正在放弃它的阵地。但是，这是否称得上是个胜利，的确还很难说。只能说，这鼠疫似乎来也匆匆去也匆匆，令人费解。人们对付它的策略没有改变，但昨天还是行之无效，今日却似乎成效显著。的确，人们的主要印象是：鼠疫在达到目标后自行撤退了，也可以说，它的目的已经实现了。 但是，城里似乎并没有任何变化。白天，大街上还是静悄悄的，傍晚时则像往常一样挤满了穿着大衣、围着围巾的人。咖啡馆和电影院还是跟以往一样生意兴隆。但只要认真观察一下就可以发现，人们的表情更放松了，偶尔还会露出笑容。这使人清楚地意识到，自从鼠疫爆发之日起到现在，在公众场合一直都没见人笑过。事实上，几个月来把这座城市捂得严严实实、透不过气来的帷幕现在已出现了一个裂口，而且每周一人们一打开收音机就会发现这个裂口正在扩大，很快人们就可以自由呼吸了。但这至多就是个消极安慰罢了，对人们的生活并未产生直接影响。不过，要是一个月前有人听说一列火车已经出站，或者一艘轮船已经驶入港口，或者汽车将重新获准在大街上行驶等消息，他一定会露出怀疑的表情，而到了一月中旬，要是发布上述消息，人们一点儿都不会感到惊讶了。这种变化当然是微不足道的。不过，无论这种变化多么微妙，它已说明市民们在希望的道路上已经迈出了一大步。而且，我们的确可以说，一旦人们心头燃起了一丝希望，鼠疫横行的日子也就结束了。 但必须承认的是，在这个月，市民们的反应各不相同，甚至说得上是大相径庭。更确切地说，有些人极度乐观，有些人极度沮丧。因此，尽管此时的统计数字最为令人振奋，却又出现了几起试图逃跑的奇怪事件。这令当局感到意外，而守卫城门的哨兵们自然也很吃惊——因为大多数“逃跑者”都成功脱逃了。但是，经过一番深入调查，人们就会发现，这个时候试图逃跑的人是受到一些极易理解的情绪所驱使的。对一些逃跑的人来说，鼠疫已经在他们心里深深地播下了怀疑的种子，怀疑成了他们的第二天性，他们已经不报任何形式的希望了。所以，即使鼠疫已经自生自灭，他们依然遵照鼠疫时期的准则来生活。总之，他们是落伍之人。而另一些人——主要是那些在这以前一直被迫与亲人分离的人——经过了这几个月的忍耐和消沉之后，日益强烈的渴望之风吹走了他们的耐心，也吹走了他们的自制力。他们一想到重逢之日在即，自己却可能先行死去，再也见不到亲人，而长期的煎熬也得不到任何补偿，他们就惴惴不安起来。所以，尽管他们顽强地经受住了这几个月来严酷的考验，但希望的曙光却足以摧毁恐惧和绝望所不能摧毁的东西。他们等不及鼠疫结束，而是带着狂乱的情绪，想要冲到鼠疫前面去。 这章没有结束^.^，请点击下一页继续阅读！ 与此同时，也出现了越来越多的乐观迹象。比如说，物价已显著下降了。这种下降从纯经济学的角度是无法解释的。我们的困难并没有减少，城门口还是被严格把守，食物供应局面一点儿也没有得到改善。因此，这纯粹是一种心理反应——似乎鼠疫的减弱必然引起各个领域的连锁反应一样。受乐观情绪感染的还有那些以前一直习惯于集体生活，却因鼠疫而被迫分开生活的人。城里的两个修道院重新开放了，那里的集体生活也因此得以恢复。军人们也重新搬回到那些没被征用的营房里去，恢复了以往那种部队生活。这些事情虽小，却意义重大。 这种秘而不宣却在全城涌动的兴奋状态一直持续到1月25日，这个星期的死亡总数显著下降。在征求了医学委员会的意见之后，当局宣布鼠疫可以被视为已经抑制住了。当然，公报继续补充说，为了谨慎起见——市民们一定会赞同这一点——省府决定，城门还要再关闭两周，预防措施则还要再继续执行一个月。在这期间，一发现鼠疫有死灰复燃的迹象，“就必须严格执行现有命令，如有必要，将延长执行期限，直至形势好转”。但是，大家一致认为，这些补充文字只是些官方措辞而已，于是，1月25日这晚，全城一片欢腾。为了配合大家的庆祝活动，省长下令恢复过去的街道照明。市民们成群结队地在灯火辉煌的大街上游行庆祝，大家笑呀，唱呀，欢声一片。当然，也有些屋子依然紧闭着百叶窗，呆在屋里的人们静静地倾听着屋外的欢声笑语。不过，即使是屋子里的这些悲痛的人们也感到一种深深的宽慰，因为他们终于再也不用担心会看到其他亲人死去，抑或是因为笼罩他们心头的唯恐自身难保的阴霾已经烟消云散。而最无缘于这种大众欢庆场面的必然是这些家庭：就在此时，这些家庭中有一位鼠疫患者住在医院里，其余家人则住在隔离营里或家里接受强制隔离，等待着这场鼠疫能离他们而去，就像它对待其他人那样。当然，这些家庭也抱有希望，但他们将希望埋藏在心底，没有十分把握是不会表露出来的。这些家庭在沉默与放逐中等待着，处于伤感和欢乐之间，在周围喜庆的氛围中仍然显得格外冷酷。但这些例外并没有削弱大多数人的满意度。毫无疑问，鼠疫还没有结束——这一事实提醒着人们。不过，大家的想象比现实提前了好几周，他们似乎已经听到火车在一眼望不到头的铁轨上鸣笛前行的声音，也听到了轮船驶出海港，在波光粼粼的大海上破浪前行时发出的汽笛声。明天，这些狂热就会退去，疑虑又会回来。但在此时，整座城市就像一艘轮船一样开动起来，正在驶离它曾经的停泊之地，驶离这阴暗悲伤的囚禁之地，并最终满载着幸存者驶往充满希望的福地。这一天晚上，塔鲁、里厄、朗贝尔和他们的同事混杂在欢庆游行的队伍中走了一会儿，他们也有一种飘飘欲仙的感觉。在他们离开主干道很久之后，甚至当他们沿着空荡荡的小巷走过一幢幢紧闭着百叶窗的房屋时，欢快的叫嚷声依然不绝于耳，但由于他们已经累了，他们根本无法把紧闭的百叶窗后的痛苦和主干道上洋溢的欢乐分离开来。所以，在这接近解禁的时刻却是冰火两重天，既有眼泪，也有欢乐。 有一会儿，远处那欢快的叫嚷声变得更响了，塔鲁突然停了下来。有一个瘦小、皮毛油光发亮的黑影在沿着街道奔跑：是一只猫，这是春天以来他们见到的第一只猫。它在马路中央停了一会儿，舔舔爪子，用爪子迅速地挠一下右耳朵，接着它又重新向前奔跑起来，渐渐消失在黑暗之中。塔鲁暗自发笑，那个阳台上的矮老头也会高兴的。 第二十六章 但是，如果塔鲁的笔记记载正确的话，就在鼠疫似乎全面撤退、潜回到它那不为人知的老巢的这段日子里，城里至少有一个人为此感到惊惶失措，这人就是科塔尔。 说实话，自死亡人数开始下降之日起，塔鲁的笔记就变得相当奇怪。笔记的书写变得更难辨认了——这可能是由于疲劳的缘故——而且，笔记的内容也是东拉西扯。此外，这段时间的笔记不像以往那样客观了，笔记中开始悄悄出现许多个人见解。所以，在有关科塔尔情况的长篇叙述中间，就有一小段关于这个玩猫老头的记录。塔鲁认为鼠疫丝毫没有减弱他对这位老头的欣赏。鼠疫自然消退后，他对老头依旧颇感兴趣。遗憾的是，后来老头再也不能引起他的兴趣了，而这并非由于塔鲁缺乏诚意。他已经尽力去找过这老头了。在那个难以忘怀的1月25日之后又过了几天，他孤身一人去那条小巷的拐角处站了一会儿。那些猫儿已回到原地，呆在几小块阳光充裕的地方晒太阳。但在老头习惯出现的时刻，百叶窗依然紧闭着。而且，塔鲁在此后一段时间里也从未看见百叶窗开过。于是，他得出了一个很奇怪的结论：老头要么死了，要么正在恼火——他要是在恼火，是因为他认为自己做得对，而鼠疫冤枉了他；他要是死了，就该想想这个问题（那位老气喘病人的情况也是如此）：他是不是一个圣人？塔鲁并不认为这老头是个圣人，但发现他的情况能给人“启示”。“也许，”塔鲁写道，“我们只能达到近乎圣人的标准。在这种情况下，我们不得不做个温和而仁慈的恶魔。” 小主，这个章节后面还有哦^.^，请点击下一页继续阅读，后面更精彩！ 在有关科塔尔的叙述中还零星地夹杂着一些关于格朗的评论——格朗现在已经康复并回到了工作岗位，就好像什么也没发生过一样——以及对里厄母亲的评论。塔鲁在笔记里详细记录了他与同住在一个屋檐下的里厄母亲之间偶尔的交谈内容、这位老太太的态度，以及她对鼠疫的看法。他首先着重描写了里厄老太太的谦卑，她那言简意赅的说话方式，以及她对某一扇窗户的偏爱。她总爱在傍晚时分坐在这扇窗前，微微挺着身子，双手放在膝盖上，两眼注视着窗外宁静的大街，直到夜幕笼罩着整间屋子。她那静坐不动的黑色身影也慢慢融入到逐渐降临的黑暗之中。他谈到她从一间屋子走到另一间屋子时步伐的“轻盈”，谈到她的善良——尽管他举不出具体的例子，但他从她的言行之中处处都能隐约察觉到她温和善良之光。他谈到她具有一种无须多加思索就能洞察一切的天赋，最后他还谈到，尽管她毫不起眼、沉默寡言，却不会畏惧任何光亮，哪怕是像鼠疫那般刺眼的光芒。奇怪的是，塔鲁的笔记写到这里，笔迹就突然变得糟糕起来，事实上，他接下来写的几行文字几乎难以辨认。而且，最后几行文字写的是他的个人私事——这在笔记中还是头一回——这似乎再次证明他已经控制不住他的笔了。“她令我想起了我的母亲，我最喜欢母亲那种谦卑及‘不起眼’的品质，我也一直想回到她的身边。八年前她就不在了，但我不能说她已经死了。她只是比以往更为谦卑地躲了起来，而我环顾四周之时，却再也看不到她的身影。” 不过，现在言归正传，谈谈科塔尔吧。自从每周的死亡总数开始下降以来，他就以种种借口前去拜访了里厄几次。但很显然，他真正的目的是想了解里厄对疫情大致发展的判断。“难道你真的认为鼠疫就这样突然一下就结束了吗？”他对此很怀疑，或者至少他公开表达过这一点。但他又不断地提出这个相同的问题，这似乎表明他也不太确信自己的观点。从一月中旬开始，里厄就很乐观地回答了这个问题。但每一次，这些回答并没有使科塔尔感到高兴，反而使他产生种种不同的反应，有时只是气急败坏，有时又极度沮丧。有一天，医生不得不对他说，尽管统计数字表明情况大有好转，但要说大家已经脱离了险境还为时尚早。 “这就是说，”科塔尔立刻说，“一切都还是未知数。鼠疫可能随时又会卷土重来。” “确实如此。但同样，治愈率也可能越来越高。” 这种捉摸不定的状况令所有其他人都感到担忧，唯独科塔尔一人看起来很满意。塔鲁注意到，科塔尔会与他那个区里的商人们进行交谈，竭力宣传里厄的观点。事实上，他不难做到这一点。宣布鼠疫退去后的那种最初的狂热已经过去，许多人的思想里又重新产生了怀疑。一看到大家忐忑不安的样子，科塔尔就感到放心。但有时他又感到沮丧。“对，”他沮丧地对塔鲁说，“总有一天城门会敞开的。到那时，你就看吧，人们会把我像燃烧的煤块一样撇下不管的！”在一月份的头三个星期里，大家惊讶地发现科塔尔的情绪变化无常。尽管他通常都会不遗余力地设法讨好他的邻居和熟人们，但现在这段时间，他却故意冷落他们。他突然退出了他以前经常出入的社交场合，切断了一切与外界的联系，身心忧郁地躲了起来。在饭店里，在戏院里，或是在他爱去的咖啡馆里，人们再也见不到他的身影。但是，他似乎也不能回到他在发生鼠疫前所过的那种平凡单调、不引人注目的生活了。他呆在自己的房间里，叫附近的一家餐馆给他送来一日三餐。只有在晚上，他才敢跑出去零星地买些小东西，而出了店门，他就会偷偷摸摸地在人迹罕至的阴暗街道里溜达。那时候塔鲁碰见过他一两回，但也只能引他态度生硬地说上寥寥数语。不过，过不了几天，他又重新热衷于交际，滔滔不绝地谈论鼠疫，征求每个人的意见，并兴致勃勃地混迹于人群之中。 1月25日官方发布公告那天，科塔尔又一次不见了踪迹。两天后，塔鲁在一条小巷里碰见了在那里徘徊的科塔尔。当科塔尔提出要塔鲁陪他一起回家时，塔鲁犹豫了一下，那天塔鲁感到特别累。但科塔尔根本不容对方拒绝。他看起来非常激动，不停地打着手势，说话的语速很快，声音也很大。他首先问塔鲁是否真的认为官方公告就意味着鼠疫的结束。塔鲁回答说，一份官方公告本身显然是不能终止一场疫病的，但鼠疫看起来好像真的行将结束了，除非发生意外。“对，”科塔尔说，“除非发生意外。往往会出现意外，不是吗？” 塔鲁指出，当局已经作好准备以防意外，因而下令城门还要继续关闭两周。 “当局真是英明呀！”科塔尔继续兴奋地说，“按照形势的发展，我觉得他们恐怕要食言了。” 塔鲁认为这事也有可能，不过，他觉得最好还是要相信，在不久的将来，城门将会敞开，生活也会恢复正常。 这章没有结束^.^，请点击下一页继续阅读！ “就算是这样吧！”科塔尔说，“那你说的‘生活恢复正常’是什么意思呢？” 塔鲁笑着说：“电影院里有新的影片。” 但科塔尔没有笑。他想问，人们是不是认为鼠疫并没有改变任何东西，而这个城市的生活也会一如既往地继续下去，就像什么也没发生过一样？塔鲁认为，鼠疫会改变一切，又不会改变一切。市民们最大的希望就是正常地生活，就当什么也没有变样，因此，从某种意义上说，什么也不会改变。但是——换一个角度来看——无论人们多想忘记一切，他们也无法做到这一点，不管怎样，鼠疫一定会在人们的心里留下一些痕迹。 科塔尔马上接过话说，他对心理问题不感兴趣；的确，他最不在乎的就是心理问题了。他只是很想知道整个行政管理是否会发生变化，比如说，公共服务的职能是否与往日一样。塔鲁不得不承认他对此真是心里没底，他个人的看法是，在遭受了鼠疫的重创之后，公共服务恢复正常尚需时日。此外，看来很有可能会出现各类新问题，因而行政管理体系至少也需要进行一些调整。 科塔尔点点头说：“对，这很有可能，事实上，大家都得重新开始。” 他们走到科塔尔家附近了。科塔尔现在显得更开心了，他下定决心要更加乐观地看待未来。很显然，他想象着这座城市正在进入一种全新的生活，忘却过去，一切都重新开始。 “就是这样，”塔鲁微笑着说，“事情的结果很有可能会好起来的，对你也一样——谁又知道呢？从某种意义上说，大家都将开始新的生活。” 他们在科塔尔所住的公寓楼门口握手告别。 “你说得对！”科塔尔越来越激动地说，“一切重新开始，这是个好主意。” 突然，两个男子从漆黑的大厅里走了出来。塔鲁刚听到科塔尔喃喃地说了句：“哎，这两个家伙想干什么呀？”这两个衣冠楚楚、公务人员模样的男子就问科塔尔他是不是叫科塔尔。科塔尔发出了一声低沉的惊叫，然后转身飞奔而去，消失在夜色之中。塔鲁和这两位男子都惊呆了，大家面面相觑了一会儿。接着，塔鲁问他们想干什么。他们含糊地回答说，他们想“了解些情况”，然后就不慌不忙地朝着科塔尔刚才逃跑的方向走去。 塔鲁一回到家就把刚才那件怪事记录了下来，接着又写下了“今晚很累”几个字——这段文字的笔迹证实了这一点。他接着写道，他还有很多事情要做，但这并不能成为自己不“做好准备”的理由，而他也自问他自己是否已做好准备。在最后附言式的文字中——事实上，塔鲁的笔记也就到此为止了——他这样写道：无论是在白天还是夜里，总会有那么一个时刻是一个人最怯懦的时刻，而只有这个时刻让他感到害怕。 第二十七章 第二天，即规定城门开放之日前几天，里厄医生中午回到家里，想知道他一直期盼的电报是否已送过来了。尽管这些天来他的工作与鼠疫高峰期时一样繁重，但马上就要获得解放这种希望已经驱散了他的疲劳。有了希望，对生活也就充满了新的渴望。任何人都不可能一直都精神高度紧张地生活着，在精力和意志都绷紧到极限后，终于可以放松一下，舒缓一下神经和肌肉了，这是件令人高兴的事情。如果里厄等待的这封电报带来好消息的话，他的生活也可以重新开始。的确，在那段日子里，他感觉大家一切都会重新开始。 他从大厅的门房前走过。老米歇尔的接班人，那位新来的看门人把脸贴在面朝大厅的玻璃窗上，朝他微微一笑。当他上楼的时候，他的眼前还浮现出看门人那张因疲倦和贫穷而显得苍白的笑脸。 是的，当“抽象”阶段过去之后，只要有些运气，他将一切重新开始——他带着这些想法打开诊所门时，看见他母亲正从客厅下楼来找他。她告诉他，塔鲁先生病了。塔鲁早上照常起床，但感觉无力出门，所以又重新躺下了。里厄老太太很担心他的身体。 “这大概不要紧。”她儿子说。 塔鲁直挺挺躺在床上，他那硕大的头部深深地陷在枕头里，盖在他健壮的胸脯上的被单上下起伏着。他感到头痛，体温也在不断上升。他对里厄说，他的症状并不确定，但有可能是鼠疫。 里厄给他检查后说：“不，现在一切都还不确定。” 但塔鲁也感到很口渴，因而医生在走廊里对他母亲说，这可能是鼠疫。 “啊！”她大叫着说，“这根本不可能，现在根本不可能！”过了一会儿，她接着说：“我们把他留在这里吧，伯纳德。” 里厄沉思着。“严格来说，我没有权利这样做，”他迟疑地说，“不过，城门很快就要敞开了。要是你不在这里的话，我想我自己倒会这样做的。” “伯纳德，把他留下，也让我留下吧。你知道的，我刚刚又打过预防针了。” 医生说塔鲁也打过预防针，但他可能因为太劳累而忘了注射最后一针或没有采取必要的预防措施。 里厄一边说着一边朝诊所走去，而等他回到卧室时，塔鲁看见他拿来了一个盒子，里面是些装满血清的针剂。 小主，这个章节后面还有哦^.^，请点击下一页继续阅读，后面更精彩！ “啊，那么是鼠疫了。”塔鲁说。 “不一定是，但我们不该冒险。” 塔鲁没说什么，只是伸出一只胳膊来接受长时间的注射，他以前也常常给别人进行这样的注射。 “我们今晚再好好观察一下。”里厄直视着塔鲁说。 “但怎么不把我隔离起来，里厄？” “现在根本不能确定你患上了鼠疫。” 塔鲁勉强笑了笑。 “嗯，我还是头一回看到你给病人注射血清却不下令将他送进隔离病房。” 里厄转过头去。 “你在这里会好些。我母亲和我都会照料你的。” 塔鲁沉默不语，医生把那些针剂放回到盒子里，想等到塔鲁说话时再转过头去。但塔鲁依然一声不吭，最后，里厄走到床边。病人平静地看着医生，尽管他的脸很憔悴，但他那双灰色的眼睛依然目光镇定。里厄微笑着朝塔鲁俯下身去。 “现在你尽量睡会吧。我马上就会回来。” 医生正要出门时，听到塔鲁叫他，于是又返身回到病床边。塔鲁看起来怪怪的，就好像他既想阻止自己要说的话脱口而出，又想强迫自己说出来一样。 “里厄，”他终于开口说，“你必须对我说实话。我想知道实情。” “我一定会的。” 塔鲁的那张大脸露出了一丝笑容。 “谢谢。我不想死，我要斗争。即使我输了，我也想有个好结局。”里厄俯下身去，紧紧抓住塔鲁的肩膀。 “不会输的。要做一个圣人，你就该活下去。一定要斗争呀！” 这天早上天气很冷，后来慢慢暖和了些，到了下午却又下了几场冰雹和大雨。黄昏时，天空微微放晴了，但天气却又变得寒冷起来。晚上，里厄回到家里。他大衣也没脱就走进了他朋友的房间。塔鲁似乎躺在床上没挪动过，但他那因高烧而变得苍白的紧闭的双唇显示出他正在坚持斗争着。 “还好吗？”里厄问。 塔鲁耸了耸他那露在被单外的宽肩膀。 “唉，”他说，“我要输了。” 医生朝塔鲁俯下身去。塔鲁那滚烫的皮肤下已经出现了淋巴结，他的肺部发出一阵杂音，就像地下炼铁厂发出的声音一样。奇怪的是，塔鲁身上同时出现了两种不同类型鼠疫的病征。 里厄直起身来说，血清还未来得及发挥作用。塔鲁本想要说上几句，但他喉咙里突然涌起的一阵热流令他说不出话来。 晚饭后，里厄和他母亲来到病人床前。夜晚一到，斗争也开始了，而且，里厄知道这场与瘟神的艰巨较量会一直持续到黎明。在这场斗争中，塔鲁最大的优势不是他的虎背熊腰，而是里厄的针头下渗出的塔鲁的鲜血，以及他的血液中流淌的那种比灵魂还要更重要的某种东西，这是任何人类科学都无法解释清楚的。医生能做的只是看着他的朋友进行斗争。他接下来要做的是给塔鲁的脓肿注射些催熟剂——几个月来反复的失败使他认清了这些权宜之计的真正价值。事实上，他唯一能帮上病人的就是为这些措施的偶然生效创造机会，而这种偶然性往往处于休眠状态，要靠人以行动唤醒。运气也是他必不可少的帮手。因为鼠疫的某种表现已经令里厄感到迷惑不解了。鼠疫又一次竭尽所能来挫败人们用来对付它的策略，它似乎从那些确定是鼠疫大本营的地方撤退下来，却又在一些出人意料的地方重新发起了进攻。它又一次令人摸不着头脑。 塔鲁一动不动地与鼠疫抗争着。一整夜，他从未因为鼠疫的袭击而感到焦虑不安，他只是用他那粗壮的身体默默地进行着斗争。他甚至一声未吭，他就是以这种方式来表示他的斗争不能再有片刻分心。里厄只能根据他朋友的眼睛来观察这种斗争的变化：塔鲁的眼睛忽睁忽闭，他的眼皮一会儿贴着眼球，一会儿又张开，他一会儿凝视着屋里的某样物品，一会儿又将目光收回到医生和里厄老太太身上。每当塔鲁和医生对视时，塔鲁都会费力地挤出一丝笑容。 有一会儿，街上传来一阵急促的脚步声。人们隐约听到了雷声，于是飞奔前行，而雷声越来越近，最后街上响起了哗啦啦的雨声，又一阵暴风雨向这座城市袭来，不久大雨夹杂着冰雹噼里啪啦地砸在人行道上。窗前的雨蓬剧烈地抖动着。暴风雨的声音一度分散了里厄的注意力，现在他的目光又回到阴暗的屋内，重新打量着在小床头灯灯光照射下的塔鲁的脸庞。里厄的母亲正在织着毛衣，她时不时抬眼看看病人。医生一切能做的都已经做了。暴风雨过去了，屋里更加安静了，只有无形战斗中那种默默的骚动充斥其中。失眠折磨着医生，在寂静的边缘中，他似乎听到一种轻轻的、奇怪的呼啸声，这种声音从鼠疫爆发以来一直萦绕在他的耳旁。他对母亲打了个手势，示意她该去睡觉了。她摇了摇头，眼睛变得更加炯炯有神，接着她认真检查起编织接头处的一处针脚来，她觉得此处织得不太好。里厄起身去给病人取了杯水，接着又重新坐了下来。 人行道上响起了一阵脚步声，声音越来越近，又渐渐远去；人们正趁着暴风雨的间歇匆忙地往家赶。医生第一次发现这天夜晚就像鼠疫前的夜晚一样，天色已晚，路上还有很多赶路的行人，但听不到救护车的车鸣声——这是一个摆脱了鼠疫的夜晚。瘟神似乎受到了寒冷、街灯、人群的驱赶，从这座城市的黑暗深处逃了出来，躲进了这间暖和的房间，向塔鲁那一动不动的身体发起了最后的进攻。它不再在屋顶上空挥舞着它的连枷。但它却在这间病房沉闷的空气里轻声呼啸，而里厄在整个守夜过程中听到的正是这种声音。现在，里厄只好期待着这种声音也会在这里停下来，期待着鼠疫也会在这里败下阵去。 小主，这个章节后面还有哦^.^，请点击下一页继续阅读，后面更精彩！ 快到黎明的时候，里厄朝他母亲凑过身去低声说： “现在你最好去睡一会儿，好在八点钟时来接替我。睡前要记得滴注些药水。” 里厄老太太站了起来，收好毛线活，走到病床边。塔鲁闭着眼睛已经有段时间了。他的头发已经被汗水浸湿了，贴在他倔强的额头上。里厄老太太叹了口气，塔鲁睁开了双眼。他看到了老太太那张俯向着他的温柔的脸，尽管他还在发烧，但他的嘴边又露出了顽强的笑容。不过他很快又闭上了眼睛。现在只留下里厄一人了，于是他坐到他母亲坐过的那张椅子上。这座城市还在睡梦之中，大街上万籁俱静。屋子里开始感觉到黎明的寒冷了。 医生打起盹来，但黎明时大街上一辆马车发出的吱嘎声很快唤醒了他。他打了个寒战，看了看塔鲁，知道这又是一个斗争间歇期，塔鲁也睡着了。箍着铁皮的马车木轮发出的辘辘声已经渐渐远去了。窗外依然是黑乎乎一片。当医生走到病床边时，塔鲁用毫无表情的眼睛看着他，像是还没睡醒似的。 “你睡着了，是吗？”里厄问。 “是的。” “呼吸顺畅些了吗？” “顺畅了一点。这说明什么问题吗？” 里厄沉默了一会儿，接着他说： “不，塔鲁，这不说明任何问题。你和我一样都清楚，早晨时病情往往会有所缓解。”“谢谢，”塔鲁赞同地点点头说，“请你始终告诉我实情。” 里厄坐在病床边。在病人身旁，他可以感觉到病人的双腿就像墓前雕像的四肢一样僵硬。塔鲁的呼吸变得更困难了。 “还会发烧，是吗，里厄？”他喘着气说。 “是的。但要到中午我们才知道情况如何。” 塔鲁闭上眼睛，看起来他像是在养精蓄锐。他满面倦容。他在等待着体温上升，而这时高烧正在他身体深处翻腾着。当他睁开双眼时，他目光迷蒙。只是当他看到里厄手里端着一个平底杯俯身靠近他时，他才目光一亮。 “喝水吧。” 塔鲁喝了水，然后慢慢将头靠在枕头上。 “这是个漫长的过程。”他喃喃地说。 里厄抓住他的手臂，但塔鲁已经转过头去，没作任何反应。突然，高烧像身体内决堤的潮水一样再次向塔鲁袭来，烧红了他的脸颊和前额。塔鲁的目光转向了医生，而医生这时正再次俯下身，用带着关切的鼓励神情看着他。塔鲁想给医生一个笑脸，但他那紧闭的牙关以及糊着一层白沫的嘴唇使他无法如愿。在他那僵硬的脸上，只有那双眼睛依然炯炯有神，闪烁着勇敢的光芒。 七点时，里厄老太太回到了病人的卧室。医生到他的诊所打电话给医院，安排别人在那里接替他的工作。他还决定推迟他的门诊时间，接着他在诊所的的沙发上躺了一会儿。五分钟后，他又回到了病人的卧室。塔鲁的脸朝着里厄老太太，而老太太紧靠床坐着，双手并拢放在腿上。在屋内阴暗的灯光下，她看起来只不过是个小黑影罢了。塔鲁聚精会神地看着里厄老太太，于是老太太把一根手指头放到自己的嘴唇上示意，并站起身来关掉了那盏床头灯。但窗帘后的光线渐渐变强，一会儿病人的脸就变得清晰可见了，里厄老太太发现他的目光依然聚在她身上。她俯下身子，将他的枕头弄平，又直起身子，把手放在他潮湿而杂乱的头发上，停留了一会儿。这时，她听到一声低沉的声音说“谢谢”，仿佛从远方传来，还对她说现在一切都很好。等她重新坐下时，塔鲁已闭上了眼睛，尽管他的嘴巴紧闭着，但他那衰弱的脸上似乎隐隐洋溢着一丝笑容。 到了中午，高烧达到了顶点。一阵发自体内深处的咳嗽折磨着病人的身体，而且他现在开始吐起血来。他的淋巴结已停止肿胀，但仍未消退，硬得像嵌在关节上的螺丝帽。里厄认为要切开这些淋巴结已是不可能了。在一阵阵高烧和咳嗽发作间隙，塔鲁依然时不时地看看他的两位朋友。但不久之后，他睁开眼睛的次数变得越来越少了，而在发作间歇他那受尽蹂躏的脸上所呈现出的光芒也变得越来越弱了。这场发作就像是暴风雨，使他的身体不断抽搐。他在这场猛烈的暴风雨中随波逐流，越来越虚弱，最后被完全抛弃了。现在，里厄的眼前只是一张面具似的脸庞，毫无生气，笑容也永远消逝了。他朋友的人类之躯被瘟神的长矛刺得遍体鳞伤，被灼热的魔火烧得体无完肤，被这从天而降的狂暴的妖风吹得扭曲变形，而他只能眼睁睁地看着塔鲁淹没在鼠疫黑色的洪水之中，却无力帮他免于遇难。 他只好无可奈何地站在岸上，空着双手，心如刀绞，在灾难发生时又一次没有武器，孤独无助。就这样，等到最后一刻到来时，无能为力的泪水已经模糊了里厄的视线。他没有看见塔鲁猛地一翻身，面朝着墙低沉地呻吟了一声，像是他体内的某个地方有一根主弦绷断了似的，就这样断了气。第二天晚上再没有了战斗，而是万籁俱静。在这间安静的停尸房里，在这具已经穿好日常衣着的尸体旁，里厄又一次感觉到这里笼罩着一种自然的宁静——许多天以前的一个夜晚，在城门口发生短暂冲突之后，他坐在高高凌驾于鼠疫之上的那个露台上，也曾感觉到这种气氛。那时侯，他就想起了病人死去时病床上空笼罩着的这种宁静的气氛。就像现在一样，这是种庄严的间歇，这是种战斗过后的间歇，这是一种战败之后的沉寂。但现在笼罩在他已逝朋友周围的宁静的气氛是那么浓郁，这与大街上以及这座最终摆脱了鼠疫的城市夜间的宁静气氛非常相似，这也使得里厄非常清楚，这是最后的一次失败，它是结束战争的最后一场惨烈的战役，它自己终结了自己，这场大病无药可救。医生无法知道塔鲁是否找到了安宁，但现在一切都结束了。对他而言，他就像是个失去了儿子的母亲，或是个埋葬了朋友的男子一样，再也不可能拥有内心的安宁了。 小主，这个章节后面还有哦^.^，请点击下一页继续阅读，后面更精彩！ 又是一个寒冷的夜晚，明朗而凄冷的天空中寒星闪烁。在昏暗的屋子里，他们感到一阵寒气正透过玻璃窗向他们袭来，他们也听到寒夜悠长而清亮的叹息声。里厄老太太以她常有的姿势坐在床边，床头灯照亮了她的右侧。在屋子中央，灯光照不到的地方，里厄静静地坐在那里。他时不时想起他的妻子，但每次他都尽力抛开这种想法。 夜幕降临时，寒冷的空气中，行人走路时鞋跟发出轻快的咯噔声。 “你已经安排好一切了吗？”里厄老太太问。 “是的，我已打过电话了。” 接着，他们又重新开始默默地守灵。里厄老太太不时地看看她的儿子，每当母子俩目光交汇时，里厄总是微微一笑。屋外大街上那些夜间熟悉的声音打破了夜的沉寂。尽管城里还没有正式批准车辆通行，但许多车辆都在马路上重新行驶起来。它们在路面上加速飞驰而过，车胎和人行道摩擦着发出一阵长长的嘶嘶声，然后倒车，返回。说话声，远处的呼唤声，随后又一切归于沉寂，接着又传来马蹄声，电车转弯时的吱嘎声，隐约的嘈杂声——然后又是轻轻的晚风声。 “伯纳德？” “嗯？” “你不累吧？” “不累。” 他知道他母亲这时在想什么，他知道她爱他。但他也知道，爱一个人并没有什么了不起的，又或者可以说，爱的强烈是永远无法找到合适的语言予以表达的。因此，他和他母亲会永远默默地爱着对方。有一天，她——或是他——终会死去，而在他们的一生中，他们从来没有向对方说出自己的爱。同样，他曾和塔鲁一起生活过，而今晚塔鲁已经走了，但他们也没能在生活中尽享两人之间的友情。正像塔鲁自己所说的那样，他已经“输了”。但是他，里厄，又赢得了什么呢？他赢得的东西不过是这样一种经历：他懂得了鼠疫，它变成了回忆；懂得了友情，它也变成了回忆；也懂得了爱，而它注定也将成为回忆。因此，在鼠疫和生命的斗争中，人所能赢得的所有东西就是知识和回忆。也许，塔鲁会把这称作是“赢了”。又有一辆车驶过，里厄老太太稍稍动了动。里厄朝她微微一笑。她对他说她不累，但马上又说： “你该到山区那边去好好休息一段时间。” “好的，妈妈。” 他当然会去“那边”休息一下。这也是一个回忆往事的借口。不过，假如这就叫“赢了”的话——一个人只是懂得些东西，回忆些东西，却得不到所希望的东西，那么这种生活该有多难呀！很可能塔鲁就是这样生活过来的，他也知道，没有幻想的生活是阴郁而贫瘠的。没有希望，内心就不可能安宁，而且塔鲁认为，无论是谁，都无权给任何人判刑——尽管他很清楚，人都禁不住会去给别人判刑，甚至受害者有时也会变成刽子手——塔鲁一直生活在矛盾之中，从来没有得到过希望所带来的慰藉。他就是出于这个原因而想做圣人，想通过帮助他人来寻求内心安宁的吗？事实上，里厄并不知道这个问题的答案，而这也无关紧要。他会永远记住塔鲁的唯一形象：驾驶汽车时紧握方向盘的塔鲁，或是有着魁梧身躯现在却躺在那里一动不动的塔鲁。知识就意味着：一种生活的热情，一种死亡的形象。这无疑解释了为什么里厄医生在第二天早上得知他妻子去世的消息时能保持镇静。 当时他正在自己的诊所里。他母亲几乎是跑着进来，递给他一份电报，接着她又出去给电报邮递员小费。当她返回时，她儿子手里正拿着这份打开的电报。她看了看他，但他却毅然盯着窗外；窗外洒满了冉冉升起在港口上空的朝阳的光辉。 “伯纳德。”她轻轻地叫了一声。 医生转过头来漠然地看了看她，就好像她是陌生人。 “电报说？” “哦，”他说，“就是这样。在一周以前。” 里厄老太太把头转向窗户。里厄沉默了一会儿。接着，他叫他母亲不要哭，说自己已经预料到了，不过依然很难过。而他也清楚，在说这话的时候，这种痛苦的感觉并不陌生。好几个月以来，尤其在最近的两天时间里，正是这种相同的痛苦一直折磨着他。 第二十八章 终于，在二月的一个黎明，天气晴朗，城门开放仪式如期举行，百姓、报纸、电台以及官方公报都为之喝彩。笔者依然觉得有必要记录下城门开放后的那些欢乐情景，尽管他自己属于那些不能全身心地分享这种喜悦的一员。 精心编排的游乐会整天整夜地举行着，同时，火车站里的火车头也开始冒烟了，轮船也已经驶入了这里的港口——这一切以各种方式生动地表明，这是个期盼已久的团圆之日，所有饱尝相思之苦的人们再也不必伤心流泪了。 人们不难想象，眼下，长久以来使众多市民内心痛苦不已的这种别离之情在这一刻会有怎样的体现。整整一天，驶入该城和离开该城的火车上都挤满了乘客。所有的乘客早就预订了这天的车票，在过去的两周时间里，人人如坐针毡，生怕在最后时刻当局会取消原来的决定。一些要来奥兰的旅客还是有些忐忑不安，尽管一般来说，他们对自己亲人的情况应该非常了解，但他们对其他人以及这座城市本身却一无所知，因而把奥兰想象得阴森恐怖。但这仅仅适用于那些在长达几个月的流放中没有伤心欲绝的人们，而不适用于那些分隔两地的情侣们。 小主，这个章节后面还有哦^.^，请点击下一页继续阅读，后面更精彩！ 的确，那些情侣们完全被自己的固执想法包围着，因此，对他们而言，只有一件事发生了变化。 在那几个月的分离时光里，对于他们的爱人来说，时间总是过得太慢，他们一直都盼望着时间可以过得更快些，但是，当火车开始刹车、驶入站台，奥兰已经近在眼前时，他们却又希望时间可以放慢速度，想让每一刻都停下脚步。这种感觉，也许有些困惑，但是依然心酸，这些天、这些周、这几个月以来，他们为自己的爱人失去的时光让他们隐约感觉自己有权得到某种补偿，现在这种欢乐时间应该比那些度日如年的等待时间慢上两倍。那些在家里或是在月台上等待他们的人们——朗贝尔就在月台上等着，他的妻子早已得到通知，并马上着手准备乘第一趟火车来奥兰——同样也迫不及待、心烦意乱。即使是朗贝尔，一想到自己很快就可以见到心上人，一想到好几个月以来，鼠疫已经慢慢地将柔情蜜意化为了一个苍白的概念，而自己将要与一个有血有肉的女人重温旧情，他的内心也惶惶不安起来。 要是时光能倒流，让他做回鼠疫刚爆发时的自己该多好呀！那时的他只有一种想法、一个愿望：逃出城去，回到他深爱的女人的怀里！但他知道，现在这已是不可能的了，他已经改变了许多。这场鼠疫让他形成了一种超然的态度，尽管他想尽力摆脱，但它就像萦绕心头的无形恐惧一样挥之不去。他觉得鼠疫似乎结束得太突然了，他还来不及振作起来。幸福一下子就降临到他的头上，速度之快真是出人意料。朗贝尔知道，他曾经失去的一切都会瞬间恢复如常，而欢乐也会像烈焰一样瞬间将他包围，不会有任何耽搁。 实际上，月台上每个人的想法都或多或少地和朗贝尔差不多，因此这里所说的正是大家的情况。每个人都将回到各自的生活，但他们依然有种患难与共的感觉，因此他们开心地相互对视并微笑致意。不过，他们一看到越来越近的火车头冒出的浓烟，流放的感觉瞬间在一阵无可抑制的狂喜中消失得无影无踪。当火车停下来的时候，这场始于同一个月台的看似永无止境的分离在一场相聚的狂欢中结束，人们张开双臂，热情拥抱着已经生疏的对方的身体。至于朗贝尔，他还没有来得及看清那个朝他飞奔而来的身影，而她已经投入他的怀抱了。他紧紧搂住了她，她的头贴在他的肩膀上，他只能看到那一头熟悉的头发，禁不住泪流满面，不知是此刻的幸福之泪，还是一直压抑着的痛苦之泪。他只知道，泪水使他无法看清埋在他怀里的是他朝思暮想的那张脸，还是一个陌生女人的脸。此时，他想表现得跟他周围的人一样，相信或者说愿意去相信人心不会随着鼠疫的来去而发生任何变化。 他们一对对相互依偎着回到家里，忘却了外部世界，似乎战胜了鼠疫，忘却了一切悲伤，也忘却了那些同乘一列火车回来却无人迎接的人们的痛苦。这些人准备回到家里去证实他们的担忧，因为许久没有亲人的音讯，他们的心里充满了疑虑。对于上面所说的最后一类人，此刻陪伴他们的是新的悲伤，他们沉浸在对失去的亲人一生的追忆中——对这些不幸的人来说，情况则大不相同：离别之苦已经达到无以复加的地步。对这些失去了一切快乐的母亲、丈夫、妻子和恋人来说，他们的亲人要么躺在死人坑里，身上覆盖着一层生石灰，要么已经化为一掬骨灰埋在灰色的土堆中，鼠疫还没有结束。但是谁还会想到这些独自沉痛哀思的人呢？太阳驱散了清晨以来一直弥漫空中的寒气，将静谧的阳光稳稳地倾泻在这座城市上。天空呈现出清澈而凝固不动的蓝色，在山冈上的堡垒里，枪声不断轰鸣。大家倾巢而出，庆祝这激动人心的时刻：严酷考验已经结束，而遗忘还未开始。大街上，广场上，人们翩翩起舞。一天之内，街上的汽车数量大增，越来越多的车辆和狂欢的人群将街道挤得水泄不通。整个下午，所有教堂的钟声齐鸣，在阳光灿烂的蔚蓝天空中不断回响。实际上，所有的教堂都在举行着感恩仪式。而与此同时，娱乐场所也是人满为患，咖啡馆全然不顾第二天该如何营业，把最后的几瓶酒全都卖光了。每个吧台周围都是人声鼎沸，其中还有些情侣毫无顾忌地搂抱在一起。大家都在笑着，叫着。好几个月来，每个人都把热情储藏了起来，每个人都把生活的火焰压抑在心底，而在今天这个庆祝自己得以幸存的大喜日子里，大家都尽情宣泄着这种热情。明天，规规矩矩的现实生活就要重新开始了。而此时此刻，来自各行各业的人们摩肩擦踵、尽情狂欢。死亡中没能实现人人平等，而解放的欢乐终于使之实现，并高高兴兴地维持了几个小时之久。 但这种沸沸扬扬的快乐气氛只是这座城市当天生活的一部分。黄昏时分，许多人跟朗贝尔和他的爱人一样，挤在大街上的人群之中，用一种悠然自得的神态来掩饰内心更为微妙的幸福感。的确，许多情侣，许多家人看起来只是在漫不经心地漫步，仅此而已。但事实上，他们中大部分人是在他们遭受过苦难的地方进行着感情的朝圣。他们向刚回到城里的亲人指出鼠疫留下的或明或暗的痕迹，那些鼠疫经过后的残骸。有时候，鼠疫幸存者就像个导游似的，摆出一副“经历过一切”的见证人的架势，滔滔不绝地谈论鼠疫的危险，而只字不提自己内心的恐惧。这种乐趣并不过分，不过是种消遣罢了。但是，有时候，有人在城里走着走着就流露出更加强烈的情感来，比如，有人会指着某个充满悲伤与柔情回忆之地，对他身旁的女伴说：“就是在这里，也是在这样的一个夜晚，我曾经苦苦地思念你——而你却不在！”这些热情的朝圣者是很容易辨认出来的，在喧嚣的人群中，他们窃窃私语、远离他人、旁若无人，形成了一个个的绿洲。他们表达这种获得解放的喜悦心情的方式比广场上那些乐队还要真切得多。这些欣喜若狂、紧紧依偎在一起的情侣们，尽管言语不多，却在一片欢腾的气氛之中，用他们洋洋自得、无比幸福的样子向世人宣布，鼠疫已经结束，恐怖的统治也结束了。他们不顾事实，若无其事地否认我们曾经生活在一个草菅人命的荒谬世界，否认鼠疫中确实存在过的野蛮行径和蓄意的疯狂举动，这无非是在宣扬一种离经叛道的所谓自由罢了，他们也否认我们闻到过这种令所有幸存者目瞪口呆的停尸间的恶臭。总之，他们否认我们曾经深受鼠疫的折磨，那时侯，每天都有一部分人的尸体被扔进焚化炉，最后化为一股浓烟，而其余人则束手无策地等待着死神的召唤。 这章没有结束^.^，请点击下一页继续阅读！ 不管怎样，这就是里厄当天在将近黄昏时所看到的情景，那时候，他正独自一人朝市郊走去，钟声、炮声、乐声和震耳欲聋的叫喊声不绝于耳。毫无疑问，医生是无假可休的，病人从不休假。在淡淡的、清丽的晚霞映照下，城里升腾起一股熟悉的烤肉和茴香酒的味道。在他周围，一副副幸福的面庞仰望着阳光明媚的天空，红光满面的一对对男女拥抱在一起，不时地发出低声而深情的呼唤。是的，鼠疫带着恐怖都逝去了，而这些热情的拥抱正说明了这一点：鼠疫这个词眼最深层的含义就是流放和分离。 里厄头一次觉得他明白了路人脸上那种亲如一家的神色，好几个月以来，他就注意到了这一点。他现在只要看看四周就清楚了。鼠疫结束了，它所带来的苦难和贫穷也结束了，这些男男女女还保留着他们长期以来所扮演的流放者角色的特征，起先是他们的脸色，而现在是他们的衣着，讲述着他们远离故土忍受长期惩罚的经历。自从鼠疫爆发、城门关闭以来，他们开始了一种与世隔绝的生活，感受不到那种令人忘却一切痛苦的人间温暖。在这座城市的每一个角落里，男男女女都曾不同程度地渴望着团聚，尽管团聚的性质各有不同，但同样都是无法实现的。他们当中大多数人都曾热切地渴望着不在身边的心上人，渴望着肉体的温暖，昔日的温存，或者只是怀念那种早已习惯的生活。有些人往往在不知不觉之中就承受了这样的痛苦：他们身边不再有朋友相伴，他们再也不能通过正常途径来与朋友保持联系——比如信件、火车和轮船。还有少数一些人——塔鲁可能就是其中一员——也曾渴望团聚，而原因却是某种他们自己也无法确定的、但认为是世上唯一值得向往的东西。因为想不出一种更好的说法，他们有时就将这东西称作“安宁”。 里厄继续往前走。他走着走着，周围的人越聚越多，嘈杂声越来越大，而他感觉自己每往前走一步，目的地就往后退一步，似乎永远走不到尽头。渐渐地，他发现自己已经融入到这些川流不息、吵吵嚷嚷的人群之中，并越来越能理解人群中发出的呼唤声的含义，这呼唤中至少有一部分代表了他的心声。是的，人们都曾在精神上和肉体上因为难以忍受的空虚、无可挽回的流放和永远不能满足的渴望而遭受过相同的痛苦。在一堆堆尸体中间，在一阵阵救护车的车鸣声中，在以命运之名发出的警告声中，在挥之不去的恐惧气氛中，在痛苦的反抗中，以及它们化身的惊恐情绪中，这些孤立无助、惊慌失措的人们的耳边一直回荡着一阵洪亮的呐喊声，这个声音呼唤着他们去寻找他们心之所向的地方，他们的故土家园。它栖息在这座令人窒息的城市的高墙外，在山冈上芬芳的灌木丛中，在大海的波浪里，在自由的蓝天下，在爱情的呵护下。正是向往着这个迷失的家园，向往着幸福，他们一心渴望回来，对其他的一切都不管不顾。 至于这种流放和这种对团聚的渴望究竟有什么意义，里厄并不清楚。但他继续向前走着，周围推推搡搡，偶尔交谈几句，渐渐地走到了行人较为稀少的街道上。这一路上，他在想，这些事情是否有意义并不重要，我们只需知道这带给人们希望就够了。现在他已找到了这个问题的答案，而当他在市郊这些几乎人迹罕至的街道上行走时，他对这个问题就看得更清楚了。那些恋恋不忘自己的爱人、一心只想回到自己的爱情乐园的人有的已经如愿以偿——尽管他们中间也有些人失去了自己苦苦等待的亲人，依然孤身一人在街上徘徊。不过，那些没有遭受过双重分离之苦的人还是幸运的，他们不像某些人那样，在鼠疫发生前的日子里，一开始就没能建立起牢固的爱情，后来又花费了多年时间盲目地追求表面的和平，磨磨蹭蹭，艰难地凑合着生活，以至最终变成了一对怨偶。这些人就像里厄自己一样，曾经轻率地相信一切都可以靠时间来解决，而现在暂别成了永诀。但另一些人——如朗贝尔，医生在这天早晨对他说：“拿出勇气来！现在是你证明自己正确的时候了”——毫不犹豫地把原以为已经失去的亲人重新拥入了怀中。至少在一段时间里，他们会很幸福。现在他们知道，假如世上有样东西可以让人们永远向往并有可能得到它，那就是人类的爱。但对于那些超越普通的人类情感、追求某种连他们自己也无法想象的东西的人来说，他们并没有如愿。塔鲁也许已经得到了他曾经说过的那种难觅的安宁，但他只是在死时才得到了安宁，而那时安宁已没有意义了。不过，其他人已经如愿以偿——在落日的余辉下，里厄看见他们在家门口热情相拥、深情凝视——因为他们所追求的是他们自己力所能及的东西。当里厄拐进格朗和科塔尔所住的那条街道时，他在想，确实应该让那些只想着亲人和那可怜却又可敬的爱情的人们得到欢乐的奖赏，即使偶尔如此也好。 小主，这个章节后面还有哦^.^，请点击下一页继续阅读，后面更精彩！ part i the unusual events described in this chronicle urred in 194- at oran.everyone agreed that, considering their somewhat extraordinary character, they were out of ce there.for its ordinariness is what strikes one first about the town of oran, which is merely arge french port on the algerian coast, headquarters of the prefect of a french department. the town itself, let us admit, is ugly.it has a smug, cid air and you need time to discover what it is that makes it different from so many business centers in other parts of the world.how to conjure up a picture, for instance, of a town without pigeons, without any trees or gardens, where you never hear the beat of wings or the rustle of leaves—a thoroughly negative ce, in short?the seasons are discriminated only in the sky.all that tells you of spring’sing is the feel of the air, or the baskets of flowers brought in from the suburbs by peddlers; it’s a spring cried in the marketces.during the summer the sun bakes the houses bone-dry, sprinkles our walls with grayish dust, and you have no option but to survive those days of fire indoors, behind closed shutters.in autumn, on the other hand, we have deluges of mud.only winter brings really pleasant weather. perhaps the easiest way of making a town’s acquaintance is to ascertain how the people in it work, how they love, and how they die.in our little town (is this, one wonders, an effect of the climate?) all three are done on much the same lines, with the same feverish yet casual air.the truth is that everyone is bored, and devotes himself to cultivating habits.our citizens work hard, but solely with the object of getting rich.their chief interest is inmerce, and their chief aim in life is, as they call it, “doing business.”naturally they don’t eschew such simpler pleasures as love-making, seabathing, going to the pictures.but, very sensibly, they reserve these pastimes for saturday afternoons and sundays and employ the rest of the week in making money, as much as possible.in the evening, on leaving the office, they forgather, at an hour that never varies, in the cafes, stroll the same boulevard, or take the air on their balconies.the passions of the young are violent and short-lived; the vices of older men seldom range beyond an addiction to bowling, to banquets and “socials,” or clubs whererge sums change hands on the fall of a card. it will be said, no doubt, that these habits are not peculiar to our town; really all our contemporaries are much the same.certainly nothing ismoner nowadays than to see people working from morn till night and then proceeding to fritter away at card-tables, in cafes and in small-talk what time is left for living.nevertheless there still exist towns and countries where people have now and then an inkling of something different.in general it doesn’t change their lives.still, they have had an intimation, and that’s so much to the good.oran, however, seems to be a town without intimations; in other words,pletely modern.hence i see no need to dwell on the manner of loving in our town.the men and women consume one another rapidly in what is called “the act of love,” or else settle down to a mild habit of conjugality.we seldom find a mean between these extremes.that, too, is not exceptional.at oran, as elsewhere, forck of time and thinking, people have to love one another without knowing much about it. what is more exceptional in our town is the difficulty one may experience there in dying.“difficulty,” perhaps, is not the right word, “difort” woulde nearer.being ill’s never agreeable but there are towns that stand by you, so to speak, when you are sick; in which you can, after a fashion, let yourself go.an invalid needs small attentions, he likes to have something to rely on, and that’s natural enough.but at oran the violent extremes of temperature, the exigencies of business, the uninspiring surroundings, the sudden nightfalls, and the very nature of its pleasures call for good health.an invalid feels out of it there.think what it must be for a dying man, trapped behind hundreds of walls all sizzling with heat, while the whole poption, sitting in cafes or hanging on the telephone, is discussing shipments, bills ofding, discounts!it will then be obvious what difort attends death, even modern death, when it ways you under such conditions in a dry ce. these somewhat haphazard observations may give a fair idea of what our town is like.however, we must not exaggerate.really, all that was to be conveyed was the banality of the town’s appearance and of life in it.but you can get through the days there without trouble, once you have formed habits.and since habits are precisely what our town encourages, all is for the best.viewed from this angle, its life is not particrly exciting; that must be admitted.but, at least, social unrest is quite unknown among us.and our frank-spoken, amiable, and industrious citizens have always inspired a reasonable esteem in visitors.treeless, mour-less, soulless, the town of oran ends by seeming restful and, after a while, you gocently to sleep there. it is only fair to add that oran is grafted on to a uniquendscape, in the center of a bare teau, ringed with luminous hills and above a perfectly shaped bay.all we may regret is the town’s being so disposed that it turns its back on the bay, with the result that it’s impossible to see the sea, you always have to go to look for it. such being the normal life of oran, it will be easily understood that our fellow citizens had not the faintest reason to apprehend the incidents that took ce in the spring of the year in question and were (as we subsequently realized) premonitory signs of the grave events we are to chronicle.to some, these events will seem quite natural; to others, all but incredible.but, obviously, a narrator cannot take ount of these differences of outlook.his business is only to say: “this is what happened,” when he knows that it actually did happen, that it closely affected the life of a whole popce, and that there are thousands of eyewitnesses who can appraise in their hearts the truth of what he writes. in any case the narrator (whose identity will be made known in due course) would have little im topetence for a task like this, had not chance put him in the way of gathering much information, and had he not been, by the force of things, closely involved in all that he proposes to narrate.this is his justification for ying the part of a historian.naturally, a historian, even an amateur, always has data, personal or at second hand, to guide him.the present narrator has three kinds of data: first, what he saw himself; secondly, the ounts of other eyewitnesses (thanks to the part he yed, he was enabled to learn their personal impressions from all those figuring in this chronicle); and,stly, documents that subsequently came into his hands.he proposes to draw on these records whenever this seems desirable, and to employ them as he thinks best.he also proposes... 这章没有结束^.^，请点击下一页继续阅读！ but perhaps the time hase to drop preliminaries and cautionary remarks and tounch into the narrative proper.the ount of the first days needs giving in some detail. chapter 2 michel’s death marked, one might say, the end of the first period, that of bewildering portents, and the beginning of another, rtively more trying, in which the perplexity of the early days gradually gave ce to panic.reviewing that first phase in the light of subsequent events, our townsfolk realized that they had never dreamed it possible that our little town should be chosen out for the scene of such grotesque happenings as the wholesale death of rats in broad daylight or the decease of concierges through exotic mdies.in this respect they were wrong, and their views obviously called for revision.still, if things had gone thus far and no farther, force of habit would doubtless have gained the day, as usual.but other members of ourmunity, not all menials or poor people, were to follow the path down which m. michel had led the way.and it was then that fear, and with fear serious reflection, began. however, before entering on a detailed ount of the next phase, the narrator proposes to give the opinion of another witness on the period that has been described.jean tarrou, whose acquaintance we have already made at the beginning of this narrative, hade to oran some weeks before and was staying in a big hotel in the center of the town.apparently he had private means and was not engaged in business.but though he gradually became a familiar figure in our midst, no one knew where he hailed from or what had brought him to oran.he was often to be seen in public and at the beginning of spring was seen on one or other of the beaches almost every day; obviously he was fond of swimming.good-humored, always ready with a smile, he seemed an addict of all normal pleasures without being their ve.in fact, the only habit he was known to have was that of cultivating the society of the spanish dancers and musicians who abound in our town. his notebooksprise a sort of chronicle of those strange early days we all lived through.but an unusual type of chronicle, since the writer seems to make a point of understatement, and at first sight we might almost imagine that tarrou had a habit of observing events and people through the wrong end of a telescope.in those chaotic times he set himself to recording the history of what the normal historian passes over.obviously we may deplore this curious kink in his character and suspect in him ack of proper feeling.all the same, it is undeniable that these notebooks, which form a sort of discursive diary, supply the chronicler of the period with a host of seeming-trivial details which yet have their importance, and whose very oddity should be enough to prevent the reader from passing hasty judgment on this singr man. the earliest entries made by jean tarrou synchronize with hising to oran.from the outset they reveal a paradoxical satisfaction at the discovery of a town so intrinsically ugly.we find in them a minute description of the two bronze lions adorning the municipal office, and appropriatements on theck of trees, the hideousness of the houses, and the absurdy-out of the town.tarrou sprinkles his descriptions with bits of conversation overheard in streetcars and in the streets, never adding ament on them except—thises somewhatter—in the report of a dialogue concerning a man named camps.it was a chat between two streetcar conductors. “you knew camps, didn’t you?” asked one of them.“camps?a tall chap with a ck mustache?”“that’s him.a switchman.”“ah yes, i remember now.”“well, he’s dead.”“oh?when did he die?”“after that business about the rats.”“you don’t say so!what did he die of?”“i couldn’t say exactly.some kind of fever.of course, he never was what you might call fit.he got abscesses under the arms, and they did him in, it seems.”“still, he didn’t look that different from other people.”“i wouldn’t say that.he had a weak chest and he used to y the trombone in the town band.it’s hard on the lungs, blowing a trombone.” 这章没有结束^.^，请点击下一页继续阅读！ “ah, if you’ve got weak lungs, it don’t do you any good, blowing down a big instrument like that.” after jotting down this dialogue tarrou went on to specte why camps had joined a band when it was so clearly inadvisable, and what obscure motive had led him to risk his life for the sake of parading the streets on sunday mornings. we gather that tarrou was agreeably impressed by a little scene that took ce daily on the balcony of a house facing his window.his room at the hotel looked on to a small side street and there were always several cats sleeping in the shadow of the walls.every day, soon after lunch, at a time when most people stayed indoors, enjoying a siesta, a dapper little old man stepped out on the balcony on the other side of the street.he had a soldierly bearing, very erect, and affected a military style of dressing; his snow-white hair was always brushed to perfect smoothness.leaning over the balcony he would call: “pussy! pussy!” in a voice at once haughty and endearing.the cats blinked up at him with sleep-pale eyes, but made no move as yet.he then proceeded to tear some paper into scraps and let them fall into the street; interested by the fluttering shower of white butterflies, the cats came forward, lifting tentative paws toward thest scraps of paper.then, taking careful aim, the old man would spit vigorously at the cats and, whenever a liquid missile hit the quarry, would beam with delightstly, tarrou seemed to have been quite fascinated by themercial character of the town, whose aspect, activities, and even pleasures all seemed to be dictated by considerations of business.this idiosyncrasy—the term he uses in his diary—was warmly approved of by tarrou; indeed, one of his appreciativements ends on the exmation: “atst!” these are the only passages in which our visitor’s record, at this period, strikes a seemingly personal note.its significance and the earnestness behind it might escape the reader on a casual perusal.for example, after describing how the discovery of a dead rat led the hotel cashier to make an error in his bill, tarrou added: “query: how contrive not to waste one’s time?answer: by being fully aware of it all the while.ways in which this can be done: by spending one’s days on an uneasy chair in a dentist’s waiting-room; by remaining on one’s balcony all a sunday afternoon; by listening to lectures in anguage one doesn’t know; by traveling by the longest and least-convenient train routes, and of course standing all the way; by lining up at the box-office of theaters and then not buying a seat; and so forth.” 这章没有结束^.^，请点击下一页继续阅读！ then, immediately following these entricities of thought and expression, wee on a detailed description of the streetcar service in the town, the structure of the cars, their indeterminate color, their unvarying dirtiness—and he concludes his observations with a “very odd,” which exins—nothing. so much by way of introduction to tarrou’sments on the phenomenon of the rats. “the little old fellow opposite is quite disconste today.there are no more cats.the sight of all those dead rats strewn about the street may have excited their hunting instinct; anyhow, they all have vanished.to my thinking, there’s no question of their eating the dead rats.mine, i remember, turned up their noses at dead things.all the same, they’re probably busy hunting in the cers—hence the old boy’s plight.his hair isn’t as well brushed as usual, and he looks less alert, less military.you can see he is worried.after a few moments he went back into the room.but first he spat once—on emptiness. “in town today a streetcar was stopped because a dead rat had been found in it.(query: how did it get there?)two or three women promptly alighted.the rat was thrown out.the car went on. “the night watchman at the hotel, a level-headed man, assured me that all these rats meant troubleing.‘when the rat leave a ship...’ i replied that this held good for ships, but for towns it hadn’t yet been demonstrated.but he stuck to his point.i asked what sort of ‘trouble’ we might expect.that he couldn’t say; disasters alwayse out of the blue.but he wouldn’t be surprised if there were an earthquake brewing.i admitted that was possible, and then he asked if the prospect didn’t rm me.‘the only thing i’m interested in,’ i told him, ‘is acquiring peace of mind.’ he understood me perfectly. “i find a family that has its meals in this hotel quite interesting.the father is a tall, thin man, always dressed in ck and wearing a starched cor.the top of his head is bald, with two tufts of gray hair on each side.his small, beady eyes, narrow nose, and hard, straight mouth make him look like a well-brought-up owl.he is always first at the door of the restaurant, stands aside to let his wife—a tiny woman, like a ck mouse—go in, and thenes in himself with a small boy and girl, dressed like performing poodles, at his heels.when they are at the table he remains standing till his wife is seated and only then the two poodles can perch themselves on their chairs.he uses no terms of endearment to his family, addresses politely spiteful remarks to his wife, and bluntly tells the kids what he thinks of them.‘nicole, you’re behaving quite disgracefully.’ 小主，这个章节后面还有哦^.^，请点击下一页继续阅读，后面更精彩！ “the little girl is on the brink of tears—which is as it should be.this morning the small boy was all excitement about the rats, and started saying something on the subject. “‘philippe, one doesn’t talk of rats at table.for the future i forbid you to use the word.’ ‘your father’s right,’ approved the mouse. “the two poodles buried their noses in their tes, and the owl acknowledged thanks by a curt, perfunctory nod. “this excellent example notwithstanding, everybody in town is talking about the rats, and the local newspaper has taken a hand.the town-topics column, usually very varied, is now devoted exclusively to a campaign against the local authorities.‘are our city fathers aware that the decaying bodies of these rodents constitute a grave danger to the poption?’ the manager of the hotel can talk of nothing else.but he has a personal grievance, too; that dead rats should be found in the elevator of a three-star hotel seems to him the end of all things.to console him, i said: ‘but, you know, everybody’s in the same boat.’ ‘that’s just it,’ he replied.‘now we’re like everybody else.’ “he was the first to tell me about the outbreak of this queer kind of fever which is causing much rm.one of his chambermaids has got it. ‘but i feel sure it’s not contagious,’ he hastened to assure me.i told him it was all the same to me.‘ah, i understand, sir.you’re like me, you’re a fatalist.’ “i had said nothing of the kind and, what’s more, am not a fatalist.i told him so....” from this point onwards tarrou’s entries deal in some detail with the curious fever that was causing much anxiety among the public.when noting that the little old man, now that the rats had ceased appearing, had regained his cats and was studiously perfecting his shooting, tarrou adds that a dozen or so cases of this fever were known to have urred, and most had ended fatally. for the light it may throw on the narrative that follows, tarrou’s description of dr. rieux may be suitably inserted here.so far as the narrator can judge, it is fairly urate. “looks about thirty-five.moderate height.broad shoulders.almost rectangr face.dark, steady eyes, but prominent jaws.a biggish, well-modeled nose.ck hair, cropped very close.a curving mouth with thick, usually tight-set lips.with his tanned skin, the ck down on his hands and arms, the dark but bing suits he always wears, he reminds one of a sicilian peasant. “he walks quickly.when crossing a street, he steps off the sidewalk without changing his pace, but two out of three times makes a little hop when he steps on to the sidewalk on the other side.he is absentminded and, when driving his car, often leaves his side-signals on after he has turned a corner.always bareheaded.looks knowledgeable.” chapter 3 tarrou’s figures were correct.dr. rieux was only too well aware of the serious turn things had taken.after seeing to the istion of the concierge’s body, he had rung up richard and asked what he made of these inguinal-fever cases. “i can make nothing of them,” richard confessed.“there have been two deaths, one in forty-eight hours, the other in three days.and the second patient showed all the signs of convalescence when i visited him on the second day.” “please let me know if you have other cases,” rieux said. he rang up some other colleagues.as a result of these inquiries he gathered that there had been some twenty cases of the same type within thest few days.almost all had ended fatally.he then advised richard, who was chairman of the local medical association, to have any fresh cases put into istion wards. “sorry,” richard said, “but i can’t do anything about it.an order to that effect can be issued only by the prefect.anyhow, what grounds have you for supposing there’s danger of contagion?” part ii chapter 8 from now on, it can be said that gue was the concern of all of us.hitherto, surprised as he may have been by the strange things happening around him, each individual citizen had gone about his business as usual, so far as this was possible.and no doubt he would have continued doing so.but once the town gates were shut, every one of us realized that all, the narrator included, were, so to speak, in the same boat, and each would have to adapt himself to the new conditions of life.thus, for example, a feeling normally as individual as the ache of separation from those one loves suddenly be came a feeling in which all shared alike and—together with fear—the greatest affliction of the long period of exile thaty ahead. one of the most striking consequences of the closing of the gates was, in fact, this sudden deprivation befalling people who werepletely unprepared for it.mothers and children, lovers, husbands and wives, who had a few days previously taken it for granted that their parting would be a short one, who had kissed one another good-by on the tform and exchanged a few trivial remarks, sure as they were of seeing one another again after a few days or, at most, a few weeks, duped by our blind human faith in the near future and little if at all diverted from their normal interests by this leave-taking—all these people found themselves, without the least warning, hopelessly cut off, prevented from seeing one another again, or evenmunicating with one another.for actually the closing of the gates took ce some hours before the official order was made known to the public, and, naturally enough, it was impossible to take individual cases of hardship into ount.it might indeed be said that the first effect of this brutal visitation was topel our townspeople to act as if they had no feelings as individuals.during the first part of the day on which the prohibition to leave the town came into force the prefect’s office was besieged by a crowd of applicants advancing pleas of equal cogency but equally impossible to take into consideration.indeed, it needed several days for us to realize that we werepletely cornered; that words like “special arrangements,” “favor,” and “priority” had lost all effective meaning. 小主，这个章节后面还有哦^.^，请点击下一页继续阅读，后面更精彩！ even the small satisfaction of writing letters was denied us.it came to this: not only had the town ceased to be in touch with the rest of the world by normal means ofmunication, but also—ording to a second notification—all correspondence was forbidden, to obviate the risk of letters’ carrying infection outside the town.in the early days a favored few managed to persuade the sentries at the gates to allow them to get messages through to the outside world.but that was only at the beginning of the epidemic, when the sentries found it natural to obey their feelings of humanityter on, when these same sentries had had the gravity of the situation drummed into them, they tly refused to take responsibilities whose possible after-effects they could not foresee.at first, telephone calls to other towns were allowed, but this led to such crowding of the telephone booths and dys on the lines that for some days they also were prohibited, and thereafter limited to what were called “urgent cases,” such as deaths, marriages, and births.so we had to fall back on telegrams. people linked together by friendship, affection, or physical love found themselves reduced to hunting for tokens of their pastmunion within thepass of a ten-word telegram.and since, in practice, the phrases one can use in a telegram are quickly exhausted, long lives passed side by side, or passionate yearnings, soon declined to the exchange of such trite forms as: “am well. always thinking of you. love.” some few of us, however, persisted in writing letters and gave much time to hatching ns for corresponding with the outside world; but almost always these ns came to nothing.even on the rare asions when they seeded, we could not know this, since we received no answer.for weeks on end we were reduced to starting the same letter over and over again recopying the same scraps of news and the same personal appeals, with the result that after a certain time the living words, into which we had as it were transfused our hearts’ blood, were drained of any meaning.thereafter we went on copying them mechanically, trying, through the dead phrases, to convey some notion of our ordeal.and in the long run, to these sterile, reiterated monologues, these futile colloquies with a nk wall, even the banal forms of a telegram came to seem preferable. 小主，这个章节后面还有哦^.^，请点击下一页继续阅读，后面更精彩！ also, after some days—when it was clear that no one had the least hope of being able to leave our town—inquiries began to be made whether the return of people who had gone away before the outbreak would be permitted.after some days’ consideration of the matter the authorities replied affirmatively.they pointed out, however, that in no case would persons who returned be allowed to leave the town again; once here, they would have to stay, whatever happened.some families—actually very few—refused to take the position seriously and in their eagerness to have the absent members of the family with them again, cast prudence to the winds and wired to them to take this opportunity of returning.but very soon those who were prisoners of the gue realized the terrible danger to which this would expose their rtives, and sadly resigned themselves to their absence.at the height of the epidemic we saw only one case in which natural emotions overcame the fear of death in a particrly painful form.it was not, as might be expected, the case of two young people, whose passion made them yearn for each other’s nearness at whatever cost of pain.the two were old dr. castel and his wife, and they had been married for very many years. mme castel had gone on a visit to a neighboring town some days before the epidemic started.they weren’t one of those exemry married couples of the darby-and-joan pattern; on the contrary, the narrator has grounds for saying that, in all probability, neither partner felt quite sure the marriage was all that could have been desired.but this ruthless, protracted separation enabled them to realize that they could not live apart, and in the sudden glow of this discovery the risk of gue seemed insignificant. that was an exception.for most people it was obvious that the separation mustst until the end of the epidemic.and for every one of us the ruling emotion of his life—which he had imagined he knew through and through (the people of oran, as has been said, have simple passions)—took on a new aspect.husbands who had hadplete faith in their wives found, to their surprise, that they were jealous; and lovers had the same experience.men who had pictured themselves as don juans became models of fidelity.sons who had lived beside their mothers hardly giving them a nce fell to picturing with poignant regret each wrinkle in the absent face that memory cast upon the screen.this drastic, clean-cut deprivation and ourplete ignorance of what the future held in store had taken us unawares; we were unable to react against the mute appeal of presences, still so near and already so far, which haunted us daylong.in fact, our suffering was twofold; our own to start with, and then the imagined suffering of the absent one, son, mother, wife, or mistress. under other circumstances our townsfolk would probably have found an outlet in increased activity, a more sociable life.but the gue forced inactivity on them, limiting their movements to the same dull round inside the town, and throwing them, day after day, on the illusive sce of their memories.for in their aimless walks they kept oning back to the same streets and usually, owing to the smallness of the town, these were streets in which, in happier days, they had walked with those who now were absent. thus the first thing that gue brought to our town was exile.and the narrator is convinced that he can set down here, the feeling he personally had and to which many of his friends confessed.it was undoubtedly the feeling of exile—that sensation of a void within which never left us, that irrational longing to hark back to the past or else to speed up the march of time, and those keen shafts of memory that stung like fire.sometimes we toyed with our imagination,posing ourselves to wait for a ring at the bell announcing somebody’s return, or for the sound of a familiar footstep on the stairs; but, though we might deliberately stay at home at the hour when a travelering by the evening train would normally have arrived, and though we might contrive to forget for the moment that no trains were running, that game of make-believe, for obvious reasons, could notst.always a moment came when we had to face the fact that no trains wereing in.and then we realized that the separation was destined to continue, we had no choice but toe to terms with the days ahead.in short, we returned to our prison-house, we had nothing left us but the past, and even if some were tempted to live in the future, they had speedily to abandon the idea—anyhow, as soon as could be—once they felt the wounds that the imagination inflicts on those who yield themselves to it. 小主，这个章节后面还有哦^.^，请点击下一页继续阅读，后面更精彩！ it is noteworthy that our townspeople very quickly desisted, even in public, from a habit one might have expected them to form—that of trying to figure out the probable duration of their exile.the reason was this: when the most pessimistic had fixed it at, say, six months; when they had drunk in advance the dregs of bitterness of those six ck months, and painfully screwed up their courage to the sticking-ce, straining all their remaining energy to endure valiantly the long ordeal of all those weeks and days—when they had done this, some friend they met, an article in a newspaper, a vague suspicion, or a sh of foresight would suggest that, after all, there was no reason why the epidemic shouldn’tst more than six months; why not a year, or even more? at such moments the copse of their courage, willpower, and endurance was so abrupt that they felt they could never drag themselves out of the pit of despond into which they had fallen.therefore they forced themselves never to think about the problematic day of escape, to cease looking to the future, and always to keep, so to speak, their eyes fixed on the ground at their feet.but, naturally enough, this prudence, this habit of feinting with their predicament and refusing to put up a fight, was ill rewarded.for, while averting that revulsion which they found so unbearable, they also deprived themselves of those redeeming moments, frequent enough when all is told, when by conjuring up pictures of a reunion to be, they could forget about the gue.thus, in a middle course between these heights and depths, they drifted through life rather than lived, the prey of aimless days and sterile memories, like wandering shadows that could have acquired substance only by consenting to root themselves in the solid earth of their distress. 这章没有结束^.^，请点击下一页继续阅读！ thus, too, they came to know the incorrigible sorrow of all prisoners and exiles, which is to live inpany with a memory that serves no purpose.even the past, of which they thought incessantly, had a savor only of regret.for they would have wished to add to it all that they regretted having left undone, while they might yet have done it, with the man or woman whose return they now awaited; just as in all the activities, even the rtively happy ones, of their life as prisoners they kept vainly trying to include the absent one.and thus there was always something missing in their lives.hostile to the past, impatient of the present, and cheated of the future, we were much like those whom men’s justice, or hatred, forces to live behind prison bars.thus the only way of escaping from that intolerable leisure was to set the trains running again in one’s imagination and in filling the silence with the fancied tinkle of a doorbell, in practice obstinately mute. still, if it was an exile, it was, for most of us, exile in one’s own home.and though the narrator experienced only themon form of exile, he cannot forget the case of those who, like rambert the journalist and a good many others, had to endure an aggravated deprivation, since, being travelers caught by the gue and forced to stay where they were, they were cut off both from the person with whom they wanted to be and from their homes as well.in the general exile they were the most exiled; since while time gave rise for them, as for us all, to the suffering appropriate to it, there was also for them the space factor; they were obsessed by it and at every moment knocked their heads against the walls of this huge and alienzar-house secluding them from their lost homes.these were the people, no doubt, whom one often saw wandering forlornly in the dusty town at all hours of the day, silently invoking nightfalls known to them alone and the daysprings of their happiernd.and they fed their despondency with fleeting intimations, messages as disconcerting as a flight of swallows, a dewfall at sundown, or those queer glints the sun sometimes dapples on empty streets.as for that outside world, which can always offer an escape from everything, they shut their eyes to it, bent as they were on cherishing the all-too-real phantoms of their imagination and conjuring up with all their might pictures of and where a special y of light, two or three hills, a favorite tree, a woman’s smile,posed for them a world that nothing could rece. 小主，这个章节后面还有哦^.^，请点击下一页继续阅读，后面更精彩！ toe atst, and more specifically, to the case of parted lovers, who present the greatest interest and of whom the narrator is, perhaps, better qualified to speak—their minds were the prey of different emotions, notably remorse.for their present position enabled them to take stock of their feelings with a sort of feverish objectivity.and, in these conditions, it was rare for them not to detect their own shorings.what first brought these home to them was the trouble they experienced in summoning up any clear picture of what the absent one was doing.they came to deplore their ignorance of the way in which that person used to spend his or her days, and reproached themselves for having troubled too little about this in the past, and for having affected to think that, for a lover, the upations of the loved one when they are not together could be a matter of indifference and not a source of joy. once this had been brought home to them, they could retrace the course of their love and see where it had fallen short.in normal times all of us know, whether consciously or not, that there is no love which can’t be bettered; nevertheless, we reconcile ourselves more or less easily to the fact that ours has never risen above the average.but memory is less disposed topromise.and, in a very definite way, this misfortune which hade from outside and befallen a whole town did more than inflict on us an unmerited distress with which we might well be indignant.it also incited us to create our own suffering and thus to ept frustration as a natural state.this was one of the tricks the pestilence had of diverting attention and confounding issues. thus each of us had to be content to live only for the day, alone under the vast indifference of the sky.this sense of being abandoned, which might in time have given characters a finer temper, began, however, by sapping them to the point of futility.for instance, some of our fellow citizens became subject to a curious kind of servitude, which put them at the mercy of the sun and the rain.looking at them, you had an impression that for the first time in their lives they were bing, as some would say, weather-conscious.a burst of sunshine was enough to make them seem delighted with the world, while rainy days gave a dark cast to their faces and their mood.a few weeks before, they had been free of this absurd subservience to the weather, because they had not to face life alone; the person they were living with held, to some extent, the foreground of their little world.but from now on it was different; they seemed at the mercy of the sky’s caprices—in other words, suffered and hoped irrationally. 小主，这个章节后面还有哦^.^，请点击下一页继续阅读，后面更精彩！ moreover, in this extremity of solitude none could count on any help from his neighbor; each had to bear the load of his troubles alone.if, by some chance, one of us tried to unburden himself or to say something about his feelings, the reply he got, whatever it might be, usually wounded him.and then it dawned on him that he and the man with him weren’t talking about the same thing.for while he himself spoke from the depths of long days of brooding upon his personal distress, and the image he had tried to impart had been slowly shaped and proved in the fires of passion and regret, this meant nothing to the man to whom he was speaking, who pictured a conventional emotion, a grief that is traded on the market-ce, mass-produced.whether friendly or hostile, the reply always missed fire, and the attempt tomunicate had to be given up.this was true of those at least for whom silence was unbearable, and since the others could not find the truly expressive word, they resigned themselves to using the current coin ofnguage, themonces of in narrative, of anecdote, and of their daily paper.so in these cases, too, even the sincerest grief had to make do with the set phrases of ordinary conversation.only on these terms could the prisoners of the gue ensure the sympathy of their concierge and the interest of their hearers. nevertheless—and this point is most important—however bitter their distress and however heavy their hearts, for all their emptiness, it can be truly said of these exiles that in the early period of the gue they could ount themselves privileged.for at the precise moment when the residents of the town began to panic, their thoughts were wholly fixed on the person whom they longed to meet again.the egoism of love made them immune to the general distress and, if they thought of the gue, it was only in so far as it might threaten to make their separation eternal.thus in the very heart of the epidemic they maintained a saving indifference, which one was tempted to take forposure.their despair saved them from panic, thus their misfortune had a good side.for instance, if it happened that one of them was carried off by the disease, it was almost always without his having had time to realize it.snatched suddenly from his long, silentmunion with a wraith of memory, he was plunged straightway into the densest silence of all.he’d had no time for anything. 小主，这个章节后面还有哦^.^，请点击下一页继续阅读，后面更精彩！ chapter 9 while our townspeople were trying toe to terms with their sudden istion, the gue was posting sentries at the gates and turning away ships bound for oran.no vehicle had entered the town since the gates were closed.from that day onwards one had the impression that all cars were moving in circles. the harbor, too, presented a strange appearance to those who looked down on it from the top of the boulevards.themercial activity that hitherto made it one of the chief ports on the coast had ceased abruptly.only a few ships, detained in quarantine, were anchored in the bay.but the gaunt, idle cranes on the wharves, tip-carts lying on their sides, neglected heaps of sacks and barrels—all testified thatmerce, too, had died of gue. in spite of such unusual sights our townsfolk apparently found it hard to grasp what was happening to them. there were feelings all could share, such as fear and separation, but personal interests, too, continued to upy the foreground of their thoughts.nobody as yet had really acknowledged to himself what the disease connoted. most people were chiefly aware of what ruffled the normal tenor of their lives or affected their interests.they were worried and irritated—but these are not feelings with which to confront gue.their first reaction, for instance, was to abuse the authorities.the prefect’s riposte to criticisms echoed by the press—could not the regtions be modified and made less stringent?—was somewhat unexpected.hitherto neither the newspapers nor the ransdoc information bureau had been given any official statistics rting to the epidemic.now the prefect supplied them daily to the bureau, with the request that they should be broadcast once a week. in this, too, the reaction of the public was slower than might have been expected.thus the bare statement that three hundred and two deaths had taken ce in the third week of gue failed to strike their imagination.for one thing, all the three hundred and two deaths might not have been due to gue.also, no one in the town had any idea of the average weekly death-rate in ordinary times.the poption of the town was about two hundred thousand.there was no knowing if the present death-rate were really so abnormal.this is, in fact, the kind of statistics that nobody ever troubles much about—notwithstanding that its interest is obvious.the publked, in short, standards ofparison.it was only as time passed and the steady rise in the death-rate could not be ignored that public opinion became alive to the truth.for in the fifth week there were three hundred and twenty-one deaths, and three hundred and forty-five in the sixth.these figures, anyhow, spoke for themselves.yet they were still not sensational enough to prevent our townsfolk, perturbed though they were, from persisting in the idea that what was happening was a sort of ident, disagreeable enough, but certainly of a temporary order. part iii chapter 17 thus week by week the prisoners of gue put up what fight they could.some, like rambert, even contrived to fancy they were still behaving as free men and had the power of choice.but actually it would have been truer to say that by this time, mid-august, the gue had swallowed up everything and everyone.no longer were there individual destinies; only a collective destiny, made of gue and the emotions shared by all.strongest of these emotions was the sense of exile and of deprivation, with all the crosscurrents of revolt and fear set up by these.that is why the narrator thinks this moment, registering the climax of the summer heat and the disease, the best for describing, on general lines and by way of illustration, the excesses of the living, burials of the dead, and the plight of parted lovers. it was at this time that a high wind rose and blew for several days through the gue-stricken city.wind is particrly dreaded by the inhabitants of oran, since the teau on which the town is built presents no natural obstacle, and it can sweep our streets with unimpeded violence.during the months when not a drop of rain had refreshed the town, a gray crust had formed on everything, and this ked off under the wind, disintegrating into dustclouds.what with the dust and scraps of paper whirled against people’s legs, the streets grew emptier.those few who went out could be seen hurrying along, bent forward, with handkerchiefs or their hands pressed to their mouths.at nightfall, instead of the usual throng of people, each trying to prolong a day that might well be hisst, you met only small groups hastening home or to a favorite cafe.with the result that for several days when twilight came—it fell much quicker at this time of the year—the streets were almost empty, and silent but for the long-drawn stridence of the wind.a smell of brine and seaweed came from the unseen, storm-tossed sea.and in the growing darkness the almost empty town, palled in dust, swept by bitter sea-spray, and loud with the shrilling of the wind, seemed a lost ind of the damned. hitherto the gue had found far more victims in the more thickly popted and less well-appointed outer districts than in the heart of the town.quite suddenly, however, itunched a new attack and established itself in the business center.residents used the wind of carrying infection, “broadcasting germs,” as the hotel manager put it.whatever the reason might be, people living in the central districts realized that their turn hade when each night they heard oftener and oftener the ambnces nging past, sounding the gue’s dismal, passionless tocsin under their windows. the authorities had the idea of segregating certain particrly affected central areas and permitting only those whose services were indispensable to cross the cordon.dwellers in these districts could not help regarding these regtions as a sort of taboo specially directed at themselves, and thus they came, by contrast, to envy residents in other areas their freedom.and thetter, to cheer themselves up in despondent moments, fell to picturing the lot of those others less free than themselves.“anyhow, there are some worse off than i,” was a remark that voiced the only sce to be had in those days. about the same time we had a recrudescence of outbreaks of fire, especially in the residential area near the west gate.it was found, after inquiry, that people who had returned from quarantine were responsible for these fires.thrown off their bnce by bereavement and anxiety, they were burning their houses under the odd delusion that they were killing off the gue in the holocaust.great difficulty was experienced in fighting these fires, whose numbers and frequency exposed whole districts to constant danger, owing to the high wind.when the attempts made by the authorities to convince these well-meaning incendiaries that the official fumigation of their houses effectively removed any risk of infection had proved unavailing, it became necessary to decree very heavy penalties for this type of arson. 这章没有结束^.^，请点击下一页继续阅读！ and most likely it was not the prospect of mere imprisonment that deterred these unhappy people, but themon belief that a sentence of imprisonment was tantamount to a death sentence, owing to the very high mortality prevailing in the town jail.it must be admitted that there was some foundation for this belief.it seemed that, for obvious reasons, the gueunched its most virulent attacks on those who lived, by choice or by necessity, in groups: soldiers, prisoners, monks, and nuns.for though some prisoners are kept solitary, a prison forms a sort ofmunity, as is proved by the fact that in our town jail the guards died of gue in the same proportion as the prisoners.the gue was no respecter of persons and under its despotic rule everyone, from the warden down to the humblest delinquent, was under sentence and, perhaps for the first time, impartial justice reigned in the prison. attempts made by the authorities to redress this leveling-out by some sort of hierarchy—the idea was to confer a decoration on guards who died in the exercise of their duties—came to nothing.since martialw had been dered and the guards might, from a certain angle, be regarded as on active service, they were awarded posthumously the military medal.but though the prisoners raised no protest, strong exception was taken in military circles, and it was pointed out, logically enough, that a most regrettable confusion in the public mind would certainly ensue.the civil authority conceded the point and decided that the simplest solution was to bestow on guards who died at their post a “gue medal.”even so, since as regards the first recipients of the military medal the harm had been done and there was no question of withdrawing the decoration from them, the military were still dissatisfied.moreover, the gue medal had the disadvantage of having far less moral effect than that attaching to a military award, since in time of pestilence a decoration of this sort is too easily acquired.thus nobody was satisfied. 这章没有结束^.^，请点击下一页继续阅读！ another difficulty was that the jail administration could not follow the procedure adopted by the religious and, in a less degree, the military authorities.the monks in the two monasteries of the town had been evacuated and lodged for the time being with religious-minded families.in the same way, whenever possible, small bodies of men had been moved out of barracks and billeted in schools or public buildings.thus the disease, which apparently had forced on us the solidarity of a beleaguered town, disrupted at the same time long-establishedmunities and sent men out to live, as individuals, in rtive istion.this, too, added to the general feeling of unrest. indeed, it can easily be imagined that these changes,bined with the high wind, also had an incendiary effect on certain minds.there were frequent attacks on the gates of the town, and the men who made them now were armed.shots were exchanged, there were casualties, and some few got away.then the sentry posts were reinforced, and such attempts quickly ceased.none the less, they sufficed to start a wave of revolutionary violence, though only on a small scale.houses that had been burnt or closed by the sanitary control were looted.however, it seemed unlikely that these excesses were premeditated.usually it was some chance incentive that led normally well-behaved people to acts which promptly had their imitators.thus you sometimes saw a man, acting on some crazy impulse, dash into a zing house under the eyes of its owner, who was standing by, dazed with grief, watching the mes.seeing his indifference, many of the onlookers would follow the lead given by the first man, and presently the dark street was full of running men, changed to hunched, misshapen gnomes by the flickering glow from the dying mes and the ornaments or furniture they carried on their shoulders.it was incidents of this sort thatpelled the authorities to dere martialw and enforce the regtions deriving from it. two looters were shot, but we may doubt if this made much impression on the others; with so many deaths taking ce every day, these two executions went unheeded—a mere drop in the ocean.actually scenes of this kind continued to take ce fairly often, without the authorities’ making even a show of intervening.the only regtion that seemed to have some effect on the popce was the establishment of a curfew hour.from eleven onwards, plunged inplete darkness, oran seemed a huge necropolis. on moonlight nights the long, straight streets and dirty white walls, nowhere darkened by the shadow of a tree, their peace untroubled by footsteps or a dog’s bark, glimmered in pale recession.the silent city was no more than an assemge of huge, inert cubes, between which only the mute effigies of great men, carapaced in bronze, with their nk stone or metal faces, conjured up a sorry semnce of what the man had been.in lifeless squares and avenues these tawdry idols lorded it under the lowering sky; stolid monsters that might have personified the rule of immobility imposed on us, or, anyhow, its final aspect, that of a defunct city in which gue, stone, and darkness had effectively silenced every voice. but there was darkness also in men’s hearts, and the true facts were as little calcted to reassure our townsfolk as the wild stories going round about the burials.the narrator cannot help talking about these burials, and a word of excuse is here in ce.for he is well aware of the reproach that might be made him in this respect; his justification is that funerals were taking ce throughout this period and, in a way, he waspelled, as indeed everybody waspelled, to give heed to them.in any case it should not be assumed that he has a morbid taste for such ceremonies; quite the contrary, he much prefers the society of the living and—to give a concrete illustration—sea-bathing.but the bathing-beaches were out of bounds and thepany of the living ran a risk, increasing as the days went by, of being perforce converted into thepany of the dead.that was, indeed, self-evident.true, one could always refuse to face this disagreeable fact, shut one’s eyes to it, or thrust it out of mind, but there is a terrible cogency in the self-evident; ultimately it breaks down all defenses. 这章没有结束^.^，请点击下一页继续阅读！ how, for instance, continue to ignore the funerals on the day when somebody you loved needed one?actually the most striking feature of our funerals was their speed.formalities had been whittled down, and, generally speaking, all borate ceremonial suppressed.the gue victim died away from his family and the customary vigil beside the dead body was forbidden, with the result that a person dying in the evening spent the night alone, and those who died in the daytime were promptly buried.needless to say, the family was notified, but in most cases, since the deceased had lived with them, its members were in quarantine and thus immobilized.when, however, the deceased had not lived with his family, they were asked to attend at a fixed time; after, that is to say, the body had been washed and put in the coffin and when the journey to the cemetery was about to begin. let us suppose that these formalities were taking ce at the auxiliary hospital of which dr. rieux was in charge.this converted school had an exit at the back of the main building.arge storeroom giving on the corridor contained the coffins.on arrival, the family found a coffin already nailed up in the corridor.then came the most important part of the business: the signing of official forms by the head of the family.next the coffin was loaded on a motor-vehicle-a real hearse or arge converted ambnce.the mourners stepped into one of the few taxis still allowed to ply and the vehicles drove hell-for-leather to the cemetery by a route avoiding the center of the town. there was a halt at the gate, where police officers applied a rubber stamp to the official exit permit, without which it was impossible for our citizens to have what they called ast restingce.the policeman stood back and the cars drew up near a plot of ground where a number of graves stood open, waiting for inmates.a priest came to meet the mourners, since church services at funerals were now prohibited.to an apaniment of prayers the coffin was dragged from the hearse, roped up, and carried to the graveside; the ropes were slipped and it came heavily to rest at the bottom of the grave.no sooner had the priest begun to sprinkle holy water than the first sod rebounded from the lid.the ambnce had already left and was being sprayed with disinfectant, and while spadefuls of y thudded more and more dully on the risingyer of earth, the family were bundling into the taxi.a quarter of an hourter they were back at home. 小主，这个章节后面还有哦^.^，请点击下一页继续阅读，后面更精彩！ the whole process was put through with the maximum of speed and the minimum of risk.it cannot be denied that, anyhow in the early days, the natural feelings of the family were somewhat outraged by these lightning funerals.but obviously in time of gue such sentiments can’t be taken into ount, and all was sacrificed to efficiency.and though, to start with, the morale of the poption was shaken by this summary procedure—for the desire to have a “proper funeral” is more widespread than is generally believed—as time went on, fortunately enough, the food problem became more urgent and the thoughts of our townsfolk were diverted to more instant needs.so much energy was expended on filling up forms, hunting round for supplies, and lining up that people had no time to think of the manner in which others were dying around them and they themselves would die one day.thus the growingplications of our everyday life, which might have been an affliction, proved to be a blessing in disguise.indeed, had not the epidemic, as already mentioned, spread its ravages, all would have been for the best. for then coffins became scarcer; also there was a shortage of winding-sheets, and of space in the cemetery.something had to be done about this, and one obvious step, justified by its practical convenience, was tobine funerals and, when necessary, multiply the trips between the hospital and the burial-ce.at one moment the stock of coffins in rieux’s hospital was reduced to five.once filled, all five were loaded together in the ambnce.at the cemetery they were emptied out and the iron-gray corpses put on stretchers and deposited in a shed reserved for that purpose, to wait their turn.meanwhile the empty coffins, after being sprayed with antiseptic fluid, were rushed back to the hospital, and the process was repeated as often as necessary.this system worked excellently and won the approval of the prefect.he even told rieux that it was really a great improvement on the death-carts driven by negroes of which one reads in ounts of former visitations of this sort. 小主，这个章节后面还有哦^.^，请点击下一页继续阅读，后面更精彩！ “yes,” rieux said.“and though the burials are much the same, we keep careful records of them.that, you will agree, is progress.” sessful, however, as the system proved itself in practice, there was something so distasteful in thest rites as now performed that the prefect felt constrained to forbid rtions of the deceased being present at the actual interment.they were allowed toe only as far as the cemetery gates, and even that was not authorized officially.for things had somewhat changed as regards thest stage of the ceremony.in a patch of open ground dotted with lentiscus trees at the far end of the cemetery, two big pits had been dug.one was reserved for the men, the other for the women.thus, in this respect, the authorities still gave thought to propriety and it was onlyter that, by the force of things, thisst remnant of decorum went by the board, and men and women were flung into the death-pits indiscriminately.happily, this ultimate indignity synchronized with the gue’sst ravages. in the period we are now concerned with, the separation of the sexes was still in force and the authorities set great store by it.at the bottom of each pit a deepyer of quicklime steamed and seethed.on the lips of the pit a low ridge of quicklime threw up bubbles that burst in the air above it.when the ambnce had finished its trips, the stretchers were carried to the pits in indian file.the naked, somewhat contorted bodies were slid off into the pit almost side by side, then covered with ayer of quicklime and another of earth, thetter only a few inches deep, so as to leave space for subsequent consignments.on the following day the next of kin were asked to sign the register of burials, which showed the distinction that can be made between men and, for example, dogs; men’s deaths are checked and entered up. 这章没有结束^.^，请点击下一页继续阅读！ obviously all these activities called for a considerable staff, and rieux was often on the brink of a shortage.many of the gravediggers, stretcher-bearers, and the like, public servants to begin with, andter volunteers, died of gue.however stringent the precautions, sooner orter contagion did its work.still, when all is said and done, the really amazing thing is that, so long as the epidemicsted, there was never anyck of men for these duties.the critical moment came just before the outbreak touched high-water mark, and the doctor had good reason for feeling anxious.there was then a real shortage of man-power both for the higher posts and for the rough work, as rieux called it.but, paradoxically enough, once the whole town was in the grip of the disease, its very prevalence tended to make things easier, since the disorganization of the town’s economic life threw a great number of persons out of work.few of the workers thus made avable were qualified for administrative posts, but the recruiting of men for the “rough work” became much easier.from now on, indeed, poverty showed itself a stronger stimulus than fear, especially as, owing to its risks, such work was highly paid. the sanitary authorities always had a waiting-list of applicants for work; whenever there was a vacancy the men at the top of the list were notified, and unless they too hadid off work for good, they never failed to appear when summoned.thus the prefect, who had always been reluctant to employ the prisoners in the jail, whether short-term men or lifers, was able to avoid recourse to this distasteful measure.as long, he said, as there were unemployed, we could afford to wait. thus until the end of august our fellow citizens could be conveyed to theirst resting-ce, if not under very decorous conditions, at least in a manner orderly enough for the authorities to feel that they were doing their duty by the dead and the bereaved.however, we may here anticipate a little and describe the pass to which we came in the final phase.from august onwards the gue mortality was and continued such as far to exceed the capacity of our small cemetery.such expedients as knocking down walls and letting the dead encroach on neighboringnd proved inadequate; some new method had to be evolved without dy.the first step taken was to bury the dead by night, which obviously permitted a more summary procedure.the bodies were piled into ambnces inrger andrger numbers.and the few bted wayfarers who, in defiance of the regtions, were abroad in the outlying districts after curfew hour, or whose duties took them there, often saw the long white ambnces hurtling past, making the nightbound streets reverberate with the dull ngor of their bells. 这章没有结束^.^，请点击下一页继续阅读！ part iv chapter 18 throughout september and october the towny prostrate, at the mercy of the gue.there was nothing to do but to “mark time,” and some hundreds of thousands of men and women went on doing this, through weeks that seemed interminable.mist, heat, and rain rang their changes in our streets.from the south came silent coveys of starlings and thrushes, flying very high, but always giving the town a wide berth, as though the strange implement of the gue described by paneloux, the giant il whirling and shrilling over the housetops, warned them off us.at the beginning of october torrents of rain swept the streets clean.and all the time nothing more important befell us than that multitudinous marking time. it was now that rieux and his friends came to realize how exhausted they were.indeed, the workers in the sanitary squads had given up trying to cope with their fatigue.rieux noticed the changeing over his associates, and himself as well, and it took the form of a strange indifference to everything.men, for instance, who hitherto had shown a keen interest in every scrap of news concerning the gue now disyed none at all.rambert, who had been temporarily put in charge of a quarantine station—his hotel had been taken over for this purpose—could state at any moment the exact number of persons under his observation, and every detail of the procedure he hadid down for the prompt evacuation of those who suddenly developed symptoms of the disease was firmly fixed in his mind.the same was true of the statistics of the effects of anti-gue inoctions on the persons in his quarantine station.nevertheless, he could not have told you the week’s total of gue deaths, and he could not even have said if the figure was rising or falling.and meanwhile, in spite of everything, he had not lost hope of being able to “make his get-away” from one day to another. 小主，这个章节后面还有哦^.^，请点击下一页继续阅读，后面更精彩！ as for the others, working themselves almost to a standstill throughout the day and far into the night, they never bothered to read a newspaper or listen to the radio.when told of some unlooked-for recovery, they made a show of interest, but actually received the news with the stolid indifference that we may imagine the fighting man in a great war to feel who, worn out by the incessant strain and mindful only of the duties daily assigned to him, has ceased even to hope for the decisive battle or the bugle-call of armistice. though he still worked out methodically the figures rting to the gue, grand would certainly have been quite unable to say to what they pointed.unlike rieux, rambert, and tarrou, who obviously had great powers of endurance, he had never had good health.and now, in addition to his duties in the municipal office, he had his night work and his secretarial post under rieux.one could see that the strain was telling on him, and if he managed to keep going, it was thanks to two or three fixed ideas, one of which was to take, the moment the gue ended, aplete vacation, of a week at least, which he would devote, “hats off,” to his work in progress.he was also bing subject to esses of sentimentality and at such times would unburden himself to rieux about jeanne.where was she now, he wondered; did her thoughts sometimes turn to him when she read the papers?it was grand to whom one day rieux caught himself talking—much to his own surprise—about his wife, and in the mostmonce terms—something he had never done as yet to anyone. doubtful how far he could trust his wife’s telegrams—their tone was always reassuring—he had decided to wire the house physician of the sanatorium.the reply informed him that her condition had worsened, but everything was being done to arrest further progress of the disease.he had kept the news to himself so far and could only put it down to his nervous exhaustion that he passed it on to grand.after talking to the doctor about jeanne, grand had asked some questions about mme rieux and, on hearing rieux’s reply, said: “you know, it’s wonderful, the cures they bring off nowadays.”rieux agreed, merely adding that the long separation was beginning to tell on him, and, what was more, he might have helped his wife to make a good recovery; whereas, as things were, she must be feeling terribly lonely.after which he fell silent and gave only evasive answers to grand’s further questions. the others were in much the same state.tarrou held his own better, but the entries in his diary show that while his curiosity had kept its depth, it had lost its diversity.indeed, throughout this period the only person, apparently, who really interested him was cottard.in the evening, at rieux’s apartment, where he hade to live now that the hotel was requisitioned as a quarantine center, he paid little or no attention to grand and the doctor when they read over the day’s statistics.at the earliest opportunity he switched the conversation over to his pet subject, small details of the daily life at oran. more perhaps than any of them, dr. castel showed signs of wear and tear.on the day when he came to tell rieux that the anti-gue serum was ready, and they decided to try it for the first time on m. othon’s small son, whose case seemed all but hopeless, rieux suddenly noticed, while he was announcing thetest statistics, that castel was slumped in his chair, sound asleep.the difference in his old friend’s face shocked him.the smile of benevolent irony that always yed on it had seemed to endow it with perpetual youth; now, abruptly left out of control, with a trickle of saliva between the slightly parted lips, it betrayed its age and the wastage of the years.and, seeing this, rieux felt a lumpe to his throat. it was by suchpses that rieux could gauge his exhaustion.his sensibility was getting out of hand.kept under all the time, it had grown hard and brittle and seemed to snappletely now and then, leaving him the prey of his emotions.no resource was left him but to tighten the stranglehold on his feelings and harden his heart protectively.for he knew this was the only way of carrying on.in any case, he had few illusions left, and fatigue was robbing him of even these remaining few.he knew that, over a period whose end he could not glimpse, his task was no longer to cure but to diagnose.to detect, to see, to describe, to register, and then condemn—that was his present function.sometimes a woman would clutch his sleeve, crying shrilly: “doctor, you’ll save him, won’t you?”but he wasn’t there for saving life; he was there to order a sick man’s evacuation.how futile was the hatred he saw on faces then!“you haven’t a heart!” a woman told him on one asion.she was wrong; he had one.it saw him through his twenty-hour day, when he hourly watched men dying who were meant to live.it enabled him to start anew each morning.he had just enough heart for that, as things were now.how could that heart have sufficed for saving life? no, it wasn’t medical aid that he dispensed in those crowded days—only information.obviously that could hardly be reckoned a man’s job.yet, when all was said and done, who, in that terror-stricken, decimated popce, had scope for any activity worthy of his manhood?indeed, for rieux his exhaustion was a blessing in disguise.had he been less tired, his senses more alert, that all-pervading odor of death might have made him sentimental.but when a man has had only four hours’ sleep, he isn’t sentimental.he sees things as they are; that is to say, he sees them in the garish light of justice—hideous, witless justice.and those others, the men and women under sentence to death, shared his bleak enlightenment.before the gue he was weed as a savior.he was going to make them right with a couple of pills or an injection, and people took him by the arm on his way to the sickroom.ttering, but dangerous.now, on the contrary, he came apanied by soldiers, and they had to hammer on the door with rifle-butts before the family would open it.they would have liked to drag him, drag the whole human race, with them to the grave.yes, it was quite true that men can’t do without their fellow men; that he was as helpless as these unhappy people and he, too, deserved the same faint thrill of pity that he allowed himself once he had left them. such, anyhow, were the thoughts that in those endless-seeming weeks ran in the doctor’s mind, along with thoughts about his severance from his wife.and such, too, were his friends’ thoughts, judging by the look he saw on their faces.but the most dangerous effect of the exhaustion steadily gaining on all engaged in the fight against the epidemic did not consist in their rtive indifference to outside events and the feelings of others, but in the ckness and supine-ness that they allowed to invade their personal lives.they developed a tendency to shirk every movement that didn’t seem absolutely necessary or called for efforts that seemed too great to be worth while.thus these men were led to break, oftener and oftener, the rules of hygiene they themselves had instituted, to omit some of the numerous disinfections they should have practiced, and sometimes to visit the homes of people suffering from pneumonic gue without taking steps to safeguard themselves against infection, because they had been notified only at thest moment and could not be bothered with returning to a sanitary service station, sometimes a considerable distance away, to have the necessary institions.therey the real danger; for the energy they devoted to righting the disease made them all the more liable to it.in short, they were gambling on their luck, and luck is not to be coerced. 这章没有结束^.^，请点击下一页继续阅读！ there was, however, one man in the town who seemed neither exhausted nor discouraged; indeed, the living image of contentment.it was cottard.though maintaining contact with rieux and rambert, he still kept rather aloof, whereas he deliberately cultivated tarrou, seeing him as often as tarrou’s scanty leisure permitted.he had two reasons for this: one, that tarrou knew all about his case, and the other, that he always gave him a cordial wee and made him feel at ease.that was one of the remarkable things about tarrou; no matter how much work he had put in, he was always a ready listener and an agreeablepanion.even when, some evenings, he seemedpletely worn out, the next day brought him a new lease of energy.“tarrou’s a fellow one can talk to,” cottard once told rambert, “because he’s really human.he always understands.” this may exin why the entries in tarrou’s diary of this period tend to converge on cottard’s personality.it is obvious that tarrou was attempting to give a full-length picture of the man and noted all his reactions and reflections, whether as conveyed to him by cottard or interpreted by himself.under the heading “cottard and his rtions with the gue,” we find a series, of notes covering several pages and, in the narrator’s opinion, these are well worth summarizing here. one of the entries gives tarrou’s general impression of cottard at this time: “he is blossoming out.expanding in geniality and good humor.”for cottard was anything but upset by the turn events were taking.sometimes in tarrou’spany he voiced his true feelings in remarks of this order: “getting worse every day, isn’t it?well, anyhow, everyone’s in the same boat.” “obviously,” tarrouments, “he’s in the same peril of death as everyone else, but that’s just the point; he’s in it with the others.and then i’m pretty sure he doesn’t seriously think he runs much personal risk.he has got the idea into his head, apparently—and perhaps it’s not so farfetched as it seems—that a man suffering from a dangerous ailment or grave anxiety is allergic to other ailments and anxieties.‘have you noticed,’ he asked me, ‘that no one ever runs two diseases at once?let’s suppose you have an incurable disease like cancer or a galloping consumption—well, you’ll never get gue or typhus; it’s a physical impossibility.in fact, one might go farther; have you ever heard of a man with cancer being killed in an auto smash?’ this theory, for what it’s worth, keeps cottard cheerful.the thing he’d most detest is being cut off from others; he’d rather be one of a beleaguered crowd than a prisoner alone.the gue has put an effective stop to police inquiries, sleuthings, warrants of arrest, and so forthe to that, we have no police nowadays; no crimes past or present, no more criminals—only condemned men hoping for the most capricious of pardons; and among these are the police themselves.” 这章没有结束^.^，请点击下一页继续阅读！ thus cottard (if we may trust tarrou’s diagnosis) had good grounds for viewing the symptoms of mental confusion and distress in those around him with an understanding and an indulgent satisfaction that might have found expression in the remark: “prate away, my friends—but i had it first!” “when i suggested to him,” tarrou continues, “that the surest way of not being cut off from others was having a clean conscience, he frowned.‘if that is so, everyone’s always cut off from everyone else.’ and a momentter he added: ‘say what you like, tarrou, but let me tell you this: the one way of making people hang together is to give ’em a spell of gue.you’ve only got to look around you.’ of course i see his point, and i understand how congenial our present mode of life must be to him.how could he fail to recognize at every turn reactions that were his; the efforts everyone makes to keep on the right side of other people; the obligingness sometimes shown in helping someone who has lost his way, and the ill humor shown at other times; the way people flock to the luxury restaurants, their pleasure at being there and their reluctance to leave; the crowds lining up daily at the picture-houses, filling theaters and music halls and even dance halls, and flooding boisterously out into the squares and avenues; the shrinking from every contact and, notwithstanding, the craving for human warmth that urges people to one another, body to body, sex to sex?cottard has been through all that obviously—with one exception; we may rule out women in his case.with that mug of his!and i should say that when tempted to visit a brothel he refrains; it might give him a bad name and be held up against him one day. “in short, this epidemic has done him proud.of a lonely man who hated loneliness it has made an aplice.yes, ‘aplice’ is the word that fits, and doesn’t he relish hisplicity!he is happily at one with all around him, with their superstitions, their groundless panics, the susceptibilities of people whose nerves are always on the stretch; with their fixed idea of talking the least possible about gue and nevertheless talking of it all the time; with their abject terror at the slightest headache, now they know headache to be an early symptom of the disease; and,stly, with their frayed, irritable sensibility that takes offense at trifling oversights and brings tears to their eyes over the loss of a trouser-button.”tarrou often went out with cottard in the evening, and he describes how they would plunge together into the dark crowds filling the streets at nightfall; how they mingled, shoulder to shoulder, in the ck-andwhite moving mass lit here and there by the fitful gleam of a street-l& and how they let themselves be swept along with the human herd toward resorts of pleasure whosepanionable warmth seemed a safeguard from the gue’s cold breath. what cottard had some months previously been looking for in public ces, luxury and thevish life, the frenzied orgies he had dreamed of without being able to procure them—these were now the quest of a whole popce.though prices soared inevitably, never had so much money been squandered, and while bare necessities were oftencking, never had so much been spent on superfluities.all the recreations of leisure, due though it now was to unemployment, multiplied a hundredfold.sometimes tarrou and cottard would follow for some minutes one of those amorous couples who in the past would have tried to hide the passion drawing them to each other, but now, pressed closely to each other’s side, paraded the streets among the crowd, with the trancelike self-absorption of great lovers, oblivious of the people around them.cottard watched them gloatingly.“good work, my dears!” he’d exim.“go to it!”even his voice had changed, grown louder; as tarrou wrote, he was “blossoming out” in the congenial atmosphere of mass excitement, fantasticallyrge tips clinking on cafe tables, love-affairs shaping under his eyes. however, tarrou seemed to detect little if any spitefulness in cottard’s attitude.his “i’ve been through the mill myself” had more pity than triumph in it.“i suspect,” tarrou wrote, “that he’s getting quite fond of these people shut up under their little patch of sky within their city walls.for instance, he’d like to exin to them, if he had a chance, that it isn’t so terrible as all that.‘you hear them saying,’ he told me, ‘after the gue i’ll do this or that.’they’re eating their hearts out instead of staying put.and they don’t even realize their privileges.take my case: could i say “after my arrest i’ll do this or that”?arrest’s a beginning, not an end.whereas gue....do you know what i think?they’re fretting simply because they won’t let themselves go.and i know what i’m talking about.’” “yes, he knows what he’s talking about,” tarrou added.“he has an insight into the anomalies in the lives of the people here who, though they have an instinctive craving for human contacts, can’t bring themselves to yield to it, because of the mistrust that keeps them apart.for it’smon knowledge that you can’t trust your neighbor; he may pass the disease to you without your knowing it, and take advantage of a moment of inadvertence on your part to infect you. when one has spent one’s days, as cottard has, seeing a possible police spy in everyone, even in persons he feels drawn to, it’s easy to understand this reaction.one can have fellow-feelings toward people who are haunted by the idea that when they least expect it gue mayy its cold hand on their shoulders, and is, perhaps, about to do so at the very moment when one is congratting oneself on being safe and sound.so far as this is possible, he is at ease under a reign of terror.but i suspect that, just because he has been through it before them, he can’t wholly share with them the agony of this feeling of uncertainty that never leaves them.ites to this: like all of us who have not yet died of gue he fully realizes that his freedom and his life may be snatched from him at any moment.but since he, personally, has learned what it is to live in a state of constant fear, he finds it normal that others shoulde to know this state.or perhaps it should be put like this: fear seems to him more bearable under these conditions than it was when he had to bear its burden alone.in this respect he’s wrong, and this makes him harder to understand than other people.still, after all, that’s why he is worth a greater effort to understand.” tarrou’s notes end with a story illustrating the curious state of mind arrived at no less by cottard than by other dwellers in the gue-stricken town.the story recreates as nearly as may be the curiously feverish atmosphere of this period, and that is why the narrator attaches importance to it. 这章没有结束^.^，请点击下一页继续阅读！ one evening cottard and tarrou went to the municipal opera house, where gluck’s orpheus was being given.cottard had invited tarrou.a touring operaticpany hade to oran in the spring for a series of performances.marooned there by the outbreak of gue and finding themselves in difficulties, thepany and the management of the opera house hade to an agreement under which they were to give one performance a week until further notice.thus for several months our theater had been resounding every friday evening with the melodiousments of orpheus and eurydice’s vain appeals.none the less, the opera continued in high favor and yed regrly to full houses.from their seats, the most expensive, cottard and tarrou could look down at the orchestra seats filled to capacity with the cream of oran society.it was interesting to see how careful they were, as they went to their ces, to make an elegant entrance.while the musicians were discreetly tuning up, men in evening dress could be seen moving from one row to another, bowing gracefully to friends under the flood of light bathing the proscenium.in the soft hum of well-mannered conversation they regained the confidence denied them when they walked the dark streets of the town; evening dress was a sure charm against gue. throughout the first act orpheusmented suavely his lost eurydice, with women in grecian tunics singing melodiousments on his plight, and love was hymned in alternating strophes.the audience showed their appreciation in discreet apuse.only a few people noticed that in his song of the second act orpheus introduced some tremolos not in the score and voiced an almost exaggerated emotion when begging the lord of the underworld to be moved by his tears.some rather jerky movements he indulged in gave our connoisseurs of stagecraft an impression of clever, if slightly overdone, effects, intended to bring out the emotion of the words he sang. part v chapter 25 though this sudden setback of the gue was as wee as it was unlooked-for, our townsfolk were in no hurry to jubte.while intensifying their desire to be set free, the terrible months they had lived through had taught them prudence, and they hade to count less and less on a speedy end of the epidemic.all the same, this new development was the talk of the town, and people began to nurse hopes none the less heartfelt for being unavowed.all else took a back ce; that daily there were new victims counted for little beside that staggering fact: the weekly total showed a decrease.one of the signs that a return to the golden age of health was secretly awaited was that our fellow citizens, careful though they were not to voice their hope, now began to talk—in, it is true, a carefully detached tone—of the new order of life that would set in after the gue. all agreed that the amenities of the past couldn’t be restored at once; destruction is an easier, speedier process than reconstruction.however, it was thought that a slight improvement in the food-supply could safely be counted on, and this would relieve what was just now the acutest worry of every household.but in reality behind these mild aspirations lurked wild, extravagant hopes, and often one of us, bing aware of this, would hastily add that, even on the rosiest view, you couldn’t expect the gue to stop from one day to another. actually, while the epidemic did not stop “from one day to another,” it declined more rapidly than we could reasonably have expected.with the first week of january an unusually persistent spell of very cold weather settled in and seemed to crystallize above the town.yet never before had the sky been so blue; day after day its icy radiance flooded the town with brilliant light, and in the frost-cleansed air the epidemic seemed to lose its virulence, and in each of three consecutive weeks a big drop in the death-roll was announced.thus over a rtively brief period the disease lost practically all the gains piled up over many months.its setbacks with seemingly predestined victims, like grand and rieux’s girl patient, its bursts of activity for two or three days in some districts synchronizing with its total disappearance from others, its new practice of multiplying its victims on, say, a monday, and on wednesday letting almost all escape—in short, its esses of violence followed by spells ofplete inactivity—all these gave an impression that its energy was gging, out of exhaustion and exasperation, and it was losing, with its selfmand, the ruthless, almost mathematical efficiency that had been its trump card hitherto. 小主，这个章节后面还有哦^.^，请点击下一页继续阅读，后面更精彩！ of a sudden castel’s anti-gue injections scored frequent sesses, denied it until now.indeed, all the treatments the doctors had tentatively employed, without definite results, now seemed almost uniformly efficacious.it was as if the gue had .been hounded down and cornered, and its sudden weakness lent new strength to the blunted weapons so far used against it.only at rare moments did the disease brace itself and make as it were a blind and fatal leap at three or four patients whose recovery had been expected—a truly ill-starred few, killed off when hope ran highest.such was the case of m. othon, the magistrate, evacuated from the quarantine c& tarrou said of him that “he’d had no luck,” but one couldn’t tell if he had in mind the life or the death of m. othon.but, generally speaking, the epidemic was in retreat all along the line; the officialmuniques, which had at first encouraged no more than shadowy, half-hearted hopes, now confirmed the popr belief that the victory was won and the enemy abandoning his positions.really, however, it is doubtful if this could be called a victory.all that could be said was that the disease seemed to be leaving as unountably as it hade.our strategy had not changed, but whereas yesterday it had obviously failed, today it seemed triumphant.indeed, one’s chief impression was that the epidemic had called a retreat after reaching all its objectives; it had, so to speak, achieved its purpose. nevertheless, it seemed as if nothing had changed in the town.silent as ever by day, the streets filled up at nightfall with the usual crowds of people, now wearing overcoats and scarves.cafes and picture-houses did as much business as before.but on a closer view you might notice that people looked less strained, and they asionally smiled.and this brought home the fact that since the outbreak of gue no one had hitherto been seen to smile in public.the truth was that for many months the town had been stifling under an airless shroud, in which a rent had now been made, and every monday when he turned on the radio, each of us learned that the rift was widening; soon he would be able to breathe freely.it was at best a negative sce, with no immediate impact on men’s lives.still, had anyone been told a month earlier that a train had just left or a boat put in, or that cars were to be allowed on the streets again, the news would have been received with looks of incredulity; whereas in mid-january an announcement of this kind would have caused no surprise.the change, no doubt, was slight.yet, however slight, it proved what a vast forward stride our townsfolk had made in the way of hope.and indeed it could be said that once the faintest stirring of hope became possible, the dominion of the gue was ended. 小主，这个章节后面还有哦^.^，请点击下一页继续阅读，后面更精彩！ it must, however, be admitted that our fellow citizens’ reactions during that month were diverse to the point of incoherence.more precisely, they fluctuated between high optimism and extreme depression.hence the odd circumstance that several more attempts to escape took ce at the very moment when the statistics were most encouraging.this took the authorities by surprise, and, apparently, the sentries too—since most of the “escapists” brought it off.but, looking into it, one saw that people who tried to escape at this time were prompted by quite understandable motives.some of them gue had imbued with a skepticism so thorough that it was now a second nature; they had be allergic to hope in any form.thus even when the gue had run its course, they went on living by its standards.they were, in short, behind the times.in the case of others—chiefly those who had been living until now in forced separation from those they loved—the rising wind of hope, after all these months of durance and depression, had fanned impatience to a ze and swept away their self-control.they were seized with a sort of panic at the thought that they might die so near the goal and never see again the ones they loved, and their long privation have no rpense.thus, though for weary months and months they had endured their long ordeal with dogged perseverance, the first thrill of hope had been enough to shatter what fear and hopelessness had failed to impair.and in the frenzy of their haste they tried to outstrip the gue, incapable of keeping pace with it up to the end. meanwhile, there were various symptoms of the growing optimism.prices, for instance, fell sharply.this fall was unountable from the purely economic viewpoint.our difficulties were as great as ever, the gates were kept rigorously closed, and the food situation was far from showing any improvement.thus it was a purely psychological reaction—as if the dwindling of the gue must have repercussions in all fields.others to profit by the spread of optimism were those who used to live in groups and had been forced to live apart.the two convents reopened and theirmunal life was resumed.the troops, too, were regrouped in such barracks as had not been requisitioned, and settled down to the garrison life of the past.minor details, but significant. 这章没有结束^.^，请点击下一页继续阅读！ this state of subdued yet active ferment prevailed until january 25, when the weekly total showed so striking a decline that, after consulting the medical board, the authorities announced that the epidemic could be regarded as definitely stemmed.true, themunique went on to say that, acting with a prudence of which the poption would certainly approve, the prefect had decided that the gates of the town were to remain closed for two weeks more, and the prophctic measures to remain in force for another month.during this period, at the least sign of danger ‘‘the standing orders would be strictly enforced and, if necessary, prolonged thereafter for such a period as might be deemed desirable.”all, however, concurred in regarding these phrases as mere official verbiage, and the night of january 25 was the asion of much festivity.to associate himself with the popr rejoicings, the prefect gave orders for the street lighting to be resumed as in the past.and the townspeople paraded the brilliantly lighted streets in boisterous groups,ughing and singing.true, in some houses the shutters remained closed, and those within listened in silence to the joyful shouts outside.yet even in these houses of mourning a feeling of deep relief prevailed; whether because atst the fear of seeing other members of the household taken from them was calmed or because the shadow of personal anxiety was lifted from their hearts. the families that perforce withdrew themselves the most from the general jubtion were those who at this hour had one of their members down with gue in hospital and, whether in a quarantine camp or at home, waited in enforced seclusion for the epidemic to have done with them as it had done with the others.no doubt these families had hopes, but they hoarded them and forbade themselves to draw on them before feeling quite sure they were justified.and this time of waiting in silence and exile, in a limbo between joy and grief, seemed still crueler for the dness all around them.but these exceptions did not diminish the satisfaction of the great majority.no doubt the gue was not yet ended—a fact of which they were to be reminded; still, in imagination they could already hear, weeks in advance, trains whistling on their way to an outside world that had no limit, and steamers hooting as they put out from the harbor across shining seas.next day these fancies would have passed and qualms of doubt returned.but for the moment the whole town was on the move, quitting the dark, lugubrious confines where it had struck its roots of stone, and setting forth atst, like a shipload of survivors, toward and of promise. that night tarrou, rieux, rambert, and their colleagues joined for a while the marching crowds and they, too, felt as if they trod on air.long after they had turned off the main streets, even when in empty byways they walked past shuttered houses, the joyful mor followed them up, and because of their fatigue somehow they could not disassociate the sorrow behind those closed shutters from the joy filling the central streets.thus theing liberation had a twofold aspect, of happiness and tears. at one moment, when the cries of exultation in the distance were swelling to a roar, tarrou stopped abruptly.a small, sleek form was scampering along the roadway: a cat, the first cat any of them had seen since the spring.it stopped in the middle of the road, hesitated, licked a paw and quickly passed it behind its right ear; then it started forward again and vanished into the darkness.tarrou smiled to himself; the little old man on the balcony, too, would be pleased. chapter 26 but in those days when the gue seemed to be retreating, slinking back to the obscureir from which it had stealthily emerged, at least one person in the town viewed this retreat with consternation, if tarrou’s notes are to be trusted; and that man was cottard. to tell the truth, these diary notes take a rather curious turn from the date on which the death returns began to drop.the handwriting bes much harder to read—this may have been due to fatigue—and the diarist jumps from one topic to another without transition.what is more, theseter notesck the objectivity of the earlier ones; personal considerations creep in.thus, sandwiched between long passages dealing with the case of cottard, we find a brief ount of the old man and the cats.tarrou conveys to us that the gue had in no wise lessened his appreciation of the old fellow, who continued equally to interest him after the epidemic had run its course; unfortunately, he could not go on interesting him, and this through nock of good intentions on tarrou’s part.he had done his best to see him again.some days after that memorable 25th of january he stationed himself at the corner of the little street.the cats were back at their usual ces, basking in the patches of sunlight.but at the ritual hour the shutters stayed closed.and never once did tarrou see them open on the following days.he drew the rather odd conclusion that the old fellow was either dead or vexed—if vexed, the reason being that he had thought that he was right and the gue had put him in the wrong; if dead, the question was (as in the case of the old asthmatic) had he been a saint?tarrou hardly thought so, but he found in the old man’s case “a pointer.”“perhaps,” he wrote, “we can only reach approximations of sainthood.in which case we must make shift with a mild, benevolent diabolism.” interspersed with observations rting to cottard are remarks, scattered here and there, about grand—he was now convalescent and had gone back to work as if nothing had happened—and about rieux’s mother.the asional conversations he had with her, when living under the same roof, the olddy’s attitudes, her opinions on the gue, are all recorded in detail in the diary.tarrouys stress above all on mme rieux’s self-effacement, her way of exining things in the simplest possible words, her predilection for a special window at which she always sat in the early evening, holding herself rather straight, her hands at rest, her eyes fixed on the quiet street below, until twilight filled the room and she showed among the gathering shadows as a motionless ck form which gradually merged into the invading darkness. he remarks on the “lightness” with which she moved from one room to the other; on her kindness—though no precise instances hade to his notice he discerned its gentle glow in all she said and did; on the gift she had of knowing everything without (apparently) taking thought; andstly that, dim and silent though she was, she quailed before no light, even the garish light of the gue.at this point tarrou’s handwriting began to fall off oddly; indeed, the following lines were almost illegible.and, as if in confirmation of this loss of grip upon himself, thest lines of the entry deal—for the first time in the diary—with his personal life.“she reminds me of my mother; what i loved most in mother was her self-effacement, her ‘dimness,’ as they say, and it’s she i’ve always wanted to get back to.it happened eight years ago; but i can’t say she died.she only effaced herself a trifle more than usual, and when i looked round she was no longer there.” but to return to cottard.when the weekly totals began to show a decline, he visited rieux several times on various pretexts.but obviously what he really wanted was to get from rieux his opinion on the probable course of the epidemic.“do you really think it can stop like that, all of a sudden?”he was skeptical about this, or anyhow professed to be.but the fact that he kept on asking the question seemed to imply he was less sure than he professed to be.from the middle of january rieux gave him fairly optimistic answers.but these were not to cottard’s liking, and his reactions varied on each asion, from mere petnce to great despondency.one day the doctor was moved to tell him that, though the statistics were highly promising, it was too soon to say definitely that we were out of the wood. “in other words,” cottard said promptly, “there’s no knowing.it may start again at any moment.” “quite so.just as it’s equally possible the improvement may speed up.” distressing to everyone else, this state of uncertainty seemed to agree with cottard.tarrou observed that he would enter into conversations with shopkeepers in his part of the town, with the obvious desire of propagating the opinion expressed by rieux.indeed, he had no trouble in doing this.after the first exhration following the announcement of the gue’s decline had worn off, doubts had returned to many minds.and the sight of their anxiety reassured cottard.just as at other times he yielded to discouragement.“yes,” he said gloomily to tarrou, “one of these days the gates will be opened.and then, you’ll see, they’ll drop me like a live coal!”everyone was struck by his abrupt changes of mood during the first three weeks of january.though normally he spared no pains to make himself liked by neighbors and acquaintances, now, for whole days, he deliberately cold-shouldered them. on these asions, so tarrou gathered, he abruptly cut off outside contacts and retired morosely into his shell.he was no more to be seen in restaurants or at the theater or in his favorite cafes.however, he seemed unable to resume the obscure, humdrum life he had led before the epidemic.he stayed in his room and had his meals sent up from a near-by restaurant.only at nightfall did he venture forth to make some small purchases, and on leaving the shop he would furtively roam the darker, less-frequented streets.once or twice tarrou ran into him on these asions, but failed to elicit more than a few gruff monosybles.then, from one day to another, he became sociable again, talked volubly about the gue, asking everyone for his views on it, and mingled in the crowd with evident pleasure. 小主，这个章节后面还有哦^.^，请点击下一页继续阅读，后面更精彩！ on january 25, the day of the official announcement, cottard went to cover again.two dayster tarrou came across him loitering in a side-street.when cottard suggested he should apany him home, tarrou demurred; he’d had a particrly tiring day.but cottard wouldn’t hear of a refusal.he seemed much agitated, gesticted freely, spoke very rapidly and in a very loud tone.he began by asking tarrou if he really thought the officialmunique meant an end of the gue.tarrou replied that obviously a mere official announcement couldn’t stop an epidemic, but it certainly looked as if, barring idents, it would shortly cease.“yes,” cottard said.“barring idents.and idents will happen, won’t they?” tarrou pointed out that the authorities had allowed for that possibility by refusing to open the gates for another fortnight. “and very wise they were!” cottard eximed in the same excited tone.“by the way things are going, i should say they’ll have to eat their words.” tarrou agreed this might be so; still, he thought it wiser to count on the opening of the gates and a return to normal life in the near future. “granted!” cottard rejoined.“but what do you mean by ‘a return to normal life’?” tarrou smiled.“new films at the picture-houses.” but cottard didn’t smile.was it supposed, he asked, that the gue wouldn’t have changed anything and the life of the town would go on as before, exactly as if nothing had happened?tarrou thought that the gue would have changed things and not changed them; naturally our fellow citizens’ strongest desire was, and would be, to behave as if nothing had changed and for that reason nothing would be changed, in a sense.but—to look at it from another angle—one can’t forget everything, however great one’s wish to do so; the gue was bound to leave traces, anyhow, in people’s hearts. 这章没有结束^.^，请点击下一页继续阅读！ to this cottard rejoined curtly that he wasn’t interested in hearts; indeed, they were thest thing he bothered about.what interested him was knowing whether the whole administration wouldn’t be changed, lock, stock, and barrel; whether, for instance, the public services would function as before.tarrou had to admit he had no inside knowledge on the matter; his personal theory was that after the upheaval caused by the epidemic, there would be some dy in getting these services under way again.also, it seemed likely that all sorts of new problems would arise and necessitate at least some reorganization of the administrative system. cottard nodded.“yes, that’s quite on the cards; in fact everyone will have to make a fresh start.” they were nearing cottard’s house.he now seemed more cheerful, determined to take a rosier view of the future.obviously he was picturing the town entering on a new lease of life, blotting out its past and starting again with a clean sheet. “so that’s that,” tarrou smiled.“quite likely things will pan out all right for you, too—who can say?it’ll be a new life for all of us, in a manner of speaking.” they were shaking hands at the door of the apartment house where cottard lived. “quite right!” cottard was growing more and more excited.“that would be a great idea, starting again with a clean sheet.” suddenly from the lightless hall two men emerged.tarrou had hardly time to hear hispanion mutter: “now, what do those birds want?” when the men in question, who looked like subordinate government employees in their best clothes, cut in with an inquiry if his name was cottard.with a stifled exmation cottard swung round and dashed off into the darkness.taken by surprise, tarrou and the two men gazed nkly at each other for some moments.then tarrou asked them what they wanted.in nomittal tones they informed him that they wanted “some information,” and walked away, unhurrying, in the direction cottard had taken. 小主，这个章节后面还有哦^.^，请点击下一页继续阅读，后面更精彩！