Aphra Behn’s Oroonoko

阿拉芙‧貝恩的《奧魯諾可》

英文來源：GradeSaver

中文翻譯：宋蘋芳、談玉儀

Source: http://www.gradesaver.com/classicnotes/titles/oroonoko/shortsumm.html 

 Plot Overview:

Oroonoko chronicles the story of the African prince Oroonoko and his beloved wife Imoinda, who are captured by the British and brought to Surinam as slaves. The tale is set primarily in this locale on the northern coast of South America during the 1640s, just before the English surrendered the colony to the Dutch.

《奧魯諾可》敘述的是非洲王子奧魯諾可和他那被英國人俘虜並送到蘇利南當奴隸的愛妻艾莫達的故事，故事的發生時間地點大約是在一九四零年南非北岸，就在英國將此殖民地讓給荷蘭之前。

A young English woman, the nameless narrator, resides on Parham Plantation awaiting transportation back to England. She is the daughter of the new deputy-governor, who unfortunately died during the family's voyage to take up his new post. During her wait, she has the opportunity to meet and befriend prince Oroonoko and his lovely wife, Imoinda. Before introducing the primary character, however, the narrator provides great detail about the colony and the inhabitants, presenting first a list of multicolored birds, myriad insects, high-colored flora and exotic fauna, and then an almost anthropological account of the natives with whom the British trade and who seem to the narrator to be as innocent as Adam and Eve in "the first state of innocence, before man knew how to sin." The British, she insists, live happily with the natives. Because of their vast numbers, the colonists are unable to enslave them and so must look elsewhere for slaves to work on the sugar plantations--that is, they look to Africa.

故事的敘述者為一位不知名的年輕的女子，居住在巴爾漢莊園等待船隻返回英國，她是新任副總督的女兒，但這位副總督不幸喪生於此次與家人赴職的航程中。在她等候船隻到來的期間，有機會遇見??諾可和他愛妻艾莫達。然而，在介紹主要角色前，故事敘述者提供了關於殖民地及居民的詳細介紹，首先，她列出一連串的鳥類、大量的昆蟲、色彩強烈的植物及不同的異國植物，並且也以人類學的角度說明關於當地原住民的生活種種：他們屬於英國殖民交易的一群人口，但對於敘述者而言，他們就如同人類的祖先亞當和夏娃在偷食禁果前那般天真，「如同人類尚未犯下原罪前的最原始的純真」，她堅持與這些原住民歡樂共處。他們的龐大人口無法讓殖民者奴役他們，因此，殖民者必須另尋他地居民來當種植產糖植物的奴隸，他們選中了非洲。

After her overview of Surinam, the narrator switches the setting to Coramantien (today Ghana) on the west coast of Africa, where the protagonist Oroonoko is about to meet Imoinda, the daughter of the general who has just died saving Oroonoko's life. The king of Coramantien, who is the 100-year-old grandfather of Oroonoko, has also fallen in love with the young and beautiful girl and has beaten Oroonoko to the punch by sending her the royal veil, a gift Imoinda cannot refuse, and which signifies that she is now the wife of the king. She will spend the rest of her days locked within the otan, or the royal seraglio, which only the king can visit. Oroonoko, however, breaks into the otan with the help of his good friend Aboan, who keeps one of the king's senior wives named Onahal occupied with lovemaking. The king catches him, and Oroonoko flees. Although Imoinda is sold into slavery, the king later informs Oroonoko that she has been honorably put to death.

在敘述者結束有關蘇利南的概要後，她將場景移至非洲西岸，在那兒主角奧魯諾可與因救他而身亡的將軍女兒艾莫達相遇。科藍馬提雅恩的國王，也就是奧魯諾可一百歲的祖父與他同時愛上年輕貌美的女子艾莫達，國王送艾莫達象徵皇后地位的面紗，艾莫達無法拒絕，這件事帶給奧魯諾可重重的打擊。艾莫達將在唯獨國王可進出的歐單後宮度過她的餘生，然而，奧魯諾可在好友奧邦與其愛人－國王的年者妻妾－歐娜海兒的幫助之下擅闖歐單宮。國王捉到了奧邦，但奧魯諾可卻順利地逃走。雖然艾莫達已送往他國當奴隸，但國王並未將實情告訴奧魯諾可，只說艾莫達已被榮譽賜死。

Meanwhile, the British arrive in Coramantien to trade for the war captives whom Oroonoko sells as slaves. The captain invites the prince and his friends to board his vessel as his guest, but then surprises them and takes them captive. Soon after he promises Oroonoko his freedom, when he and his friends refuse to eat, but he fails to keep this promise. Upon the ship's arrival at Surinam, Oroonoko is sold to the mild-mannered and witty overseer of Parham Plantation who befiends him, Mr. Trefry. At this point, Oroonoko meets the narrator. She and Trefry assure the prince that as soon as the lord-governor Willoughby arrives in Surinam he will be set free.

同時，英國人抵達科藍馬提雅恩，與王子奧魯諾可商議購買戰俘當奴隸的交易，船長邀請王子和他的朋友以客人身分造訪他的船，之後，卻背叛諾言，讓他們全部變成可交易的奴隸。在奧魯諾可和他的朋友拒絕進食之後，船長承諾王子將會獲得自由，但船長卻食言。當船隻抵達蘇利南時，王子被賣給脾氣溫和、聰穎且對他很友善的巴爾漢莊園工頭崔佛來先生。此時，奧魯諾可遇見了故事敘述者，她和崔先生向奧魯諾可保證只要總督為勒比到達蘇利南，他一定會獲得自由。

Because of his high social status, superior education, and spectacular physical appearance, Oroonoko is never sent to work. He resides away from the other slaves in the plantation house. While walking with Trefry one day, he sees Imoinda. The lovers fall happily into each other's arms and all but instantly marry. Soon Imoinda becomes pregnant.

因為奧魯諾可擁有極高的社會地位、一等的教育及異於常人的強健體格，所以他從未被派遣工作，兒獨自一人遠離其他奴隸在草屋居住。一天，當他正跟崔佛來散步時，他看見了艾莫達，兩個人快樂地擁抱並決定結為連理，不久後，艾莫達便懷了身孕。

At this point Oroonoko, who desperately desires that his child not be born a slave, becomes even more concerned about his enslaved status despite Trefry's and the narrator's renewed promises that all will be well when the governor arrives. They attempt to divert him with hunting, fishing, and a trip to a native village. Oroonoko is a champion hunter who kills two tigers singlehandedly in addition to managing to hold onto a fishing rod even when an electric eel knocks him unconscious. Although the native village provides distraction (and another means for Behn to provide cultural information about the natives in this region), Oroonoko incites a slave revolt with the other plantation slaves. They escape on Sunday night when the whites are drunk, but they leave a trail that is easy to follow because they have to burn the brush in front of them. The plan is to settle a new community near the shore and find a ship on which to return to Africa. Meanwhile, the narrator flees to safety, but later she gets a firsthand account of the events.

當奧魯諾可得知艾莫達懷孕時，他迫切地渴望孩子不要一出生就成為奴隸，因此變得更加關心他的奴隸身分帶子女帶來的影響，即便崔先生和故事敘述者都再次向他保證等總督來到時一切都會安好，他依舊憂心不已。他們試著帶奧魯諾可打獵、釣魚及進行一趟當地村落旅行來轉移他的憂心。狩獵之王奧魯諾可單手便可屠殺兩隻猛虎，同時英勇的奧魯諾可當其手握魚竿時，完全不在意導電的鰻魚的攻擊。村落之旅讓奧魯諾可暫時轉移了注意力〈對於作者貝恩而言，藉由描寫奧魯諾可的村落之旅也概述當地原住民的不同的文化現象〉。奧魯諾可聯合其他莊園的奴隸掀起一波奴隸反叛運動。在一個星期天的夜晚，他們趁白人喝得亂醉時伺機逃跑，但是他們留下了一條清楚的足跡好方便回頭，卻因此被白人擄獲。他們原先計畫在鄰近岸邊的地方建設新的部落，並且設法找尋船隻返回非洲。

Deputy-governor Byam negotiates with Oroonoko to surrender and promises him amnesty. Once more he assures Oroonoko that he and his family will be freed and returned to Africa. Hardly surprising, however, Byam lies once more to Oroonoko and sees that he is whipped brutally, with pepper poured into his wounds, as soon as he surrenders. The despondent Oroonoko realizes he now will never be free and that his child will be born in captivity. He informs Imoinda that he has decided to kill her honorably, take revenge on Byam, and then kill himself. She thanks her husband for allowing her to die with dignity, and he cuts her throat and removes her face with his knife. But Oroonoko becomes prostrated with grief and can never generate enough energy to go after Byam. Sinking ever deeper into depression, he waits for eight days next to the body of his dead wife until the stench brings Byam's men to the site, where they immediately set about killing him. Finally, Oroonoko stands stoically smoking his pipe while they chop off his nose, ears, and one leg. Then he falls down dead, and they quarter his body before disposing of it.

副總督畢安在與奧魯諾可協調時勸他投降，承諾會赦免他，並一再保證他和家人將可重獲自由、返回非洲。然而，並不意外地，畢安又再度欺騙奧魯諾可，一旦奧魯諾可投降，他便眼睜睜地看著奧魯諾可被毒打，並且在他傷口上灑胡椒。沮喪的奧魯諾可這時終於了解他將不可能得到自由，而且他的孩子生出來也將被囚禁，因此，他告訴妻子說他決定將她殺害以免她受人玷污，等他殺了畢安之後便自殺。艾莫達感謝丈夫讓她帶著尊嚴死去，隨後奧魯諾可就切割艾莫達的喉嚨，並用刀子取下她的頭顱，但他遂因過度的悲傷而臥倒，不再有力氣向畢安報復，傷心欲絕的奧魯諾可八天苦守在妻子屍體旁，直到她屍臭引領畢安等人前來殺害奧魯諾可。最後，當他們砍掉奧魯諾可的鼻子、耳朵和腿的時候，奧魯諾可仍堅忍地抽著煙斗，但之後便倒地身亡，畢安等人殘酷地將王子的屍體切割成四份之後才與以丟棄。