藤沢周平『静かな木』と『早春』 ダイジェスト（英語対訳）７ Fujisawa Shuhei's "The Quiet Tree" and "Early Spring" A Digest (Japanese-English Translation) ７
７ 『早春』から
現代小説『早春』は、妻と死別し、仕事人としては窓際に追いやられ、妻子ある男と恋愛をしている娘と二人暮らしの男の物語。何のために生きてきた、今まで生きがいとしてきたものが失われて行く時、それらが何故生きがいたり得た物だったのかわからなくなる。
そんな男の悲哀は読者自身にも襲いかかっても不思議はなく、だから響くのですが。
「子供や家に対するあの熱くて激しい感情は何だったのだろう。
こんなふうに何も残らずに消えるもののために、あくせくと働いたのだろうか。
窓の光はいつの間にか消えて、考えに沈んでいる岡村を、
冷えたうす闇の中に取り残した」
「和風スナックバー『きよ子』で酒を飲みながら、
ママの清子に胸中を語ったこともあった。清子との再婚を空想して、
ウキウキしたこともあった。が『きよ子』は予告もなしに店を閉め、
ビルの建設工事が始まる。
岡村のところには、午前2時頃になると時々無言電話がかかる。
今夜もかかってきた。相手の気持ちが少しわかるような気がし、
「あなたも話し相手が欲しいんじゃないでしょうか。
なんだったら少しお相手してもいいですよ。どうせ眠れそうもありませんからね」
Fujisawa Shuhei 's "The Quiet Tree" and "Early Spring" A Digest (Japanese-English Translation)
7. From "Early Spring"
The contemporary novel "Early Spring" tells the story of a man who has lost his wife, is relegated to the sidelines as a professional, and lives with his daughter, who is in love with a married man with children. When the things he has lived for and the things that have given him meaning in life are lost, he no longer understands why he ever had meaning in life or what he was able to obtain.
It is not surprising that the sadness of such a man also hits the reader, which is why the story resonates so strongly with him.
"What was that passionate, intense feeling towards my children and my home?
What was that feeling?
What was that feeling I had for my children and my home?
What was that feeling I had for working so hard for something that would just disappear like this, leaving nothing behind?
The light in the window had gone out before I knew it,
leaving Okamura lost in thought,
left in the cold darkness."
"Once upon a time, while drinking at the Japanese-style snack bar 'Kiyoko,' he talked about his feelings to the owner, Kiyoko.
He fantasized about remarrying Kiyoko, and got excited. But then Kiyoko closed without warning, and construction began on the building.
Sometimes Okamura gets a silent phone call at around 2 a.m.
It came again tonight.
He felt like he could understand a little bit of what the other person was feeling, "Maybe you want someone to talk to too.
I don't mind talking to you for a bit, since I'm not likely to be able to sleep anyway." （To be continued）