“色情”暢銷書引發(fā)爭議

“色情”暢銷書引發(fā)爭議

It did not escape the notice of Tim Cole, the collections manager for the Greensboro Public Library in North Carolina, that “Fifty Shades of Grey” was “of mixed literary merit,” as he put it with a heavy helping of Southern politeness.

北卡羅萊納州格林斯伯勒市圖書館的館藏經(jīng)理蒂姆·科爾(Tim Cole)沒有對《五十度灰》(Fifty Shades of Grey)視而不見，因?yàn)樗簿哂?ldquo;某些文學(xué)價(jià)值”。他用這種濃重的南方式禮貌措辭形容這本書。

He ordered 21 copies anyway.

不管怎樣，他還是為圖書館訂了21本。

His customers had spoken, Mr. Cole said, and like other library officials across the country, he had gotten the message: Readers wanted the “Fifty Shades of Grey” trilogy. In recent weeks they have besieged libraries with requests for the books, signaling a new wave of popularity for these erotic novels, which have become the best-selling titles in the nation this spring.

科爾說，他的顧客們都發(fā)話了。和美國許多圖書館管理者一樣，他也看清了目前的形勢：讀者要讀《五十度灰》三部曲。最近幾周，讀者們包圍了圖書館，要求借閱這套書，這也表明這些色情小說掀起了新一輪熱潮。這三本書在今年春天成了美國暢銷書。

In some cases demand has been so great that it has forced exasperated library officials to dust off their policies — if they have them — on erotica.

在有些圖書館，由于讀者需求太大，惱怒的圖書館管理者不得不調(diào)整他們對色情讀物的政策(假如他們有此類政策)。

In April the trilogy, which includes the titles “Fifty Shades Darker” and “Fifty Shades Freed,” was issued in paperback by Vintage Books, part of the Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group, sending sales through the roof when the publisher printed and distributed the books widely for the first time.

這部小說三部曲分別為《五十度灰》、《更深的五十度》(Fifty Shades Darker)和《奔放五十度》(Fifty Shades Freed)，4月份由蘭登書屋(Random House)旗下科諾夫-道布爾戴出版集團(tuán)(Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group)的平裝書品牌佳釀圖書(Vintage Books)推出平裝版。這套書首度印刷、發(fā)行，銷量立刻飆升。

That enthusiasm has carried over to libraries. At many, “Fifty Shades of Grey,” by the previously unknown British author E. L. James, is the most popular book in circulation, with more holds than anyone can remember on a single title (2,121 and counting last Friday at the Hennepin County Public Library, which includes Minneapolis, up from 942 on April 9).

這種閱讀熱情也蔓延至圖書館。在許多圖書館，過去默默無聞的英國作者E.L.詹姆斯(E. L. James)所寫的《五十度灰》是借閱率最高的圖書，創(chuàng)下了單本書借閱者最多的記錄(覆蓋明尼阿波利斯的亨內(nèi)平縣公共圖書館，這個(gè)數(shù)據(jù)從4月9日的942 人升到上周五(5月18日)的2121人)。

But despite misgivings about the subject matter — the books tell the tale of a dominant-submissive affair between a manipulative millionaire and a naïve younger woman — library officials feel that they need to make it available.

雖然這套書的主題令人不自在——它們講述的是一個(gè)控制欲強(qiáng)的富翁與一個(gè)天真姑娘之間控制與服從的情欲故事——但圖書館管理者們?nèi)杂X得應(yīng)該訂書讓讀者可以借閱。

“This is the ‘Lady Chatterley’s Lover’ of 2012,” Mr. Cole said. “Demand is a big issue with us, because we want to be able to provide popular best-selling material to our patrons.”

科爾說：“這就是2012年的《查泰萊夫人的情人》(Lady Chatterley’s Lover)，讀者的需求是我們的頭等大事，因?yàn)槲覀兿Ｍ蜃x者提供流行讀物。”

But some libraries have been caught on the other side of the issue. The Brevard County Public Library in east central Florida pulled copies of the books from its shelves after library officials decided they were not appropriate for the public.

但還有一些圖書館站在此事的另一邊。佛羅里達(dá)州中央東部地區(qū)的布里瓦德縣公共圖書館就把這套書從書架上撤下來，因?yàn)楣芾碚哒J(rèn)為它們不適合給公眾閱讀。

“We have criteria that we use, and in this case we view this as pornographic material,” said Don Walker, a spokesman for the Brevard County government.

布里瓦德縣政府發(fā)言人唐·沃克(Don Walker)說：“我們是有自己的標(biāo)準(zhǔn)的。就這套書而言，我們認(rèn)為它們是色情讀物。”

In Fond du Lac, Wis., the library did not order any copies, saying the books did not meet the standards of the community. In Georgia the Gwinnett County Public Library, near Atlanta, declined to make the books available in its 15 branches, saying that the trilogy’s graphic writing violated its no-erotica policy.

在威斯康辛州的豐迪拉克市，當(dāng)?shù)貓D書館一本都沒有訂，他們說，這些書達(dá)不到當(dāng)?shù)厣鐓^(qū)的選書標(biāo)準(zhǔn)。亞特蘭大附近的佐治亞州格威納特縣公共圖書館也拒絕在15家分館中向讀者提供這套書，認(rèn)為它對性愛場景的描寫有悖于圖書館不提供色情讀物的準(zhǔn)則。

Last week a group of organizations that included the National Coalition Against Censorship formally responded, sending a letter to the library board in Brevard County scolding it for refusing to stock the book alongside standards like “Tropic of Cancer” or “Fear of Flying.”

五月初，美國反審查聯(lián)盟(National Coalition Against Censorship)等組織聯(lián)合采取了正式行動(dòng)，他們致信布里瓦德縣圖書館理事會，斥責(zé)他們拒絕收藏這套書卻執(zhí)行雙重標(biāo)準(zhǔn)收藏《北回歸線》 (Tropic of Cancer)和《怕飛》(Fear of Flying)之類的書。

“There is no rational basis to provide access to erotic novels like these, and at the same time exclude contemporary fiction with similar content,” the letter said. “The very act of rejecting erotica as a category suitable for public libraries sends an unmistakable message of condemnation that is moralistic in tone, and totally inappropriate in a public institution dedicated to serving the needs and interests of all members of the community.”

他們在這封信中說：“一面提供這種色情小說，一面又排斥有相似內(nèi)容的當(dāng)代小說，這是沒道理的。拒絕色情小說這一適合公共圖書館收藏的門類，這種做法明白無誤地發(fā)出了一種道德定罪的信號，這對一個(gè)致力于滿足社區(qū)所有成員需求和興趣的公共機(jī)構(gòu)來說，是完全不妥當(dāng)?shù)摹?rdquo;

Joan Bertin, the executive director of the National Coalition Against Censorship, said in an interview that it was unusual for a library to remove a book from its section for adults.

美國反審查聯(lián)盟執(zhí)行主任瓊·伯頓(Joan Bertin)在接受采訪時(shí)說，一家圖書館把書從供成人閱讀的書目中拿掉，這是不尋常的事情。

“The vast majority of cases that we deal with have to do with removing books to keep kids from seeing them,” she said. “That’s what makes this so egregious. There are some possible arguments for trying to keep kids away from certain kinds of content, but in the case of adults, other than the restrictions on obscenity and child pornography, there’s simply no excuse. This is really very much against the norms in the profession.”

她說：“我們處理的大多數(shù)事例是不讓某些書出現(xiàn)在孩子的視野中，因此他們的這種做法就顯得異乎尋常了。在什么東西不適合孩子閱讀的問題上的確可能存在爭議，但對于成人，除了對猥褻和兒童色情有所限制，沒有別的借口。那是非常不符合這個(gè)行業(yè)規(guī)范的做法。”

Vintage, which is part of Random House, said in a statement, “Random House fervently opposes literary censorship and supports the First Amendment rights of readers to make their own reading choices. We believe the Brevard County Public Library System is indulging in an act of censorship, and essentially is saying to library patrons: We will judge what you can read.”

隸屬于蘭登書屋的佳釀圖書在聲明中說：“蘭登書屋堅(jiān)決反對文學(xué)審查，支持憲法第一修正案保護(hù)讀者自由選擇的權(quán)利。我們相信，布里瓦德縣公共圖書館系統(tǒng)是對圖書進(jìn)行肆意審查，其實(shí)質(zhì)是告訴讀者：你們能讀什么內(nèi)容，得由我們判斷。”

Decisions about which books to stock tend to rest in the hands of local library officials, calculations based on what patrons are asking for and how much money a library system has to spend.

通常來說，采購什么圖書是由當(dāng)?shù)貓D書館管理者根據(jù)讀者提出借閱的需求量和圖書館可以支配采購的預(yù)算決定的。

The number of patrons waiting in line for “Fifty Shades of Grey” is extraordinary, higher than the usual demand for the latest John Grisham or Danielle Steel novel, library officials say.

圖書館方面說，排隊(duì)等待借閱《五十度灰》的讀者人數(shù)多得不得了，甚至比要求借閱約翰·格里沙姆(John Grisham)、丹尼爾·斯蒂爾(Danielle Steel)等暢銷作家最新作品的人數(shù)還要多。

And the line is getting longer every week. At the Cuyahoga County Public Library in Ohio, a system that includes Cleveland, 454 holds were placed on the book in early April; last week there were 1,399.

而且等待的人數(shù)每周都在增加。覆蓋克里夫蘭的俄亥俄州凱霍加縣公共圖書館統(tǒng)計(jì)顯示，四月初預(yù)約這本書的有454人;上周(五月中旬)已經(jīng)漲到1399人。

Robert J. Rua, an official with the Cuyahoga library, said they had bought 539 copies of the trilogy’s first book. There is no section for erotic fiction in the library, he said, so “Fifty Shades” has been placed among the other trade books for adults.

凱霍加縣圖書館的一名官員羅伯特·J.魯阿(Robert J. Rua)說，他們已經(jīng)買了539冊三部曲中的第一集。由于圖書館中沒有色情小說這一分類，《五十度灰》被放在大眾成人書中。

Paul Bogaards, a spokesman for Vintage Books, declined to provide a current sales figure for the trilogy, but said millions had sold so far.

佳釀圖書的發(fā)言人保羅·博加茲(Paul Bogaards)只是說這套書賣了數(shù)百萬冊，但拒絕透露目前的確切銷量。

Marcee Challener, the manager of materials and circulation services for the Tampa-Hillsborough County Public Libraries, said that library officials there carefully considered the book before ordering it, but ultimately decided that it was no different from one of the paranormal romances featuring vampires that have been popular for years.

坦帕市—希爾斯伯勒縣公共圖書館系統(tǒng)的讀物與流通部經(jīng)理瑪西·查勒納(Marcee Challener)說，他們的圖書館管理者在訂這套書之前慎重考慮過，最終認(rèn)為，它們與近些年流行的吸血鬼主題的人鬼戀浪漫小說大同小異。

“There’s sex and eroticism in many well-written literary novels,” she said. “It’s part of the human experience.”

她說：“許多寫得很好的文學(xué)小說里也有性愛內(nèi)容，這是人類行為的一部分而已。”

But Ken Hall, the library director in Fond du Lac, said he would rather spend precious library funds on books that had literary or artistic value.

但豐迪拉克圖書館館長肯·霍爾(Ken Hall)說，他寧愿把寶貴的圖書館資金花在文學(xué)、藝術(shù)價(jià)值高的圖書上。

Since the library publicly announced that it would not stock the book, he has been hounded by insults, with some people calling him a useless bureaucrat. But he said he had also received numerous compliments from residents urging him not to back down.

自從這家圖書館公開宣布不收藏此書以來，他就不斷遭到辱罵，有些人稱他是無用的官僚。但他說也得到了許多居民的贊揚(yáng)，鼓勵(lì)他不要退卻。