eviri

Hazrlayan : -B. R. BOZKRT

ANKARA, 1978
(Y eniden gzden
geirilmi
2. Bas m: 1979)
N D E K L E R
Sayfa
EV R VE SORUNLARI (B. Bozkurt) .................................. 1
KLTRDEN KLTRE (Roger Caillois) ............................ 10
YAZMA, Y AZARLI K VE EV R ZER NE (J . L. Borges) 12
EV R SORUNLARI (TRK D L dergi sinden)................... 13
EV R B LM VE EV R ETK NL
(BALAM dergisinden) .................................................................. 23
EV R DERS (B. Bozkurt) ....................................................... 26
RNEKLER ......................................................................... :.............. 31
OF MARRI AGE AND SI NGLE L I FE (Francis Bacon) ... 31
EVLLK BEKARLI K STNE (ev.: Akit Gktrk) ... 32
A PORTRAI T OF THE ARTI ST AS A Y OUNG MAN
(J ames J oyce) .......................................................... 35
SANATININ B R GEN ADAM OLARAK PORTRES
(ev.: Murat Belge) ................................................... 38
HAMLET (William Shakespeare) ................................................... 41
HAMLET (ev.: Orhan Burian) ............................................... 43
HAMLET (ev.: Sabahattin Eybolu) ....................................... 45
J ULI US CAESAR (William Shakespeare) ............................. *7
J ULI US CAESAR (ev.: Sabahattin Eybolu) ......... ... 49
MACBETH (William Shakespeare) ................................................. 51
MACBETH (ev.: Sabahattin Eybolu) ................................. 53
REFLECTI ONS ON A BRI GHT MORNI NG
(Geoffrey Grigson) ....................................................................... 55
I ll
Sayfa
PARLAK B R SABAHLA GELEN DNCELER
(ev.: B. Bozkurt) ......................................................................... 56
TRKEDEN NG L ZCEY E RNEKLER ............................ 57
DA Y OLLARINDA HASTALAR (Fazl Hsn Dalarca) 57
SI CK PEASANTS ON MOUNTAIN ROADS
(ev.: Talat Sait Halman) ........................................................ 58
AKDENZ RL ER (F. H. Dalarca) ....................................... 59
POEMS OF THE MEDI TERRANEAN (ev.: T. S. Halman) 59
HOLLANDALI DRTLKLER (F. H. Dalarca) .................... 63
QUATRAINS OF HOLLAND (ev.: T. S. Halman) ......... 63
STANBULU DNLY ORUM (Orhan Veli K ank) .......... 65
I AM LI STENI NG TO STANBUL
(ev.: Spiro K. K ostof ve F. Engin) ..................................... 67
TEXTS I N ENGL I SH............................................................... 69
Preliminary Exercises ...................................................................... 69
English Proverbs Explained.................................................... 85
I nternational Quotati ons........................................................ 87
Beasts and Birds (A schoolboys essay) ....................................... 89
Some Rules of Cheap Travel (T. Gibson, J . Singleton) ... 90
Raising the Standard of the Routine Correspondence ... 92
Where are you going to, my pretty maid? ................................. 95
A Sea Dirge (Lewis Carroll) ......................................................... 96
Should She Have The B aby?.................................................. 98
The Cliche Expert Testifies on Love (Frank Sullivan) ... 100
Cider With Rosie (L aurie Lee) ....................................................... 104
Marilyn - talking about mysel f ............................................ 105
Queues Bl ues: A Saga of Frustration (J . Banks, a
solicitors clerk) .................................................................v .... 107
Shoppi ng....................................................................................... 109
Poor millionaires (S. Venkat Narayan) ..................................... I l l
My Bad Back: The Agonies of a Visitor (Nora'h K ite,
an antique dealer) ........................................................................ 113
Sir Gawain and the Green K night (summary) ........................ 114
IV
Sayfa
Word Spinning (T. Gibson, J . Singleton) ................................ 116
Senilitys Stresses: Love becomes resentment (J eanne
Steward, a housewife) .............................................................. 118
Montezumas Palace (William Prescott) .................................. 119
The L i on................................................................................................ 121
The Chinese F ox................................................................................ 122
Domestic Animals (The Sunday Times) ................................. 124
Parrot Talk (Patrick Campbell) .................................................. 126
Dedication of Gettysburg (Abraham Lincoln) ..................... 127
Turkey to Export Grain, but at a Loss (Turkish Daily News) 129
Growing up in hatred beside the barricades (The Observer) 131
A State of Agitation (Newsweek) ................................................. 134
I taly : The Cost of Chaos (Newsweek) ...................................... 136
Turkish L ira Devalued 30% Against Major Currencies
(Turkish Daily News) ........................................................ .. 137
Crime (Britannica Book of the Y ear 1972) ........................... 140 .
A Defence of Shyness (Harold Nicolson) ............................... 142
September (D. H. Lawrence) ......................................................... 148
The Mountains and the Valleys (from Rumanian Bird and
Beast Stories) .............................................................................. 149
Ordeal (The Readers Encyclopedia) ........................................... 151
The Art of Fiction (Somerset Maugham) ................................ 152
Sleep (Thomas Dekker) ................................................................... 157
Of J esting (Thomas Fuller) .......................................................... 159
The Lyrical Ballads (S. T. Coleridge) ...................................... 160
My Books (Leigh Hunt) .................................................................. 162
Holy Sonnet 10 (J ohn Donne) ...................................................... 164
The Sun Also Rises (Ernest Hemingway) ................................ 165
Molloy ................................................................................................... 167
Tom Sawyer..................... 169
J ourney Through Europe (J ohn Hillaby) ................................ 171
Hot Days Coming (Turkish Daily News) ................................. 173
Once a Y ear (Turkish Daily News) ............................................ 173
V
Sayfa
Hashish Control (Turkish Daily News) ..................................... 173
J ournal of a Novel (J ohn Steinbeck) .......................................... 174
The Story of Giletta of Narbona (from Elizabethan Love
Stories) ........................................................................................... 176
Seeing People Off (Max Beerbohm) ..................................... 186
Clown sings (William Shakespeare, Twelfth Night) .............. 190
A Hanging (George Orwell) ......................................................... 191
Song (J ohn Donne) .......................................................................... 196
The Summer of the Beautiful White. Horse '
(William Saroyan) ..................................................................... 197
Small Words (W. R. Espy) ............................................................. 205
The Rock (E. M. Forster) .............................................................. 206
Emma (J ane Austen - summary) ............................................... 210
Signs and Symbols (Vladimir Nabokov) .................................. 211
Philebus (Plato - principal ideas advanced) .......................... 216
J orge Luis Borges............................................................................... 218
J osip Broz T i to.................................................................................... 220
TRKE MET NLER ...................................................................... 221
A l t rmal ar.......................................................................................... 221
1971in nemli Ol ayl ar ................................................................... 225
Planlama K urulu Trkiyenin Ekonomik Sorunlarn G
rt ( ngilizceden ev.: B. Bozkurt) ............................ 227
Pakistanda Butto Y anda 200 Kii Tutukland (Milliyet) 227
Bar, Ama Her ey Pahasna Deil ( ngilizceden ev.:
B. Bozkurt) .................................................................................. 228
Y unanistan Baharda Zirve Bulumas neriyor ( ngiliz
ceden ev.: B. Bozkurt) .............................. 230
Bahar iiri (Ataol Behramolu) .................................................. 231
Kimse (Ferit Edg) .......................................................................... 231
iir (lke Tamer) .............................................................................. 236
alkuu (Reat Nuri Gntekin - zet) .................................. 238
Kayk (J . M. de Vasconcelosun roman - yorum ve zet:
M. H. Doan) ............................................................................... 239
VI
Sayfa
i lhan Berk le Bir K onuma (Soyut) ....................................... 241
Mavi Anadolu (Azra Erhat) .......................................................... 242
Doumunun 200. Y lnda Constable (Zeynep Oral) ......... 244
Orhan Veli (Adnan Veli) ............................................................... 245
Git Bahar Git, K orkuyorum Senden (Oktay Akbal) ......... 247
ubat Sabah (Oktay Akbal) ......................................................... 248
Dnce zgrl (Sabahattin Eybolu) ........................... 250
Ev ve Bahe (Sabahattin K udret Aksal) ................................. 251
Birler (Talat Sait Halman) .......................................................... 252
Fil Hamdi Nasl Y akaland (Aziz Nesin) ................................. 252
ippolit ippolitovi (Adnan Binyazar) ....................................... 256
K oullanma (B. Bozkurt) ............................................................... 260
Ekmk (B. Bozkurt) .......................................................................... 261
nc Mevki (Sait Faik Abasyank) ...................................... 263
VI I
EV R VE SORUNLARI
1 Ocak 1978 tarihli Sunday Times gazetesinde Pukinin
Eugene Onegin adl yaptnn yeni bir evirisini deerlendiren
Peter Levi evirinin ana sorunlarndan birine deiniyor. On yl
nce Pukinden yaplan tm ngilizce evirilerin yetersizliin
den umutsuzlua derek bu yazarla ilgilenmekten vazgemek zo
runda kaldn belirten Peter Levi, Eugene Onegin evirisinin
ona Pukini kazandrdn ekliyor ve kusursuz eviri diye bire-
yin sz konusu olamayacana deindikten sonra, elindeki ku
sursuza yakn evirinin deeri ve nemi zerinde duruyor.
Demek ki dil engeli nde gelen bir eletirmeni yldrabiliyor
ve Pukin gibi bir yazar bir kenara brakmasna yol aabiliyor.
Bir topluluun verdii nemli bir sanat rnn baka bir
toplulua tantmak evirinin balca ilevlerinden biri ve bu ile
vin yerine getirilmesinde evirmene ykl bir grev dyor. Bu
yzden kimi yaptlarn evrilemez oluu kltr ve edebiyat a
sndan nemle zerinde durulmas gereken bir sorun. evrile-
mezlik denince hemen akla gelen en belirgin iki rnek Pukin ve
Shakespeare. Bata ngiltere olmak zere, ngilizce konuulan
lkelerde Shakespearein, Rusyada ise Pukinin, deeri tartl
maz birer sanat olduunu eitli kaynaklardan reniyoruz.
Eer bu yazarlarn deeri baka lkelerde tartma gtryor ya
da yeterince bilinmiyorsa, bunun nedenini evirinin ana sorun
larndan birinde, dil engelinde aramak gerekiyor. Bu sorunun
zmlenmesi ise bir anlamda, bir dilde anlatlann bir baka dile
aktarlrken gsterdii direnci krma, anlam yk asndan ge
ride safra brakmamasn salama olarak belirlenebilir.
Y abanc bir dili, o dili konuan insanlar topluluunu, bu
topluluun yaamn ve kltrn tanmann, anlamann yolla
2
rndan biridir eviri. Ayr dilleri konuan iki kii bir araya gel
diklerinde anlamak iin eviriye bavururlar.
Y aznn ortaya kndan ve yaylndan nce evirinin, bu
ii meslek edinmi kimselerce szl ve annda yapld bilini
yor. Okuma yazma oran yksek toplumlarda eviri denince akla
ncelikle yazl bir metinin bir dilden tekine aktarlmas gelir.
Szl eviridense, okluk, uluslararas toplant, grme ve kon
feranslarda, gezilerde yararlanlr. Gnmzde szl evirmen
lik meslei giderek yaygnlama yolunda. Annda eviri ise ki
mi retim kurumlarmn programlarnda imdiden yer alyor.
eviri szl ya da yazl olsun evirmene den i aa yu
kar ayn. Y alnz, yazl eviride evirmen yeterince dnmek ve
gerektiinde dzeltmeler yapmak iin vakit bulur. Y azl eviri
ile szl eviri arasnda baka farkllklar yok deil. Ancak, ko
numuz ncelikle yazl eviri olduu iin bunlar zerinde durma
yacaz.
evirinin temel sorunlar ok eski alarda belirlenmi ve
gnmze dek konuyla ilgilenenleri uratrm. Bu sorunlarn
en bata geleni bir kartl i eriyor: bir dilde anlatlann bir
baka dile aktarlmas _sz konusu^olduunda, her szck elden
geldiince olduu gibi mi evrilmeli yoksa, _bir tmce ya da me
tinin aslna^en yakn anlam m verilmeye allmal? Elden
geldiince derken konunun yeterince ilenmemi bir yan da ken
diliinden ortaya kyor: bu kartlk uygulamada ne lde ge
erli? Kelime kelime eviri diye birey gerekte sz konusu ola
bilir mi? Serbest eviri nereye kadar eviri olarak kalabilir, ve
nereden jsonra eviri olmaktan kar ve bir yoruma, uyarlamaya,
zete, ya da yepyeni, bambaka bir rne dnr?
eviride diller aras bir ilem, bir alveri, bir karlatrma
sz konusu olduuna ve dil ve kltr birbirinden ayr, soyut kav
ramlar olarak dnlemeyeceine gre, iin iine dilin yaps,
ilevi ve dolaysyla dilbilim, zellikle anlambilim (semantik) ve
sosyo - dilbilim giriyor. Dili, iinden kt kltrle kaynam,
o kltrn ayrlmaz bir paras olarak ele aldmzda karm
za kan sorunlarn temelde birer eviri sorunu olmaktan nce
dilin ilevi ve kullanmna ilikin sorunlar olduunu gryoruz.
eviride kimi glkler aslnda kltrleraras ok sayda ve e
itli farkllamalarda kaynaklanyor. K ltr ve dil balbana
3
iki ayr uzmanlama alan ve gerek evirmen gerekse eviri ku
ramcs bu alanlarn bilgi desteinden yararlanmak zorunda.
K ltrleraras farkllk eviri ilemi srasnda gz nnde tu
tulmas gereken nemli etkenlerden biri. K ltrleri olduka bir
birine yakn toplumlarn dilleri arasnda bile szcklerin ede
er anlam tad sylenemez. K ltr terimi, Trk Dil K uru-
munun yaynlad Trke Szckte yle tan ml anyor: Bir
topluluun tinsel zelliini, duyu ve dn birliini oluturan
gelenek durumundaki her trl yaay, dnce ve sanat varlk
larnn tm. iki topluluun yaay, dnce ve sanat varlkla
r arasndaki ayrlklar, bu topluluklarn birinin dilinden teki
ne yaplan eviride de eitli biimlerde, birer engel olarak kar
mza kyor.
eviride her bir szce, deyie, deyime ayn anlam tayan
karlklar bulma abas, boa kma olasl yksek bir caba
gibi grnr. Her dilde kimi szckler trl armlarla, ban
tlarla, yan anlamlarla yklenmitir. Szck vardr, iinde kulla
nld balama gre klk deitirir. Ama tm klklar da gene
o szcn iinde sakldr. ou kez bir szc istemediimiz
yknden syrp soyutlayarak ona dilediimiz anlam veremeyiz.
Belli bir szcn yabanc dilde karln bulma abasna giri
tiimiz zaman okluk bunu yapmaya alyoruzdur. Szcn
tm ykn karlayacak bir edeer, belki kimi teknik szck
ler dnda, bulunmaz. Bu nedenle de bir dildeki anlatmn bir
baka dile olduu gibi aktarlmas da sz konusu olamaz. Her
eviri belli lde bir deitirmedir.
Szcklerin ykn saylamayacak lde ok ge bel i rl er:
bunlara, yukarda belirtildii gibi, genel olarak her trl yaa
y, dnce ve sanat varlklarnn tm diyebileceimiz gibi,
birka rnek ve seebiliriz; tarih, efsane ve din gibi. Din kurumu-
nu ele alalm. Ramazan ve kurban Trkenin, Christmas
(Noel) ngilizcenin, konuya k tutacak nitelikte ykl kavram
lar arasnda.
Ramazan ve kurban, kullanldklar zaman kesitine gre,
toplumsal yaamdaki tarihsel deiim sonucu anlam deimesi
gsteren, eski anlamlar gnmzde kimi zaman aklama, e
viri gerektiren iki kavram. Bu kavramlarn yk bugn dei
mi. Ramazan ve kurban kavramlarnn armlar arasnda
4
mahyann, Ramazan elencelerinin, K aragz ve Hacivatn, Orta
Oyununun, i ftar sofralarnn ve hatt salt, kurban kesme ve kur
ban eti datmann pay olduka azalm grnyor. Gnmzde,
zellikle byk kent yaamnda, Ramazan denince akla, artk
byk bir ounluk saylamayacak bir kesimin tuttuu oru,
iyerlerinde geveklik, kapal lokantalar, iki tketiminin belki
biraz azalmas ve ak yerlerden kapal yerlere kaymas ve, en
nemlisi, gnlk tatil geliyor. Bu tatil i n de artk, bir ay srey
le dizginlenen bedenin salverilmesi, dllendirilmesi anlam yit
mi gibi. ou kimse iin iten uzak kalma olana salayan her
hangi bir tatil bu. K urban ve kurban bayram da benzeri anlam
deiimine uram. K urban bayramnn kaynakland gelenek
sel trenler, uygulamalar aa yukar ortadan kalkm. Ne var
ki, szck dildeki ykl niteliini ve kimi blge azlarndaki
yaygn yerleikliini koruyor, ve kurban denince akla gelen yal
nzca, ngilizcede victim ya da sacrifice szckleriyle kar
lanabilecek olan bir lk urunda feda edilen ya da kendini fe
da eden kimse bir kazada ya da felaket sonunda len kimse
(TDK Trke Szlk) deil. K urban etmek, kurban olmak, kur
ban bayram, ve bunlardan oluturulan tm deyim ve deyilerin
armlar da kavramn iinde sakl; ve bu armlarn ngi
lizcede karlanabilmesi iin victim, martyr, sacrifice, offer
ing szckleri yetersiz. nk bu szckler ayr kltrlerden,
ayr durum ve olgulardan kaynaklanm.
Ramazan ve kurban szckleri ngilizceye evrildiinde, ay
r bir kltrden gelen okur iin, srasyla, gnn belli saatlerinde
yemek ve ikiden uzak durma; ve eski alardaki pagan tren
lerinden kalma ve bugn biim deiikliiyle uygulanan bir ge
lenek anlamna geliyor.
te yandan, Christmas ya da Noel, Hristiyan dnyasnn
temel bayramlarndan biri. (Burada bayram szcn trnak
iine almak gerekebiliyor: nk bu szcn iinden kt kl
trle ilgili arm ve yan anlamlarndan hi biri Noel iin sz
konusu deil.) ngilizceden evrilmi bir parada Noelin bir
Trk iin anlam ylba ncesi bir tatil dna pek kmaz. Bu
bayramn sann doumu ile ilikisi de belki akla gelebilir. Ama
Batl Hristiyan olmayan biri iin karanlkta kalan pek ok an
lam, arm gizli Christmasda: kavram oluturan iki szck:
Christ (sa) ve Mass (kutlama); e dost ziyaretleri; gnderi
5
len kartlar; mumlar renkli klar, parlak katlar ve trl ar
maanlarla donatlan am aac; zel olarak hazrlanan yemek
ve tatl l ar (Christmas Turkey: Christmas Pudding: siyah
renkli, koz helvas kvamnda tatl ); postac, p gibi grevli
lere verilen paralar; snfsal ayrcalklara gre deien kutlama
biimleri ve bunun sonucu doan toplumsal gerilimler, bunlar
arasnda saylabilir.
Demek oluyor ki, eviri yalnzca bir aktarma, szcklerden
karlk bulma teknii deil; youn bilgi, eitim, aratrma ve
alma gerektiren bir ura. evirmenin grevi ise bilinmeyen
bir dnyann rnn kendi dnyasna getirmek; bunu yaparken
de hem okurun, tanmad bir dnyann labirentlerinde kaybol
masn nlemek hem de o dnyaya karlk olarak kendi bildii
benzeri bir dnya yaktrmaktan kanmak oluyor. Bu ise bir
l tutturma, bir denge bulma sanat, ly tutturabilme ve
dengeyi bulma, evirmenin ncelikle kendi dilini iyi bilmesini, o
dilde konuma ve yazma yeteneini kantlam olmasn, kendi
kltrn iyi tanmasn, ve yabanc dil ve kltr de en azn
dan kyaslamal yaklama elverecek lde tanmasn gerektiri
yor.
Ele alnan konular asndan uluslararas bir nitelik tayan
teknik metinler evrilmesi en kolay metinler saylr. K onunun
kapsamna gre deiebilen bir alma srecinden sonra evirme
nin ii kolaylar. Teknik eviride, bir lde kltrel yaknlk
tan, aa yukar ayn anlam tayan, alglama mekanizmasnda
ayn imgeyi oluturan szcklerin okluundan, ve slup ben
zerliklerinden sz edilebilir.
ite burada, zellikle eitli bilgisayar yntemlerinin gnden
gne artan bir hzla gelitirilerek uygulama alanna sokulduu
makinelemi eviri iin iine giriyor. Makinelemi eviride
esas, belli bir dildeki metinin bir makineye bir utan verilmesi
ve teki utan bir baka dildeki hatasz evirisinin alnmasdr.
Bu tr eviri imdilik bilim ve teknoloji konularyla snrlanm
durumda. Teknik konularda szck saysnn snrl olmas, b
yk slup farkllklarnn bulunmamas, insan esinin aradan
kmasn kolaylatrd gibi vakit ve paradan da tasarruf sa
lamakta. Edebiyat alannda da bu konuda giriimler yaplm ol
makla birlikte, yakn bir gelecekte baarl sonu alnmas im
dilik beklenmiyor,
6
iir evirisinde, zellikle iirin iir olarak evrilmesinde ise
zel glkler sz konusu, zgn iirin sanat deerinin yksekli
i orannda evirmenin de ii gleiyor. iir sanatnn doruu
na ulam yaptlar iin kendi diline evrilmezlik ten bile sz
edilebilir. Ondokuzuncu yzyl ngiliz airi Coleridgein szleri
soruna k tutuyor:
iirde, ok g de olsa, dorua eriilebilir. Bu yolda her
dize, her deyi etin snavlardan geirilmeli, her aamada
yaplacak seimler stnde dikkatle durulmal. Ancak by
lelikle kusursuz bir sluba, bir dorua ulalabilir; vsonu-
cun amaz salamasn yapmann ise tek bir yolu var :
iir, eer ayn dilin szckleriyle, anlam zedelenmeksi-
zin, evrilemiyorsa, baarya ulalm demektir.
(I n poetry, in which every line, every phrase, may pass
the ordeal of deliberation and deliberate choice, it is
possible, and barely possible, to attain that ultimatum
which I have ventured to propose as the infallible test of
a blameless style; its untranslatableness in words of the
same language without injury to the meaning.)1
iir sanatnn doruuna erimi ve hem kendi diline hem de
yabanc dillere evrilemezliiyle tannm yazarlardan biri de
Shakespeare. Aadaki rnek, dorua eritii iin olmasa bile,
dilin belli elerinden yararland iin, Shakespearein iirini
evirmenin gln kantlyor :
Sonnet 30
1 When to the sessions of sweet silent thought
I summon up remembrance of things past,
I sigh the lack of many a thing I sought,
And with old woes new wail my dear times waste.
5 Then can I drown an eye, unusd to flow,
For precious friends hid in deaths dateless night,
And weep afresh loves long since cancelld woe,
And moan th expense of many a vanished sight.
Then can I grieve at grievances foregone,
(1) Biographia L iteraria : XXII, The Portable Coleridge, ed., I. A. Richards (New
Y ork; Penguin. Books, 1977), s. 611.
\
7
10 And heavily from woe to woe tell oer
The sad account of fore-bemoaned moan,
Which I new pay as if not paid before.
But if the while I think on thee, dear friend,
All losses are restord, and sorrows end.2
Shakespeare iirinin ilk dizelerinde, sessizce bir keye ekilip
gemi gnlerin anlaryla babaa kaldn sylyor. Sessizlii
anlatmak iin sessions, sweet ve silent szcklerinde s
sessizinin yinelenmesinden (alliteration) yararlanm. iir e
virisinde ses unsuru almas en g engellerden biri. Bu adan
Sonnet 30 belirgin bir rnek. lk dizelerdeki ynteme drdnc
dizede de bavurmu air. Bu kez w harfini ardarda kullanarak
znty, yaknmay sesle dile getiriyor. Onuncu dizede gene
wden yararlanm; stelik onuncu ve onbirinci dizelerde pe-
pee kulland oe sesiyle (assonance) yaknma anlamn pe
kitiriyor. Bu anlam derinliini iirin Trke evirisinde vermek
olanaksz.
ilk drt dizede olduka allmadk bir imge var: sessions
ve summon up szleriyle Shakespeare dnce oturumlarnda
gemi gnlerin anlarn ardn anlatyor. Sessions (otu
rum, celse) ve summon up (armak, celbetmek, mahkemeye
celbetmek) kavramlar birlikte bir mahkeme, bir duruma imgesi
oluturuyor. iiri Trkeye evirmeye altmzda bu imgenin
en azndan yarm kaldn gryoruz. Eer summon up yerine
mahkemeye celbetmek terimini kullanma yolunu seersek, iiri
iir olmaktan karmak zorunda kalyoruz.
Ses benzeimiyle anlam arasnda ba kurma (onomatopoeia)
yntemini kullanan airlerden biri de Tennyson. The Princess adl
uzun iirinde m sessizinin yinelenmesinden yararlanarak okura
ar vzltsn iletiyor. Bu anlamn bozulmadan Trkeye aktarlma
s ise kolay dei l :
The moan of doves in immemorial elms,
And murmuring of innumerable bees.3
(2) William Shakespeare: The Complete Works, ed., Peter Alexander (London,
1951).
(3) The Norton Anthology of English L iterature, vol. 2, revised, ed., Abrams,
Donaldson, Smith, and others (New Y ork, 1962, 1968), s. 856.
8
Coleridge, en iyi szckleri en uygun biimde sraya dizme
sanat (the best words in the best order) diye tanmlyor iiri.
Bylesi bir iiri gerek o iirin yazld dile gerekse baka bir dile
evirmek ise airin ustal ile doru orantl olarak gleiyor.
iir en zl edebiyat trlerinden biri. air iirinde demek istedi
ini tam olarak, ne eksii ne fazlasyla dile getirmeye alr. Bu
amaca ulamak iin de kulland dilin tm olanaklarndan ala
bildiine yararl an r: szckleri titizlikle seer, belli bir sraya di
zer, tmcelerin yapsn dili kullanmadaki ustalna gre kurar,
ses uyumlarndan, benzeimlerinden, uyumsuzluk ve benzemez
liklerinden yararlanr, armlar, dilin gze ve kulaa hitap
eden yanlarn gz nnde tutar.
Y ukardaki elerin pek ou dilden dile farkllklar gsterir.
Sz gelimi, ngilizce ve Trkede szdizimi farkl, vurgunun sz
ckteki yeri ve nemi ayrdr. Her iki dilin zellikleri uyaklarn,
ses esine bal slup yntemlerinin kullanlmasnda deiik uy
gulamalar gerektirir.
evirmene den, ksaca, tm badamazlklar elinden gel
diince ortadan kaldrmaya almaktr. evirmek istedii metin
deki slup zelliklerinin, yazarn ana dilinde yararland olanak
larn benzerlerini bulmaya alacaktr. Bu arada szck anlam
larnn, dilbilgisine ilikin zelliklerin, l ve uyak kurallarnn
iirde iie, birbirinden ayrlmaz eler olduunu gz nnde tu
tacaktr.
Gemite ve gnmzde evirinin nemini kavram ve onu
st dzeyde bir ura olarak benimsemi yazarlarn says azm-
sanamaz. Bu konuda dikkati eken iki rnek, Rusadan yapt
evirilerle n yapan, zellikle Pukin evirilerine nemle eilen,
ayrca konuya eletirel bir yaklam getirerek sorunlar belirle
me ve zm yollar arama abasna katklarda bulunan Rus asl
l Amerikal yazar Vladimir Nabokov, ve lkemizde eviri konu
sunun n plana kmasnda saylamayacak katklar bulunmu
Sabahattin Eyboludur.
Ne var ki, hzl tarihsel deiim artk lkemizde de yalnzca
yazarlarn deil, dilbilimcilerin de konuya yakndan eilmelerini
gerektiriyor, zellikle anlambilim ve sosyo-dilbilimin eviri ala
nna yeni bak alar getirecei sylenebilir. Grne gre ye
ni yntemlere ve bak alarna en ok iir evirisinde gereksinim
9
duyuluyor ve imdilik iir, sorunlarnn karmaklyla eviriye
kar direnen bir tr olmay srdryor.
iir evirisinde iyi bir eviriye giden yolun her szce tek
tek karlk bulma abas olmad anlalyor. air iirinde, di
lin gnlk kullanmndan sapt, anlatm deiikliklerine ba
vurduu lde, dizeleri, kulland dilin kendine zg nitelikleri
ile yorulmu olacak ve evrilmeleri de o lde gleecektir.
Szck oyunlarnn, karmak uyaklarn, ses uyum ve benzetimi
ne dayanan unsurlarn oka yer ald lirik iir trnde bu
glk zellikle stnde durmaya deer.
Gnmzde edebiyat evirisi, dilbilimin giderek arlk kaza
nan rolne karn, bir bilim dal olmaktan ok bir sanat olma ni
teliini koruyor. imdilik retilebilen yalnzca genel ilkeler. Y i
ne genellik erevesi iinde kalma kouluyla, kimi kurallardan
sz edilebiliyor, ksaca yol gsterilebiliyor zaman zaman'. Ama
sonunda karar evirmene, onun bilgisine, sezilerine, yeteneine
kalyor.
Anlalyor ki, her eviride bireylerin kaybolmas kanlmaz.
K imi evirilerin yaptn aslndan iyi olduu sylenmiyor deil.
Ama bu durumda ou kez bir eviri deil, yeni, ayr bir yapt sz
konusu. ngiliz Edebiyatnn nl eviri rneklerinden biri olan,
Edward Fitzgeraldm mer Hayyamdan yapt eviriler bu tr
den. ok sayda eletirmen ve yorumcu, Fitzgeraldn Rubailer
yerine bambaka bir yapt getirdii grnde. Bu yaptn bal
bana nasl bir deer tad ise ayr bir konu.
talyanlarn nl bir sz var: Traduttore tradi tore: e
virmen bir haindir. Sz Trke'ye evirmeye alrken bulabil
diimiz karlk da gene szn ne denli doru olduunu gsteri
yor.
B. R. Bozkurt
1977
K ltrden K ltre
Bir kltrden tekine aracsz aktarlamayan tek sanat dal
dr yazn. Dans, mzik, heykel, mimarlk, resim - hepsi evrensel
bir dil konuur. Bunlar evirmeye gerek yoktur. Mzeler, re
simli kitaplar, antlar, ve plaklar dnyann sanatsal katksn i n
sanla iletir.
Oysa yazn iin ayn ey sylenemez. nk bu daim arac
bir iaretler dizgesidir ve bu dizge ou kez kltrden kltre de
iir.
Y azn dndaki sanat dallarn anlamak ve deerlendirmek
iin basit bir hazrlk sreci yeterlidir. Ama belli bir dilde yazl
m bir yaznsal rnn o dili bilmeyen biri iin anlalmas iin
nce evrilmesi gerekir.
eviri, zellikle kaynak dil artk yaamyorsa, bir ifre zme
i i di r: Msr hiyerogliflerinde ve ivi yazsnda olduu gibi. G
nmze yalnzca yazl olarak ulaabilmi l dillerin evrilme
sinde zel glkler sz konusudur : Bu dillerin baka hangi dil
lerle karlatrlabilecei bilinmez; onlar konuan kimselerin
aklama ve yardmlarndan yararlananlayz ve bylelikle eviri
nin en nemli gerelerinden biri olan szl oluturmaya yara
yacak bir terimler daarc elde edemeyiz.
zel nitelikli bir baka glk de yazya gememi szl ya
znn evrilmesinde karmza kar. Bu durumda yaplmas gere
ken, Afrika szl yaznyla ilgili almalarda olduu gibi, destan
larn, arklarn, ninnilerin toplanmasnda yazl kaytlar yann
da grsel - iitsel aygtlardan da yararlanmaktr.
Y azya gememi dillerle, dili artk kullanlmayan yazl rn
lerin evrilmesi zel sorunlarn zmlenmesini gerektirir.
11
te yandan, gnmzde hem konuulan hem de yazlan dil
lerin evrilmesinde, zellikle dilin yaznsal kullanm sz konu
suysa, ortaya kan engeller de kmsenmemelidir. Sz gelimi,
ne yaz ne de k mevsimini yaayan Kongo (Zaire - . N.) ve Bre
zilya gibi lkelerde kar ve bahar szckleri anlam tamaz.
Senegalde ya da Fildii K ysnda Franszca renen ocuklar
ezberledikleri iirlerde Nisan ve Mays aylarna verilen nemi bir
trl kavrayamamlardr. K utup blgelerinde yaayan topluluk
lar iin kutsal kitab eviren din adamlar, bahe szcne
karlk bulamamlardr.
lkeden lkeye, kltrden kltre, yalnzca iklim, hayvanlar
ve bitki rts deil, ayn zamanda davran biim ve kurallar,
gelenek ve grenekler, alkanlklar, ve daha pek ok toplumsal
kurumlar da deiir. Bunlarn evrilmesinde karlklardan ya
da e anlamlardan ok benzerlik, arm ve andrmalardan sz
edilebilir, rnein J aponyada beyaz renk yas tutma belirtisi ol
duundan, bir J apon romannda geen beyazlara brnm ka
dn szn ngilizceye siyahlara brnm kadn olarak e
virmek doru olur.
Her dilde her gstergeler dizgesinde hi bir szck yaban
c dilden bir szcn tam karl olamaz. Arada ayr anlamsal
armlarn, ayrtlarn olmas kanlmazdr. Sz gelimi Ren
nehri bir Alman airiyle bir Fransz askeri iin baka baka an
lamlar tar.
evrilmesi g olan, bir anlamda, szckler deil onlarn ar
dnda yatan dnce ve yaantlardr.
Y aznsal yaptlarn nemli elerinden olan sz sanatlar da
kendilerine gre belli bir iklimde yaarlar. Bu iklim ayn dil
de bile srekli olarak deitii gibi, bir baka dile de kolay kolay
aktarlamaz. Bu nedenle de ilyada, Binbir Gece Masallar gibi ya
ptlar her ada yeniden evrilir.
K utsal kitaplar bir yana braklrsa metne sk skya bal
eviri olduka yeni bir olgu saylr. 18. Y zyln sonuna dein e
viride yorumlar, deitirmeler, eklemeler, karmalar olaan sa
ylrd. Bugnse, anlamn nem tad yerde, metnin anlam
na ballk iyi bir evirinin bata gelen koullarndan biridir.
Bunu ritme, bieme ve imgesel rgye ballk izler.
12
Ama kaynak metne gerek ballk, yazarn temel amacnn
iyi belirlenmesinde, yaptn ya da yaznn doru deerlendirilme
sinde, ve yapta zenli ve duyarl bir yaklamda yatar. Gerisi bir
uygulama, yani hner, deneyim ve bilgi iidir.
En iyi eviri nasl olmal sorusuna u yant verilebilir:
Pindar, Danteyi ya da Pukini, rnein ngilizceye, iyi
evirmek demek, Pindar, Dante ve Pukin Y unanca, tal
yanca ya da Rusa yerine ngilizce yazm olsalard ortaya
kacak olan metni yazmak demektir, iyi evirmek demek,
zgn yazar evirmenin dilini kullanm olsayd yazaca
metni (szckleri, szdizimini ve biemi) bulup karmak
demektir. Bylesi bir i olaand bir bilgi, zeka ve hayal
gc gerektirir. Y etkin eviri yalnzca bu yolla yaplabilir.
Bu amaca ulalabilir, demek istemiyorum, ama iyi evir
men onu hedef alan ve ona en ok yaklaandr.1
J orge Luis Borges: Y azma, Y azarlk ve eviri zerine
(Aadaki blmler, Borgesin Columbia niversitesinde katl
d bir dizi seminerin Borges on Writing adyla yaynlanm ka
ytlarndan alnmtr.)
Di Giovanni (Borgesin yaptlarnn evirmeni - .n.) : Bence
evrilmesi en kolay ey konumadr. nk konumada
harfi harfine ya da tam karlyla evirmek sz konusu
olamaz. Sylenen eyi kafasnda evirip evirmek ve Bunu
ngilizce nasl syleyebilirim? diye dnmek zorundadr
kii. Baka kar yol yoktur. K onuma evirisi ister istemez
bir anlam aktarm (paraphrase) dr (sayfa 110).
Borges : Bana kalrsa argo belli bir yeri, yreyi artrr. Buenos
Aires argosuyla yazlm bir metni evirirken, diyelim ki,
Amerikadaki klhanbeylerinin argosunu kullanrsak, orta
ya apayr bir ey kar (s. 112).
Di Giovanni : evirmen, yazarlara ve metinlere sanki kutsal birer
varlk ya da nesnelermi gibi bakmamal. Srekli olarak,
eviri yaptnn bilincinde olmas da gerekmez. ngilizce
yazyormu gibi dnmeli evirmen. Y azk ki her evir
d i Roger Caillois, The (London) Times L iterary Supplement, 25.9.1970, s. 1071.
zetleyerek Trkeye eviren, B. Bozkurt.
13
men yazarla birlikte alma frsatn elde edemiyor, zgn
metine her zaman bal kalmak zorunda olmaym iimi
ok kolaylatrd. Borges bana hep Orda okuduunu bir
yana brak ve bildiini yap! der. (s. 114).
SORU: Bir yky birlikte ngilizceye evirmeye alrken ak
lnza yeni bir ey geldii ve yky yeniden yazmak iste
diiniz olur mu?
Di Gi ovanni : Belli bir yere zellikle oturan, uygun bir szck
ya da deyim aklmza geldiinde zgn metini deitirdi
imiz olur. ngilizcenin yle bir nitelii var ki, insan kimi
kavramlar daha somut, elle tutul ur ve ak bir biimde ile
tebiliyor (s. 105).
Di Gi ovanni : evirinin en byk sorunu kt yazlm bir yaz
nn evrilmesinde karmza kar. Olduu gibi evirirseniz,
kt eviri yaptnz iin eletirilirsiniz.1
TRK D L (eviri Sorunlar zel Says - Temmuz 1978)
(Trk Dili Dergisinin eviri Sorunlar zel Saysnda evi
ri konusu kapsaml bir biimde ele alnmaktadr. Aada
kimi blmlerden alntlar vermekle birlikte, konuyla ilgi
lenenlerin bu sayy okumalarnda byk yarar olduunu
belirtmeyi gerekli gryorum - B. Bozkurt)
Sayfa
1 Yaz Kurulu
lkemizin dndaki ekini, yazn renmek zlemi eviri
nin gelimesine yol amaktadr... Byk okur toplulukla
rn n olumasnda eviri yaznnn nemli katks... evi
rini n ekinimizi, yaznmz etkilerken dilimize yeni olanak
lar getirdii ne denli gerekse, dilimizi bozduu, yapay an
latmlara, dolaysyla tartmalara yol at da o denli ger
ektir.
Bedrettin Cmert K uramsal Adan eviri Sorunu
4 Humboldt, tmcenin szc ncelediini, yani konuma
l ) Borges on Writing, New Y ork, 1973. Alntlar eviren : B. Bozkurt.
14
nn, nceden olumu bir ey olmadn, zerk szcklerin
yan yana konarak veya aralarnda balanarak oluturul
madn, tersine, szcklerin, balamda kendi yaamlar
n, ilevlerini, zelliklerini bulup kazandklar iin, balam
dan doduklarn savunan ilk kiidir.
Nedim Grsel eviri Etkinlii ve K ltr
22 Hmanizma akmnn eviri yoluyla gerekletiini, bat
nn kendi bilim ve sanat deerlerini retmeden nce ge
mi an, zellikle de eski Y unan ve Roma uygarlklarnn
kaltna sahip ktn biliyoruz.
24 eviri, yeni Platoncu grleri Arapaya, giderek tasav
vufa tarken, slam ideolojisinin gereksindii dnsel te
meli de getirmitir beraberinde. Dzeltim ve Y enidendou
hareketlerinde olduu gibi I slamn ykselme dneminde de
youn bir eviri etkinliiyle karlamamzn balca nedeni
budur.
25 Tanzimatla nemli bir aama yapan eviri etkinliinin
Cumhuriyet dneminde daha dizgesel bir btnle ynel
diini, Anadolu kltrnn temellendirilmesinde balca
rol oynadn gryoruz. Y eni Trkiyenin ada kltr
bileimini gerekletirmek iin giriilen abalar, Cmhu-
riyet yaznnn ortaya koyduu zgn yaptlarn yan sra,
eviri alannda da olumlu sonu vermitir. Ata, Sabahat
tin Eybolu, Vedat Gnyol, Azra Erhat gibi dnya eviri
yaznnda eine az rastlanr bir topluluun bu dnemde or
taya kmas en somut kantdr bunun.
26 (eviri) bir yandan gemiin kaltn, tarih boyunca
insanln ortaya koyduu tm deerleri artzamanl dzey
de... gnmze tarken, te yandan da ezamanl dzey
de... ulusal kltrler arasndaki alverii salar. Bylece,
hem ada bir kltr bileimini, hem de retilen yeni de
erlerin dayanmasn, birbirlerinden etkilenmelerini ko
laylatrr. En nemlisi de... gei dnemindeki bir toplu
mun kendi dinamiiyle yaratamad kltr dnmn
gerekletirir.
15
zcan Bakan Dilde eviri ilemi
27 eviri olay yle tanmlanabilir. Bir dildeki belli bir par
ada, yani diicede bulunan anlamn, baka bir dildeki belli
bir dilcede yeniden kurulmasn salayacak biimde girii
len dilsel bir aktarma ilemi. Her eviride iki dil sz konu
sudur : K endisinden aktarma yaplan kaynak-dil ve kendi
sine aktarma yaplan erek-dil.
36 eviri ileminin bir baka yarar ise, dorudan doru
ya eviricinin kendisinedir. nk bir dilceyi evirmek de
mek, bir yerde, o dilcedeki satrlarn arasna girmek, o dil
cede gizlenmi anlamlar panayrnda gezinmek demektir...
Bu yoldan bir dilcenin iine derinlemesine girmek olana,
anadilinin kendisinde de, yabanc dil bilmeksizin salana
bilir. Szgelimi, anadilinden-anadiline yaplacak bir dil-ii
eviri de, ayn bir dilce bu kez adna evirici denebilecek
olan kiinin kendine zg anlatmyla tersyz edilerek ye
niden bir anadili parasna dntrlebilir, insana dn
ce esneklii salamas bakmndan ve Trke anlatm yn
temi asndan okullarda bu tr eviriler yaptrlmasnn
da ok yerinde olaca yeterince aktr.
Suut K emal Y etkin Baarl evirinin Koullar
44 ... ortak evirinin salad en byk olanak, (iki kiiden)
birinin yapt neri karsnda, brnde uyanan ar
mdr. Oysa tek bana yaplan bir eviride bu olanak yok
tur; evirmen, bulduu biim iinde kapal kalr. Kimi za
man ortaklardan birinin bir szc deitirmesi, cmle
nin metindeki havasna yaklatrr.
Mehmet H. Doan Serbest eviri zerine
52 evirmenin ilk ii (ama tek deil), evirdii yaptta ne an
latldn, ne sylendiini en anlalr biimde okuyucuya
aktarmaktr. Bunu yaparken, evirdii dili iyi bilmesi ge
rektii gibi kendi dilini kullanmay, kendi dilinin anlatm
olanaklarn da iyi bilmesi gerekir. Bu hem evirdii yap
tn yazarna, hem de kendi diline olan borcudur, ykm
lldr evirmenin. Y azara olan borcudur, nk syle
diinin anlalmamasn, eksik ya da yanl anlalmasn
16
isteyecek bir yazar dnlemez. Okuyucuya kar olan bor
cudur, nk dilini bilmedii bir yazarn bir yaptn eline
alan bir okuyucu onu doru olarak anlamak ister. Giderek
kendi diline olan borcudur, nk eviri yapmak da zgn
yapt yaratmak kadar yaratclk iidir ve dili zenginletir
meyi amalar, yoksa eviri yapyorum diye kendi dilini bo
zuk kullanmay deil.
53 K afkamn balalarla, virgllerle, noktal virgllerle,
kimi zaman izgi iaretleriyle uzayp giden, armlarla
ykl, anlalmas g uzun cmlelerini dnelim. Bu
onun doal anlatm biimidir. Doal diyorum, nk
K afkann bunalm iindeki kiiliinin yazarlna yan
smasdr. Bu bunalm, dile getirdii eylerde olduu ka
dar bu anlat biiminde de kendini gsterir. Bu nedenle
bir Kaf-ka evirmeninin, ister kendine ister okuyucuya ko
laylk olsun diye K afkamn biemini bozmas, uzun cm
leleri ksa ksa cmlelerle vermesi, armlar yok ede
rek apak bir metin ortaya koymas balanamaz.
54 ... ne serbest eviri ne de szck szck eviri terimlerinin
bal bana uygulama alan olan kavramlar olmadn,
eviride bir yntem olarak ileri srlemeyeceini; eviri
nasl yaplmaldr? sorusuna yant aranrken uydurul
mu, kapsam ok dar kavramlar olduunu ileri srebi
liriz.
Theodore Savorynin rneiyle bitirelim szmz:
Mtercimin ulamak istedii ideal Ritchie ve Moore
tarafndan o kadar iyi anlatlmtr ki szlerini iktibas et
meden geemeyeceim : Farz edelim ki Ruskinin karak
teristik bir sahifesinin sadakatli bir tercmesini yazmaya
muvaffak olduk. Sonra bunu tenkit etmeleri iin iki iyi tah
sil grm Fransz dostumuza verdik. Bunlardan biri ngi
lizceyi hemen hemen hi bilmiyor, tekisi ise dilimizi ok
iyi biliyor. Birinisi Gzel br tasvir! K im yazm bunu?
kincisi ise Pasaj hatrlamyorum, ama mutlaka Ruskin-
den olacak, derse, slup bakmndan tercmenin ideali
mizden pek uzak olmadna gvenebiliriz. (ift trnak
iindeki blm eviren : Hamit Dereli)
17
Azra Erhat Ortak eviri
55 eviri aslnda, znde ortaklaa bir etkinliktir. K iinin bi
ri dncesini belli bir dilde sze dkerek, o dilin szck
leriyle aklamaya koyulur, bir tekisi ayn dnceyi ba
ka bir dilde o dilin olanaklaryla aktarmaya giriir. K ar
lama, atma iki yazar kii arasnda kmakla kalmaz,
iki dil de kar karya gelip birbirleriyle lme, kendi
lerine zg olanaklar ve olanakszlklar tartma, alglama
ve deerlendirme durumuna girerler ...(eviri ii) ortakla
a yaplrsa, daha iyi yaplr derim deneylerime yasana-
rak.
56 Akl akldan stndr elbet, kald ki kavramlara kar
lk bulmak ancak birok eviri deneylerinin sonularn
toplamak, derlemekle olur.
Akit Gktrk Y aznsal eviride Metin - tesi Anlam
likileri
60 ada eviri kuramnn k noktas, evirinin, Saussuren
terimiyle dilin (langue) deil szn (parole), baka deyim
le dil-kullanmnn bir aktarm olduu grdr. evir
men, kaynak dilde dzenlenmi belli bir iletiyi, ama dil
de bir metinle yeniden retir.
61 Ticaret mektubu eviren kii, ama dilde elindeki met
nin her szcn karlayacak kalp szler, terimler bu
labilir... Bilimsel metnin dil kullanm ile bildirisi aKir.
Her szck belli bir anlama gelir, tesi yoktur. Oysa yazn
sal dil, anlam olanaklar ynnden snr tanmayan bir
dildir... Btn metin trlerinin iletiim yaplar ynnden
saptanp belirlenmesi de, ada eviri kuramnn nem
verdii konulardan biridir.
62 iyi eviri, evirmenin hem kaynak hem de ama dilde
ki dil yetisiyle doru orantldr. Szn yzey anlam yan
sra artrd anlam, metnin satr aralarn kavrayabi
lecek bir dil yetisi. Alabildiine bir szck daarc dural
kald srece yararszdr. Y aznsal metnin gerek kavra-
n, szcklerin anlam alanlarnn birbirine taan, birbi-
riyle rten devingen kesimlerini sezebilen bir kafann
iidir.
18
65 Metni iletiim ileviyle grp kavrayabilmek, evirme
nin yalnz iki dili yeterli lde bilmesini deil, iki klt
rn birok ynnden haberli olmasn, bir yarat dnyay
gznnde canlandrabilecek lde devingen bir dgc
sahibi olmasn gerektirir. Y aznsal evirinin, yabanc dil
okullarnn snflarnda kazanlacak trden bir beceri ol
maynn balca nedeni de budur. Bir metnin dilbilimsel
yapsnn zmlenmesi, nesnel anlamnn aktarlmas
okullarda retilebilir. Metin d balamn eviride nem
li etken olduu da retilebilir. Ama metni hem nesnel hem
armsal, hem ak hem kapal, hem belirli hem belirsiz
anlam boyutlaryla baka bir dilde yeniden yazabilmek,
btn bu renilenlerin tesinde bal ar: evirmenin, kar
sndaki yaznsal metinle sylemeye balad yerde.
Berke Vardar Dilbilim Asndan eviri
67 Bir enin kavramsal deeri yalnzca br elerle kurdu
u bant ve ayrlklardan oluur; dil, btn eleri da
yank, birinin deeri yalnzca brlerinin zamanda var
lndan doan bir dizgedir... hibir dil bir bakasyla a
kmaz. Deiik oranlarda da olsa, ayrlklar hibir du
rumda ortadan kalkmaz.
68 K imi bildiriler gndelik konumalara ilikindir, gncel
gereksinmelerin dar erevesi dna pek kmaz. Kimi bil
diriler ise ekinsel dile degindir, yaznsal kullanm, iirsel
yaratm ilgilendirir, zel uzmanlk alanlarna, bilimsel ve
uygulaymsal dzlemlere balanr. Glklerin belirgin
letii alandr bu... eviri ne denli baarl olursa olsun,
kaynak dildeki betik ister istemez kimi eleri eksilmi
olarak erek dilde karmza kar... Dillerin ayrln, bil
dirimi aksatmayacak bir dzeye indirerek erek bildirinin
kaynak bildiriyle edeerliini salamak evirmenin ba
lca amac olduuna gre...
71 Glklerin almasnda kiisel beceri ve sezginin de
ok nemli bir yer tuttuunu belirtmeliyiz... Y alnz, kii
sel beceri ve sezginin tm grkemiyle ortaya kabilmesi
iin bilimsel gereklerin yerine getirilmesi de kanlmaz
bir zorunluktur. nk ada anlaya gre eviri son.
zmlemede, bilime dayal bir sanattr. Ayrlklara karn
19
ve ayrlklar iinde dilleraras edeerlik salamak, kaynak
dildeki bildiriyi anlam ve ilev asndan olduu gibi deyi
bakmndan da en yakn ve doal biimler araclyla
erek dile aktarmak ancak bu gerein bilincine varlma
syla olanakl duruma girer.
zdemir Nutku Oyun evirilerinde K onuma Dilinin
nemi
81 Oyun evirisi okunmaktan ok oynanmak iindir. Bu yn
den, yaznsal bir dili deil, gncel konuma dilini gerekti
rir. Gncel konuma dili ise hareketlerden soyutlanamaz.
84 nemli olan, kiinin, sahneye koyuyormuasna oyunu
evirmesidir... Sahne zerinde nemli olan szckler deil,
szcklerin bir yaam kesitini nasl hareketlendirdii, na
sl canlandrddr.
ioanna Kuuradi iir evirisini Deerlendirme ve Trk
ede Homeros
113 iir eviricisi, airinkine benzer bir i yapar: Hazr dilden
te, bir dilin o andaki geliiminin olanaklarn kullanr,
u farkla ki, air bununla bir imge yaratr, evirici ise bir
imgeyi yeniden kurar.
114 eviri yapmak bir hi zmetti r: Birbirinin dilini anlama
yan insanlara bir hizmet, yalnzca bir dili okuyabilen ya
da okuduklarnn tadn yalnzca bir dilde alabilenlere bir
hizmet, iki dilin kltrlerine bir hizmet.
116 Homerosun ses ini yalnzca Trke okuyabilenlere
tantmak, eviri yaznmzda nemli bir olaydr. K endi ya
znnn yaptlarndan ancak son otuz krk ylda yaz mi
olanlar okuyabilen ve ou, deerlerinden baka her trl
nedenle alakalem evrilen, evirtilen yaptlarla beslenen
kuaklarn dnce ve dil eitimi iin de nemlidir bu e
viriler.
159 SORUTURMA
1. eviri yapmaya neden gerekseme duydunuz?
2. eviri yaparken kendinize zg ne gibi yntemleriniz
oldu? K arlatnz glkler nelerdi?
3. evirinin dilimize kazandrdklar nelerdir?
20
Burhan Arpad : 1. Trk toplum dzeyinin salkl ve a
da dnya gidiine ulamasna yararl olabilecek yazarlar
ve yazdklarn lkem okurlar da tansn istedim.
2. Trk okuru... (bir yabanc yazarn) deiik anla
tm biimlerini, hi deilse sezebilmelidir. O yazarn Trk
e yazmam olduunu bile kavramaldr. Baarl bir e
viri iin kullanlan Trke yazlm kadar gzel bir dil
bence bir vg deildir.
160 3. Y abanc dilden aktarlm Trkede yazarn kiili
ini belirtmek eviricinin ba amac olmaldr. Cmle ya
plarna yeni esneklikler getirecek, dilimizin yapsna uy
gun yeni deyimler kazandrarak, Trk yazarlarna deiik
anlatm tekniklerinden rnekler vererek.
Ahmet Cemal: 1. Bir yandan batnn dn dizgesine hi
yabanc kalmamak gerekli, te yandan da ierikten yok
sun, yanltc yknmelerden kanabilmek iin, retici ni
telikte bir bireime varabilmek iin, neyin nasl alnmas
gerektiini bilmek gerek.
161 2. Bir yaznsal yaptn evirisine balamazdan nce yal
nz yapt okumakla yetinmem, yaptn o yazarn tm ya
ptlar arasndaki yerini, ayrca da geldii yazn evresi
ierisindeki yerini elden geldiince belirlemeye alrm...
Tmce blmekten ve anlam ykn datmaktan ekin
mem... kaynak dildeki anlama yeni bir ey katmadan ve o
anlamdan bir eyler kopartmadan blme olana varsa ya
parm ...K aynak dildeki anlatm dilimize yanstma zgr
l, dilimizin doal anlatm ak ile snrldr... evir
men, her defasnda okura bir baka yazar karsnda bu
lunduunu sezdirmelidir elbet, ama Trke evirerek!
162 3. evirinin dilimize getirdii, getirebilecei en byk
kazan, yeni anlatm olanaklardr... her gerek yazar, bir
anlamda dilinin genel akna bakaldrm olan kiidir...
Y abanc yazarlarn anlatmlarn, dilimizdeki edeerlerini
bularak getirmek, ite bu aba, Trkenin olanaklarn
kimi zaman sonuna dein zorlamamza, yeni anlatm ola
naklar peine dmemize yol aacaktr,.. Y eni anlatm
olanaklarnn yan sra, tr ve biim asndan da eviri
21
mizin dilimize kazandrdklar ve kazandrabilecekleri
nemli bir yer tutar. Roman, deneme, ksa yk gibi trle
rin yaznmza evirilerle girmi olduklar dnlrse, bu
nem daha da iyi anlalr.
Bedrettin Cmert: 1. Bildiim yabanc dilde okuduum,
beni duygulandrp coturan ya da yepyeni bilgilerle do
natan yaptlar orada, olduklar yerde, tek bana brak
maya gnlm raz olmuyor. O gzelliklere bu kez yalnz
dostlarm deil, tm bakalarn ortak etme hummasna
giriyorum. Hazlarm en gls, en insancas oluyor bu
tutku benim iin. Ne yazk ki insan ne her okuyup sevdii
yapt evirebiliyor, ne de bir yaptn yazld dilde ta
d sanatsall ya da dnsellii yeterince aktarabili-
163 yor... imdiye dek savsaklanm, nemli yaptlar evirme
eylemine ben de kendimce katkda bulunmak istiyorum.
164 2. ok zel durumlar dnda, bilgi verisi olan her eyin
evrilebilecei kuramn tartmasz benimsedim... Benim
tek katkm, baka dillerde rgtlenmi deneyim verilerini
kendi dilimde yeniden kurarken, sezgilerimi, duyarlm,
bilgimi, ama her eyden nce hi bo vermeyen dikkat ve
zenimi uyank tutmak oldu.
3. Bir kltr, tarall aabilmise ulusal olabilir an
cak. Bu da kltrn, baka kltr ve sanat rnlerine al
masyla gerekleebilir. Bu etkileimi salayan biricik ara
lar ise eviri yaptlar ve sanat yapt deitirimidir. Bura-
daki deitirim geici srelidir elbette.
eviri yaptlar bize bakalarnn ltlerini tantr,
kendi boyumuzu lme olana salar. Kendi ekonomik ve
toplumsal yapmza gre koullanm zihin ve duyarlk ya
pmzn dnda da baka dnme yntem ve rnleri,
baka duyma biimleri ve rnleri olduunu gsterir.
eviri yaptlar olmadan, eviri ilemi bir lkede d
zenli ve dizgeli yrtlmeden, uygarln tarihselliini an
lamak olanakszdr. eviri ayrca kendi dilimize yeni ola
naklar, yeni boyutlar katar. Y eni kavramlar, tadlmadk
duyarlk biimlerini dile getirebilmesi iin dili zorlar, onu
olmadk ynlerde anlatma zorunluuna iterek, varslla
trr.
\
165 Cevat apan: 1. eviri eylemi herhangi bir metni okuyup
anlama isteiyle balar, diyebilirim. Bu metin kendi ana
dilimizde yazlm bir metin bile olabilir. nk byle bir
metni okurken de, insan zgn bir yazarn iletmek istedi
i anlam kendi kiisel diline aktarmaktadr... Benim e
viri yapmaya gerekseme duymam, sanrm bakalarnda
da olduu gibi, nce bir metni okuyup anlama abama,
sonra da bu metnin bakalarna yararl olup olmayaca
na karar vermeme bal.
169 Sait M aden: 2. eviri ii bir denge kurmaktr asl iirle
benzeri arasnda; iki dilden hibirine dn vermemeyi, ter
sine ikisini de dllendirmeyi gerektiren bir denge.
Bir iirin ozanyla evirmeni arasnda gnl yaknl
kurulmamsa o iirden baarl bir eviri kmaz pek.
170 Bertan Onaran: 3. Dnyann drt bir yanndaki insan
kardelerimizin biriktirdii uygarlk biimlerinin beynimi
ze, yaammza aktarlp sindirilmesi.
173 Zeyyat Selimolu: 2. Severek yaptnz eviriyi kendiniz
yazyormu gibi oluyorsunuz, bir kolaynza geliyor o e
viri. K art, glk douruyor... Szc szcne tam
Trke karln bulamadm bir tmce ile karlatm
m, Trkeyi deil, yabanc dili arka plana itmeyi yelerim
ve Trkeye arlk tanyarak, anlam belirtmeyi ng
rrm.
22
eviribilim ve eviri Etkinlii (Balam)
lkemizde bugn iin eviri yaznna srekli olarak yer veren
bir yayn organ hemen hemen yok gibidir. 1979 ylnda yaynlan
maya balayan Balam1 Dergisi bu alandaki boluu doldurmaya
ynelik bir giriim olarak anlmaya deer. Aadaki paralar,
Dilbilim, Y aznbilim ve eviribilim alanlarna arlk veren der
ginin ilk saysndaki Sunu blmyle, dergide yer alan eviri
konulu yazlardan alnmtr.
eviri etkinliinin uluslararas kltr iletiimindeki nemi ar
tk tartlmaz bir gerektir. Tartlamaz bir baka gerek te, uz
manla dayanmayan, alakalem ve sorumsuzca yaplan evirile
rin bu iletiim srecini son derece olumsuz ynde etkilediidir.
Oysa kaynak ve erek dilde szlksel anlamlarn saptanmasyla
yetinmeyen, dilbilim dorultusunda, dilsel ve anlamsal tm ba
lamlar erevesinde yaplacak evirilere gereksinme oktur. e
viri ilemine bilimsel yntemlerle yaklamann gerekliliine ol
duu kadar eviribilim in bir bilim dal olarak ilgili Trk yk
sek renim kurumlarnda yer almasnn zorunluluuna inand
mzdan imdilik bir dergi kapsamnda da olsa eviri etkin
liine ncelik tandk. Bu etkinlii ilerde daha da younlatrmak
amacndayz. (Sunu - s. 5).
eviri etkinliinin kendisi... temelde... bir anlamaanlatma,
anlalan bakalarnn anlayabilecei biimde yorumlama sreci
dir... Her eviri, bir yorumlamadr, evet, denilebilir ki evirme
nin karsndaki sze ynelttii bir yorumun btnlenmesidir...
(1) stanbul niversitesi Y abanc Diller Y ksek Okulu Almanca Blm Der
gisi, stanbul, 1979. (EVRnin ikinci basm srasnda Skim, 1979
K ltr Bakanlnn yaynlad eviri dergisinin ilk says da kmtr.)
24
eviri, bir eyi anlalr klma yolundaki temel yorum srecinin
zel bir biimidir. evirmen, yabanc, anlalmaz olan, ama di
lin iletiim dizgelerine aktarr... Bir dil hi kukusuz, belli zel
likte bir kltrel yaantnn birikimidir. Bu birikim iinde varo
lur, bu birikimin aralndan grrz her eyi. Her yazar iin ol
duu gibi, her yaznsal metnin almlanmasnda da durum ayn
dr. Her eyden nce bir okur olan evirmen de, byle bir dilsel
kltrel yaant birikiminin gzyle kaynak metni ierden kavra
yan, sonra da ama dilin birikimi ile kltrel yaantsnn dizge
lerinde zmleyen kiidir... Gerek tarihsel gerekse ulusal ynden
bizden ayr olan, uzak olan yabanc, belirsiz anlamlarn ilet',sini,
dilimizi konuur biimde aktarmak, yalnz evirmenlerin deil,
Chauceri, Y unus Emreyi, Rabelaisyi reten inceleyen yazmbi-
limcilerin de ykmlldr. Burada evirmenin yazn ret
meninden kesinlikle ayrlan yn, ama dilde rettii eviri met
ne biimsel bir anlamda baml oluudur... Gerekte her eviri
de sorun, insan varlnn, baka bir anlama ufkundan kavra na-
bilmesidir (Akit Gktrk, Bir Y orum Sreci Olarak Y aznsal
eviri, s. 240, 241, 243).
Dnya zerinde kendi bana geliebilmi bir yazn evresi
yoktur; olmamasn da ben iyi buluyorum. Bu karlkllk ieri
sinde evirmenin rol, olaanst nem kazanmaktadr. Bu rol o
denli kapsamldr ki, evirmen yalnz bir ulusal yazn evresinin
olumasnda deil, ama bunun ok tesinde ulusal bir kltrn
olumasnda arac ve yardmc ilevi yerine getirir. Alman yazn
bilimcisi K urt Waisa gre bir evirmen, bir ozan kadar dile ege
men ve dize kurma yeteneine sahip olmaldr... eviri amz
da artk dev boyutlar kazanmtr. UNESCOnun yaymlad
I ndex Translationum, insanln manevi adan birbirine nasl
daha ok yaklatnn en iyi kantdr. Bugn ou kez bilimsel
yaptlar, ansiklopediler ve yaznsal yaptlar ayn anda birka dil
de yaymlanmaktadr ve yaadmz a, eviri a olarak ni
telendirilmektedir. yle sanyorum ki bu, manevi zenginlii dile
getiren, ayn zamanda da evirmenin uran onurlandran g
zel bir nitelemedir (Prof. Dr. Zoran K ostantinovi, Ulusal K l
trlerin Gelimesinde evirinin levi, Trkesi : Ahmet Cemal,
s. 273, 274).
Goetheye gre, sanatsal betiklerin evirisinde izlenmesi gere
ken iki ilke udur: Bir ilkeye gre, yabanc bir ulusun yazar
25
bize yaklatrlr; bu, onu bizden saymamz salayacak biimde
gerekletirilir, ikinci ilke ise bizden, yabanc yazara yaklama-
mz, kendimizi onun konumuna, konuma biimine, zelliklerine
uydurmamz ister... Humboldtun... August Wilhelm Schlegele
yazd 23.7.1796 tari hli mektupta u satrlara rastl yoruz: evi
ri, olanaksz bir sorunun zmlenmesi giriimi gibi grnyor
bana. nk her evirmen, sonunda iki engelden biri yznden
baarszla uramak zorunda. Y a ulusunun beenisine ve dili
ne aykr dp kaynak dildeki betie ar bal kalacak, ya da
kaynak dili gzden karp ulusun zelliklerine ar bal kala
cak. Bu ikisi arasnda bir orta yol tutturmak yalnz g deil, ama
neredeyse olanaksz (Ahmet Cemal, Bilim ncesi eviri K u
ramlar ve eviribilimin Gelime Sreci I s. 253, 257).
Almancada nl bir bakural vardr, Olabildiince bal, ge
rektiince zgr diye. Her evirmen bu cmleyi duvarna amal
ki gnde en az bir kez grsn okusun (Hilde Spiel, evirinin Se
vinleri ve Aclar, eviren Tevfik Turan, s. 304).
(Bundan bir yzyldan fazla bir zaman nce yetkin tanrbi-
limci Schleiermacher tarafndan evirinin eitli Y ntemleri
adl denemesinde ileri srlen gre gre) eviri, birbirine kar
t iki ynde yrtlebilecek bir almadr. Y a yazar, o dilin oku
yucusuna yaklatrlr, ya da okur yazarn diline gtrlr. Bi
rinci durumda szcn gerek anlamyla bir eviri yaplm ol
maz; zgn metnin bir benzerini ya da amlamasn ortaya koy
mamz sz konusudur burada yalnzca. Gerek eviri okuru dil
alkanlklarndan kp yazarn dilinin alkanlklarna zorlad
mz zaman yaplm ol ur... nemli olan, eviri yaparken o
unlukla izlenen tutumun tersine, dilimizden kp yabanc dile
girmeye almamzdr. Kimi zaman, zellikle ada yazarlar
sz konusu olduunda, eviri salt eviri olarak tad yararlarn
yan sra belli bir estetik deeri de ierebilir... Ortada ak bir
gerek var: Bir lkenin okurlar kendi dillerinin biemini ta
yan bir eviriye pek deer vermiyorlar. nk yeterince kavuu
yorlar bu bieme kendi yazarlarnn yaptlarnda. Bir lkenin
okurunun gerek istei baka noktaya yneli k: K endi dilinin ola
naklarnn, anlalabilirliin snrna dein zorlanmas, bylece
evrilen yazara zg anlatlarn anadilde saydamlamas (J ose
Ortega y Gasset, evirinin Grkemi ve Y etersizlii zerine,
Trkesi: Ahmet Cemal, s. 293, 297).
EV R DERS
Bir ders olarak dnldnde evirinin, yukarda sz edi
len nitelikleri ve genel amalar yannda, uygulamas ve ilevi de
ayr bir nem kazanr, renci olsun olmasn, herhangi bir dili
yeni renmi ya da renmekte olan bir kimse eviri yapabilmek
iin hem bu dile hem de kendi diline yepyeni bir adan bakmak
zorundadr. Bu bak ister istemez ncelikle her iki dilin temel
zelliklerinin yeniden ve kkl bir biimde incelenmesini ierir.
Bir baka nemli nokta ise evirinin can damar saylabilecek
olan kyaslamal yaklam sorunudur, iki ayr dili srekli olarak
ayn zamanda kullanma alkanln edinmemi olan pek ok
kimse, gerek szl gerekse yazl eviride bir dilin zelliklerinden
kopmakta glk eker, iki ya da daha ok dili bilmek baka ey,
bu dilleri birlikte ve kyaslamal kullanmak, birinden tekine e
viri ve uyarlamalar yapmak baka eydir.
eviri derslerinde rencinin nne kan ilk engel, nce ya
banc dilin sonra kendi dilinin salt dilbilgisi, szck bilgisi, ya
zm kurallar ve slup asndan yeniden irdelenmesi zorunlulu
udur. Bu durumda, zellikle ilk snflarda eviri bir dil dersi g
rnmn alabilir. Uygulamann bu ynde yrtlmesinde de
bir saknca yoktur. Bu adan bakldnda, gerek renciye bir
yabanc dili olduu kadar kendi dilini de doru ve dzgn kul
lanmay salamas, gerekse tm teki derslere bir n hazrlk,
salam bir temel olmas bakmndan evirinin yararll su g
trmez.
Snflar ilerledike evirinin, asl amacna daha yakn bir uy
gulamas da sz konusu olabilecektir, rencinin yabanc dili kul
lanmadaki hneri artt oranda snfta, kltrleraras etkileim,
bir uygarln, kltrn, toplumun rnlerinin tekine aktarl
27
masndaki yarar ve benzeri kavramlardan sz edilebilecek, yk
sek dzeyde eviri rnekleri verilerek inceliklere ve ayrntlara
inilebilecektir.
Buna gre, ilk snflarda hedef (Trke ve ngilizce sz ko
nusu olduunda) ncelikle doru ve dzgn bir ngilizce yann
da, doru, dzgn, akc ve gzel bir Trkedir.1Hem bu aama
da hem de ileri snflarda gzden karlmamas gereken nemli
bir nokta, eviride kullanlan dilin zelliklerine zen gsterme
gereidir. Baka bir dilden evrilen bir romann, hikayenin, tiyat
ro oyununun, ya da denemenin eviri kokmas baarl olama
m bir almann kantdr. K ukusuz her eviride, allann
tesinde kimi unsurlar gze arpar, bir yabanclk sezinlenir en
azndan. Bu yabancln anlalmazla ve samala dnme
mesi ise belli bir l ve dengeyi tutturabilmeye bal.
Bu dengeyi tutturmada byk glk ekildii de bir gerek.
Bu gerein belirgin kantlar derslerde olduu gibi piyasadaki e
viri yaptlarda da sk sk karmza kyor. Zaman zaman gr
yoruz ki, bilmediimiz bir dilden yaplan aktarma gene anlamm
skemediimiz bir dilde yaplm. Bu durumun eitli nedenleri
arasnda akla unlar geliyor: yetersiz bilgi, titizlik ve uzmanlk;
srekli ve disiplinli alma bilincinin yerlememi olmas; piya
sada yaplan evirilerde, az parayla ok gelir elde etme amacyla
eviri iinin yeteneksiz ellere braklmas, ikinci dilden yaptrl
mas, vardiya usulne bavurulmas, ve bu alanda yetkili ve etkin
bir kontrol mekanizmasnn bulunmay.
Srekli, disiplinli ve titiz alma, dil, edebiyat, kltr konu
larnda aratrmalar yapma, evrilmesi gerekli yaznn konusunu,
slubunu iyi kavrama, yazarn tanma, yapaca evirinin (tm
teki almalarnda olduu gibi) amalarn iyi belirleme gerei
yannda, renciye u somut neriler geti ril ebi l ir: kulland dil
lerin ve bu dillerin kayna olan kltrlerin benzeen ve benze
meyen yanlarn iyi bellemeli; okuduunu enikonu anlamaya a
lmal; evirdii yaznn biim ve z asndan aslna uygun,
ama anlalr olmasna dikkat etmeli; ve yapt eviriyi nce kar
latrmal olarak, sonra ayrca, titizlikle birka defa okumaldr.
(1) Trk Dil K urumunun Yazm Klavuzu, Trkedeki deime ve gelimelere
uygun olarak sk sk yeniden 'baslmaktadr. Bu klavuzu elde bulundur
mak Trkenin doru, dzgn ve tutarl kullanlmas asndan yararldr.
28
Bu ie evirinin yapl srasnda nem verilir, sz konusu yaz
nn her esi, her birimi (cmle, paragraf, blm) ayr ayr
kontrol edilirse, alnan sonu kusursuza daha yakn olacaktr.
Her ihtimale kar ortaya kabilecek yanllar dnerek, yap
lan eviriyi, onun asln bilmeyen, ya da son zamanlarda evir
mek amacyla onunla uramam olan birine okumak, alma
nn bir kez daha salamasn yapmak bakmndan yararl ola
bilir.
Burada, eviri derslerinde izlenecek ynteme de ksaca dein
mek gerekiyor. Derslerde ncelikle, yukarda belirtilen ilkelere
uygun olarak, eldeki parada geen szck, terim ve deyimler; ye
rine gre imgeler ve szck oyunlar, deiik cmle kurulular
ve baka slup zellikleri gibi daha deiik eler zerinde duru
lacak ve gerektiinde kk tartmalara yer verilecektir, ilk s
nflarda yabanc dilin doru Trkenin ise doru, dzgn
ve akc kullanlmasndan dn verilmezse, ilerisi iin sa
lam bir temel kurulabilecei gibi, daha gzle grlr sonu
alma yolunda nemli bir adm atlm olur, iyi bir eviri ncelik
le iyi bir anlama ve szl ve yazl anlatma yetisini gerektirir.
Bu yetiyi gelitirmenin, batan savma ve geliigzel eviriye en
gel olmann yollarndan biri, eldeki yaznn kilit eleri zerin
de yeterince durmak, gerektiinde cmleleri tekrar tekrar oku
yarak zeletiriye ynelmektir. Derse hazrlkl gelme, hem ve
rimlilik hem de ilerleme hz asndan kmsenmeyecek bir yer
tutar. Y alnz szck ve deyimlerin karlklarnn bulunmas ye
terli saylmaz, ilenecek para tmyle dikkatle okunmal, ge
rektiinde ierik ve biimle ilgili ayrntlarn kavranabilmesi iin
baka kaynaklara bavurulmal, anlalamayan kesimler belirlen
meli, tm cmle ve paragraflar tam ve eksiksiz olarak evrilme-
lidir. Bu tr almann snfta zaman kazanma bakmndan ya
rar yadsnamaz. Bylece snftaki almalara yn verici, yanl
lar dzeltici, ve derleyip toparlayc bir ilev kazandrlm ola'
cak, gereksiz ayrntlar zerinde durma zorunluluu ortadan kal
kacaktr. Sz gelimi, renci, szlkten bulduu szck ve deyim
lerin karlklarn kendi dilinin szdizimi kurallarna gre yeni
den sralayabilmek iin zaman kaybetmeyecek (ki byle kaybe
dilen zaman azmsanmamaldr), telala, kendi dilinde anlam ta
mayan bir eviri yapmak zorunda kalmayacaktr.
Szlk kullanma konusunda ksa bir uyarda bulunmak ye
rinde olur. Bir szcn tek bir anlam deil, eitli anlamlar,
29
yerine gre yaklak 'karlklar, armlar aratrlmaldr.1
alma aceleye getirilmemeli, anlam iyice aratrlmal, szck
balama gre deerlendirilmeli, yerinde ufak sapmalarla yoruma
bavurulmaldr. Szlk kullanrken ayrca telaffuza, vurgulara,
szcklerin doru yazlna dikkat etmesi, konuyla dorudan il
gili olmasa bile, ilerideki almalar iin salam bir temel kur
mas ynnden renciye yardmc olacaktr.
ileri snflarda, ya da duruma (rencilerin bilgi dzeyine,
derslerde eriilebilen ilerleme hzna, v.b.) gre kk snflarda
da dil ve ilenen konular asndan ayrntlara girilebilecek ve
baarl ve baarsz eviri rnekleri zerinde kyaslamal al
malar yaplacaktr.
Metin seiminde dili basit paralara yer verilmekle birlikte,
ayrca basitletirmeye ya da szck saysn snrlandrma yoluna
gidilmeyecektir.
Eer renciler hem ana dillerini hem de yabanc dili doru,
dzgn, akc ve kvrak bir biimde kullanabilecek dzeye gel
miler ve evirinin temel ilkelerini kavramlarsa seilecek me
tinlerin, her iki dilde aa yukar eit sayda olmasn salamak,
zellikle ana dilden yabanc dile yaplacak eviri saysn dk
tutmamak nemli grnr. Bu yolla dil temeli salamlatrlabi-
lecei gibi, yabanc dil ve kltrdeki dnce, kavram ve anlatm
farkllklar daha somut bir aklk kazanacaktr. Bylelikle, az
sayda da olsa, kimi rencilere Trk kltrnn da almasn
da katkda bulunabilmeleri iin ilk adm atma frsat da verile
bilecektir.
Baarl ve baarsz eviri rnekleri yannda, bir yaptn ya
da parann deiik evirileri zerinde durmak, baar ve baar
szln nedenlerine, ayr ayr evirmenlere zg slup zellikleri
ne deinmek, bir eviri kavram oluturma asndan yararl ola
bilir.
Belli bal trlerden alnacak rnekler dersin yeterince kap
saml olmasn salayacaktr. alar da gz nnde tutularak,
(1) eviride her szce karlk bulma sabas yanltc sonular dourabilece
inden, aratrmaya nce ngilizce'den ngilizceye bir szlkle balamak;
ngilizceden Trke'ye, gerekirse Trkeden Trkeye szlklere ise daha
sonra bavurmak gerekir.
30
aadaki trlerden seilecek rnekler renciye edebiyat evirisi
hakknda genel bir fikir verebi li r: Hikaye, roman, tiyatro oyunu,
iir, deneme, eletiri. Dilin gnlk ve zamana uygun kullanl
(deien szck ve deyimler, anlatm biimleri, v.b.) ise gazete ve
dergilerden seilecek paralarla rneklenecektir. Gncel konula
rn ilgi asndan da nemli olduu aktr.
Bu arada, seilecek paralarda anlam btnl de gzetile
cektir. Kendi iinde btnl olan ksa hikaye, iir ve deneme
lerde byle bir glk sz konusu olamayacana gre, geriye da
ha uzun yaptlar, yani romanlar ve tiyatro oyunlar kalyor. Ro
man ele aldmzda, biim ve z ynnden romann btn ya
da genel olarak roman tr (trleri) hakknda fikir verebilecek
paralar renciye daha kapsaml bir yarar salayabilecektir.
Derslerde tekdzelikten kanma amacyla, deiik trler yann
da, bu trler iinde konu ve biim deiiklii de gz nnde bu
lundurulacaktr.
B. R. Bozkurt
R N E K L E R
ESSAY V I I I OF MARRIAGE AND SI NGLE LI FE
He that hath wife and children hath given hostages to fortune;
for they are impediments to great enterprises, either of virtue or
mischief. Certainly, the best works, and of greatest merit for the
public, have proceeded from the unmarried or childless men,
which both in affection and means have married and endowed
the public. Y et it were great reason that those that have children
should have greatest care of future times; unto which they know
they must transmit their dearest pledges. Some there are, who
though they lead a single life, yet their thoughts do end with
themselves, and account future times impertinences. Nay, there
are some other that account wife and children but as bills of
charges. Nay more, there are some foolish rich covetous men that
take a pride in having no children, because they may be thought
so much the richer. For perhaps they have heard some talk, Such
an one is a great rich man, and another except to it, Yea, but
he hath a great charge of children; as if it were an abatement
to his riches. But the most ordinary cause of a single life is
liberty; especially in certain self-pleasing and humorous minds,
which are so sensible of every restraint, as they will go near to
think their girdles and garters to be bonds and shackles.
Ummarried men are best friends, best masters, best servants;
but not always best subjects; for they are light to run away; and
almost all fugitives are of that condition. A single life doth well
with churchmen; for charity willy hardly water the ground where
it must first fill a pool. I t is indifferent for judges and
magistrates; for if they be facile and corrupt, you shall have a
servant five times worse than a wife. For soldiers, I find the
32
generals commonly in their hortatives put men in mind of their
wives and children; and I think the despising of marriage amongst
the Turks maketh the vulgar soldier more base. Certainly wife
and children are a kind of discipline of humanity; and single
men, though they be many times more charitable, because their
means are less exhaust, yet, on the other side, they are more
cruel and hard-hearted (good to make severe inquisitors), because
their tenderness is not so oft called upon. Grave natures, led by
custom, and therefore constant, are commonly loving husbands;
as was said of Ulysses, Vetulam suam praetulit immortalitati.
Chaste women are often proud and froward, as presuming upon
the merit of their chastity. I t is one of the best bonds both of
chastity and obedience in the wife, if she think her husband
wise; which she will never do if she find him jealous. Wives are
young mens mistresses; companions for middle age; and old
mens nurses. So as a man may have a quarrel to marry when
he will. But yet he was reputed one of the wise men, that made
answer to the question, when a man should marry? A young
man not yet, an elder man not at all. I t is often seen that bad
husbands have very good wives; whether it be that it raiseth the
price of their husbands kindness when it comes; or that the
wives take a pride in their patience. But this never fails, if the
bad husbands were of their own choosing, against their friends
consent; for then they will be sure to make good their own folly.1
VI I I . EVLLK REKRLI K STNE
K arsyla ocuklar olan bir kimse bunlar aln yazsnn eli
ne tutuk vermi saylr, giriecei hayrl hayrsz her byk ite
karsyla ocuklar bir engeldir. En byk ilerin, topluma en de
erli hizmetlerin, hem sevgilerini hem de varlklarn kamu ya
rarna adayan evlenmemi ya da ocuksuz kimselerce baarlm
olduu, iyi bilinen bir gerektir. Oysa, ocuklar olan kimselerin,
en deerli varlklarn brakacaklar gelecei en ok dnmeleri
gerekir gibi gelir bize. Ama bekr olmakla birlikte gelecekle ilgili
kaygular kendilerinden teye gemeyen insanlar da vardr. Bir
takmlar da karlaryla ocuklarn bir yk olarak grrler. Da
(1) Francis Bacon, Essays (London : Everymans Library, 1906).
33
ha bakalar, birtakm budala pinti zenginler, daha da zengin g
rnmek iin, ocuklarnn olmayiyla bbrlenirler; belki de bir
yerde birinin falanca ok zengin adam, dediini, bir bakasnn
da sanki ocuu olmak zenginlie glge dren bir eymi gibi,
evet ama banda bir sr ocuk var, diyerek kar ktn
iitmitir. Evlenmemenin en yaygn nedeni, zellikle bencil, ga
rip huylu kiilerde, zgr kalma isteidir, nk byleleri hi bir
snrlamaya gelemezler, neredeyse ukurlaryla paa balarn
bile kendilerine vurulmu birer zincir gibi grrler. Evlenmemi
adamlar arasndan arkadalarn en iyisi, efendilerin en iyisi, uak
larn en iyisi kar, ama en iyi uyruklar kmaz, nk byleleri
kolayca kaverirler, kaaklarn hemen hemen hepsi bu trden
dir. Evlenmemek din adamlarna uygun der, nk hayrsever
lik nce bir havuzu doldurmak zorunda kalrsa, evresindeki top
raklar kolay kolay sulayamaz. Y arglarla devlet grevlilerinin
evlenip evlenmemesi nemli deildir, gerekte bunlar kolay etki
altnda kalan rvete yatkn kiilerse, uaklarnn bu konuda bir
kardan be kat daha ok ktl dokunabilir. Askerlere gelince,
komutanlarn askerleri yreklendirmek iin yaptklar konuma
larda onlara ounlukla karlaryla ocuklarndan sz 1ettiini
grmmdr. Bence Trkler arasnda evliliin hor grlmesi,
onlarn sert askerlerini daha da bayalatrr. K arisiyle ocuk
lar olan kimse bir bakma insanlk okulundan geer; evlenmemi
kimseler, olanaklar kolay tkenmedii i-in daha yardmsever
davranmalar gerekirken, tam tersine daha acmasz daha kat
yrekli olurlar (zorba engizisyoncular andracak lde), nk
acma duygular yle kolay kolay depremez. Arbal yaradl
ta kimseler, alkanlk gereince, gvenilir, ounlukla da iyi bi
rer koca olurlar, tpk Odysseus iin dendii gi bi : Vetulam suam
praetulit immortalitati.1 Erdemli kadnlar, erdemlerinden kendi
lerine bir pay karmak istercesine ounlukla gururlu, alml
olurlar. K adnda erdem ile yumuak balln en nemli koulu,
kocasnn akll bir adam olduuna inanmasdr; kocasn ks
kan bulan kadn hi bir zaman bu inanta deildir. K adn koca
snn genlikte sevgilisi, orta yallkta yolda, yallkta da ba
(1) Yal karsn lmszlkten ye tuttu. Plutarkhos, Moralia. Gzel by
c Kalypso, gnln kaptrd Oysseusa, yannda kalrsa kendisine lm
szlk, sonsuz genlik armaan edeceini sylemi, onu kandrmak iin
diller dkm, ama Odysseus I thakaya dnmek uruna btn bu arma
anlar tepmiti (.n.).
34
kcs olduundan, erkek ne zaman olsa evlenmek iin bir gerek
e bulabilir, ama erkek ne zaman evlenmelidir sorusunu, gen
adam iin erken saylr daha, yal adam iin de artk getir,
diye yantlayan kii2 bilgeler arasnda anlr. K t kocalara iyi
kadnlarn dt sk sk grlen bir durumdur. K adn asn
dan bu, kocann arada bir tutabilecek iyiliini daha deerli kl
mak iin sylenegelen bir eydir belki; belki de kadnlarn gs
terdikleri sabrdan dolay kendilerine bir vn pay karmala-
rmdandr; ama bu kt kocalar kendi gnlleriyle, dostlarnn
tlerine kulak asmadan semilerse, yaptklar bu lgnl ele
gne belli etmemek iindir sabrlar.3
(2) Eski Y unann yedi bilgesinden biri diye anlan Thalesi (.. 640 - 545) de
mek istiyor Bacon, Annesinin kendini zorla evlendirme isteklerine Thalesin,
bir sre sok erken, sonra da ok ge diye kar koyduu sylenir (.n.).
(3) Francis Bacon, Btn Denemeler, Trkesi: Akit Gktrk ( stanbul : Cem
Y aynevi, 1974).
from A PORTRAI T OF THE ARTI ST AS A Y OUNG MAN
Tell us, Dedalus, do you kiss your mother before you go
to bed?
Stephen answered:
I do.
Wells turned to the other fellows and sai d:
O, I say, heres a fellow says he kisses his mother every
night before he goes to bed.
The other fellows stopped their game and turned round
laughing. Stephen blushed under their eyes and sai d:
I do not.
Wells sai d:
O, I say, heres a fellow says he doesnt kiss his mother
before he goes to bed.
They all laughed again. Stephen tried to laugh with them.
He felt his whole body hot and confused in a moment. What was
the right answer to the question? He had given two and still
Wells laughed. But Wells must know the right answer for he
was in third of grammar. He tried to think of Wellss mother
but he did not dare to raise his eyes to Wellss face. He did not
like Wellss face. I t was Wells who had shouldered him into the
square ditch the day before because he would not swop his little
snuffbox for Wellss seasoned hacking chestnut, the conqueror of
forty. I t was a mean thing to do; all the fellows said it was. And
how cold and slimy the water had been: And a fellow had once
seen a big rat jump plop into the scum.
36
The cold slime of the ditch covered his whole body; and,
when the bell rang for study and the lines filed out of the
playrooms, he felt the cold air of the corridor and staircase
inside his clothes. He still tried to think what was the right
answer. Was it right to kiss his mother or wrong to kiss his
mother? What did that mean, to kiss? Y ou put your face up like
that to say good night and then his mother put her face down.
That was to kiss. His mother put her lips on his cheek; her lips
were soft and they wetted his cheek; and they made a tiny little
noise; kiss. Why did people do that with their two faces?...
April 15. Met her today point blank in Grafton Street. The
crowd brought us together. We both stopped. She asked me why
I never came, said she had heard all sorts of stories about me.
This was only to gain time. Asked me was I writing poems?
About whom? I asked her. This confused her more and I felt
sorry and mean. Turned off that valve at once and opened the
spiritual-heroic refrigerating apparatus, invented and patented in
all countries by Dante Alighieri. Talked rapidly of myself and
my plans. I n the midst of it unluckily I made a sudden gesture
of a revolutionary nature. I must have looked like a fellow
throwing a handful of peas into the air. People began to look at
us. She shook hands a moment after and, in going away, said
she hoped I would do what I said.
Now I call that friendly, dont you?
Y es, I liked her today. A little or much? Dont know. I liked
her and it seems a new feeling to me. Then, in that case, all the
rest, all that I thought I thought and all that I felt I felt, all
the rest before now, in fact.... O give it up, old chap! Sleep it off!
April 16. Away! Away!
The spell of arms and voices: the white arms of roads, their
promise of close embraces and the black arms of tall ships that
stand against the moon, their tale of distant nations. They are
held out to say: We are alone - come. And the voices say with
them: We are your kinsmen. And the air is thick with their
company as they call to me, their kinsman, making ready to go,
shaking the wings of their exultant and terrible youth.
37
April 26. Mother is putting my new secondhand clothes in
order. She prays now, she says, that I may learn in my own life
and away from home and friends what the heart is and what it
feels. Amen. So be it. Welcome, O life! I go to encounter for the
millionth time the reality of experience and to forge in the smithy
of my soul the uncreated conscience of my race.
April 27. Old father, old artificer, stand me now and ever
in good stead.1
Dublin, 1904
Trieste, 1914
(1) J ames J oyce, A Portrait of the A rtist as a Y oung Man (Harmondsworth :
Penguin Books, 1960), pp. 14-15, 252 -253.
SANATININ B R GEN ADAM OLARAK PORTRES nden
Syle bakalm, Dedalus, yatana yatmadan nce anneni
per misin? dedi.
Stephen karlk verdi :
perim.
Wells br ocuklara dnerek :
Bakn burada her gece yatmadan nce annesini pen biri
var.
brleri oyunlarm brakp glerek dndler. Baklar altn
da k zard :
pmem.
Wells:
Bakn burada her gece yatmadan nce annesini pmeyen
biri var, dedi.
Hep birden gene gldler. Stephen da onlarla glmeye al
t. Bir an iinde gvdesinin ate gibi kzdn karmakark ol
duunu duydu. Bu soruya verilecek doru karlk neydi? iki ey
sylemiti ve Wells hl glyordu. Ama her halde Wells doru
sunu biliyordu, nk dilbilgisi deydi. Wellsin annesini gz
nn nne getirmeye alt ama Wellsin yzne bakmaya yre
i kalmamt. Wellsin yznden holanmyordu. Enfiye kutusu
nu dei toku etmedi diye bir gn nce onu hendee yuvarlayan
Wellsdi. Pis bir akayd bu; herkes yle demiti. Hem su da ne
souk ne svakt. Sonra ocuklardan biri koca bir sann hop
diye iine atladn grmt bir kere.
39
Hendekteki souk svak amur btn gvdesini kaplad ve
ett zili alp ocuklar oyun odalarndan sra sra karken kori
dorun, merdivenlerin souk havasn elbiselerinin iinde duydu.
Hl ne sylemesi gerektiini dnyordu. Annesini pmesi do
ru muydu, yanl m? Ne demekti bu, pmek? yi geceler demek
iin o yzn yle kaldrr annesi de yzn yle indirirdi,
pmek buydu ite. Annesi dudaklarn onun yanana koyard;
dudaklar yumuak olur, yzn slatrd; bir de minicik ses
kar rl ard : pp. insanlar yzleriyle neden yaparlard bunu?...
15 Nisan. Bugn Grafton Sokanda onunla burun buruna
geliverdim. K alabalk bizi bir araya srkledi, ikimiz de durduk.
Bana niin hi gelmediimi sordu, hakkmda bir sr hikye
duyduunu syledi. Bunlar zaman kazanmak iindi. iir yazyor
muyum? diye sordu. K imin hakknda? diye sordum ona. Bunun
stne bsbtn arnca acdm ben de ve kzdm kendi kendi
me. Hemen o supab kapayp manev-kahraman soutucu arac
atm ki btn lkelerde patenti Dante Alighieriye aittir. K en
dimi ve tasarlarm anlattm bir abuk. Btn bunlarn arasn
da yazk ki devrimci nitelikte bir ansz hareket yapverdim. Ha
vaya bir avu bezelye serpen birine benzedim galiba. Halk bize
bakmaya balad. Bir dakika gemeden elimi skt ve gittiim za
man sylediklerimi yapacam umduunu syledi.
Dostluk diye ben buna derim ite, siz demez misiniz?
Evet, bugn houma gitti. Az m ok mu? Bilmiyorum. Ondan
holandm ve bu yeni bir duygu gibi grnyor bana. O zaman,
bu durumda, geri kalan her ey, dndm dndm ve
duyduumu duyduum her ey, aslnda... Of, bo ver be ahbap!
Uyu gitsin!
16 Nisan. Uzaa! Uzaa!
K ollarla seslerin bys: yollarn ak kollar, verdikleri s
cak kucaklamalar sz ve aya kar dikilen boylu gemilerin ka
ra kollar, uzak lkeleri anlatan ykleri. unu demek iin uza
nyorlar : Biz yalnzz - gel. Ve sesler de konuuyor onlarla bir
likte : biz senin kandalarnz Ve hava kalabalklaryla youn
beni, kandalarn arrlarken, gitmeye hazrlanrlarken, co
kun ve korkun genliklerinin kanatlarn rparak.
40
26 Nisam. Eskiciden alnma yeni elbiselerimi annem dzene
koyuyor. Dua ettiini sylyor evimden ve arkadalarmdan
uzakta yrein ne olduunu ve ne duyduunu kendi hayatmda
renebileyim diye. Amin. Dilerim yle olsun. Hogeldin, Ey ha
yat! Milyonuncu keredir yola kyorum yaantnn gerekliiyle
karlamak ve ruhumun nalbantmda rkmn yaratlmam vic
dann dvmek iin.
27 Nisan. Koca ata, koca dzenci, imdi ve her zaman yar
dmc ol bana.1
SON
Dublin, 1904
Triyeste, 1914.
(1) J ames J oyce, Sanatnn Bir Gen Adam Olarak Portresi, ev. M. Belge
( stanbul : de yaynevi, 1966), s. 12 - 13, 266 - 267.
from HAMLET
Polonius : Y et here, Laertes! Aboard, aboard, for shame!
The wind sits in the shoulder of your sail,
And you are stayd for. Theremy blessing with thee!
And these few precepts in thy memory
Look thou character. Give thy thoughts no tongue,
Nor any unproportiond thought his act.
Be thou familiar, but by no means vulgar.
Those friends thou hast, and their adoption tried,
Grapple them to thy soul with hoops of steel;
But do not dull thy palm with entertainment
Of each new-hatchd, unfledgd courage. Beware
Of entrance to a quarrel; but, being in,
Beart that thopposed may beware of thee.
Give every man thy ear, but few thy voice;
Take each mans censure, but reserve thy judgment.
Costly thy habit as thy purse can buy,
But not expressd in fancy; rich, not gaudy;
For the apparel oft proclaims the man;
And they in France of the best rank and station
Are of a most select and generous choice in that.
Neither a borrower nor a lender be;
For loan oft loses both itself and friend,
And borrowing dulls the edge of husbandry.
This above allto thine own self be true,
And it must follow, as the night the day,
Thou canst not then be false to any man.
Farewell; my blessing season this in thee!
(Liii.55 - 81)
42
Hamlet: To be, or not to bethat is the question;
Whether tis nobler in the mind to suffer
The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune,
Or to take arms against a sea of troubles,
And by opposing end them? To die, to sleep
No more; and by a sleep to say we end
The heart-ache and the thousand natural shocks
That flesh is heir to. Tis a consummation
Devoutly to be wishd. To die, to sleep;
To sleep, perchance to dream. Ay, theres the rub;
For in that sleep of death what dreams may come,
When we have shuffled off this mortal coil,
Must give us pause. Theres the respect
That makes calamity of so long life;
For who would bear the whips and scorns of time,
Th oppressors wrong, the proud mans contumely,
The pangs of despisd love, the laws delay,
The insolence of office, and the spurns
That patient merit of th unworthy takes,
When he himself might his quietus make
With a bare bodkin? Who would these fardels bear,
To grunt and sweat under a weary life,
But that the dread of something after death
The undiscoverd country, from whose bourn
No traveller returnspuzzles the will,
And makes us rather bear those ills we have
Than fly to others that we know not of?
Thus conscience does make cowards of us all;
And thus the native hue of resolution
I s sicklied oer with the pale cast of thought,
And enterprises of great pitch and moment,
With this regard, their currents turn awry
And lose the name of action.1
(I l l.i 56 - 88)
(1) William Shakespeare, Hamlet in The Complete Works, ed., Peter Alexander
(London, 1951).
HAMLETden
Polonius: Hl burada msn, Laertes? Ayp sana! Gemiye,
hadi bakalm, gemiye! Rzgr yelkenlerini iirmi, herkes seni
bekliyor. Hadi bakalm, hayr duam aldn. u birka d de
akima koy: her dndn syleme, olmyacak dncelerini
de yapmaya kalkma. Candan ol ama srnak olma. Denedikten
sonra dost edindiklerini barna bas, ama her ilk tantnla, he
men el skp dost olma. Kavgaya girmekten sakn, ama girdik
ten sonra sk dayan ki karndakinin gz senden korksun. Her
kesi dinle, pek aziyle konu; her birinin fikrini ren, ama ken
di dncen kendine kalsn, stn ban, kesene gre smarlan
sn, zppelie kamasn; ar olsun, ama gsterili olmasn. n
k elbise, sahibinin ne trl bir insan olduunu belli eder. Fran
sann en yksek mevki ve mertebelerindeki adamlar bu hususta
ok ince bir zevk sahibidirler, masraftan da ekinmezler. Ne kim
seden bor al, ne kimseye bor ver. nki dn para veren, ok
kere, hem parasndan olur, hem dostundan; dn almak da tu
tum itiyadn kaybettirir. Hele unu unutma: nefsine kar do
ru ol, o zaman, gn gibi meydandaki, kimseye kar yalanc ol
mazsn....
Hamlet: Y aamak m, yoksa lmek mi, mesele bunda. K r
talihin sapanlarna, oklarna zihninde tahamml gstermek mi
daha merte olur, yoksa kayglarn ummanna kar silhlanp
onlar yok etmek mi? l mek: uyumak. O kadar! Bir uykuyla
kalb zntsn, tabiatn bedene miras olarak verdii bin bir
acy sona erdiriyoruz diyebilmek, candan, gnlden istenecek bir
son olur, l mek: uyumak. Uyumak: belki de rya grmek! Ya,
dert orada: nki, bu fni kalb stmzden syrp attktan
sonra, o lm uykusunda kim bilir ne ryalar grrz, dncesi
bizi durmaya mecbur ediyor. Y aamak felketini uzatan, ite bu
44
dnce. Y oksa, insan bir hanerle kendi iini kendi hallede
bilirken zamann sillesine, hakaretlerine, zalimin hakszlklar
na, kendini beenmiin kstahlklarna, karlksz kalan akn s
trabna, kanunun ihmaline, mevki sahibinin kibrine, sabrla gs
terilen liyakatin deersizlerce hor grlmesine kim tahamml
ederdi? Meakkatli bir haytn yk altnda inleyip ter dkmeye
kim raz olurdu? Ne are ki, lm snrlarn aan yolculardan
hibirinin geri gelmedii o bilinmez lke ardnda da belki bir
ey vardr korkusu, zihnimizi akn ederek bizi, bilmediimiz
musibetlere dmektense iinde olduklarmza tahamml ettiri
yor. Dnmek, ite hepimizi byle korkak ediyor; azmin grbz
rengi teredddn soluk glgesiyle hasta bir renk alyor. En b
yk, en mhim teebbsler, bu dnce yznden, mecralarn de
itiriyor; bir fiil adn almaktan kyorlar.1
(1) William Shakespeare, Hamlet, ev. Orhan Burian ( stanbul : Milli Eitim
Basmevi, 1946).
HAMLETden (2)
Polonius : Hl burada msn L aertes? Ne ayp!
Hadi gemiye, gemiye! Seni bekliyorlar yalnz,
Rzgr iirdi bile yelkenleri.
Haydi, hayr duam stnde olsun.
u tlerimi de yaz kafana :
Dncelerinin az dili olmyacak;
Ar hi bir dncenin ardna dmek yok;
Teklifsiz ol, baya olma;
Dostlarn arasnda denenmi olanlar
elik halkalarla bala yreine.
Ama her zp kt, acemi aylak arkada da
El stnde tutup elini kirletme.
Kavga etmekten sakn, ama ettin mi de
ylesine et ki korksunlar senden.
Herkese kulan ve, sesini verme.
Herkese akl dan, kendi akln sakla.
K esenin elverdii kadar iyi giyin.
Zengin ama gsterisiz olsun giydiin.
nk kyafet insann mihengidir ok kez :
Fransada da en kibar kimseler
En ok giyinile gsterirler soyluluklarn.
Ne bor ver ne de bor al : nk bor vermek
ok kez hem paran yitirmektir hem dostunu :
Bor almaksa tutum gcn ypratr.
Her eyden nce de, kendi kendinle doru ol.
O zaman, gece gndze varr gibi.
Sen de aldatmaz olursun kimseyi.
Gle gle. Dualarm tlerim seninle olsun.
46
Hamlet: Var olmak m, yok olmak m, btn sorun bu!
Dncemizin katlanmas m gzel,
Zalim kaderin yumruklarna, oklarna,
Y oksa diretip bel denizlerine kar
Dur, yeter! demesi mi?
lmek, uyumak sadece! Dnn ki uyumakla yalnz
Bitebilir btn aclar yrein,
ektii btn kahrlar insanolunun.
Uyumak, ama d grebilirsin uykuda, o kt!
nk o lm uykularnda,
Syrldmz zaman yaamak kaygsndan,
Ne dler grebilir insan, dnmeli bunu.
Bu dncedir uzun yaamay cehennem eden.
K im dayanabilir zamann krbama?
Zorbann kahrna, gururunun inenmesine,
Sevgisinin kepaze edilmesine,
K anunlarn bu kadar yava
Y zszln bu kadar abuk yrmesine,
K tlere kul olmasna iyi insann
Bir bak saplayp gsne kurtulmak varken?
K im ister btn bunlara katlanmak
Ar bir hayatn altnda inleyip terlemek,
lmden sonraki bir eyden korkmasa,
O kimsenin gidip de dnmedii bilinmez dnya
rktmese yreini?
Bilmediimiz bellara atlmaktansa
ektiklerine raz etmese insan?
Bilin byle korkak ediyor hepimizi:
Dncenin soluk bulandryor
Y rekten gelenin doal rengini.
Ve nice byk, yiite atllar
Y ollarn deitirip bu yzden,
Bir i, bir eylem olma gcn yitiriyorlar.1
(1) William Shakespeare, Hamlet, cev. Sabahattin Eybolu ( stanbul : Remzi
Kitabevi, 1965).
from J ULI US CAESAR
Antony : Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears;
I come to bury Caesar, not to praise him.
The evil that men do lives after them;
The good is oft interred with their bones;
So let it be with Caesar. The noble Brutus
Hath told you Caesar was ambitious.
I f it were so, it was a grievous fault;
And grievously hath Caesar answerd it.
Here, under leave of Brutus and the rest
For Brutus is an honourable man;
So are they all, all honourable men
Come I to speak in Caesars funeral.
He was my friend, faithful and just to me;
But Brutus says he was ambitious,
And Brutus is an honourable man
He hath brought many captives home to Rome,
Whose ransoms did the general coffers fill;
Did this in Caesar seem ambitious?
When that the poor have cried, Caesar hath wept;
Ambition should be made of sterner stuff.
Y et Brutus says he was ambitious;
And Brutus is an honourable man.
Y ou all did see that on the L upercal
I thrice presented him a kingly crown,
Which he did thrice refuse. Was this ambition?
48
Y et Brutus says he was ambitious;
And sure he is an honourable man.
I speak not to disprove what Brutus spoke,
But here I am to speak what I do know.
Y ou all did love him once, not without cause;
What cause withholds you, than, to mourn for him?
O judgment, thou art fled to brutish beasts,
And men have lost their reason! Bear with me;
My heart is in the coffin there with Caesar,
And I must pause till it come back to me.1
(II I.ii.73 -107)
(1) William Shakespeare, Julius Caesar in The Complete Works, ed., Peter
Alexander (London, 1951).
I
J ULI US CAESARdan
Antonius : Dostlar, Romallar, yurttalar, dinleyin;
Ben Caesar gmmee geldim, vmeye deil,
insann ettii ktlk yaar ardndan,
iyilikleriyse topraa gider kemikleriyle.
Brakn, yle olsun Caesar iin de.
Soylu Brutus muhteris dedi Caesar iin :
yle idiyse, ar bir su bu
Ve Caesar btn arlyla dedi suunu.
Burada Brutus ve tekilerin izniyle
(nk Brutus erefli bir insandr,
tekiler de yle, hep erefli insanlardr)
K onumaya geldim Caesarn cenazesinde.
Dostumdu; vefal ve drstt bana kar;
Ama Brutus muhterisdi diyor :
Brutus erefli bir insandr.
Caesar nice esirler getirdi Romaya,
Fidyeleriyle devlet hzineleri doldu :
Bundan tr m muhteris grnd Caesar?
Fakirler alaynca gzleri yaar irdi;
Bir muhteris daha kat yrekli olsa gerek,
Ama Brutus muhterisdi diyor,
Brutussa erefli bir insandr.
Geen bayram hepiniz grdnz,
K rallk tacn kez sundum ona,
nde de almad, i hti ras denir mi buna?
50
Ama Brutus muhterisdi diyor;
Brutussa erefli bir insandr, phesiz.
Ben Brutusa kar konumuyorum, hayr;
Bildiim kadarn sylyorum yalnz.
Hep sevdiniz onu bir zamanlar,
Bouna da deildi elbet sevginiz;
Sonra ne oldu da yanmyorsunuz lmne?
Ey dnce, yrtc hayvanlar arasna kamsn;
insanlar yitirmi akllarn... Balayn beni;
Y reim urada imdi, Caesarn tabutunda :
K onuamam dnnceye kadar bana.1
(1) Sabahattin Eybolu, giir evirileri ( stanbul : Cem Y aynevi, 1976),
s. 76 - 77.
from MACBETH
A dark cave. I n the middle, a cauldron boiling.
Thunder. Enter the three Witches.
1 Witch : Thrice the brinded cat hath mewd.
2 Witch
3 Witch
1 Witch
Thrice and once the hedge-pig whind.
Harpier cries; tis time, tis time.
Round about the cauldron go;
I n the poisond entrails throw.
Toad that under cold stone
Days and nights has thirty-one
Sweltred venom sleeping got
Boil thou first i th charmed pot.
All : Double, double toil and trouble;
Fire burn, and cauldron bubble.
2 Witch : Fillet of a fenny snake,
I n the cauldron boil and bake;
Eye of newt, and toe of frog,
Wool of bat, and tongue of dog,
Adders fork, and blind worms sting,
L izards leg, and howlets wing
For a charm of powrful trouble,
Like a hell-broth boil and bubble.
All : Double, double toil and trouble;
Fire burn, and cauldron bubble.
52
3 Witch : Scale of dragon, tooth of wolf,
Witchs mummy, maw and gulf
Of the ravind salt-sea shark,
Root of hemlock diggd i th dark,
Liver of blaspheming J ew,
Gall of goat, and slips of yew
Sliverd in the moons eclipse,
Nose of Turk, and T artars lips,
Finger of birth-strangled babe
Ditch-deliverd by a drab
Make the gruel thick and slab;
Add thereto a tigers chaudron,
For th ingredience of our cauldron.
All : Double, double toil and trouble;
Fire burn, and cauldron bubble.
2 Witch : Cool it with a baboons blood,
Then the charm is firm and good.1
(I V.i.l - 38)
(1) William Shakespeare, Macbeth in The Complete Works, ed., Peter Alexander
(London, 1951).
MACBETHten
Bir maara. Ortada bir kaynar kazan
Gk grler ve cad girer.
1. Cad : Tekir kedi tm kez miyavlad.
2. Cad : K irpi kez fslad, bir kez tslad.
3. Cad : Guguk kuu : V akittir vakit, dedi.
1. Cad : K ayna kazan, biz dnelim evrende :
Kokmu ikembeyi attm iine.
Souk souk ta altnda kurbaa,
Otuz bir gn, otuz bir gece
Zehim zehim zehirini toplaya,
K azanmda ilk nce o kaynaya.
Hepsi : Ac stne ac, kan stne kan,
K ayna kazanm kayna, yan ateim yan.
2. Cad : K ara ylan ktr ktr kesilsin,
At kazana fkr fkr kaynasn,
Semender gz, kurbaann ba parma,
Kpek dili, yarasann kkrda,
Y lan dii, iyan kuyruu,
Puhu kanad, kertenkele butu,
Fokurdayp pisin kazanda,
Bir cehennem yemei aclnda.
Hepsi : Ac stne ac, kan stne kan,
K ayna kazanm kayna, yan ateim yan.
54
3. Cad : Pul pul ejderha derisi, kurt dii.
Bir cad kemiinin rm,
Kpek balnn kursa, tuzlu tuzlu,
Baldran kk, gece koparlm, gizli gizli,
Bir para Y ahudi cieri, kara kara,
Biraz kei safras, sar sar,
Porsuk yaprann kurumuu,
Ay tutulduu zaman toplanm.
Trk burnu, Tatar duda,
Bir orospudan domu,
Doar domaz boulmu,
At hepsini kazana, kaynasn :
Biraz kaplan ikembesi de katmal ki
K oyulaan orba kvamna gelsin.
Hepsi : Ac stne ac, kan stne kan,
K ayna kazanm kayna, yan ateim yan.
2. Cad : ebek kanyla da souttun mu biraz,
Tamamdr by, nne durulmaz.1
(1) Sabahattin Eybolu, iir evirileri ( stanbul : Cem Y aynevi, 1976),
s. 92 - 93.
REFLECTI ONS ON A BRI GHT MORNI NG
Y ou are dead. So again and again
I return to contemplate this abominable
Brevity of living. How is it so
Loving and exhilarating, so always
Eager a chieftain of living should be
Living no more? I t isnt enough
To say, your perceptions remain; it isn't
Enough to read them, alone, out loud,
And to love them, and to remember you,
Whose investigating presence, brilliant
By day, hovered on shivering extremest
Wings over the night flowers of perfume:
You are not living. There is no you
To whom it can be something
That we live in part by your perceiving,
And praise you. And there, speak
With what resignation we may,
I s the distress. Remain mornings, middays,
Evenings, nights, and mens most curious
Coruscations. But, you are not living.1
(1) Geoffrey Grigson, Encounter, December 1975.
56
PARLAK B R SABAHLA GELEN DNCELER
Sen ldn. Bense hi
Y aamn u iren ksaln
Atamaz oldum aklmdan. Nasl oluyor da byle
Sevgi dolu ve badndrc, sen hep byle
Hevesli bayraktar yaamn,
Artk yaamyorsun? Y etmez ki;
Y arattklarn bize kald demek, yetmez ki
Okumak onlar, yapayalnz, yksek sesle.
Ve onlar sevmek, ve seni hatrlamak.
Y oklayan, aratran varln, gn nda
Prl prl, ular titreyen kanatlaryla
K okulu gece iekleri stnde duraladnda, seni...
Sen yaamyorsun. Sen yoksun ki
Bir anlam olsun sana,
Sana borluyuz u gnleri, yaaymz
Demenin, seni vmzn. Ve ite, ite;
K atlanyor grnsek de,
ite hzn. Sabahlar kald geriye,
le, akam, geceler, ve insanlarn en tuhaf,
Gelip giden, parltlar. Ama, sen yaamyorsun.
(eviren: B.R. Bozkurt)
TRKEDEN NG L ZCE'Y E RNEKLER
DA Y OLLARINDA HASTALAR
Bir eek stnde sar bir yz,
Omuzlarnda bir yorgan gll gll.
Sallan sallan da yollarnda.
Bu hasta nere gider,
Kesmi nn dnceler?
Bir kyl, srtnda sar bir yz,
Y n atkyla rtlm, kolu br hep.
Azald bittii belli hafifliinden,
Bu hasta kimin nesi,
Mustafann eli aya, ninesi.
Bir kan, iinde sar bir yz,
Pis bir dek are olmu derdine.
ul rtlm sakallarna kadar.
Bu hasta hangi kyden,
En fakir, en yasl, en...1
58
SICK PEASANTS ON MOUNTAIN ROADS
A pale face riding a donkey,
On his shoulders a rosy quilt.
J olting on the mountain roads.
Wheres this man heading,
Held back by his own dreading?
A pale face straddling a peasant,
Arms and loin covered by a wool scarf.
So slender you can tell shes waning.
Who might this sick woman be?
Shes all Mustafa has, his grannie.
A pale face couched in an ox-cart,
His only comfort is a filthy mattress.
Wrapped in sackcloth up to his beard.
From what village was he tossed?
The poorest, saddest, the most...2
(1, 2) Fazl Hsn Dalarca, Selected Roems, translated by Talat Sait Halman
(Pittsburgh, Penn., 1969), pp. 38-39.
AKDEN Z RL ER POEMS OF THE
MEDITERRANEAN
Sen Deniz Gk,
Bir an dursamz uykuda
Byr bir yosun geceye kar.
Tedirgin olur ller
Bir an yaslansanz karanla,
Sen Deniz Gk
Dalarm engine
Ki yaadm
Anladmdr.
Romayla K artacanm arasnda
Y zer, sevgi sevgi
stanbul.
Bler bir ku dncemi ikiye
Maviden
Y arda kalr iki.
Dersin ki
Ellerimize deecek
Y ldzlar
Byyecek byyecek de.
Dersin ki
Bir aydnl var
Sevgililer iin,
K aranlk sessiz de.
Y ou, sea-sky,
I f you stop a moment in sleep,
Seaweeds grow against the
night.
Dead men become restless
I f you lean a moment on the
dark,
Y ou sea-sky.
I plunge into the horizon,
For what I can live
I s what I can recall.
Between Rome and Carthage
Floats, love by love,
Istanbul.
A bird splits my thought
From the blue.
My drink remains unfinished.
Y ou say
Stars
Will touch our hands
I n an endless growth.
Y ou say
Darkness
I s bright for lovers
Because it keeps quiet.
60
Dersin ki
Uyuyamyorum
Y alnzz
Gece, mavi de.
Sessizdi yeryz
Y eryznde biricik Akdeniz
vard
Akdenizde
Y alnz ikimiz.
Beni seviyor musun, dedim,
Y umdu gzlerini uzakla,
Tam sorulacak an, diye
glmsedi,
Tam sorulacak yer.
Bir kocaman yeil bir
kocaman boz
Y ellerde
arpar birbirine arpar
enginlere dek.
Dalgalarn ucunda yldzlarn
ucu
Her kpk bir frtna
Her frtna bir evren
u deniz u gk gizlenebilir
Seni sevdiim
Gizlenemez.
Havaya da yalma da aaca
da benzer ama
En ok suya benzer
Sevgimiz.
Morluun acs var sonu yok
K arr yaamamza
K endiliinden
Herkes lnce toprak olurmu
Y ou say
I cant go to sleep.
We are alone,
And the night is blue.
The globe was calm
With only the Mediterranean
on it.
On the Mediterranean,
J ust the two of us.
I said: Do you love me?'>
She closed her eyes to the
horizons.
J ust the moment to ask, she
smiled,
J ust the place to ask.
A mass of green, a mass of gray
Over the winds,
They collide, and both crash
into the horizon.
A rim of the stars on the crest
of the waves
Each foam is a tempest,
Each tempest, a world.
The sea and the sky may be
concealed.
My love for you
Cannot be hidden.
I ts like air and flame and tree
But most of all like water,
This love of ours.
Purple has anguish but no end.
I t blends into our life
By itself.
They say man turns to dust
at death.
61
Hayr hayr
Bizim su olacamz besbelli.
Akdeniz enginlerde karar
maktadr
Ama
Ben
yle maviyim ki.
Akdeniz bir gitmilikle eski,
uzak,
Ama
Ben
Sahibi gibiyim yldzlarn.
Akdeniz seni bir daha
yaratamaz
Ama
Ben
Seni bir daha sevebilirim.
Deli bir grlt anszn
Y rtlrcasna yarlr sessizlik
Dnr Akdeniz.
ite uaklar geer
havalarndan
K alr mavilik stne apak
izleri,
Akdeniz anlar ve sever.
Denizdir,
Her akam st
Btn dncelerde
Gelip gider.
7 nin 1 e
Acs
Uzunluu
Aksi.
No, not us...
Clearly we shall turn to water.
The Mediterranean grows
dark on the horizons
But
I am
Blue all over.
The Mediterranean is bygone
and far as you go,
But
I am
The owner of the stars.
The Mediterranean cannot
create you anew,
But
I am
Can love you once again.
A frantic clamor erupts,
And silence is suddenly
shattered.
The Mediterranean deepens in
thought.
Airplanes cruise the sky.
Their white traces cling to the
blue.
The Mediterranean
understands and loves.
I t is the sea.
Each evening
I n all thoughts
I t comes and goes.
Seven to one
I ts agony,
I ts duration,
I ts echo.
62
Ve gece yarsdr bu masmavi
ey,
Senin
Uzaklarda
Unuttuun sessizlik.
Duymutun
Bu trky
ok eskiden de.
Bu trkyle anlarsn yeiden
Y eilden
K adrgalarn dibindeki sessiz
yosunlar,
Bu Akdeniz dalgalarnda bu
trkde sen
Varsn l l
Ve yoksun biraz,
iyice dn bu btn
yaammzdr.
This deep blue thing is
midnight,
The silence
Y ou forgot
Far away.
Y ou had heard
This song
I n the old days too.
The song evokes in the wind
From green
The quiet weeds on the
bottom of galleons.
I n the Mediterraneans waves
and in this song
Y ou are alive, sparkling,
And somehow you dont exist.
Think hard; this is all of our
living.1
(1) F. H. Dalarca, Selected Poems, pp. 102-109.
HOLLANDALI DRTL K L ERden
from QUATRAINS OF HOLLAND
SES VOICE
Duyuyorum
Gnaydn dediini
Y eil krlarn
Mavi aydnla
I hear it
The green
Says good morning
To the blue
UZAKLARI SY LEMEK
TELLI NG THE DISTANCES
Lale tarlas der ki
Tahta ayakkabya
Al gzelliimi hemen
Ver bana yeryzn
The tulip-beds say
To the wooden sandals
Take my beauty right away
And give me the whole earth
RESM THE PI CTURE
inek doyar erkenden
ayra kverir
Otlar da byr daha
nek de
Having gobbled quite enough
The cow sinks into the meadow
The grass grows much more
So does the cow
SEVN J OY
Sanki kopar gelir
Y eryzndeki btn
uurtmalar
Ellerine
HollandalI ocuklarn
All the kites in the world
Seem to break away
To fly into the hands
Of Dutch children
64
DNLENMEK
K rlardaki evcikler
Birer ssl gvercin
K onmutur hepsi
Gkyzne
GE KARIMAK
Dizboyu ayrlarn
Uar gibi olmasndan belli
Y akndr
Btn gezegenler Hollandaya
KARANLIK AZLI I
Nasl doyar
Bu kocaman
Mavi gkyz
Bir lokma geceyle
RESTI NG
L ittle houses in the meadows
Are dainty pigeons
All perched
On the sky
BLENDING I NTO THE SKY
Y ou can tell from the way
K nee-high grass seems to fly
That all the planets
Are close to Holland
SCARCITY OF DARKNESS
How could
J ust a little bite
Off the night
Feed this vast blue1
(1) Fazl Hsn Dalarca, HollandalI Drtlkler - Quatrains of Holland, ev. Ta
lat S. Halman ( stanbul, 1977).
STANBULU DNLY ORUM
(Orhan Veli K ank)
stanbulu dinliyorum, gzlerim kapal;
nce hafiften bir rzgr esiyor;
Y ava yava sallanyor
Y apraklar, aalarda;
Uzaklarda, ok uzaklarda,
Sucularn hi durmayan ngraklar;
stanbul u dinliyorum, gzlerim kapal.
stanbulu dinliyorum, gzlerim kapal;
K ular geiyor, derken;
Y kseklerden, sr sr, lk lk.
Alar ekiliyor dalyanlarda;
Bir kadnn suya deiyor ayaklar;
stanbulu dinliyorum, gzlerim kapal.
stanbulu dinliyorum, gzlerim kapal;
Serin serin K apal ar;
Cvl cvl Mahmutpaa;
Gvercin dolu avlular.
eki sesleri geliyor doklardan,
Gzelim bahar rzgrnda ter kokular;
stanbulu dinliyorum, gzlerim kapal.
stanbulu dinliyorum, gzlerim kapal;
Banda eski lemlerin sarholuu,
Lo kaykhaneleriyle bir yal;
Dinmi lodoslarn uultusu iinde
stanbulu dinliyorum, gzlerim kapal.
66
stanbulu dinliyorum, gzlerim kapal;
Bir yosma geiyor kaldrmdan;
K frler, arklar, trkler, laf atmalar.
Bir ey dyor elinden yere;
Bir gl olmal;
stanbulu dinliyorum, gzlerim kapal.
stanbulu dinliyorum, gzlerim kapal;
Bir ku rpmyor eteklerinde;
Alnn scak m deil mi, biliyorum;
Dudaklarn slak m deil mi, biliyorum;
Beyaz bir ay douyor fstklarn arkasndan
K albinin vuruundan anlyorum;
stanbulu dinliyorum.1
(1) 20. Yzyl Trk iir Antolojisi, derleyen lhami Soysal (Ankara : Bilgi Y a
ynevi, 1973), s. 272.
I AM LI STENI NG TO ISTANBUL
(Translated by Spiro K. Kostof and F. Engin)
I am listening to I stanbul, my eyes closed;
First a wind blows lightly;
And gently the leaves flutter
On the trees;
Far, very far away,
The never ending bells of water-carriers;
I am listening to I stanbul, my eyes closed.
I am listening to I stanbul, my eyes closed;
Birds are passing by;
High above, in flocks, crying.
Nets are being drawn in fish-traps;
A womans feet touch the water;
I am listening to I stanbul, my eyes closed.
I am listening to I stanbul, my eyes closed;
Cool, so cool K apal ar;
Peeping, twittering Mahmutpaa;
Courtyards full of pigeons.
Hammer sounds I hear from the docks;
Sweaty smells in the lovely spring breeze;
I am listening to I stanbul, my eyes closed.
I am listening to I stanbul, my eyes closed;
Still drunk in remembrance of old drinking bouts.
A seashore residence with its dim boat-houses;
Amid the sighing of hushed south winds
I am listening to I stanbul, my eyes closed.
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I am listening to I stanbul, my eyes closed;
A gal trots by on the sidewalk;
Oaths, songs, ballads, impudent taunts.
Something falls from her hand to the ground;
I t must be a rose;
I am listening to I stanbul, my eyes closed.
I am listening to I stanbul, my eyes closed;
A bird flutters in your skirt;
I s your brow warm or not, I know;
Are your lips wet or not, I know;
A white moon rises behind the trees,
I know it from the beating of your heart;
I am listening to I stanbul.1
(1) Turkish Daily News, Saturday, 11 February 1978.
TEXTS I N ENGLI SH
Preliminary Exercises
1. She was about to phone you when you came in.
I wish I knew just what they were about.
2. Please have a seat, someone will be along soon.
3. I wonder what they are up to.
He has done that work very badly, I m afraid he is just not
up to it.
4. A storm seems to be blowing up.
Something is blowing up and I dont like it.
The whole dispute has blown up again.
Dont blow this thing up more than necessary.
His reputation has been blown up completely.
5. The surface is rotten and breaks away when you touch it.
I imagine he will try to break away.
6. This machine will break down if you dont take care of it.
Talks have broken down over the disputed territory.
She broke down when she heard her husbands death.
7. A burglar broke in during the night.
8. They have broken off the negotiations.
9. The prisoners have broken out.
Cholera has broken out in Bengal.
10. The soldiers broke through the enemy lines.
11. Their partnership has broken up.
He broke up the fight between the two gangs.
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12. This accident has been brought about by your recklessness.
13. After much hard bargaining he brought the trader down to
10000 liras for the carpet.
Their action may yet bring the government down.
14. He brought forth a new plan, just as unworkable as the old
one.
15. She brought forward a new proposal.
16. The government is bringing in new legislation on this matter.
Y ou will never get the job finished in time.
17. He brought the deal off in a spectacular way.
18. This kind of weather often brings on hay fever.
19. Her teacher wants to bring out her talent.
The company intends to bring out a new series of educational
books.
20. She brought her friends round to see us.
We should have very little difficulty bringing him round to
our way of thinking.
21. They have brought their children up well.
He brought up the subject of money again last night.
She keeps bringing up (i.e. vomiting) everything we give her.
22. Thanks for the news, I ll call back in half an hour.
He was called back from his holiday to handle the problem.
23. The customers called for more beer.
I ll call for you at seven oclock and we can go there together.
She called for the books she had lent me.
The work calls for endurance and patience.
The present situation calls for entirely new measures.
24. The workers have decided to call off their strike action.
He phoned me and call the appointment off.
25. He called over to see us yesterday.
26. They called on me yesterday for about an hour.
27. I f you come across my book, will you send me it.
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28. May my sister come along to the meeting as well?
How is your broken arm coming along?
29. The machine came apart when he started it up.
30. How did you come by this painting?
31. That old building is coming down next year.
The price of beer is coming down soon.
Her weight is slowly coming down.
The childs temperature came down in the morning.
Her hair comes down to her shoulders.
This house has come down from father to son for eight
generations.
32. When do strawberries come in?
The tide comes in a long way at this point.
Where do I come in, in your scheme?
33. I came near to telling him just what I thought of the whole
business.
I came close to screaming because of the din.
34. Nothing came of it, I m afraid.
Thats what comes of disobeying the instructions.
35. This button has just come off.
Her wedding never came off.
His plans havent come off.
I dont think these stains will come off.
36. The stars come out at night.
Some flowers have begun to come out.
The truth has come out at last.
The book will come out in September.
Y ou always come out well in photographs.
His kindness comes out when he speaks.
I dont think these stains will come out after all.
37. Y ou really must come over sometime and have dinner with
us.
38. The unconscious man slowly began to come round.
39. I ts just one of those things that comes up.
He came up for the interview but did not get the job.
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40. I dont expect to come up against any monsters when I get
there.
Y ou may come up against a bit of opposition.
41. He cut back through the woods to where he had been
standing before.
42. We must cut down expenses.
43. She always cuts in when other people are talking.
44. We were talking on the telephone, and got cut off.
Our water suppy has been cut off again.
The enemy soldiers were cut off from their regiment.
45. Why dont you cut out all this nonsense?
He has decided to cut out smoking and drinking.
46. They have done away with those old laws, you know.
I want them to do away with this barbarous custom.
47. Oh, I could do with a cup of tea.
He said he could do with a wash.
Y ou shouldnt have anything to do with these people.
What has that got to do with the problem?
This has nothing to do with you.
Y ou will just have to do with what youve got.
48. I can do without your advice, thank you.
49. The cat drew back as we approached.
She has drawn back from us all and we dont kr.ow why.
50. The autumn days are drawing in.
This play is drawing in large crowds every night.
51. The fateful date drew on.
52. The spring days are drawing out.
She drew some money out of the bank.
They drew their savings out before they went on holiday.
This meeting has been drawn out long enough.
They drew out the secret from her.
53. The stones have fallen away from the side of the house.
The number of people coming to the club has fallen away
a lot.
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The old customs have fallen away into disuse.
54. The house is falling down from lack of attention.
55. Dont tell me you fell for that old trick!
Everyone seems to fall for his charming manner.
She has fallen for him.
56. Which category does this item fall under?
I t falls under Miscellaneous in the files.
57. Hes certainly getting ahead in his profession.
We are getting ahead well with the project.
58. I d better be getting along, or my husband will be wondering
whats happened to me.
The firm is getting along all right.
Dont worry, I ll get along without you.
59. This village is pretty difficult to get at.
I cant get at him on the telephone.
They are having trouble getting at the information.
The truth is difficult to get at.
J ust what are you getting at.
She is always getting at him.
60. I really must get away from this place for a few days.
The convict got away from his guards.
The thief got away with a lot of money.
61. Y ou arent going to let them get away with it, are you?
I t was a pretty rotten thing to do, but he got away with an
apology and no other punishment.
62. I expect them to get back about eight tonight.
The soldiers told the people to get back (keep back).
She has got her strength back after her illness.
I dont think shell get him back now that hes found some
one more compatible.
I got the book back before he noticed it was missing.
They got him back home before his wife realized he was
drunk.
63. The old lady got down from the bus.
I hope you managed to gel it all down (make a note of).
The hunters got down a number of birds.
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They got down two enemy aircraft.
The news certainly got her down.
64. The sun gets in through these windows.
Water gets in through this crack in the wall.
The child got in to the school after a special test.
65. He gets into a terrible rage if you just mention politics.
Dont get into such a panic!
66. They stopped the bus and got off.
The plane got off on time.
The petty thief got off with a fine.
Y ou wont get off so easily next time.
She managed to get off washing the dishes.
She got her hat and coat off.
They managed to get the stains off.
67. The bus stopped and we got on.
How are you getting on now?
The work is getting on splendidly.
I am afraid she isnt getting on very well at school.
He has certainly got on in the world.
Some people get on, others dont.
I was surprised how well you all get on.
68. I d better get out before I am thrown out.
The news has got out that you are leaving.
Dont let it get out that he is coming.
The dentist managed to get the tooth out.
She couldnt get the stain out.
He was very embarrassed, but somehow he got the apology
out.
We expect to get the next edition out on time.
69. He got over his difficulties.
They dont appear to have got over their disappointment.
They got the work over as quickly as possible.
70. The water gets through every time it rains.
The news finally got through to us.
The candidates didnt get all through.
71. He finally got through with the subject.
72. She gets up at six a.m. every morning.
Please dont get up, I can find my own way out.
There is a strong wind getting up.
How do you get up on to an elephant?
72. She gave the money away to the poor.
The soldier gave away the secrets when the enemy tortured
him.
73. This chamber gives back a marvellous echo.
The mirrors gave back hundreds of parallel images.
74. I f we cant continue with the struggle, we may as well give
in now.
75. This rotting vegetation gives off a terrible smell.
76. The supplies are beginning to give out.
77. I wish she would give over for a bit.
They gave the building over for use as an office.
78. Dont give up just because i ts difficult.
He gave up his seat on the bus to an old lady.
He gave himself up to the police.
She has given up her life to nursing the sick.
She is trying to give up smoking.
79. They go about together.
The people were going about their everyday affairs.
J ust go about your work as if nothing had happened.
80. They went by without stopping.
81. The boat went down without a trace.
The flood waters have gone down.
He want down on his knees and begged for mercy.
Prices on the stock exchange have begun to go down.
The pictures have gone down in value considerably.
The sun has gone down.
The swelling has gone down a lot.
I m afraid he has gone down again (fail in an exam).
82. She went for him with a hatchet.
Be careful or the dog will go for you.
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The newspapers have certainly gone for him.
I dont much go for blondes.
83. She went off with the gardeners son.
The bomb went off, killing three people.
The meat has gone off.
The milk has gone off because of the heat.
The effects of the sedative have gone off now.
The old man has gone off by the fire (fall asleep).
84. Time goes on.
I f you go on like that, you must expect trouble.
85. The lights have gone out.
The fire went out.
Short skirts have gone out.
86. He went over to the other side of the street.
They have gone over to the enemy.
The auditors went over the accounts with care.
I asked her to go over her lines again.
87. The bill has gone through and become an Act of Parliament.
She has gone through a lot since her husband was killed
He has gone through his mail.
The auditors went through the accounts.
The lawyers went through the evidence.
The police went through the suspects clothes.
The Customs men went through our suitcases.
We have all gone through the required formalities.
They went through the appropriate marriage procedure.
88. The smoke went up.
The curtain went up.
He has gone up in my estimation since he did that.
The goods have gone up in quality/price.
The bomb went up, killing three people.
89. The colours go with each other.
Her new hat doesnt go with her dress.
90. The shy little girl held back from meeting us.
I held back as long as I could from telling him what I
thought of him.
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The policemen held back the crowds, who were pressing
forward to see the visitors.
She was very upset, but held back her tears for as long as
she could.
We were sure he was holding something back from us.
91. They hoped the climber would be able to hold on until
rescuers reached him.
The soldiers held on in that isolated position until reinfor
cements arrived.
Hold on a minute till I put my coat on.
The soldiers held on in that isolated position until rein
forcements arrived.
92. How long will our food supply hold out?
The battalion held out for a week in the face of heavy
enemy assaults.
She held out her arms to embrace the little girl.
93. The pupil held up his hand to ask the teacher a question.
The traffic was held up by an accident.
94. He keeps away from liquor and tobacco.
95. They are keeping back the names of the victims.
Y ou are keeping something back from us.
I dont want to keep you back from your work.
96. He keeps from alcohol.
I hope you will keep from doing anything rash.
97. I hope the rain keeps off.
Keep off!
98. He kept on till the work was finished.
99. They keep the dog out most of the time.
The coat should keep out the cold.
100. He always keeps to his promises.
He has decided to keep to his bed.
101. The younger boys were not able to keep up in the race.
Her spirits have kept up very well, despite all her bad luck.
I hope the weather will keep up.
Y ou should try to keep up these old traditions.
102. I want you to lay aside these useless prejudices.
He laid aside his scruples and joined the gang.
103. He has laid down certain conditions which you must follow.
I t is laid down that no changes can be made after a
committee decision.
104. The factory has laid off workers because of the drop in sales.
105. The servants laid out his meals carefully.
106. We are counting on you not to let us down.
107. I hope you will look after these animals properly.
She has looked after her elderly parents for many years.
I am looking after her children this morning.
They look after the shop when he goes away.
108. She looks down on people like that.
I wish you wouldnt look down on this kind of work.
109. We are looking forward to seeing you again.
110. They stood looking on while the man was robbed.
111. Look out!
112. He has looked over your work and has some comments to
make.
I would like you to look over I hese documents.
113. Would you look to the children, please.
I look to my parents when I need help.
114. The weather is looking up.
I shall look up their number in the telephone directory.
He looked the word up in the dictionary.
115. I really look up to him.
116. The party was making for London.
117. How are you making out these days?
He made out a cheque for the required amount of money.
We shall make out the bill immediately.
We couldnt make the people out in that poor light.
I t was difficult to make out his handwriting.
I t isnt easy to make out his ideas.
I cant make out what he wants.
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118. They have made up.
L ets kiss and make up.
The actors were making up when we arrived.
The government says it will make up your loss in profits
this year.
He made the whole story up.
The pharmacist made up the prescription.
She made up the beds.
The various parts make up a coherent whole.
We hope to make up lost time quickly after the strike.
119. He tried to make up for all the trouble he had caused.
120. He passed away at midnight last night.
The old cultural values have passed away.
121. I saw him passing by.
The road passes by on that side of the village.
I m afraid they have passed him by for promotion.
L ife has passed me by.
122. She would pass for an American very easily.
Shes 40, but I think she could pass for 25 without much
trouble.
123. I was feeling sick, but the feeling has passed of.
She passed herself off as an American.
124. Pass the news on that he is coming tomorrow.
125. She passed out when she heard the bad news.
He passed out from too much drinking.
126. Why do they keep picking on us?
She picks on him all the time.
127. He picked out the small stones.
They have picked out the best items on the menu.
128. He is picking up again, I am glad to say.
After the interruption, we picked up where we had left off.
He has picked up some bad habits at that club.
They have picked up a lot of information about this area.
He just picked her up at a dance.
He has picked up his strength again after his illness.
129. They pulled the old building down.
This illness has pulled him down.
130. The trai n pulled in.
131. The trai n pulled out.
132. I hope all the members of staff will pull together.
I asked him to pull himself together.
After breaking down and weeping, she tried hard to pull
herself together.
133. She put aside her grief and went to work.
She has managed to put aside a little money.
134. She put her clothes away.
I ll just put the car away.
135. He put the clock back an hour.
The strike has put back production considerably.
136. The largene swore that he would soon put down the rebellion.
He put down everything in writing.
137. He put forward several interesting ideas.
138. They have put off the meeting because of the weather.
Dont let his rough manner put you off.
She has been put off by his offensive remarks.
139. They put out the flames.
Dont put yourself out for me, please.
She feels rather put out about the whole affair.
140. The operator will put you through now.
Would you put me through to him now?
141. He puts up at a little hotel in the old part of the town.
The boy put his hand up to ask a question.
142. She puts up with a lot of insolence from those people.
I wouldnt put up with his nonsense if I were you.
143. I ran across an old school friend yesterday whom I hadnt
seen for years.
He ran across some useful quotations which you may like to
know about.
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144. The enemy broke, and men began to run away in all
directions.
145. Someone has run away with my wallet.
He has run away with the idea that you like him.
Dont run away with the impression that we need money.
146. She ran the tape back after hearing it.
The projectionist runs the film back at the end of every
performance.
147. She was frightened in case she would run someone down
while driving.
He was run down by a bus.
I m feeling run down, doctor.
148. I ran into some old friends I hadnt seen for years.
The car ran into a lamp standard.
He ran into the back of a bus.
Y ou may run into some difficulties in that country.
149. His contract runs out shortly.
Supplies are beginning to run out.
Y our time has run out.
150. We are running out of water.
He ran out of hope long ago.
I have run out of money.
151. She quickly ran over her notes.
The bus ran him over.
He ran the tape over and listened carefully.
152. He ran through the text a few minutes before he was due
to speak.
L ets just run through the thing one more time.
153. His fortune runs to several hundred thousand pounds.
The poem runs to several thousand lines.
154. He ran up against trouble in his new job.
I ran up against some old acquaintances last week.
155. I dont know how to set about it.
156. She set the magazine aside for reading later.
I m afraid we must set aside your request for more
equipment.
157. The accident has set them back several weeks.
This trouble will set his recovery back if we are not careful.
The clock has been set back.
158. He tried to set his ideas down.
159. He set the plan forth in a report.
She willingly set forth her opinions.
160. Winter has set in.
The tide has set in.
A strong wind has set in.
Some kind of rot appears to have set in.
161. The men set off.
He set off on a lonely journey.
I dont want to be the one to set it off again.
162. He set out to do a lot of things, but didnt succeed.
163. The men set up their tents well before darkness fell.
He set up a school for poor children.
He has set up a theory.
164. The unemployed men were just standing about with their
hands in their pockets.
165. The policeman asked the spectators to stand back.
166. I hope you dont expect me to stand idly by while this
happens.
167. This symbol stands for stregnth and integrity.
What on earth do these signs stand for?
I wont stand for this nonsense any longer.
He is standing for parliament.
He is standing for chairman.
168. He ordered the soldier to stand out.
The primary colours stand out clearly from the others.
Due to his height, he stands out in a crowd.
Her talents stand out in comparison with the others.
The garrison will stand out for some time.
169. He stands up for womens rights.
Always stand up for your principles.
Will you stand up for me?
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170. Y our report wont stand up to close scrutiny.
Wool stands up to certain treatment better than other fibres.
171. The mechanics took the engine apart.
I ll take him apart if I lay my hands on him.
172. This kind of action takes away from his reputation.
Take the knife away from that child before he cuts himself.
They took away his freedom.
These books are not to be taken away.
173. I shall take back my remarks if he will do the same.
She wont take her husband back now, even if he begs her,
174. The workmen are now taking down the scaffolding round
the building.
His secretary took down all the points he made.
175. She decided to take the dress in.
I think this list takes in everybody.
The tour takes in all the larger towns.
176. The aeroplane took off smoothly.
They took off, abandoning all their belongings.
177. This song has really taken on.
She has taken on too many responsibilities.
The factory is taking on more men.
178. The dentist took out a tooth.
The surgeon took out my appendix.
This liquid is good for taking out stains.
179. I took over from him at six oclock.
The second shift has now taken over.
He has decided to take over her debts.
The new doctor has taken over the duties of the old one.
180. She has really taken to that child.
She has taken to painting in oils.
He has taken to skiing.
They have taken to drink.
181. Business is taking up.
The bus took us up at the corner.
That bed takes up a lot of room.
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This work will take up a lot of my time.
My son has taken up stamp-collecting. -
He has taken up Spanish.
She took up the story from where she had left off.
She took up her sewing after the visitor had gone.
182. They have turned several people away because they have no
more accomodation.
I t is unfortunate that we have to turn these beggars away.
183. The committee has turned down his application.
I m afraid we must turn down your kind offer for help.
184. She turned the tap off.
They turned off the water supply.
This kind of treatment really turns me off.
185. Turn on the water, please.
They have turned the supply on.
That music turns me on, man.
186. Things have turned out well.
I t turned out that she had known him for years.
Turn out the lights when you leave.
The factory turns out cars.
187. The factorys turnover has been excellent this year.
She turned him over to the police.
They have decided to ttfrn the documents over to the
authorities.
188. They turned up at midnight with their suitcases.
She will turn up sometime.
Oh, that lost paper will turn up somewhere.1
(1) Tam McArthur and Beryl Atkins, Dictionary of English Phrasal Verbs and
their Idioms (London, 1974).
English Proverbs Explained
1. Out of sight, out of mi nd: We cease to worry about anything
that can no longer be seen. This includes people. Absent
friends are soon forgotten.
2. The apples on the other side of the wall are the sweetest:
The proverb means that anything we cant get seems to be
better than what we have.
3. As you sow, so shall you reap : All of us are responsible for
the consequences of our actions, so we must put up with them.
4. Barking dogs seldom bi te: A man who utters threats in a
loud voice, or is given to noisy boasting, need not be taken
seriously.
5. Burn not your house to fright the mouse away : Dont fake
extreme measures to get rid of something quite trivial.
6. Cast neer a clout till May is out: Early spring in Britain
often turns warm for a few days. But if you start leaving off
clothes you will run a risk, as it may become very cold again
right up to the end of May. Cast a clout is an old way
of saying leave off clothes.
7. Cleanliness is next to godliness.
8. Stretch your legs according to your coverlet/Cut your coat
according to your cloth : Try always to adjust yourself to
circumstances and live within your means. Adjust your
expenditure according to your resources.
9. Every cock crows on his own dunghi l l : Anybody can boast
of his courage in safe and familiar surroundings, where his
bravery is unlikely to be put to the test.
10. Every flow must have its ebb/What goes up must come down:
Our lives have ups and downs; neither good fortune nor ill
fortune lasts forever.
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11. Everything comes to him who waits.
12. Give knaves an inch and they will take a yard : I f you grant
some people a small favour, it only encourages them to take
much more than they are offered.
13. I f ifs and ans were pots and pans... : Tinkers are menders
of pots and pans, and if if were magically transformed into
a new kitchen utensil every time it was said, there would be
no need for their services. But there is always if.
14. I f you want a thing well done, do it yourself/Why keep a
dog and bark yourself?
15. Like father, like son: Mrs Davis had enough trouble with
her husband until he deserted her. The sad thing is that the
eldest boy already drinks like a fish.
Like father, like son, eh?
16. Money begets money: The more money you make, the easier
it becomes to make still more.
17. Never put off till tomorrow what may be done today/Strike
While the iron is hot.
18. One swallow does not make a summer: The proverb reminds
us that winter is not necessarily over just because we have
seen one swallow. By extension we are reminded also chat
any single piece of evidence is not enough to prove anything.
I t may even be an exception.
19. The pot called the kettle bl ack: A person tends to blame
another for the faults he has himself.
20. There is no garden without its weeds: Nothing is perfect.
Even the best of us has his failings and weaknesses.
(There is no rose without a thorn).
21. There is no smoke without a f i re: All rumours are based on
fact.
22. What the eye doesnt see the heart doesnt grieve over: We
are not worried by things that go on without our knowledge.
23. While there is life there is hope.
24. Y ou cannot run with the hare and hunt with the hounds:
Said about the deceitful behaviour of one who fights on one
side and gives secret help to the other side.1
(1) R. Ridout and C. Witting, English Proverbs Explained (London : Pan Books,
1969).
from the I nternational Thesaurus of Quotations
1. The winds and waves are always on the side of the ablest
navigators. Edward Gibbon.
2. When you part from your friend, you grieve not;/For that
which you love most in him may be clearer in his absence,
as the mountain to the climber is clearer from the plain.
K ahlil Gibran.
3. When a man points a finger at someone else, he should
remember that three of his fingers are pointing at himself.
Author unidentified.
4. I t is only shallow people who do not judge by appearances.
The true mystery of the world is the visible, not the invisible.
Oscar Wilde.
5. When you put down the good things you ought to have done,
and leave out the bad ones you did do well, thats Memoirs.
Will Rogers.
6. Ask a toad what is beauty...; he will answer that it is a
female with two great round eyes coming out of her little
head, a large flat mouth, a yellow belly, and a brown back.
Voltaire.
7. Nothing is so firmly believed, as what we least know. Mon
taigne.
8. Some read to think these are rare; some to write, these
are common; and some read to talk, and these form the
great majority. Charles Caleb Colton.
9. Wood may remain ten years in the water, but it will never
become a crocodile. Congolese proverb.
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10. Talking about oneself can also be a means to conceal oneself.
Nietzsche.
11. There is no pain in the wound received in the moment of
victory. Publilius Syrus.
12. Though it be in the power of the weakest arm to take away
life, it is not in the strongest to deprive us of death. Sir
Thomas Browne.
13. One should die proudly when it is no longer possible to live
proudly. Nietzsche.
14. Man is the only animal that can remain on friendly terms
with the victims he intends to eat until he eats them. Samuel
Butler.
15. To know how to free oneself is nothing; the arduous thing
is to know what to do with ones freedom. Andre Gide.
16. The only way to have a friend is to be one. Emerson.
17. I ts no good trying to keep up old friendships. I ts painful
for both sides. The fact is, one grows out of people, and the
only thing is to face it. W. Somerset Maugham.
18. The proper office of a friend is to side with you when you
are in the wrong. Nearly anybody will side with you when
you are in the right. Mark Twain.
19. The only way to predict the future is to have power to shape
the future. Eric Hoffer.1
(1) The International Thesaurus of Quotations, compiled by Rhoda Thomas Tripp
(Harmondsworth : Penguin, 1976)
Beasts and Birds (A schoolboys essay)
The bird I am going to write about is the Owl. The Owl cannot
see at all in the daytime, and at night it is as blind as a bat. I do
not know much about the Owl, so I will go on to the Beast, which
I am going to choose. I t is the Cow. The Cow is a mamal, snd
it is tame. I t has six sides, right, left, fore, back, an upper, and
below. At the back it has a tail on which hangs a brush. With
this it sends the flies away, so that they will not fall into the
milk. The head is for the purpose of growing horns, and so +hat
the mouth can be somewhere. The horns are to butt with. The
mouth is to Moo with. Under the Cow hangs the milk. I t is
arranged for milking. When people milk the milk comes, and
there is never an end to the supply. How the Cow does it, I have
not yet realized, but it makes more and more. The Cow has a
fine sense of smell. One can smell it far away. This is the reason
for fresh air in the country. The man Cow is called an Ox, and
it is not a mamal. The Cow does not eat much, but what it eats
it eats twice, so that it gets enough. When it is hungry it Moos,
and when it says nothing it is because all its inside is full up of
grass.1
(1) Modern Humour : An Anthology for the Sixties, ed., Guy Peoock and Mildred
M. Bozman (London : Dent, 1940), p. 188.
Some Rules of Cheap Travel
1. Buses are usually cheaper than trains. They are also slower
and less direct, but that is an advantage if you want to see where
you are going. Y ou can often get hold of routes and timetables
beforehand, by writing through a travel agency, or a consulate
or to the local bus companies. I t is fun to chart your journey for
yourself - provided you are not expecting perfection.
2. I f you are crossing the Mediterranean, it is pleasanter and
cheaper to sleep on the deck beneath the stars.
3. Avoid hotels. Seek your lodging in youth or student hostels,
where you can buy a cooked supper and breakfast, or cook your
own materials; or else go en pension where you will be served
with all your meals.
4. When you cook for yourself, in camp or youth hostel, buy
from the market place, and choose what is locally cheap and in
season. Dont seek tea or coffee in a community where these are
expensive foreign luxuries.
5. When you decide to do yourself proud and eat out, seek a
restaurant off the main streets, or on the fringe of the city,
where meals are made to suit the modest pockets and the exacting
palates of local citizens, and the proprietor is too busy doing the
cooking to lie in -wait for tourists.
6. Buy or borrow nylon before you set off. Then your shirts,
blouses and suchlike may be subjected to your own crude
laundering overnight and will emerge next morning bone dry,
cleaner than you deserve them, and without requiring any
ironing.
91
7. L earn to smoke local tobacco (at least i ts a new experience);
use your own cigarettes bought duty-free on boat or plane to
pave the way or return your thanks to the citizens you meet.
8. The biggest consumer of your foreign currency is the souvenir
salesman, who lives fatly on tourists who know no better. So
avoid him, and buy your presents off the beaten track in shops
where things are sold to be used 1
(1) Tony Gibson and J ack Singleton, The Spare Time Book, (London, 1951), p.
29.
Raising the Standard of the Routine Correspondence
Conducted by Local Offices
YOU MUST KNOW
Y our subject
Y our reason for
writing
Y our reader
YOU MUST BE
Clear
Simple and brief
Before you begin to write make sure that
you :
(a) have a clear understanding of the
subject;
(b) know why you are writing - what does
your correspondent want to know and
why does he want to know it?
(c) adapt your style and the content of
the letter or minute to suit your
correspondents needs and his present
knowledge of the subject.
When writing you should :
(a) make your meaning clear; arrange the
subject in logical order; be grammati
cally correct; not include irrelevant
material;
(b) use the most simple and direct language;
avoid obscure words and phrases, un
necessary words, long sentences; avoid
technical or legal terms and abbrevi
ations unless you are sure that they
will be understood by the reader; be
as brief as possible; avoid padding;
93
Accurate and
complete
Polite and human
Prompt
CHECK Y OUR
WRI TI NG
I s it (a) clear?
(b) Simple and
brief?
(c) Accurate?
(c) be as accurate and complete as possible;
otherwise further correspondence will
follow, resulting in extra work and
loss of time;
(d) in your letters to the public be
sympathetic if your correspondent is
troubled; be particularly polite if he
is rude; be lucid and helpful if he is
muddled; be patient if he is stubborn;,
be appreciative if he is helpful; and
never be patronising;
(e) answer promptly, sending acknowl
edgements or interim replies if
necessary - delays harm the reputation
of the Department, and are dis
courteous.
Look critically at your written work.
Can you answer yes to the following
questions about it?
(i) Can the language be easily under
stood by the recipient?
(ii) I s it free from slang?
(iii) Are the words the simplest that can
carry the thought?
(iv) I s the sentence structure clear?
(i) Does it give only the essential facts?
(ii) Does it include only essential words
and phrases?
(i) I s the information correct?
(ii) Do the statements conform with
rules, policy, etc.?
(iii) I s the writing free from errors in
grammar, spelling and punctuation?
94
(d) Complete?
(e) Human?
(i) Does it give all the necessary
information?
(ii) Does it answer all the questions?
(i) I s the writing free from antagonistic
words and phrases?
(ii) I s it, where appropriate, tactful,
helpful, courteous, sympathetic, frank,
forceful?
(iii) Will the tone bring the desired
response?1
(1) Sir Ernest Gowers, The Complete Plain Words (Pelican Books, Harmrnds-
worth, England, 1962), s. 37-39.
Where are you going to, my pretty maid?
Where are you going to, my pretty maid?
I m going a-milking, sir, she said,
Sir, she said, sir she said,
I m going a-milking, sir, she said.
May I go with you, my pretty maid?
Y oure kindly welcome, sir, she said,
Sir, she said, sir, she said,
Y oure kindly welcome, sir, she said.
Say, will you marry me, my pretty maid?
Yes, if you please, kind sir, she said,
Sir, she said, sir, she said,
Yes, if you please, kind sir, she said.
What is your father, my pretty maid?
My fathers a farmer, sir, she said,
Sir, she said, sir, she said,
My fathers a farmer, sir, she said.
Whats your fortune, my pretty maid?
My face is my fortune, sir, she said.
Sir, she said, sir, she said,
My face is my fortune, sir, she said.
Then I cant marry you, my pretty maid.
Nobody asked you, sir, she said,
Sir, she said, sir, she said,
Nobody asked you, sir, she said.1
(1) Nursery Rhymes/Englische K inderverse, Deutscher Taschenbuch Verlag,
Mnchen, 1973, s. 38.
A Sea Dirge (Lewis Carroll)
There are certain things as, a spider, a ghost,
The income-tax, gout, an umbrella for three
That I hate, but the thing that I hate the most
I s a thing they call the Sea.
Pour some salt water over the floor
Ugly I m sure youll allow it to be;
Suppose it extended a mile or more,
Thats very like the Sea.
Beat a dog till he howls outright
Cruel, but all very well for a spree;
Suppose that he did so day and night,
That would be like the Sea.
I had a vision of nursery-maids;
Tens of thousands passed by me
All leading children with wooden spades,
And this was by the Sea.
Who invented those spades of wood?
Who was it cut them out of the tree?
None, I think, but an idiot could
Or one that loved the Sea.
I t is pleasant and dreamy, no doubt, to float
With thoughts as boundless, and souls as free;
But, you are very unwell in the boat
How do you like the Sea?
97
There is an insect that people avoid
(Whence is derived the verbto flee) .
Where have you been by it most annoyed?
I n lodgings by the Sea.
I f you like your coffee with sand for dregs,
A decided hi nt of salt in your tea,
And a fishy taste in the very eggs
By all means choose the Sea.
And if, with these dainties to drink and eat,
Y ou prefer not a vestige of grass or tree,
And a chronic state of wet in your feet,
Then I recommend the Sea.
For I have friends who dwell by the coast
Pleasant friends they are to me!
I t is when I am with them I wonder most
That any one likes the Sea.
They take me a walk; though tired and stiff,
To climb the heights I madly agree;
And, after a tumble or so from the cliff,
They kindly suggest the Sea.
I try the rocks, and I think it cool
That they laugh with such an excess of glee,
As I heavily slip into every pool
That skirts the cold, cold Sea.1
(1) Adventures in English L iterature, ed., Schweikert, Inglis, Cooper, and others
(Harcourt, Brace and Co.), p. 714.
Should She Have The Baby?
My study telephone rang a few minutes ago. When I answered,
a sultry voice, sounding as if spoken by an olive tree, said, Alio,
darling? The following conversation ensued:
Me : Hellowho is this?
Her : I ts me, darling.
Me : Are you sure you have the right number?
Her : Of course, darling. Darling
Me : Y es?
Her : Darling, I m pregnant.
Me : Oh, really? How nice!
Her : But I m pregnant by you, darling.
Me : Are you sure you have the right number?
H er: Dont be silly, darling. What do you thinkshould
I have an abortion, or should I have the baby?
Me : Why, I think to have the baby would be very nice, dont
you?
H er: (something in Spanish, then) : What did you say,
darling?
Me : I said I think to have the baby would be very nice,
dont you?
H er: (something in Spanish, then) : Are you going to tell
your wife?
99
Me : I dont suppose I have much choice, do I?
Her : Oh, you are cruel! (She hangs up with a bang.)
I swear that is exactly how the exchange went; I wrote it down
at once, while every word was still trembling in my ear. What
was that girl up to? Though it is true that I was recently in
Mexico, it is a long while since I have ventured even to hold the
hand of any girl down there. At first I suspected a practical joke.
Then her apparently real confusion when I suggested having the
baby made me think I might be the object of a shakedown. She
perhaps found my name on the mailing list of a massage pavlor.
I now believe she was so distraught she failed to realize she had
dialed the wrong number and was talking to the wrong man.
Poor creature.1
(1) W.R. Espy, An Almanac of Words at Play, (New Y ork, 1975), p. 118.
The Cliche Expert testifies on Love (Frank Sullivan)
Q. Mr Arbuthnot, as an expert in the use of the cliche, are you
prepared to testify here to-day regarding its application in topics
of sex, love, matrimony, and so on?
A. I am, Mr Sullivan.
Q. Very good. Now; Mr Arbuthnot, whats love?
A. Love is blind.
Q. Good. What does love do?
A. Love makes the world go round.
Q. Whom does a young man fall in love with?
A. With the Only Girl in the World.
Q. Whom does a young woman fall in love with?
A. With the Only Boy in the World.
Q. When do they fall in love?
A. At first sight.
Q. How?
A. Madly.
Q. They are then said to be?
A. Victims of Cupids darts.
Q. And he?
A. Whispers sweet nothings in her ear.
Q. Who loves a lover?
A. All the world loves a lover.
Q. Describe the Only Girl in the World.
ft.. Her eyes are like stars. Her teeth are like pearls. Her lips are
ruby. Her cheek is damask, and her form divine.
Q. Havent you forgotten something?
A. Eyes, teeth, lips, cheek, form no, sir, I dont think so.
Q. Her hair?
A. Oh, certainly. How stupid of me. She has hair like spun gold.
Q. Very good, Mr Arbuthnot. How will you describe the Only Man?
A. He is a blond Viking, a he-man. There is something fine about
101
him that rings true, and he has kept himself pure and clean so that
when he meets the girl of his choice, the future mother of his
children, he can look her in the eye.
Q.' How?
A. Without flinching.
Q. Are all the Only Men blond Vikings?
A. Oh, no. Some of them are dark, handsome chaps. This sort of
Only Man has a way with a maid, and there is a devil in his eye.
But he i not a cad, he would not play fast and loose with an Only
Girls affections. He has a heart of gold. He is a diamond in the
rough. He tells the Only Girl frankly about his Past. She
understands and forgives.
Q. And marries him?
A. And marries him.
Q. Why?
A. To reform him.
Q. Does she reform him?
A. Seldom.
Q. Seldom what?
A. Seldom, if ever.
Q. Now, Mr Arbuthnot, when the Only Man falls in love, madly,
with the Only Girl, what does he do?
A. He walks on air.
Q. Y es, I know, but what does he do? I mean, what is it he pops?
A. Oh, excuse me. The question, of course.
Q. Then what do they plight?
A. Their troth.
Q. What happens after that?
A. They get married.
Q. What is marriage?
A. Marriage is a lottery.
Q. Where are marriages made?
A. Marriages are made in heaven
Q. What does the bride do at the wedding?
A. She blushes.
Q. What does the groom do?
A. Forgets the ring.
Q. After the marriage, what?
A. The honeymoon.
Q. Then what?
102
A. She has a little secret.
Q. What is it?
A. She is knitting a tiny garment.
Q. What happens after that?
A. Oh, they settle down and raise a family and live happily ever
afterwards, unless
Q. Unless what?
A. Unless he is a fool for a pretty face.
Q. And if he is?
A. Then they come to the parting of the ways.
Q. Mr Arbuthnot, thank you very much.
A. But I m not through yet, sir.
Q. No?
A. Oh, no. There is another side to sex.
Q. There is? What side?
A. The seamy side. There are, you know, men who are wolves in
sheeps clothing and there are, alas, lovely women who stoop to
folly.
Q. My goodness! Describe these men you speak of, please.
A. They are snakes in the grass who do not place a woman upon
a pedestal. They are cads who kiss and tell, who trifle with a girls
affections and betray her innocent trust. They are cynics who
think that a woman is only a woman, but a good cigar is a smoke.
Their mottoes are Love 'em and leave em and Catch 'em young,
treat em rough, tell em nothing. These cads speak of the light
that lies in womans eyes, and lies and lies and lies. I n olden
days they wore black, curling mustachios, which they twirled, and
they invited innocent girls to midnight suppers with champagne,
at their bachelor apartments, and said, L ittle girl, why do you
fear me? Nowadays they have black patent leather hair, and
roadsters, and they drive up to the kerb and say, Girlie, can I give
you a lift? They are fiends in human form, who would rob a
woman of her most priceless possession.
Q. What is that?
A. Her honour.
Q. How do they rob her?
A. By making improper advances
Q. What does a woman do when a snake in the grass tries to rob
her of her honour?
A. She defends her honour.
103
Q. How?
A. By repulsing his advances and scorning his embraces.
Q. How does she do that?
A. By saying, Sir, I believe you forget yourself, or Please take
your arm away, or I ll kindly thank you to remember I m a lady,
or L ets not spoil it all.
Q. Suppose she doesnt say any of these things?
A. I n that case, she takes the first false step.
Q. Where does the first false step take her?
A. Down the primrose path.
Q. Whats the primrose path?
A. I ts the easiest way.
Q. Where does it lead?
A. To a life of shame.
Q. What is a life of shame?
A. A life of shame is a fate worse than death.
Q. Now, after lovely woman has stooped to folly, what does she
do to the gay L othario who has robbed her of her most price'ess
possession?
A. She devotes the best years of her life to him.
Q. Then what does he do?
A. He casts her off.
Q. How?
A. Like an old shoe.
Q. Then what does she do?
A. She goes to their love nest, then everything goes black before
her, her mind becomes a blank, she pulls a revolver, and gives the
fiend in human form something to remember her by.
Q. That is called?
A. Avenging her honour.
Q. What is it no jury will do in such a case?
A. No jury will convict.
Q. Mr Arbuthnot, your explanation of the correct application of
the cliche in these matters has been most instructive, and I know
that all of us cliche-users here will know exactly how to respond
hereafter when, during a conversation, sex - when sex - when - ah
A. I think what you want to say i s: When sex rears its ugly
head, isnt it?
Q. Thank you, Mr Arbuthnot. Thank you very much.
A. Thank you, Mr Sullivan.1
(1) Modern Humour, pp. 251 - 255.
from Cider With Rosie (L aurie Lee)
I n the long hot summer of 1921 a serious drought hit the country.
Springs dried up, the wells filled with frogs, and the usually sweet
water from our scullery pump turned brown and tasted of nails.
Although this drought was relief to my family, it was a scourge
to the rest of the village. For weeks the sky hung hot and blue,
trees shrivelled, crops burned in the fields, and the old folk said
the sun had slipped in its course and that we should all of us very
soon die. There were prayers for rain; but my family didnt go,
because it was rain we feared most of all.
As the drought continued, prayer was abandoned and more
devilish steps adopted. Finally soldiers with rifles marched to the
tops of the hills and began shooting at passing clouds. When I
heard their dry volleys, breaking like sticks in the stillness, I knew
our long armistice was over. And sure enough whether from
prayers or the shooting, or by a simple return of nature the
drought broke soon after and it began to rai n as it had never
rained before.
I remember waking in the. night to the screams of our
Mother, and to rousing alarms of a howling darkness and the
storm-battered trees outside. Terror, the old terror, had come
again, and as always in the middle of the night.
Get up! cried Mother. I ts coming in! Get up or well all
be drowned!
I heard her banging about and beating the walls in accents
of final doom. When Mother gave her alarms one didnt lie back
and think, one didnt use reason at all; one just erected ones hair
and leapt out of bed and scrambled downstairs with the others.1
(1) L aurie Lee, Cider With Rosie (Harmondsworth : Penguin, 1962), p. 37.
Marilyn talking about myself
(I n the last two years of her life Marilyn Monroe made a confidant
of W. J . Weatherby, a British journalist in New Y ork. They met
quietly in a bar on Eighth Avenue where the star was
unrecognized in disguise (no make-up, a headscarf, blouse and
sloppy pants). The self-revelation was off-record, between
friends. Write about it when I retire, said Monroe. Weatherby
has made a book of it, from which these edited extracts are
taken.)
I m so many people. They shock me sometimes. I wish I was
just me.
I used to think maybe I was going crazy until I discovered
some people I admired were like that, too. A rthur (Miller) is
about 700 different people.
I sit in front of the mirror for hours looking for signs of age.
Y et I like old people, they have great qualities younger people
dont have. I want to grow old without face-lifts. They take the
life out of a face, the character
I want to have the courage to be loyal to the face I ve made.
Sometimes I think it would be easier to avoid old age, to die
young, but then youd never complete your life, would you? Y oud
never wholly know yourself.
(Weatherby: Lots of people dont want to know themselves.)
I dont think I m like that. But sometimes I get scared of
finding out. For a long time I was scared I d find out that I was
like my mother, and end up in the crazy house. I wonder when I
break down if I m not tough enough like her. But I m hoping
to get stronger.
I ask myself what am I afraid of. I know I have talent, I know
I can act. Well, get on with it, Marilyn. I feel I still try to
106
ingratiate myself with people, try to tell them what they want
to hear. T hats fear, too. We should all start to live before we get
too old. Fear is stupid. So are regrets.
Y ou know, for years I had this big regret that I hadnt gotten
a high school diploma. What does it matter now? All those high
school diploma-holders would love to be movie stars. Y ouve got
to keep your sense of proportion. I guess that diploma kinda
represents for me a home, a security I never really had.
I was never used to being happy. For years I thought having
a father and being married meant happiness. I ve never had a
father you cant buy them! but I ve been married three times
and havent found permanent happiness yet. Y ouve got to get
the most out of the moment.
Being a movie actress was never as much fun as dreaming of
being one. When I d nearly given up, I got a break. Then when
I didnt want the studio kind of star roles, I was showered with
them.
The same kind of thing can happen in personal relations.
When you dont want a lover, all kinds of opportunities come
your way....
Do people ever get over being shy? I think i ts with you for
life - like the colour of your eyes.... Sometimes I freeze. I could
have got so much more done if I had more self-confidence....
Some of my friends want me to be innocent and shy, and
I find thats the way I am with them. I f they saw the monster
in me, theyd probably never talk to me again. Sometimes I think
thats what happened in my marriage to Arthur.
When we first married, he saw me as so beautiful and innocent
among the Hollywood wolves that I tried to be like that. I almost
became his student in life and literature the way I am Lees
(Strasberg) student for acting. But when the monster showed,
A rthur couldnt believe it. I disappointed him when that happened.
But I felt he knew and loved the whole of me. I wasnt, sweet all
through. He should love the monster, too. But maybe I m much
too demanding. Maybe theres no man who could put up with
the whole of me.
I put A rthur through a lot, I know. But he also put me through
a lot. I ts never one-sided. Y ou cant have two people trying to
make it together without that, without a lot of pain.1
(1) The Observer, 2 May 1976.
Queues Bl ues: A Saga of Frustration
(J eremy Banks A solicitors clerk)
Has this ever happened to you? I go into a post office, where
there are several counter positions open, each with a queue. I join
the shortest queue. The person at the front of my queue has a
lot of business to transact and so we wait. Meanwhile J i e queue
to one side of me is rapidly shortening. A point is reached where
that queue is shorter than my own.
I want to get in and out of the post office as quickly as I can.
So I leave my queue and join the other. All seems to be well. The
queue is moving and I am approaching the counter. Meanwhile
the old queue is lifeless. I am next to be served. But wait... now
the person in front of me in my new queue is taking his me. And
the old queue has started up again. I am frustrated. I wait.
I t happens not only in the post offi ce: it happens also in the
supermarkets, the bank, the railway station - anywhere where
several queues form.
I t is a very long-standing institution.... But somewhere in its
evolution the queue seems to have gone wrong. The object of the
exercise is for everyone to be served with the least possible delay.
This object is secured by having a queue: the rule is first come,
first served. I t is just.
But where there are several counters it becomes unjust. The
first come, first served rule is jettisoned and queueing becomes
a matter of pure chance. I f you are lucky, you hit on the queue
which will carry you fastest to the front. But if you are unlucky,
you will find yourself still waiting in a queue while others who
108
came in after you have queued, have been served and have already
gone. I t is no more just than a lottery.
The solution is to have only one queue, even though several
counters are open. As soon as a counter becomes free the person
at the head of this single queue moves to that counter. The next
person in the queue waits for the next counter to clear. And so
on. First come, first served: Fairness.
Can it be done? Y es it can. A few bank branches already
apply such a scheme and there is, in particular, an office of the
I nland Revenue in L ondon which has a sign saying : Please
form one queue only. I f the I nland Revenue can do it, why cant
everyone?1 i
(1) The Sunday Times, 27 J une 1976.
Shopping
Shopping methods have changed dramatically over the last
century. People used to buy their produce almost daily from local
suppliers or small village shops. The corner shop is a fast fading
phenomenon which is being replaced by supermarkets, discount
stores or out of town wholesale warehouses. We shop less frequently,
buy in bulk and store our food longer. Nowadays new shopping
precincts are built not with central markets, but large freezer
stores.
New shopping environments require us to make several
changes in our approach to shopping. Supermarkets are a battle-
bround for the advertisers who subtly design the colour and shape
of packaging to appeal to our subconscious. Shop managers plan
where to put certain products on the shelf in order to attract
attention and encourage us to buy. I t is no coincidence that
luxury foods are strategically placed, for instance sweets by the
checkout till.
Bargains and special offers have to be carefully assessed to
ensure that we are not buying smaller quantities for the same
price, or inferior goods. Write a shopping list beforehand so you
remember to buy everything you do need and avoid buying luxury
products which you do not need just because they are on special
offer. I n these days of rising food prices it is worth buying
necessity items like tea, coffee, sugar or flour when they are at
bargain prices.
Basic foods like butter, tea, coffee, sugar, flour and milk
must be sold in set weights so that the consumer has a means of
judging value...
110
I t is interesting to compare value for money of different
forms of food, for instance frozen versus fresh or tinned versus
dried. Nutritional value for money is also interesting. Calculate
the relative cost of a days requirement of nutrients from different
foods, for instance vitamin C l'rom potatoes, oranges or straw
berries during different seasons.
Laws about the sale of food, guarantee that it is accurately
described on the label and that the manufacturer does not make
misleading claims. Do study labels more carefully. The name and
address of the manufacturer is required so that you can always
write to request additional information. The ingredients are listed
in order of weight, with the exception of water. I ndividual
additives and the chemical names of colourings are not given but
a generalised description is added to indicate their presence.
Above all, do read and follow the instructions on the package as
these ensure the correct storage and preparation of the food so
it will taste as the manufacturer intended.1
(1) Merril Durrant, Eat Well and Keep Healthy, (London, 1977), p. 70.
Poor millionaires
The tiny village of Baladiya lies in a drought plagued, almost
barren region north of Bombay. Y ou would expect it to be another
typical scene of I ndian poverty. But it is one of the wealthiest
villages in the country.
I ts secret is that nearly all its able bodied men leave to work
elsewhere. Of Baladiyas 4,500 people, more than 2,000 are abroad,
most of them in Britain. Every month they send money home to
their parents, wives and children. Banks are vying to open branches
there, and deposits now exceed 10 million pounds.
I t is hard to find a young man in the place. I nstead you will
see old men sitting in front of their houses, smoking and chatting.
They do not live in the usual thatched huts of rural I ndia, but
in gleaming white-painted brick houses.
One old man is 70 - year - old K himjibhai, who has three sons
in England. He has a small piece of land, but little grows on it.
Our boys go away because there is nothing to do here, he says.
The land is barren. They work hard and send us money. Some
goes on household expenses, the rest into a bank.
Most of the houses have a garage. At the Bank of I ndia
branch, an official sai d: The men return to the village once in
every two or three years on a longish holiday. While here, they
live just as they do abroad. They drive cars, use refrigerators and
English - style bathtubs. Once they leave, the cars are locked up
in the garages.
The village has at least four Mercedes cars and scores of
I ndian - made ones. I t also has many other things that most other
I ndian villages cannot hope to get for a long ti me: water taps
112
that function round the clock, telephones, electric fans and lights,
even television sets (though the only available programmes are
from K arachi in neighbouring Pakistan).
After these things have been paid for, the rest of the money
goes into deposit accounts. The demand is for compound interest,
says the Bank of Baroda. The villagers do not touch the principal,
and hardly anyone seeks a bank loan for a village enterprise.
There is no village committee to channel the migrants funds
into projects to improve the place. The roads are dusty. There is
no hospital, no cinema, no community centre, no high scaool.
Each family looks after itself.
For the girls of Baladiya, the great ambition is to be chosen
as a bride by a man earning money abroadthe demand for
educated brides is growing. Ambitious mothers are now sending
their daughters to a private school to learn English.1
S. Venkat Narayan
(1) The Sunday Times, 8 J anuary 1978.
My Bad Back : The Agonies of a Visitor
(Norah K ite, an antique dealer)
For many years now I have suffered great pain and discomfort
from unsuitable beds and chairsother peoples. As one who has
a back it is vitally important that both these items of furniture
are comfortable and right for my particular affliction. I know
that I am not alone in this there must be countless thousands
up and down the country with backs who suffer in the same
way.
I t is a simple enough matter to see that ones own home is
equipped with comfortable back-supporting beds and chairs but
once outside the home it is a very different matter.
When I accept an invitation for anything from a cup of
coffee to a weeks stay, I have to try mentally to weigh up the
potential hazards. I f I know that the house to which I am i ndted
has unsuitable chairs then I take a cushionone house I often
go to has chairs with such deep seats that I usually take two
cushions! I have noticed that those houses which have back-aching
chairs usually are without cushions. I can only envy the staying
power of the spines and muscles of the occupants but at the
same time I make sure that I never visit them without at least
two cushions. My friends are now used to seeing me armed with
my portable back-rests and dont take umbrage, thank goodness.
I ts a sad fact that 15 minutes of unsupported sitting may
result in pain-filled weeks of walking around looking like the
leaning Tower of Pisa due to displaced discs and muscles
resembling knotted ropes.
Beds are a much difficult proposition. I have to think very
carefully before accepting an invitation to stay in a house where
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I know the beds are impossible. I t invariably means that my visit
will be spoilt by severe back trouble and pain. Many people think
that they are really making you comfortable by giving you a bed
which is nice and soft.
I dont know who said that everyone should sleep in Lheir
own guest room at least oncebut I certainly agree. I have very
dear friends abroad whom I recently visited after a long interval.
They have a beautiful house which is full of lovely ihings but
as they have a large family which pretty well fills the place they
have only one guest room. On my last visit it contained the most
monstrous bed it has ever been my misfortune to sleep in. The
springs had long since ceased to function, in places threatening
to force their way through the outer casing, and there was a deep
hollow in the centre which resulted in a night-long fight to
prevent the occupier from sinking into it.
I was convinced that by now they would have changed the
bedbut noit was still there, waiting to cripple me once more.
I decided that the floor would be preferable, which it was, but it
was nerve wracking trying to make sure that I was back in the
hideous bed before my morning tea arrived.
To add to my discomfort, my hosts had just acquired several
new chairshuge black soft leather bags filled with millions of
tiny pellets, not unlike the bean bags we used to play with at
school. These, I was proudly told, would take the shape of anyone
sitting in them. I can only liken it to sitting in the middle of a
giant blancmange.
At the end of a week I staggered, bent and pain-wracked,
away from that visit full of the sad knowledge that a beautiful
and long-standing friendship had just ended.1
Sir Gawain and the Green K night (c. 1370)
A Middle English poem written by an unknown poet. This mas
terpiece of Middle English writing concerns the ordeal of the
ideal knight, Sir Gawain. Two major motifs are utilized in the
(1) The Sunday Times, 24 August 1977.
115
unfolding action: the so-called Beheading Game and the Temp
tation to Adultery.
I nto the midst of New Y ear festivities at King A rthurs court
bursts a green giant on horseback. He dares any of A rthurs
knights to chop off his head on condition that in one year he be
allowed to return the blow. Sir Gawain accepts the challenge,
wields the axe successfully (the Green K night calmly scoops up
his head and leaves), and 12 months later sets out in search for
the Green Chapel where he is to keep the bargain. After a long,
bitter journey, he comes to a marvelous castle where he is
entertained by Lord Bercilak, his beautiful wife, and an ugly old
lady who quietly hovers in the background. Bercilak suggests to
his guest an exchange-of-gifts game: every day be will bring to
Sir Gawain what he gains hunting, and Sir Gawain will give him
what he has won in the castle during, the absence of the host.
For two days, Gawain is temped to adultery by the beautiful wife
of Bercilak; he resists, and each night, in accordance with their
game, exchanges with Bercilak the kisses of the lady for animals
from the hunt. On the third day, however, he accepts a supposedly
magic sash of green silk from the lady, believing that it will save
him from the Green K night. That evening he fails to mention the
sash during the exchange of gifts.
At the appointed time, he leaves the castle and goes for his
tryst at the Green Chapel. Three times the Green K night strikes
at his neck. The first two strikes do not touch him because he
twice resisted temptation, but the third blow nicks his neck
slightly marking his failure with regard to the green sash.
The Green K night turns out to be Bercilak, in the service of
the ugly old lady who is really Morgan Le Fay and who planned
the entire affair. Returning to K ing A rthurs court at Camelot,
Sir Gawain swears always to wear the green sash around his
waist as a reminder of moral lapse.1
(1) The Readers Encyclopedia, ed., W.R. Bent (London, 1965).
Word Spinning
Of all the opportunities that exist to compete against yourself,
there is nothing so satisfying, exasperating, revealing, and
rewarding as the attempt to express yourself in words.
Writing anything more ambitious than a receipt is usually a
tussle between the real you, with an idea in your head that you
want to put down clearly, and a bogus you, brought up on
everybody elses styles, who wants to dress you up in borrowed
plumage.
Writing to satisfy yourself alone, you are less likely to put
up with affectations that are tempting to assume if you are
trying to show off to other people. I t becomes a matter of pride
and self-respect to come clean, to make a faithful representation
of the things that impress you. To do this takes practice. I t is
worth tackling first - long before you embark on three-act plays
or film scenarios or mystery novels or travelogues. The conversations
you hear, the situations you glimpse, the places you find, these
are worth recording for their own sakes, for you yourself to read
and recapture in a week, or a twelvemonth, or a lifetime hence.
Y ou look back on you as you are, and know more about you than
you know now of yourself. This is the secret ingredient which
can make diaries and common-place books good reading, whatever
the literary skills of the writer. And if you can write something
that will also help your great grandchildren to see something of
what it was like to live as you do, your time will not be wasted.
Once caught in the web of words, the three-act play, the film
scenario, the novel, and the travelogue beckon afresh, and
imagination begins to stir. This is probably the moment to take
a grip on yourself and to limit your ambitions. Too many three-
117
act projects dwindle and die before the playwright reaches the
first-act curtain, and the would-be novelist is exceptional if he
gets more than a chapter done before his inspiration walks out
on him. There is no sure rule, but it is sometimes wisdom to
lower your sights and begin by aiming at one good five-minute
sketch, or one short story.
Y ou will still meet, and.have to overcome, the problems that
beset every writer when he tries to cut his words to a pattern.
To be good, what you write must have shape, be streamlined, so
that everything you say develops your subject, and the atmosphere
you want to create around it, and the twist that is to screw it
firmly in the memory of your reader.1
(1) The Spare Time Book, p. 98.
Senilitys Stresses: Love becomes resentment
(J eanne Steward, a housewife)
The saddest effect of senility is that it destroys affection. Daily
contact with the irritation and stresses of senility gradually
turns love into duty; duty becomes grudging and eventually
feelings of hateful resentment arise.
I t is irritating to answer the same question every few minutes;
it is irritating to hunt for missing false teeth many times a day;
it is irritating to repeat the time, the date, the season of the year.
But mere irritation can be mastered when the causes are under
stood.
I t is incredible that events of 50 years ago are remembered
clearly and retold vividly, when the faces and the names of the
family, neighbours and home itself are totally unrecognizable.
To be called Aunt Polly who died forty years ago is a little
startling but to have ones name forgotten, after a shared life of
50 years duration, is hurtful.
Senility brings a lack of control over feelings which, in normal
health, would be stifled or kept private. Resentments, jealousies
and hopeful longings become impossible to control, resulting in
angry words, abusive language and occasionally violence. The
necessity of being dependent is an i rritant which cannot be
accepted and is constantly kicked against. Plans for visiting other
relatives (possibly long dead), or for holidays alone, or schemes
for the future are invented and put forward as certainties, when
in reality they are impractical delusions.
The insecurity of old age experienced by most elderly people
is far more pronounced. The realization that one is incapable of
119
looking after oneself, and therefore is dependent upon another
person, brings on a suspiciousness which is the most destructive
element of all. To be constantly questioned about the whereabouts
of money, purse, pension book, etc., as though a life-long trust
and good fellowship stood for nothing, is offensive, it destroys
affection, it nurtures resentment and becomes aggression.
What is to be done? I f one accepts the responsibility of the
welfare of ones parents, it is difficult to relinquish that
responsibility to another. I t seems like an abnegation of duty.
But if the caring is become grudgingly given and is causing
tension and ill-health within the rest of the family, then should
not that responsibility be taken over by someone else more able
to cope - someone with no emotional attachment?
Even supposing that such help was available, can one accept
it without being made to feel guilty? I t is the guilt of passing
the buck which causes people to struggle on in isolation,
becoming more and more tense and impatient, knowing that the
irreversible process of degeneration could last for as much as ten
years and nothing except death is going to relieve the situation.
I t is a desperate and love-destroying atmosphere in which to
live ones life. Sympathy is needed for the sufferer of senile decay
but practical help is essential for those who have to watch it and
suffer its consequences.1
Montezumas Palace
I n the courts through which the Spaniards passed, fountains of
crystal water were playing, fed from the copious reservoir on the
distant hill of Chapoltepec, and supplying in their turn more
than a hundred baths in the interior of the palace. Crowds of
Aztec nobles were sauntering up and down in these squares, and
in the outer halls, loitering away their hours in attendance on
the court. The apartments were of immense size, though not
lofty. The ceilings were of various sorts of odorifeorus wood
ingeniously carved; the floors covered with mats of the palm-leaf.
(1) The Sunday Times, 16 May 1976.
120
The walls were hung with cotton richly stained, with the skins
of wild animals, or gorgeous draperies of feather-work wrought
in imitation of birds, insects, and flowers, with the nice art and
glowing radiance of colours that might compare with the
tapestries of Flanders. Clouds of incense rolled up from censers
and diffused intoxicating odours through the apartments. The
Spaniards might well have fancied themselves in the voluptuous
precincts of an Eastern harem, instead of treading the halls of a
wild barbaric chief in the Western World.
On reaching the hall of audience, the Mexican officers took
off their sandals, and covered their gay attire with a mantle of
nequen, a coarse stuff made of the fibres of the maguey, worn
only by the poorest classes. This act of humiliation was imposed
on all, except the members of his own family, who approached
the sovereign. Thus bare-footed, with downcast eyes and formal
obeisance, they ushered the Spaniards into the royal presence.1
William Prescott
(1) The Albatross Book of Living Prose (Leipzig, 1937), p. 195.
The Lion
I n early historic times the L ion was found over most of the
then known worldAfrica, Asia from the Mediterranean to I ndia
and beyond. The baggage animals of Xerxes were attacked in
Macedonia, 490 B.C., by Lions, and they may have extended much
further north and west. All the evidence seems to prove that
Asia had more Lions than that part of Africa to which the
Romans had access. Mesopotamia was infested with them until
the 17th century. I n I ndia in the 16th century lion hunts were
common; the Tiger did not become definitely predominant until
later. At present only a few protected animals survive in I ndia.
They have disappeared from Mesopotamia and from the whole
of North Africa. Population has driven them from south of the
Orange river in Natal, but they still exist in large numbers north
of that river as far as Abyssinia. They are generally found in open
plains or brush-covered country. A large male Lion stands about
3 feet 6 inches at the shoulder, and the stretched skin from nose
to tip of tail is from 9 feet 6 inches to 10 feet 10 inches, which is
exceptionally large. Weight, about 400 lbs. The largest captive
Lion with which the writer is acquainted could reach 9 feet 7
inches with its paw when standing against the bars of the cage.
The eyes are much sunk in the sockets, giving the appearance of
a frown which is heightened by the long mane that spreads from
the head over the neck and shoulders. This mane does not occur
on the Lioness, and varies greatly on individual Lions, some, in
both I ndia and. Africa, being maneless. The very heavily-maned
Lions, which are usually darker coloured than the others, often
have a growth of hair under the belly. The general colour is
reddish yellow or tawny, suited to a sandy country. Usually there
are a few spots on the flanks. The tail has long dark hairs at the
end, and at the tip surrounded by thick hair is a horny appendage
whose use and value is unknown to us. The claws are retractile
and sharp, and continually replaced, the outer sheaths being split
away and shed by scratching.1
(1) George J ennison, Natural History Animals (London, 1929), p. 51.
The Chinese Fox
I n everyday zoology the Chinese Fox differs little from other
Foxes, but not so in fantastic zoology. Statistics give it a life-span
that varies between eight hundred and a thousand years. The
animal is considered a bad omen, and each part of its anatomy
enjoys some special power. I t has only to strike the ground with
its tail to start a fire; it can see into the future; and it can change
into many forms, preferably into old men, young ladies, and
scholars. I t is astute, wary, and skeptical; its pleasures lie in
playing pranks and in causing torment. Men, when they die, may
transmigrate with the body of a Fox. I ts dwelling is close by
graves. There are thousands of stories and legends concerning
it; we trascribe one, a tale by the ninth-century poet Niu Chiao,
which is not without its humorous si de:
Wang saw two Foxes standing on their hind legs and leaning
against a tree. One of them held a sheet of paper in its hand, and
they laughed together as though they were sharing a joke. Wang
tried to frighten them off but they stood their ground, finally he
shot at the one holding the page. The Fox was hit in the eye and
Wang took away the piece of paper. At the inn Wang told the
story to the other guests. While he spoke a gentleman having a
bandaged eye came in. He listened to Wangs story with interest
and asked if he might not be shown the paper. Wang was just
about to produce it when the innkeeper noticed that the newcomer
had a tail. Hes a Fox! he shouted, and on the spot the gentleman
turned into a Fox and fled. The Foxes tried time after time to
recover the paper, which was filled with indecipherable writing,
but were repeatedly set back. Wang decided at last to return
home. On the road he met his whole family, who were on their
way to the capital. They said that he had ordered them to
undertake the journey, and his mother showed him the letter in
which he asked them to sell off all their property and join him
123
in the city. Wang, studying the letter, saw that the page was
blank. Although they no longer had a roof over their heads, he
ordered, Lets go back.
One day a younger brother appeared whom everyone had given
up for dead. He asked about the familys misfortunes and Wang
told him the whole story. Ah, said the brother when Wang came
to the part about the Foxes, there lies the root of all the evil.
Wang showed him the page in question. Tearing if from Wangs
hand, the brother stuffed the sheet into his pocket and said, At
last I have back what I wanted. Then, changing himself into a
Fox, he made his escape.1
(1) J orge Luis Borges with Margarita Guerrero, The Book of I maginary Beings
(New Y ork, 1969), p. 67.
Domestic Animals
Relations with ones domestic animals are rooted in sentiment,
in affection. One talks to ones dog or ones cat, one argues,
upbraids, remonstrates; it is as personal as a human friendship.
But there is something beyond ordinary human relationships in
a feeling for animals. I cannot imagine that my husband and I
would have put ourselves out to meet a human being who had
nothing, not even conversation, to offer. Y et on a holiday in
Wales we would scull across the lake to a remote farmstead in
order to visit a charming young pig whom her owners were
bringing up as a pet; and I dont think the farmhouse tea (though
it was a bonus in those wartime days) was enough to account for
the expedition.
The sense of contact perhaps, the quality of touch, affection,
curiosity - there can be something else. I recall a K ent stock vard
and a bull, slow, solitary, magnificent; he reminded me of the
bulls head, tragic-eyed, in the cave-painting at Lascaux. I would
lean over the gate and call to him. With huge deliberation, pausing
between hoof-steps, he would advance, hesitate, advance again;
at last he would let me rub the harsh ridge of his head between
the fearsome horns. And I enjoyed an awareness of concord with
another world, with a life distinct from our world but parallel.
I t would be pleasing to be able to say that I opened the gate
and went in. But I am not brave about animals. I feel that the
bull would not have hurt me. But the flattery of his acquiescence
was enough for me. The friendship of animals is always flattering.
Not that I imagine myself invariably welcome. I am afraid of
hostile dogs. They have, it seems to me, a right to hostility; and
I dont expect to win them over. When I put my hand under the
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lunch-table to pat a friends J ack-Russell he took the opportunity
of biting it. And once I offered my hand with a drachma in it to
a chained monkey in a Greek island boat. He took the drachma.
Then he took the hand and refused to release it; and amid happy
laughter from bystanders at a safe distance he proceeded to pick
imaginary fleas off it.
He bites, said his keeper, whispering. I might have been
held for hours if a companion had not made a brave movement
in my direction; furious, my captor let me go and only just failed
to grab my rescuer.1
(1) The Sunday Times, 27 J une 1976.
Parrot Talk (Patrick Campbell)
We went to have lunch with Princess Marsi the other day, an
exquisite little painting lady from Bangkok, who is so small that,
if I could get at her, I could lift her high in the air with one hand,
and as usual Tuk-tuk was occupying, in its entirety, the
only sofa in the whole house.
Tuk-tuk is a beagle about the size of a cow, and was found
early one morning wandering along the autoroute outside
Marseilles by a couple of coppers on motorbikes who sensibly
gave him to a passing lorry driver.
I n this way, and in some fair style, Tuk-tuk arrived at Marsis
village in the Var valley, where the lorry dirver, as rationally as
the police, gave him to Marsi, for ever.
I sat down, on a small, hard chair, beside this enormous
animal, knowing better than to try to shift him off the sofa. I f
anyone attempts to interrupt Tuk-tuks rest time he simply opens
his jaws so widely that you can see into his stomach, past teeth
larger than those of a lion.
Marsi said, Hes always tired on Monday because he spends
the weekend with the butcher and he has several wives down
there and a son as long as he is but covered with curyl grey wool.
I preferred not to think about Tuk-tuks son, looking like that,
so instead of lifting Marsi into the air I asked her about the new
parrot, an additional bird in a house that is filled with magpies,
thrushes, sparrows, nightingales and canaries. They live in a
huge cage in Marsis studio, with a steel plate to prevent them
eating through the wall.
127
We had to have poor parrot, Marsi said, because hes not
well. Hes plucked all the feathers out of his own chest and now
his face is badly sunburnt. Absolutely mesmerised, I went over
to look at the parrots face. The scaly white skin around his eyes
was undoubtedly flushed. Hes been spending too much time in
the garden, Marsi said. I ll make him a hat.
During lunch the Chief Cat, a stern-looking tom, sat in the
middle of the table, not with the intention of helping himself to
anything but just to see that everything went well. I f you beat
him gently on the head with the flat bit of your knife, Marsi
said, hell probably go away.
I beat the Chief Cat gently on the head. His skull rang quite
loudly, but he looked at me with such pained indignation that I
desisted.
After lunch we went up to Marsis studio and bought a
marvellous picture of a lion with his mane filled with bare
breasted angels with red tails, after - that is - Tuk-tuk had finished
with it. The picture was resting against the wall, with TuK-tuk
rootling away at the bottom comer. I asked Marsi if he was trying
to eat it. No, said Marsi. I ts the cutlet. She saw I didnt know
which cutlet she was speaking about. One of the magpies, she
explained, stole a cutlet and stored it for safety in the corner of
the frame. I ts gone now, of course. Tuk-tuks only pretending to
hunt it. Marsis incredible eyes misted over. A zoo wants to give
me a spare llama, she said, but I m afraid I ve got no room for
him. Marsi, all at the same time, can be a woman, a llama, a
magpie, a cat and a beagles mother, without pretence or per
formance. I ts enchanting.1
Dedication of Gettysburg
Fourscore and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this
continent a new nation, conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to
the proposition that all men are created equal.
(1) The Sunday Times, 25 April 1976.
128
Now we are engaged in a great Civil War, testing whether
that nation, or any nation so conceived and so dedicated, can
long endure. We are met on a great battle-field of that war. We
have come to dedicate a portion of that field as a final resting-
place for those who here gave their lives that that nation might
live. I t is altogether fitting and proper that we should do this.
But, in a larger sense, we cannot dedicatewe cannot
consecratewe cannot hallowthis ground. The brave men,
living and dead, who struggled here have consecrated it far above
our poor power to add or detract. The world will little note nor
long remember what we say here, but it can never forget what
they did here. I t is for us, the living, rather to be dedicated here
to the unfinished work which they who fought here have thus
far so nobly advanced. I t is rather for us to be here dedicated to
the great task remaining before usthat from these honoured
dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave
the last full measure of devotionthat we here highly resolve that
these dead shall not have died in vainthat this nation, under
God, shall have a new birth of freedomand that government of
the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from
the earth.1
Abraham L incoln : Nov. 19th, 1863
(1) The Albatross Book of Living Prose, p. 213.
Turkey to Export Grain,
But at a Loss
States US Report
WASHINGTON J an. 27, (AP) Turkey, largely a grain importer
since 1960, will export one million tons of wheat in the 1977 - 78
marketing season but at an internal loss of 50 -100 dollars a ton,
according to a U.S. Government report.
According to a report of the U.S. Department of Agriculture,
the turn-around in Turkish grain production began in the 1976-77
marketing season during which 300,000 tons of wheat were
exported.
However, the Turkish Government buys the wheat at a
guaranteed price of 3,000 Turkish lira (150 dollars). I n addition
the government purchasing agency, TMO, has costs, estimated
by knowledgeable sources of 20-30 dollars per ton for handling,
storage, and transport, the report said.
Turkeys average selling price in 1977 was 100 dollars per ton
with world wheat prices now strengthening somewhat.
The report said these uneconomic sales present the Turkish
Government with a dilemma.
The surpluses in 1976 and 1977 were achieved despite poor
weather conditions because of improved technology leading to
higher yields.
As more and more farmers switch to the new techniques,
production in normal and even somewhat less than normal
weather years would be enough to leave varying amounts of
surplus wheat for exports, the report said.
130
I n above normal weather years these surpluses would be
more burdensome and pressures to find export markets as costly
as they were in 1977. Production could be curtailed by significant
rollback of the support prices but this measure would create
political pressures in the country and is considered highly
unlikely.
The alternative, the report says is to opt for sustained self-
sufficiency with surpluses stored for lean years. Turkey would
not earn foreign exchange from exports. But it would eliminate
the internal losses and the need to spend foreign exchange for
grain imports as was necessary in 15 of 17 years between 1960
and 1977.1
(1) Turkish Daily News, 28 J anuary 197b.
Growing up in hatred beside the barricades
(from Andrew Stephen in Belfast)
Tommy is seven years old and lives off the Crumlin Road in
Belfast. His hair is cropped, his face is pale and freckled, and his
clothes have been passed down from a series of elder brothers.
Two hundred yards from where he lives there is a massive
steel barricade, and behind it there lives a breed of people who
to Tommy are mysterious and rather frightening : Catholics.
Unlike most adults here, Tommy is frank enough to say what
he thinks rather than what he feels he ought to say. I hate
Catholics, he says. George and Derek and me and J ean clodded
(threw stones) at them.
Tommy is a Protestant but could just as well be a Catholic
talking about Protestants. He has grown up in a world of clodding
of Army Land-Rovers, or regular shootings and loud explosions,
yet when the first was killed in the present troubles he was a baby
in arms.
The blind hatred that such young Protestant and Catholic
children have for one another reached its peak on Tuesday night.
Two Catholic boys aged eight and 12 were seized by a gang of
Protestant children, had petrol poured over them, and were set
alight.
The youngest is still in hospital with severe burns to the hands
and face, and on Wednesday morning 12-year-old J im Crawford
was unable to contain his bitterness. I f I saw a Prod, walking
down the street now I d like to put something through the back
of his neck, he said.
132
Both children live i n what in Army jargon is known as an
interface area, where a Catholic boundary ends and a Protestant
one begins. Few Protestants dare enter into Catholic areas or vice
versa.
The attack took place at a recreation ground in the Old Park
interface, where parks and childrens playing areas are sparse.
Y et because of its position the recreation ground is scarcely used.
The Old Park Catholic enclave is in the police C division, an
area of about 12 square miles. Two thirds of it is Protestant, and
the 20,000 Catholics in the area are crammed into the Unity Flats,
Ardoyne Bone, and Ligoniel areas.
They were forced into those ghettoes by intimidation, just
as thousands of Protestants were intimidated out of the New
Barnsley estate into Springmartin.
Alliance Avenue, in Ardoyne, stands as a monument to hatred,
with Protestants living on one side and Catholics on the other,
and with broken glass in between where the rival sides almost
daily throw bottles at each other. Near by, Faringdon Gardens
was built to be a model of togetherness, but now the Provisional
I RA have intimidated nearly all , of the Protestants out.
Traditional childrens games like Cops and Robbers are
replaced by I rish v the Brits, or even Prods v Taigs. Catholic
children in the area often like to wear long overcoats, affecting
the swaggering style of the old I RA men, while their Protestant
counterparts pretend to be British soldiers, lying on their stomachs
on the pavement and inching forward with make-believe guns.
By the time they have left primary school, the paramilitary
organizations - the Provisional and official I RA on the one side
and the Ulster Volunteer Force and Ulster Defence Association
on the other - have moved in on the young boys.
Some months ago police found a 10-year-old boy with a heavy
.38 revolver. L ast Thursday a 13-year-old boy from the Falls was
charged with the murder of an elderly man.
There are 32 schools in the area, 10 of which are for Catholics
only. One Protestant primary school in Ardoyne, the Finiston
School, is continually attacked and set on fire; retaliation is
I
usually wreaked on a Catholic primary school close by, in a mainly
Protestant area.
By the time children have reached secondary school open
warfare is a way of life. On the Crumlin Road the (Protestant)
Sommerdale and (Catholic) St. Gabriels schools almost face each
other. To prevent rioting among the pupils, school times are
staggered and special buses pick up children.
To keep the sides apart, Army and police stage lollipop
patrols, during which several soldiers and policemen have been
shot by snipers.
I n the evenings the paramilitary clubs naturally attract teen
agers. By charging lOp to 2 pounds a week membership fees, the
I RA and L oyalists keep thei r military machines oiled while
maintaining a steady flow of young recruits. I f the teenagers in
the area do not join the paramilitaries, adolescent boredom
frequently leads to vandalism and petty theft.
West Belfast is flooded with social workers, but the spiral of
bitterness continues. Maybe i ts a great big dream that keeps me
going, says 32-year-old Constable Norman Foster, of the RUCs
Community Relations Branch, one of 50 policemen whose task is
to improve community relations.
He believes it to be important to concentrate on children,
and regularly risks his life by going into hard Republican areas
to take Catholic children to swimming pools, zoos, etc. L ast
Monday he took four separate groups of 15 children each (some
Protestant, some Catholic) to separate swimming pools. Were
just trying to improve the quality of life, he says.1
133
(1) The Observer, 18 April 1976.
A State of Agitation
As the world moved into the final quarter of the twentieth
century, mans arts, like his politics and economics, appeared to
be in a state of uneasy agitation, searching anxiously for
directions and solutions while pursuing an elusive and largely
unidentified new reality. Without driving forces and dominating
movements, the arts in 1975 seemed to look more to the past than
the future. But they also restively probed the present - and in
the process often produced revealing works of self-examination.
Politics, economics and art were intertwined in less abstract
ways as well. The long-awaited economic recovery progressed
slowly at best and in many countries theatres, opera houses, ballet
companies and museums ended the year with towering and
dangerous deficits. The wolf of inflation is no longer at the
door, said Roy Shaw, the new secretary-general of Britains Art
Council. Hes already in the house.
As always, many artists also faced the inhibiting influence
of government censorship. And when this was combined with
the economic malaise - as in Chile, for example - the product
was a cultural vacuum. Artistic repression muffled the arts in
much of the rest of L atin America as well, and in Eastern Europe
and the Soviet Union governments made it clear that, detente
notwithstanding, varying artistic attitudes could not peacefully
coexist. Nor, apparently, could artists be indifferent to political
upheaval. After taking power in a bloodless coup, Nigerian Brig.
Murtala Mohammed indefinitely postponed the Second World
Black Arts Festival, dashing the hopes of thousands of African
musicians, dancers, actors and writers.
135
But there were also encouraging signs in the cultural realm.
The U. N. declared 1975 I nternational Womens Y ear, and nowhere
was this more true than in the arts where feminine talents came
especially to the fore in music, literature and photography. Nor
had there ever been more pooling of international artistic
resources than there was in 1975. African plays drew applause
from English audiences; Soviet cineasts co-produced films with
J apanese and U.S. colleagues; a French director led a cast of
Egyptian actors in an Arabic version of Phedre, and in Paris,
British, I talian, Swedish and French talents teamed up to
construct the most important new museum and cultural center
in Europe since World War I I .1
(1) Newsweek, 5 J anuary 1976.
I taly : The Cost of Chaos
I talys economy is in a shocking state; unemployment, now at 3.5
per cent, is worsening; the lira has plunged 27 per cent in value
in the last two months alone. And because more than 25 per cent
of I talys gross national product is spent on imports, the decline
in the lira is sure to boost already soaring inflation rates.
Deterioration: Even more disturbing to many I talians than
the economic crisis has been the steady deterioration in the
quality of their daily lives in recent years. Periodically, savage
acts of political terrorism shock the nation. Violent street crimes,
once virtually unheard of in most of I taly, are now a commonplace
in larger cities. K idnapping has become nearly as much of a
national pastime as Sunday afternoon soccer matches, prompting
affluent I talians to protect their homes and persons with squads
of armed guards. Many of the great art treasures that have earned
I taly the reputation of being the museum to the world have been
snatched by burglars; still others have been damaged beyond
repair through neglect. Even such a monumental national insti
tution as Milans La Scala opera house is now saddled with debts
and in danger of closing. L abor unrest and strikes have become
so integral a part of I talians lives that no one is surprised any
longer when his garbage is not picked up, his mail is not delivered
or when the trains not only fail to run on time - but dont run
at all.
But to growing numbers of thoughtful I talians the most
intolerable aspect of their society is the murky malfunctioning
of the countrys massive, corrupt and thoroughly inept
bureaucracy. I taly today labors under the burden of more than
56,000 separate government agencies staffed by countless
functionaries, who churn out red tape and confusion in almost
K afkaesque proportions. A school district that wishes to build a
single classroom, for example, must have documents approved by
no less than 80 different government agencies.1
(1) Newsweek, 26 April 1976.
Turkish Lira Devalued 30%
Against Major Currencies
ANKARA, March 1. The Turkish lira was devalued today
about 30 percent against major European currencies and the
U.S. dollar.
The lira lost 29.8. percent value against the US dollar, coming
up to 25 liras per dollar, from previous 19.25. I ts value has gone
down by about 37 percent against the Swiss franc, to 12.20 liras
per franc from previous 8.85.
The Turkish currency was devalued 37.7 percent against the
Belgian franc, from 53 to 73 kurush per franc, 28.4 percent
against the I talian lire, from 2.18 to 2 80 liras a lire, 31.8 percent
against the British pound from 34.70 to 45.75 liras per pound
sterling, 35.7 percent against the Netherlands florin, from 7.81
to 10.60 liras per florin, and 29.4 percent against the French
franc, from 3.90 to 5.05 liras per franc.
The new rates were put into force as of this morning, and foreign
currency transactions, which were stopped early Wednesday
morning, were opened in the afternoon.
The lira was devalued against ail major foreign currencies,
about 10 percent last September and about 3-4 percent against
three major European currencies in December.
L ater, Devaluation of the Turkish lira was made to promote
Turkeys exports and for a healthy import policy, after creation
of the most suitable media through economic measures enforced
earlier, Finance Minister Ziya Mezzmoglu said here today.
138
Devaluation of the lira means making unofficial value the
official value, Finance Minister said at a press conference.
We entered the year 1978 with foreign exchange reserves
and credit opportunities all spent in 1977, he said.
Miiezzinoglu assured no price increases in retail sales of
fertilizers and petroleum products, failing to identify any more
items, however adding We will not allow for any price rise in
import goods.
The difference between cost and sale price of these two items
will be covered from special funds created for this purpose, he
told the journalists.
The Government has decided to force efficient measures to
prevent any speculation on basic consumer good prices, and to
save the narrow-income people from effects of inflation, he
said, adding that a special importance is being laid for preventing
any future shortages.
Miiezzinoglu said that the decision for devaluation followed
measures put into application, as the budget, income-expenditures,
money-credit policies and in the fields of foreign trade and pay
ments, and foreign debts.
Answering a question, he said the new values of the lira
were determined according to recent developments in the
international money markets, and ^according to information
received, the US dollar is expected to recover its value, although
it still continues to decline in the international markets.
Meanwhile, the US dollar lost value throughout Europe today,
hitting a low of less than 2 West German marks for the first Mme
on Europes money markets, the Associated Press reported.
I n case of any difference in its value in the future, the
Central Bank will take the necessary step for readjustment,
Mezzinolu added.
Asked whether the devaluation would lead to any price hikes,
he said Prices, of goods imported by the State may be increased.
However, the Government has decided not to increase retail prices
of fertilizers and oil products. I t is natural that the cost of
investment goods to be imported by especially the public sector,
will go up.
139
Answering another question on how to save the public from
possible effects of devaluation, he said the income of the public
will be increased, income tax policy will be modified, the
intermediators and commissioners w'.ll be eliminated, snd the
current minimum salaries will be freed from certain taxes. The
aim is to cut down the inflation rate, which was nearly 50% in
1977, he added, describing it as an indirect contribution to the
cost of living.
The Government, since it has come to power, has been
effecting measures to obtain a healthy Turkish economy, Mez-
zinolu said while talking on the requirements by the I nternational
Monetary Fund (I MF) necessary for clearance to foreign credit
flow into Turkey.
Even if there was the I MF or not, the Government had to
enforce all such economic measure? * he said, adding that no
date has yet oeen set for the talks of the Turkish delegation with
the I MF officials. But the delegation will go to Washington in
the coming days to meet the I MF officials, he told the newsm?n.
Finance Minister Mezzinolu said the new application
enforced yesterday in the money-credit policy aims to encourage
public savings and to promote bank credits to the most proper
places. We have also encouraged the public to open time-deposit
accounts, by keeping the interest rate on sight deposits remain
the same.1
(1) Turkish Daily News, 2 March 1978.
Crime
The disproportionate involvemeni of young people in crime gave
governments in many parts of the world particular cause for
concern in 1971. I n the U.S.S.R. the justice minister declared that
law enforcement agencies should give special priority to the
eradication of juvenile crime; youths were said to be responsible
for frequent acts of vandalism, street fights and petty larceny.
The U.S. attorney general claimed that the problem of juvenile
crime is a threat to our national well-being. While constituting
only 16% of the U.S. population, youths aged 10-17 were involved
in 29% of all major index offenses cleared up by the police in
1970. Criminal statistics in the U.S. and other highly developed
nations also revealed increasing involvement of women in crime;
during 1960-70 arrests of men for serious crimes in the U.S. rose
by 73% while arrests of women increased by more than 200%.
There was substantial evidence in 1971 that many facets of
crime, particularly of aircraft hijacking and drug smuggling, had
both national and international implications. The use of specially
trained air marshals on certain international flights, together
with airport screening devices to detect weapons and potential
hijackers, seemed to result in a diminution in the number of
successful hijackings. U.S. airlines, however, still experienced
periodic seizures of aircraft by persons usually seeking to be flown
to Cuba. More troublesome for the airlines in 1971 were bomb
hoaxes and alarms. I n May an airline company in Sidney, Austr.,
paid more than 500,000 U.S. dollars to persons who claimed they
had hidden an altitude pressure bomb aboard one of the companys
aircraft. The claim proved to be false and the extortionists
subsequently were apprehended without the money...
141
Politically motivated crimes appeared on the increase during
1971. L atin-American nations, like ' Uruguay and Brazil, were
plagued by kidnappings of officials and foreign diplomats. These
kidnappings usually were accompanied by demands for the release
of imprisoned terrorists in exchange for the lives of those seized.
Seeking to curb this practice, Uruguays representative on the
Legal Committee of the UN General Assembly asked for the
drafting of a convention that would treat all personal offenses
against diplomats and officials as common crimes, putting aside
the L atin-American tradition of granting asylum to political
offenders. Diplomatic safety also was a point at issue in North
America. Following the firing of a number of rifle shots into a
room occupied by members of its delegation to the UN, the Soviet
government expressed concern and doubt about the ability of U.S.
authorities to provide adequate protection to foreign diplomats.
The shooting incident allegedly was perpetrated by the militant
J ewish Defense League, a group protesting the restrictions placed
by the Soviet authorities on J ews emigrating from the U.S.S.R.1
(1) Britannica Book of the Y ear 1972.
A Defence of Shyness (Harold Nicolson)
I t is surely discreditable, under the age of thirty, not to be shy.
Self-assurance in the young betokens a lack of sensibility. The
boy or girl who is not shy at twenty-two will at forty-two become
a bore. I may be wrong, of course - thus will he or she gabble
at forty-two, but what I always say i s...
No, let us educate the younger generation to be shy in and
out of season : to edge behind the f urni ture: to say spasmodic
and ill-digested thi ngs: to twist their feet round the protective
feet of sofas and armchairs; to feel that their hands belong to
someone elsethat they are objects, wnich they long to put down
on some table away from themselves.
For shyness is the protective fluid within which our person
alities are able to develop into natural shapes. Without this
fluid the character becomes merely standardized or i mi tative:
it is within the tender velvet sheath of shyness that the full flower
of idiosyncrasy is nurtured : it is from this sheath alone that it
can eventually unfold itself, coloured and undamaged. Let the shy
understand, therefore, that their disability is not merely an
inconvenience, but also a privilege. Let them regard their shyness
as a gift rather than as an affliction. Let them consider now
intolerable are those of their contemporaries who are not also ^by.
There was a boy once who lived near my grandmother in
I reland. He was fourteen at the time and I was twelve. His name -
and it was well chosen - was Everard. I loathed that boy. My
grandmother was in the habit of giving tea-parties, at which
there were hot tea-cakes in an inimical little dish with a cover.
I was told that it was my duty to hand round this hostile dish to
the assembled ladies, and that to do this elegantly, I should hold
143
the dish in my right hand and raise the cover successively, when
offering the tea-cakes, with my left. To me this process was a
physical impossibility: it was as irksome as those excruciating
exercises which entail having to rub with one hand and pat
simultaneously with the other. I would pass from old lady to old
lady - (that feeling about ones boots being untidy and loose, that
feeling of the sock descending) - and I would hold the lid open
widely when crossing carefully from group to group, and close
it firmly when offering it to my grandmothers guests. Never
could I achieve the right combination: never could I manage to
close the dish protectively when walking about, or open it
hospitably when offering its contents. On one occasion I placed
the lid upon a side-table, hoping to be unobserved. I was not
unobserved. What, my grandmother exclaimed have you done
with the dish-cover? Unfortunately I had placed it, not on a
table, but upon a leather album containing photographs of
Pompeii, and, if I remember rightly, of Paestum. The dish-cover
left a neat circle of grease upon that album. I was sharply
reproved. I was told that Everard was not so clumsy: that
Everard was already a perfect little gentl eman: that next time
it should be Everard who would hand the cakes. He did so. An
ingratiating but deft manner was his, such as I have observed
in the more expensive class of hairdressers.
My grandmother kept on casting glances at me where I hid
in the corner, glances exhorting me to observe, to draw com
parisons, to profit from the egregious example of Everard. And
yet to-day I am convinced that in comparison to that trim little
poodle I was (I repeat, in comparison) a nice little boy. A little
soiled, perhaps, and apt to stumble, but still, in comparison, nice.
I tell this story in order that those of my dear readers who are
shy and awkward may realize that the advice I give them comes
from the heart.
This advice, I fear, is somewhat worldly, or let us call it
realistic. I do not think that shyness can be kept within bounds
by any ethical arguments. I used to tell myself, for instance, at
those moments outside the dooiways of the great when shyness
becomes a laughing monster with its fangs already at ones
heart - I used to tell myself that I was as good, as powerful, as
rich, as beautiful, and as magnificent; as those I was about to
meet. This was not a good system. I t made me pert. I would
144
bounce into the room gaily, as if I weie the Marquis de Soveral:
be somewhat impudent to my hostess, cut my host dead, show
undue familiarity towards the distinguished author who had once
lectured us at Balliol, and fling myseir noisily, completely at my
ease, into an armchair. The chair would recede at this impact
and upset a little table on which were a Persian pen-box, a
photograph of the Grand Duchess of Saxe-Meiningen, and a bowl
of anemones. These objects would rattle loudly to the floor, and
with them would tumble my assertiveness. Such deductive systems
invariably fail. Fatal also is the reverse process of behaving like
the worm one feels. Remember, I have said to myself on giving
my hat and coat to the footman, remember that you are a worm
upon this earth. These people have only asked you because they
met your aunt at St J ean de Luz. They do not wish to see you,
still less do they wish to hea you speak. Y ou may say good
evening to your hostess, and then you must retreat behind a
sofa and remain unobserved. There is no need for you, when in
your retreat, to behave self - consciously - to examine the French
engravings on the wall, or the lacquer of the incised screen. Y ou
can put both your hands upon the back of the chair and then
just look (without blinking) in front of you. I f addressed, you
will reply with modesty and politeness. I f not addressed, you will
not speak at all. Things do no*, work out that way. The place
behind the sofa is, when you get there, fully occupied by an easel
containing a picture by Carolus Duran; and then one falls over
the dog. No - shyness must be controlled and conquered by more
scientific methods.
I n the first place, you must diagnose the type of shyness
from which you suffer. There are two main divisions of the
disease: the physical type and the mental type. The physical
type are shy about their limbs - their arms and legs make jerky
automatic movements which cause breakages and embarrassment.
The mental type are shy about what they say or where they look.
I t is the latter who are most to be pitied. For whereas the physical
sufferer can generally, by using circumspection, avoid the worst
consequences of his affliction, and can in the end sit down and
sit even upon his heated hands, the mental type is not released
until he finds him or herself alone again within the motor,
homewlard bound. I t is upon the l atter type that 1 desire to
concentrate.
145
The first rule is to make it perfectly clear to ones parents
before arriving at the party that one is to remain unnoticed.
Ones mother, sitting next to the host, should not be allowed to
make gestures at one - down the table - of encouragement and
love. Ones father, sitting next to the hostess, should be forbidden
to confide in her that this is the first time that you have v;orn
an evening suit or a low-necked dress - should be forbidden to
cast sly paternal glances at one, or to observe whether one does,
or does not, enjoy oneself. All parental responsibility or i nter
ference must be excluded from the beginning. One must be left
alone with ones shyness as with some secret possession.
The second rule is to determine from the outset that one
does not desire to shine either socially or intellectually. Nor
should one attempt to appear older than one actually is. These
things do not carry conviction. Y ou will find yourself, if you give
way to these ambitions, slipping into phrases which are not your
own phrases and of which, once they have escaped the barrier of
your lips, you will feel ashamed. Y ou may be calling, for instance,
upon the wife of a neighbour: you will find her sitting on the
veranda in a green deck chai r: if you are wise, you will have
the modesty to say merely How are you, Mrs Maple? : but if
you are unwise, and wish to appear at your ease as you come
into the room, you will exclaim, Please dont get up! Ha\ing
said this, you will reflect that Mrs Maple had no idea of getting
out of her deck chair for such a worm as you: and you will be
mortified by this reflection. Do not, therefore, adopt or even
adapt the phrases of your elders. Above all, do not break nto
conversations. I t may well be that Priroavera is a picture pain Led,
not by Cimabue, but by Botticelli. But it is not for you, when
others attribute the painting to an earlier artist, either to interfere
or to correct. A slight pursing of the lips is all that you may
allow yourself. The only justification for being shy is to be chy
to all the people all the time. Y ou must avoid being pert to
governesses and polite to bishops. But if you are always shy,
people will end by imagining that you have a modest natare:
and that, since it will flatter their own self-esteem, will make you
extremely popular. Only when you have become popular can you
afford to be interesting, intelligent or impressive. I t is a great
mistake to endeavour to awake admiration before you have stilled
envy; it is only when people have started by ignoring the young
146
that they end by liking the young. I t may be a comfort to you
therefore to consider that it is an excellent thing, at first, to be
regarded as being of no importance. Y ou can hide behind your
chair.
There are certain more practical hints which I should wish
to furnish to the youthful shy. I t is essential, for instance, to
have quite clear in your mind what are to be the opening words
which you will address to your hostess. Unless you have? prepared
these words, other words may come skipping into their place, and
instead of saying, How are you, Mrs Maple? I t was too kind of
you to let me come, you will say, Y our butler has got the largest
carbuncle I have ever seen. Then there is that business about the
palm of the hand. When I was a young man women wore kid
gloves which were particularly sensitive to any humidity of the
palm. POP! they went as one shook hands, and they came away
stickily after the explosion. To-day, this particular terror is
diminished. I t is a fact, however, that damp palms are things
that go with shyness. My own palm, at the age of 18, was as firm
and dry as the desert of Takla Makan. But at the slightest menace
of a hostess it became moist, and at the thought of that kid glove
this moisture oozed. I am sorry to become unpleasant about it,
but my sufferings were so acute that J wish to impart to others
the cure which I discovered. I t was called Papier Poudre and
took the from of a neat little boo> of which the pages were
tissue paper, backed by a thin layer of powder. By passing
successive sheets of this paper, one at a time, over the palm of
the hand all moisture disappeared.
Then there was that business about saying goodbye. I became
quite good at what we might call set goodbyes - the ones, .hat
is, for which I was prepared in advance. I t was the unexpected
greetings and farewells that I failed, for so long, to manage. The
meeting with ones schoolmaster in Regent Street. The few
minutes conversation - the terror of how to get away. One cannot
swing round on those occasions and walk off briskly in the
opposite direction. The dodge L; to begin to move while speaking.
Well, dont forget to ring me up, one says - walking backwards
and away from the man, Central 4689, one shouts at a receding
figure. Having thus increased tne distance between your school
master and yourself, it is possible without abruptness to turn
147
round and walk down Regent Street. But there must in all such
cases be an interval in which, while still facing him, you walk,
like the Lord Chamberlain, away.
I mention this point in social difficulty since it is illustrative
of a method which has cured me of the malady and rendered
me a sturdy, though amiable, lump of self-assurance. I t is only
when the unexpected happens that I to-day am shy. I then - for
why deny it? - lose my head. I blush and wobble and my throat
becomes slightly dry. Generally, however, it is the expected which
happens in life, and for the expected I am now magnificently
prepared. I t is a question of industry and experience. I t is also
a question of forethought. One should be prepared for all
eventualities. One should be prepared, for instance, for ones
hostess to ask after ones grandfather when the only honest
answer to such a question is that ones grandfather is dead. An
awkward pause will follow, and one should have ready some quip
or quotation by which that pause can be filled. I f taken unawares
one may stumbl e: but if fore-armed one can play with the
situation as one wishes. But then, to do this, one must already
be middle-aged. And I for one would rather be shy, to the point
even of shaking hands with the butler, than be middle-aged.
Then there are those of course who are shy for life. Such
people suffer the pangs both of bashfulness and of being no
longer very young. This malady is one that at times afflicts
successful writers. Oliver Goldsmith and Charles Lamb were shy:
Mr E. M. Forster and Virginia Woolf are shy to the point even of
appearing rude. I have seen Mr L ytton Strachey hiding in agony
behind a door, Mr Arnold Bennett struck dumb, Mr Sassoon
writhing, Mr Hugh Walpole (yes, even Mr Hugh Walpole) dither.
And yet other writers are not shy. I should not describe Mr
Sinclair Lewis as a shy man, nor have I often observed the blush
of shame mantling in the cheek either of Michael Arlen or Philip
Guadella. One can never tell.1
(1) A Book of English Essays, selected by W.E. Williams (Harmondsworth :
Penguin Books, 1942).
148
September
I was born in September, and love it best of all the months. There
is no heat, no hurry, no thirst and weariness in corn harvest as
there is in the hay. I f the season is late, as is usual with us, then
mid-September sees the corn still standing in stook. The mornings
come slowly. The earth is like a woman married and fading; she
does not leap up with a laugh for the first fresh kiss of dawn,
but slowly, quietly, unexpectantly lies watching the waking of
each new day. The blue mist, like memory in the eyes of a
neglected wife, never goes from the wooded hill, and only at noon
creeps from the near hedges. There is no bird to put a song in
the throat of morning; only the crows voice speaks during the
day. Perhaps there is the regular breathing hush of the scythe-
even the fretful j ar of the mowing: machine. But next day, in the
morning, all is still again. The lying corn is wet, and when you
have bound it, and lift the heavy sheaf to make the stook, the
tresses of oats wreathe round each other and droop mournfully...
The mist steals over the face of the warm afternoon. The tying-up
is all finished, and it only remains to rear up the fallen bundles
into shocks. The sun sinks into a golden glow in the west. The
gold turns to red, the red darkens, like a fire burning low, the
sun disappears behind the bank of milky mist, purple like the
pale bloom on blue plums, and we put on our coats and go
home1.
D. H. L awrence : The White Peacock
(1) The Albatross Book of Living Prose, p. 304.
The Mountains and the Valleys
I n the beginning, when God finished making the heavens, he
took a little ball of thread and measured them. Then he started
to create the earth to fit under them.
The mole came along and said, Let me help. And God,
who is good, said, All right, and gave him the ball of thread to
hold.
So God set to work, weaving the earth. Once in a while the
mole would let out a little more thread than God had measured
off. But God didnt notice; he just went on weaving and shaping
the earth. Then when it was finished he; was amazed to see that
the earth was too bigtoo big to fit under the heavens.
He started to exclaim to the mole;, but the mole was not
there. He was afraid and had buried himself in the earth.
God walked around looking for him but did not see him
anywhere. So he sent the bee to search out the mole and ask his
advice.
I t did not take the clever bee very long to spy the hole where
the mole was hiding.
Good morning, said the bee.
What do you want? said the mole.
God says, Whats to be done? ;said the bee, for the earth
is too big.
The mole just laughed. God knows, he said. I m not telling
Him!
150
\
So the bee did not ask again. She pretended to fly away, but
hid in a flower near by, hoping the mole would say something.
The mole had nobody to talk to, so he talked to himself.
Well, if I had to do it, he mused, I would take the earth
up and squeeze it, so that mountains would stick up and valleys
would sink down, and the earth would be smaller.
The bee heard this, and buzzed off in a hurry. The mole
heard the buzzing and called out, Thats a fine trick to play!
My curse on you! Henceforth, feed on yourself.
The bee flew straight to God and told him what the mole
had said. And God took hold of the wide flat earth and squeezed
it. Mountains rose up into folds and valleys sank into deep clefts,
till the earth fitted nicely under the heavens, the way God had
measured.
As for the bee, God said, Let the curse be a blessing. So
now the bee makes homey for itself, and the mole lives under
ground and is afraid to come out.1
Rewritten from Moses Gaster: Rumanian Bird
and Beast Stories.
(1) Maria Leach, The Beginning : Creation Myths Around the World (New
Y ork, 1956).
Ordeal
An ancient Anglo-Saxon and Teutonic practice of rendering
justice in disputed questions of criminality by subjecting the
accused person to a physical test, such as by battle, fire, water,
or the like. This method of trial was based on the belief that
God would defend the right, even by miracle if needful. All
ordeals, except the ordeal by battle, were abolished in England
by law in the early 13th century.
I n ordeal by battle, the accused person was obliged to fight
anyone who charged him with guilt. This ordeal was allowed
only to persons of rank.
Ordeal by fire was also for persons of rank only. The accused
had to hold in his hand a piece of red-hot iron, or to walk blind
folded and barefoot among nine red-hot ploughshares laid at
unequal distances. I f he escaped uninjured, he was accounted
innocent, aliter non. This might be performed by a deputy.
Ordeal by hot water was for common people. The accused
was required to plunge his arm up to the elbow in boiling water,
and was pronounced guilty if the skin was injured in the
experiment.
Ordeal by cold water was also for the common people. The
accused, being bound, was tossed into a river; if he sank he was
acquitted, but if he floated he was accounted guilty. This ordeal
remained in use for the trial of witches to comparatively recent
times.
I n the ordeal by the bier, a person suspected of murder was
required to touch the corpse; if he was guilty, the blood of the
dead body would start forth afresh.1
(1) The Readers Encyclopedia.
from The Art of Fiction (Somerset Maugham)
There are two main ways in which a novel may be written.
Each has its advantages, and each its disadvantages. One way is
to write it in the first person, and the other is to write it from
the standpoint of omniscience. I n the latter, the author can tell
you all that he thinks is needful to enable you to follow his story
and understand his characters. He can describe their emotions
and motives from the inside. I f one of them crosses the street,
he can tell you why he does so and what will come of it. He can
concern himself with one set of persons and series of events,
and then, putting them aside for a period, can concern himself
with another set of events and another set of persons, so reviving
a flagging interest and, by complicating his story, give an
impression of the multifariousness, complexity and diversity of
life. The danger of this is that one set of characters may be so
much more interesting than the other, as, to take a famous
example, happens in Middlemarch, that the reader may find it
irksome when he is asked to occupy himself with the fortunes of
persons he doesnt in the least care about. The novel written
from the standpoint of omniscience runs the risk of being
unwieldy, verbose and diffuse. No one has written it better than
Tolstoy, but even he is not free from these imperfections. The
method makes demands on the author which he cannot always
meet. He has to get into the skin of every one of his characters,
feel his feelings, think his thoughts; but he has his limitations
and he can only do this when there is in himself something of
the character he has created. When there isnt, he can only see
him from the outside, and then the character lacks the persua
siveness which causes the reader to believe in him.
153
I suppose it was because Henry J ames, with his solicitude
for form in the novel, became conscious of these disadvantages
that he devised what may be described as a sub-variety of the
method of omniscience, but his omniscience is concentrated in a
single character, and since the character is fallible the omniscience
is not complete. The author wraps himself in omniscience when
he wri tes: He saw her smile : but not when he wri tes: He
saw the irony of her smile; for irony is something he ascribes
to her smile, and it may be, without justification. The usefulness
of the device, as Henry J ames without doubt very well saw, is
that since this particular character, in The Ambassadors, Strether,
is all important, and it is through what he sees, hears, teels,
thinks, surmises that the story is told, and the characters of the
other persons concerned in it are unfolded, the author finds it
easy to resist the irrelevant. The construction of his novel is
necessarily compact. The device, besides, gives an air of verisi
militude to what he writes. Because you are asked to concern
yourself primarily with one person, you are insensibly led to
believe what he tells you. The facts that the reader should know
are imparted to him as the person through whom the story is
told gradually learns them; and so the reader enjoys the pleasure
of elucidation, step by step, of what was puzzling, obscure and
uncertain. The method thus gives the novel something of the
mystery of a detective story, and so the dramatic quality which
Henry J ames was always eager to obtain. The danger, however,
of divulging little by little a string of facts is that the reader
may be more quick-witted than the character through whom the
revelations are made and so guess the answers long before the
author wishes him to. I dont suppose anyone can read The
Ambassadors without growing impatient with Strethers obtuse
ness. He does not see what is staring him in the face, and what
everyone he comes into contact with is fully aware of. I t was a
secret de Polichinelle and that Strether should not have guessed
it points to some defect in the method. I t is unsafe to take your
reader far more of a fool than he is.
Since novels have for the most part been written from the
standpoint of omniscience, it must be supposed that novelists
have found it on the whole the most satisfactory way of dealing
with their difficulties; but to tell a story in the first person has
also certain advantages. Like the method adopted by Henry J ames,
154
it lends verisimilitude to the narrative and obliges the author
to stick to his point; for he can tell you only what he has himself
seen, heard or done. To use this method more often would have
served the great English novelists of the nineteenth century
well, since, partly owing to methods of publication, partly owing
to a national idiosyncrasy, their novels have tended to be shapeless
and discursive. Another advantage of using the first person is
that it enlists your sympathy with the narrator. Y ou may
disapprove of him, but he concentrates your attention on himself
and so compels your sympathy. A disadvantage of the method,
however, is that the narrator, when, as in David Copperfield, he
is also the hero, cannot without impropriety tell you that he is
handsome and attractive; he is apt to seem vainglorious when
he relates his doughty deeds and stupid when he fails to see,
what is obvious to the reader, that the heroine loves him. But a
greater disadvantage still, and one that no authors of this kind
of novel have managed entirely to surmount, is that the hero-
narrator, the central character, is likely to appear pallid in
comparison with the persons he is concerned with. I have asked
myself why this should be, and the only explanation I can suggest
is that the author, since he sees himself in the hero, sees him
from the inside, subjectively, and telling what he sees, gives him
the confusions, the weaknesses, the indecisions he feels in himself;
whereas he sees the other characters from the outside, objectively,
through his imagination and his intuition; and if he is an author
with say, Dickenss brilliant gifts, he sees them with a dramatic
intensity, with a boisterous sense of fun, with a keen delight in
their oddity, and so makes them stand out with a vividness that
overshadows his portrait of himself.
There is a variety of the novel written on these lines which
for a time had an immense vogue. This is the novel written in
letters; each letter, of course, is written in the first person, but
the letters are by different hands. The method had the advantage
of extreme verisimilitude. The reader might easily believe that
they were real letters written by the persons they purported to
have been written by, and come into his hands by a betrayal of
confidence. Now, verisimilitude is what the novelist strives to
achieve above all else; he wants you to believe that what he tells
you actually happened, even if it is as improbable as the tales of
Baron Munchausen or as horrifying as K afkas The Castle. But
155
the genre had grave defects. I t was a roundabout, complicated
way of telling a story, and it told it with intolerable deliberation.
The letters were too often verbose and contained irrelevant
matter. Readers grew bored with the method and it died out.
I t produced three books which may be accounted among the
masterpieces of f i cti on: Clarissa, La Nouvelle Heloise and Les
L iaisons Dangereuses.
There is, however, a variety of the novel written in the first
person which, to my mind, avoids the defects of the method and
yet makes handsome use of its merits. I t is, perhaps, the most
convenient and effective way in which a novel can be written.
To what good use it can be put may be seen in Herman Melvilles
Moby Dick. I n this variety, the author tells the story himself, but
he is not the hero and it is not his story that he tells. He is a
character in it, and is more or less closely connected with the
persons who take part in it. His role is not to determine the
action, but to be the confidant, the mediator, the observer of
those who do take part in it. Like the chorus in a Greek tragedy,
he reflects on the circumstances which he witnesses; he may
lament, he may advise, he has no power to influence the course
of events.' He takes the reader into his confidence, tells him what
he knows, hopes or fears, and when he is non-plussed frankly tells
him so. There is no need to make him stupid, so that he should
not divulge to the reader what the author wishes to hold back,
as happens when the story is told through such a character as
Henry J amess Strether. On the contrary, he can be as keen-witted
and clear-sighted as the author can make him. The narrator and
the reader are united in their common interest in the persons of
the story, their characters, motives and conduct; and the narrator
begets in the reader the same sort of familiarity with the creatures
of his invention as he has himself. He gets an effect of verisi
militude as persuasive as that which the author obtains who is
himself the hero of his novel. He can so build up his protagonist
as to arouse your sympathy and show him in an heroic light,
which the hero-narrator cannot do without somewhat exciting
your antagonism. A method of writing a novel which conduces
to the readers intimacy with the characters, and adds to its veri
similitude, has obviously much to recommend it.
I will venture now to state what in my opinion are the
qualities that a good novel should have. I t should have a widely
156
interesting theme, by which I mean a theme interesting not only
to a clique, whether of critics, professors, highbrows, bus-conduct-
ors, or bartenders, but so bdoadly human that its appeal is to
men and women in general; and the theme should be of enduring
i nterest: the novelist is rash who elects to write on subjects
whose interest is merely topical. When they cease to be so, his
novel will be as unreadable as last weeks newspaper. The story
the author has to tell should be coherent and persuasive; it
should have a beginning, a middle, and an end, and the end
should be the natural consequence of the beginning. The episodes
should have probability and should not only develop the thome,
but grow out of the story. The creatures of the novelists invention
should be observed with individuality, and their actions should
proceed from their characters; the reader must never be allowed
to say : So and so would never behave like that; on the contrary,
be should be obliged to say: Thats exactly how I should have
expected so and so to behave. I think it is all the better if the
characters are in themselves interesting. I n Flauberts LEducation
Sentimentale he wrote a novel which has a great reputation
among many excellent critics, but he chose for his hero a man
so null, so featureless, so vapid that it is impossible to care ivhat
he does or what happens to him; and in consequence, for all its
merits, the book is hard to read. I think I should explain why I
say that characters should be observed with individuality; it is
too much to expect the novelist to create characters that are
quite new; his material is human nature, and although there are
all sorts and conditions of man, the sorts are not infinite, and
novels, stories, plays, epics have been written for so many
hundreds of years that the chance is small that an author will
create an entirely new character. Casting my minds eye over the
whole of fiction, the only absolutely original creation I can think
of is Don Quixote, and I should not be surprised to learn that
some learned critic had found a remote ancestry for him also.
The author is fortunate if he can see his characters through his
own individuality, and if his individuality is sufficiently out of
the common to give them an illusive air of originality.
And just as behaviour should proceed from character, so
should speech. A woman of fashion should talk like a woman of
fashion, a street-walker like a street-walker, a racing tout like a
racing tout and an attorney like an attorney. (I t is surely a fault
157
in Meredith and Henry J ames that their characters invariably
talk like Henry J ames and Meredith respectively.) The dialogue
should be neither desultory nor should it be an occasion for the
author to air his views; it should serve to characterize the
speakers and advance the story. The narrative passages should
be vivid, to the point, and no longer than is necessary to make
the motives of the persons concerned, and the situations in which
they are placed, clear and convincing. The writing should be
simple enough for anyone of fair education to read with ease,
and the manner should fit the matter as a well-cut shoe fits a
shapely foot. Finally, a novel should be entertaining. I have put
this last, but it is the essential quality, without which no other
quality avails. And the more intelligent the entertainment a novel
offers, the better it is. Entertainment is a word that has a good
many meanings. One item is that which affords interest or
amusement. I t is a common error to suppose that in this sense
amusement is the only one of importance. There is as much
entertainment to be obtained from Wuthering Heights or The
Brothers K aramazov as from Tristram Shandy or Caoidide. The
appeal is different, but equally legitimate. Of course, the novelist
has the right to deal with those great topics which are of concern
to every human being, the existence of God, the immortality of
the soul, the meaning and value of life; though he is prudent to
remember that wise saying of Dr. J ohnsons that of these topics
one can no longer say anything new about them that is true, or
anything true about them that is new. The novelist can only
hope to interest his reader in what he has to say about them if
they are an integral element of the story he has to tell, essential
to the characterization of the persons of his novel and affect
their conduct - that is, if they resulty in action which otherwise
would not have taken place.1
Sleep (Thomas Dekker)
For do but consider what an excellent thing sleep i s: it is
so inestimable a jewel, that, if a tyrant would give his crown for
an hours slumber, it cannot be bought: of so beautiful a shape
(1) W. Somerset Maugham, On L itera.ure (London : Signet, 1967), pp. 181-187.
158
is it, that, though a man lie with an empress, his heart cannot
be at quiet till he leaves her embracements to be at rest with the
other: yea, so greatly indebted are we to this kinsman of death,
that we owe the better tributary half of our life to him; and
theres good cause why we should do so, for sleep is that golden
chain that ties health and our bodies together. Who complains
of want, of wounds, of cares, of great mens oppressions, of
captivity, whilst he sleepeth? Beggars in their beds take as much
pleasure as kings. Can we therefore surfeit on this delicate
ambroisa?1
(1) An Anthology of English Prose : From Bede to R.L. Stevenson, arranged
by S.L. Edwards (London : Everyman, 1914).
Of J esting (Thomas Fuller)
Harmless mirth is the best cordial against the consumption of
the spi ri ts: wherefore jesting is not unlawful if it trespasseth
not in quantity, quality, or season.
1. I t is good to make a jest, but not to make a trade of jesting.
The Earl of Leicester, knowing that Queen Elizabeth was much
delighted to see a gentleman dance well, brought the master of
the dancing school to dance before her. Pish, said the Queen,
it is his profession, I will not see him. She liked it not wnere
it was a master quality, but where it attended on other perfections.
The same may we say of jesting.
2. J est not with the two-edged sword of Gods Word. Will
nothing please thee to wash thy hands in, but the font, or to
drink healths in, but the church chalice? And know the whole
art is learnt at the first admission, and profane jests will come
without calling. I f in the troublesome days of King Edward the
Fourth, a citizen in Cheapside was executed as a traitor for saying
he would make his son heir to the Crown, though he only meant
his own house, having a crown for the sign; more dangerous it
is to wit-wanton it with the majesty of God. Wherefore, if without
thine intention, and against thy will, by chance medley thou
hittest Scripture in ordinary discourse, yet fly to the city of
refuge and pray to God to forgive thee.
3. Wanton jests make fools laugh, and wise men frown.
Seeing we are civilized Englishmen, let us not be naked savages
in our talk. Such rotten speeches are worst in withered age, when
men run after that sin in their words which flieth from them in
the deed.
160
4. Let not thy jests, like mummy, be made of dead mens
flesh. Abuse not any that are departed; for to wrong t'ieir
memories is to rob their ghosts of their winding-sheets.
5. Scoff not at the natural defects of any which are not in
their power to amend. Oh, it is cruelty to beat a cripple with his
own crutches! Neither flout any for his profession, if honest,
though poor and painful. Mock not a cobbler for his black thumbs.
6. He that relates another mans wicked jests with delight
adopts them to be his own. Purge them therefore from their
poison. I f the profaneness may be severed from the wit, it is like
a lamprey; take out the string in the back, it may make good
meat. But if the staple conceit consists in profaneness, then it is
a viper, all poison, and meddle not with it.
7. He that will lose his friend for a jest, deserves to die a
beggar by the bargain. Y et some think their conceits, like mustard,
not good except they bite. We read that all those who were born
in England the year after the beginning of the great mortality
1349 wanted their four cheek-teeth. Such let thy jests be, that
may not grind the credit of thy friend, and make not jests so
long till thou becomest one.
8. No time to break jests when the heart-strings are about
to be broken. No more showing of wit when the head is to be out
off, like that dying man, who, when the priest coming to him to
give him extreme unction, asked of him where his feet were,
answered, At the end of my legs. But at such a time jests are
unmannerly.1
The Lyrical Ballads (S. T. Coleridge)
During the first year that Mr. Wordsworth and I were neighbours,
our conversations turned frequently on the two cardinal points
of poetry, the power of exciting the sympathy of the reader by a
faithful adherence to the truth of nature, and the power of giving
the interest of novelty by the modifying colours of imagination.
The sudden charm which accidents of light and shade, which
(1) An Anthology of English Prose.
161
moonlight or sunset, diffused over a known and familiar land
scape, appeared to represent the practicability of combining both.
These are the poetry of nature. The thought suggested itself (to
which of us I do not recollect) that a series of poems might be
composed of two sorts. I n the one, the incidents and agents were
to be in part at least, supernatural; and the excellence aimed at
was to consist in the interesting of the affections by the dramatic
truth of such emotions, as would naturally accompany such
situations, supposing them real. And real in this sense they have
been to every human being who, from whatever source of delusion,
has at any time believed himself under supernatural agency. For
the second class, subjects were to be chosen from ordinary life;
the characters and incidents were to bu such as will be found
in every village and its vicinity where there is a meditative and
feeling mind to seek after them, or to notice them when they
present themselves.
I n this idea originated the plan of the Lyrical Ballads; in
which it was agreed that my endeavours should be directed to
persons and characters supernatural, or at least romantic; yet
so as to transfer from our inward nature a human interest and
a semblance of truth sufficient to procure for these shadows of
imagination that willing suspension of disbelief for the moment,
which constitutes poetic faith. Mr. Wordsworth, on the other
hand, was to propose to himself as his object, to give the charm
of novelty to things of every day, and to excite a feeling analogous
to the supernatural, by awakening the minds attention from the
lethargy of custom, and directing it to the loveliness and the
wonders of the world before us; an inexhaustible treasure, but
for which, in consequence of the film of familiarity and selfish
solitude, we have eyes, yet see not, ears that hear not, and hearts
that neither feel nor understand.1
(1) An Anthology of English Prose.
My Books (J . H. Leigh Hunt)
Sitting last winter among my books, and walled round with all
the comfort and protection which they and my fireside could
afford me - to wit, a table of high-piled books at my back, my
writing-desk on one side of me, some shelves on the other, and
the feeling of the warm fire at my feet - I began to consider how
I loved the authors of these books : how I loved them too, not
only for the imaginative pleasures they afforded me, but for
their making me love the very books themselves, and delight to
be in contact with them. I looked sideways at my Spenser, my
Theocritus, and my Arabian Nights; then above them at my
I talian poets; then behind me at my Dryden and Pope, my ro
mances, and my Boccaccio; then on my left side at my Chaucer
who lay on a writing desk...
I entrench myself in my books equally against sorrow and
the weather. I f the wind comes through a passage, I look about
to see how I can fence it off by a better disposition of my
movables; if a melancholy thought is importunate, I give another
glance at my Spenser. When I speak of being in contact with my
books I mean it literally. I like to lean my head against them.
Living in a southern climate, though in a part sufficiently
northern to feel the winter, I was obliged during that season to
take some of the books out of the study, and hang them up near
the fire-place in the sitting-room, which is the only room that
has such a convenience. I therefore walled myself in, as well as
I could, in the manner above-mentioned. I took a walk every
day, to the astonishment of the Genoese, who used to huddle
against a bit of sunny wall like flies on a chimney-piece; but I
did this only that I might so much the more enjoy my English
evening. The fire was a wood fire instead of a coal; but I imagined
163
myself in the country. I remembered at the very worst, that one
end of my native land was not nearer the other end than.
England is to I taly.
While writing this article I am in my study again. Like the
rooms in all the houses in this country which are not hovels, it
is handsome and ornamented. On one side it looks towards a
garden and the mountains; on another, to the mountains and
the sea. What signifies all this? I turn my back upon the sea;
I shut up even one of the side windows looking upon the moun
tains, and retain no prospect but that of the trees. On the right
and left of me are book-shelves; a bookcase is affectionately open
in front of me; and thus kindly enclosed with my books and the
green leaves, I write. I f all this is too luxurious and effeminate,
of all luxuries it is the one that leaves you the most strength.
And this is to be said for scholarship in general. I t unfits a man
for activity; for his bodily part in the world; but it often doubles
both the power and the sense of his mental duties; and with much
indignation against his body, and more against those who
tyrannise over the intellectual claims of mankind, the man of
letters, like the magician of old, is prepared to play the devil
with the great men of this world, in a style that astonishes both,
the sword and the toga.
I do not like this fine large study. I like elegance. I like room
to breathe in, and even walk about. I like a great library next
my study; but for the study itself give me a small snug place,
almost entirely walled with books. There should be only one
window in it, looking upon trees. Some prefer a place with few
or no books at all - nothing but a chair, or a table, like Epictetus;
but I should say that these were philosophers, not lovers of books-
if I did not recollect that Montaigne was both. He had a study
in a round tower, walled as aforesaid. I t is true, one forgets ones
books while writing - at least they say so. For my part, I think
I have them in a sort of sidelong minds eye; like a second thought,
which is more - like a waterfall, or a whispering mind.1
(1) An Anthology of English Prose.
164
Holy Sonnet 10 'J ohn Donne)
Death, be not proud, though some have called thee
Mighty and dreadful, for thou art not so;
For those whom thou thinkst thou dost overthrow
Die not, poor Death, nor yet canst thou kill me.
From rest and sleep, which but thy pictures be,
Much pleasure; then from thee much more must flow,
And soonest our best men with thee do go,
Rest of their bones, and souls delivery.
Thou art slave to fate, chance, kings, and desperate men,
And dost with poison, war, and sickness dwell,
And poppy or charms can make us sleep as well
And better than thy stroke; why swellst thou then?
One short sleep past, v/e wake eternally
And death shall be no more; Death, thou shalt die.1
(1) The Norton Anthology of English L iterature, vol. 1 (New Y ork, 1962) p. 909.
from The Sun Also Rises (Ernest Hemingway)
The chauffeur came out, folding up the papers and putting them
in the inside pocket of his coat. We all got in the car and it
started up the white dusty road into Spain. For a while the
country was much as it had been; then, climbing all the time,
we crossed the top of a Col. the road winding back and forth on
itself, and then it was really Spain. There were long brown
mountains and a few pines and far-off forests of beech-trees on
some of the mountainsides The road went along the summit of
the Col and then dropped down, and the driver had to honk,
and slow up, and turn out to avoid running into two donkeys
that were sleeping in the road. We came down out of the moun
tains and through an oak forest, and there were white cattle
grazing in the forest. Down below there were grassy plains and
clear streams, and then we crossed a stream and went through a
gloomy little village, and started to climb again. We climbed up
and up and crossed another high Col and turned along it, and
the road ran down to the right, and we saw a whole new range
of mountains off to the south, all brown and baked-looking and
furrowed in strange shapes.
After a while we came out of the mountains, and there were
trees along both sides of the road, and a stream and ripe fields
of grain, and the road went on, very white and straight ahead,
and then lifted to a little rise, and off on the left was a hill with
an old castle, with buildings close around it and a field of grain
going right up to the walls and shifting in the wind. I was up in
front with the driver and I turned around. Robert Cohn was
asleep, but Bill looked and nodded his head. Then we crossed a
white plain, and there was a big river off on the right shining
in the sun from between the line of trees, and away off you could
166
see the plateau of Pamplona rising out of the plain, and the walls
of the city, and the great brown cathedral, and the broken skyline
of the other churches. I n back of the plateau were the mountains,
and every way you looked there were other mountains, and ahead
the road stretched out white across the plain going toward
Pamplona.
We came into the town on the other side of the plateau, th'3
road slanting up steeply and dustily with shade-trees on both
sides, and then levelling out through the new part of the town
they are building up outside the old walls. We passed the bull-ring,
high and white and concrete-looking in the sun, and then came
into the big square by a side street and stopped in front of the
Hotel Montoya.1
(1) Ernest Hemingway, The Sun Also Rises (New Y ork : Scribner, 1926), p. 93.
from Molloy (Samuel Beckett)
Not to want to say, not to know what you want to say, not to be
able to say what you think you want to say, and never stop
saying, or hardly ever, that is the thing to keep in mind, in the
heat of composition.1
She had a parrot, very pretty, all the most approved colours.
I understood him better than his mistress. I dont mean I
understood him better than she understood him, I mean I under
stood him better than I understood her.2
They were pebbles but I call them stones. Yes, on this occasion
I laid in a considerable store. I distributed them equally between
my four pockets, and sucked them turn and turn about. This
raised a problem which I first solved in the following way. I had
sixteen stores, four in each of my four pockets of my greatcoat.
Taking a stone from the right pocket of my greatcoat, and putting
it in my mouth, I replaced it in the right pocket of my greatcoat
by a stone from the right pocket of my trousers, which I replaced
by a stone from the left pocket of my trousers, which I replaced
by a stone from the left pocket of my greatcoat, which I replaced
by the stone which was in my mouth, as soon as I had finished
sucking it. Thus there were still four stones in each of my four
pockets, but not quite the same stones. And when the desire to
suck took hold of me again, I drew again on the right pocket of
my greatcoat, certain of not taking the same stone as the last
time. And while I sucked it I rearranged the other stones in the
way I have just described. And so on. But this solution did not
(1) Samuel Beckett, Molloy (London : Calder J upiter, 1966), p. 29.
(2) Molloy, p. 39.
168
satisfy me fully. For it did not escape me that, by an extraordinary
hazard, the four stones circulating thus might always be the same
four. I n which case, far from sucking the sixteen stones turn and
turn about, I was really only sucking four, always the same, turn
and turn about.1
(1) Molloy, p. 73 - 74.
Tom Sawyer's Discovery
Tom said to himself that it was not such a hollow world, after
all. He had discovered a great lav/ of human action, without
knowing itnamely, that in order to make a man or a boy covet
a thing, it is only necessary to make the thing difficult to attain.
I f he had been a great and wise philosopher, like the writer of
this book, he would now have comprehended that Work consists
of whatever a body is obliged to do, and that Play consists of
whatever a body is not obliged to do. And this would help him to
understand why constructing artificial flowers or performing
on a treadmill is work, while rolling tenpins or climbing Mont
Blanc is only amusement. There are wealthy gentlemen in England
who drive four-horse passenger coaches twenty or thirty miles
on a daily line, in the summer, because the privilege costs them
considerable money; but if they were offered wages for the
service, that would turn it into work and then they would resign.1
PREFACE
Most of the adventures recorded in this book really occurred; one
or two were experiences of my own, the rest those of boys who
were schoolmates of mine. Huck Finn is drawn from life; Tom
Sawyer also, but not from an individualhe is a combination of
the characteristics of three boys whom I knew...
The odd superstitions touched upon were all prevalent among
children and slaves in the West at the period of this storytha-
is to say, thirty or forty years ago.
(1) Mark Twain, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (New Y ork : Dell, 1963), p. 25.
170
Although my book is intended mainly for the entertainment
of boys and girls, I hope it will not be shunned by men and women
on that account, for part of my plan has been to try to pleasantly
remind adults of what they once were themselves, and of how
they felt and thought and talked, and what queer enterprises
they sometimes engaged in.1
THE AUTHOR
Hartford, 1876
(1) p. 9.
from Journey Through Europe (John Hillaby)
There is an old story about a centipede who was asked which
particular set of legs he used to start walking. The question took
him by surprise. What had seemed a perfectly normal means of
progression became a wholly perplexing problem. He could
scarcely move. I m faced with a similar difficulty when I try to
account for - not how I walk, but why. Hopefully the ensuing
pages will enlarge on the pleasures of putting one foot down in
front of another for another journey of well over a thousand
miles.
A young man I met in L orraine said that all his life he had
wanted to travel alone as I did, but somehow he could never make
up his mind to begin. What made it so worthwhile? After talking
until two in the morning I thought I had got pretty close to the
heart of the matter. I ndependence, I said. Walking means no
pre-ordained schedules, no hanging about waiting for transport,
for other people to depart. Alone with a pack on your back you
can set off at any time, anywhere, and change your plans on the
way if you want to. Looking round at his well-appointed apartment,
I said of course it depended on what he did for a living. Could
he get away for a few weeks? He shock his head, sadly. No, he
said. I t was difficult. He ran a travel agency.
Now that the walk has become another chapter of personal
history I begin to realize how much the independence I enjoyed
stemmed from the invaluable help I received. I n London, before
I set off, I spent many months working out a route, getting
information from libraries, museums, embassies, and uni
versities...
172
I t took me just over two months to walk from the North Sea
to the Mediterranean by way of the Alps. At intervals I felt
elated, depressed, self-confident, nervous, heavily overburdened,
and, in big boots among travellers lightly disguised as travellers,
at times a bit of a fool. I waved and made for the beach intent
on that elusive thing known as getting away from it all...
Until fairly recently a journey used to be a simple and
intelligible matter of going somewhere for a change, for seeing
something different on the way. Daniei Boorstin points out that
one of the subtle confusions, perhaps one of the great losses of
modern life is that we have lost this refuge. As there comes to
be less and less difference between the time it takes to reach one
place rather than another, space shrinks and all but disappears.
The world looks much the same from a modern hotel, a car on a
motorway, a seat in a jet plane or from the deck of an ocean
liner. We are moving towards I nstant Travel. Nowadays, says
Boorstin, it costs more and takes greater ingenuity, imagination,
and enterprise to work out and endure travel risks than it once
took to avoid them. Almost as much effort goes into planning
an off-beat route as in surviving it...
I travelled to exotic places, to Arctic Canada and Africa,
but soon discovered that the further I travelled in the hot seat
of journalism, the less I began to see in depth. The trips were
too brief for either pleasure or comprehension. News, somebody
has pointed out, is literature in a hurry. I ts what happens today.
I t aspires to be history only in so far as it seeks to be accurate.
I wanted to slow down the process of absorption. Starting with
a long safari in North K enya, I began to walk through places
previously known only through books or brief visits. I n a tramp
through Britain I had the feeling of a pattern, a mosaic emerging
from what had been scattered bits of information and experience.
Now I wanted to move on, to try to relate Britain to the rest of
Europe. I could not hope to tramp across the continent from east
to west, but by walking from the Netherlands to the warm lands
of the south, I reckoned on passing through the borderlands of
countries where the blending processes are most marked.1
(1) J ohn Hillaby, J ourney Through Europe (London, 1972), pp. 11, 13, 15, 20.
173
Hot Days Coming
There will be a rise in temperatures in all the regions of Turkey,
except for one, and no rain is expected, meteorology officials
said. Marmara region will be rainy and temperatures will not
change, while all other regions are expected to enter into hot and
clear weather, officials said.1
Once a Y ear
Customs officials at the zmir ili Airport prevented Wednesday
the exits of five Turkish citizens, who attempted an illegal exit,
contrasting with the new regulation being effected as from
Wednesday. Officials said they have noticed exit stamps which,
belonged to last year in the passports of five persons. According
to new regulation a Turkish citizen is permitted to go abroad
only oncc in two years.2
Hashish Control
The controls of the hashish crop planted with government
permission in the Aegean and Central Anatolian regions, went
into effect. According to the Soil Products Office officials
genclarmery and narcotics police teams took part in the first
sweeping operations from land. They said serial controls will be
started by the end of this month. I n this way illegal hashish
planting will be prevented officials said.3
(1, 2, 3) Turkish Daily News, 2 March 1978.
from J ournal of a Novel (John Steinbeck)
I am choosing to write this book to my sons. They are little ooys
now and they will never know what they came from through me,
unless I tell them. I t is not written for them to read now but
when they are grown and the pains and joys have tousled them
a little. And if the book is addressed to them, it is for a good
reason. I want them to know how it was, I want to tell them
directly, and perhaps by speaking directly to them I shall speak
directly to other people. One can go off into fanciness if one
writes to a huge nebulous group but I think it will be necessary
to speak very straight and clearly and simply if I address my
book to two little boys who will be men before they read my
book. They have no background in the world of literature. They
dont know the great stories of the world as we do. And so I will
tell them one of the greatest, perhaps the greatest story of all
the story of good and evil, of strength and weakness, of love and
hate, of beauty and ugliness. I shall try to demonstrate to them
how these doubles are inseparablehow neither can exist without
the other and how out of their groupings creativeness is born.
I shall tell them this story against the background of the country
I grew up in and along the river I know and do not love very
much. For I have discovered that there are other rivers. And
this my boys will not know for a long time nor can they be told.
A great many never come to know that there are other rivers.
Perhaps that knowledge is saved for maturity and very few people
ever mature. I t is enough if they flower and reseed. That is all
that nature requires of them. But sometimes in a man or a
woman awareness takes placenot very often and always
inexplainable. There are no words for it because there is no one
ever to tell. This is a secret not kept a secret, but locked in
175
wordlessness. The craft or art of writing is the clumsy attempt
to find symbols for the wordlessness. I n utter loneliness a writer
tries to explain the inexplicable. And sometimes if he is very
fortunate and if the time is right, a very little of what he is
trying to do trickles throughnot ever much. And if he is a
writer wise enough to know it cant be done, then he is not a
writer at all. A good writer always works at the impossible... The
same blind effort, the straining and puffing go on in me. And
always I hope that a little trickles through. This urge dies hard.
This book will be the most difficult of all I have ever
attempted. Whether I am good enough or gifted enough remains
to be seen. I do have a good background. I have love and I have
had pain. I still have anger but I can find no bitterness in myself.
There may be some bitterness but if there is I dont know where
it can be. I do not seem to have the kind of selfness any more
that nourishes it.
And so I will start my book addressed to my boys. I think
perhaps it is the only book I have ever written. I think there is
only one book to a man. I t is true that a man may change or be
so warped that he becomes another man and has another book
but I do not think that is so with me/
(1) J ohn Steinbeck, J ournal of a Novel. The East of Eden L etters (New Y ork,
1969), p. 2.
The Story of Giletta of Narbona
THE STORY : Giletta, a physicians daughter of Narbona, healed
the French K ing of a fistula; for reward whereof she demanded
Beltramo, Count of Rossiglione, to husband. The Count, being
married against his will, for despite fled to Florence and loved
another. Giletta his wife, by policy, found means to lie with her
husband in place of his lover, and was begotten with child of
two sons; which known to her husband, he received her again,
and afterwards she lived in great honour and felicity.
I n France there was a gentleman called I snardo, the Count of
Rossiglione, who, because he was sickly and diseased, kept always
in his house a physician, named Master Gerardo, of Narbona.
This Count had one only'son, called Beltramo, a very young child,
pleasant and fair; with whom there was nourished and brought
up many other children of his age; amongst whom one of the
daughters of the said physician, named Giletta, who fervently fell
in love with Beltramo, more than was meet for a maiden of her
age.
This Beltramo, when his father was dead and left under th?.
royal custody of the K ing, was sent to Paris; for whose departure
the maiden was very pensive. A little while after, her father being
like',vise dead, she was desirous to go to Paris, only to see tha
young Count, if for that purpose she could get any good occasion.
But being diligently looked unto by her kinsfolk (because she
was rich and fatherless) she could see no convenient way for her
intended journey. And being now marriageable, the love she bare
to the Count was never out of her remembrance, and refused
many husbands with whom her kinsfolk would have placed her,
without making them privy to the occasion of her refusal.
177
Now it chanced that she burned more in love with Beltramo
than ever she did before, because she heard tell that he was grown
to the state of a goodly young gentleman. She heard by report
that the French K ing had a swelling upon his breast, which by
reason of ill cure was grown to a fistula and did put him to
marvellous pain and grief; and that there was no physician to
be found (although many were proved) that could heal it, but
rather did impair the grief and made it worse and worse. Where
fore the K ing, like one that was in despair, would take no more
counsel or help.
Whereof the young maiden was wonderful glad, and thought
to have by this means not only a lawful occasion to go to Paris,
but, if the disease were such as she supposed, easily to bring to
pass that she might have the Count Beltramo to her husband.
Whwreupon with such knowledge as she had learned at her
fathers hands beforetime, she made a powder of certain herbs
which she thought meet for that disease, and rode to Paris. And
the first thing she went about when she came thither was to see
the Count Beltramo. And then she repaired to the K ing, praying
his grace to vouchsafe to show her his disease.
The K ing, perceiving her to be a fair young maiden and
comely, would not hide it, but opened the same unto her. So soon
as she saw it she put him in comfort, that she was able to heal
him, sayi ng:
Sire, if it shall please your grace, I trust in God, without
any pain or grief unto your highness, within eight days I will
make you whole of this disease.
The K ing, hearing her say so, began to mock"her, saying:
How is it possible for thee, being a young woman, to do that
which the best renowned physicians in the world cannot? He
thanked her for her good will and made her a direct answer that
he was determined no more to follow the counsel of any physician.
Whereunto the maiden answered:
Sire, you despise my knowledge because I am young and a
woman. But I assure you that I do not minister physic by pro
fession but by the aid and help of God; and with the cunning
of Master Gerardo of Narbona, who was my father, and a phy
sician of great fame so long as he lived.
178
The King, hearing those words, said to himself : This woman,
peradventure, is sent unto me of God; and therefore why should
I disdain to prove her cunning? sithence she promised to heal me
within a little space, without any offence or grief unto me. And
being determined to prove her, he sai d:
Damosel, if thou dost heal me, but make me to break my
determination, what will thou shall follow thereof?
Sire, said the maiden, let me be kept in what guard and
keeping you list. And if I do not heal you within these eight
days, let me be burnt. But if I do heal your grace, what recompense
shall I have then?
To whom the K ing answered:
Because thou art a maiden and unmarried, if thou heal me
according to thy promise, I will bestow thee upon some gentleman
that shall be of right good worship and estimation.
To whom she answered :
Sire, I am very well content that you bestow me in marriage.
But I will have such a husband as I myself shall demand, without
presumption to any af your children or other of your blood.
Which request the K ing incontinently granted.
The young maiden began to minister her physic; and in
short space before her appointed time she had thoroughly cured
the King. And when the King perceived himself whole, said unto
her:
Thou hast well deserved a husband, Giletta, even such a one
as thyself shalt choose.
I have then my lord, quoth she, deserved the Count Beltramo
of Rossiglione, whom I have loved from my youth.
The K ing was very loth to grant him unto her. But because
he had made a promise which he was loth to break, he caused
him to be called forth, and said unto him :
Sir Count, because you are a gentleman of great honour,
our pleasure is that you return home to your own house to order
your estate according to your degree; and that you take with you
a damosel which I have appointed to be your wife.
179
To whom the Count gave his humble thanks; 'and demanded
what she was.
I t is she, quoth the King, that with her medicines hath
healed me.
The Count knew her well and had already seen her; although
she was fair, yet, knowing her not to be of a stock convenable to
his nobility, disdainfully said unto the K i ng:
Will you then, sir, give me a physician to a wife? I t is not
the pleasure of God that ever I should in that wise bestow
myself.
To whom the K ing sai d:
Wilt thou, then, that we should break our faith, which we
to recover health have given to the damosel, who for a reward
thereof asked thee to a husband?
Sire, quoth Beltramo, you may take from me all that I have
and give my person to whom you please, because I am your
subject. But I assure you I shall never be contented with that
marriage.
Well, you shall havA her, said the King, for the maiden is
fai r and wise, and loveth you most entirely, thinking verily you
shall lead a more joyful life with her than with a lady of a greater
house.
The Count therewithal held his peace; and the K ing made
was come, the Count in the presence of the King, although it
were against his will, married the maiden; who loved him better
than her own self. Which done, the Count, determining before
what he would do, prayed licence to return to his country to
consummate the marriage. And when he was on horseback he
went not thither but took his journey into Tuscane; where,
understanding that the Florentines and Senois were at wars, hs
determined to take the Florentines part, and was willingly
received and honourably entertained; and made captain of a
certain number of men, continuing in their service a long time.
The new-married gentlewoman, scarce contented with that
and hoping by her well-doing to cause him to return into his
country, went to Rossiglione, where she was received of all his
180
subjects for their lady. And perceiving that through the Counts
absence all things were spoiled and out of order, she, like a sage
lady, with great diligence and care disposed all things in order
again; whereof the subjects rejoiced very much, bearing to her
their hearty love and affection, greatly blaming the Count
because he could not content himself with her.
This notable gentlewoman, having restored all the country
again, sent word thereof to the Count her husband by two knights
of the country, which she sent to signify unto him that, if it were
for her sake that he had abandoned his country, he should send
her word thereof and she, to do him pleasure, would depart from
thence. To Let her do what she list. For I do purpose to dwell
with her, when she shall have this ring - meaning a ring which
he wore - upon her finger, and a son in her arms begotten by
me.
He greatly loved that ring, and kept it very carefully, and
never took it off from his finger, for a certain virtue that he
knew it had.
The knights hearing the hard condition of two things
impossible and seeing that by them he could not be removed
from his determination, they returned again to the lady, telling
her his answer; who, very sorrowful, after she had a good while
bethought herself, purposed to find means to attain to those two
things, to the intent that thereby she might recover her husband.
And having advised with herself what to do, she assembled the
noblest and chiefest of her country, declaring unto them in
lamentable wise what she had already done to win the love of
the Count, showing them also what followed thereof; and in the
end said unto them that she was loth the Count for her sake
should dwell in perpetual exile; therefore she determined to spend
the rest of her time in pilgrimages and devotion, for preservation
of her soul, praying them to take the charge and government of
the country; and that they would let the Count understand that
she had forsaken his house and was removed far from thence,
with purpose never to return to Rossiglione again.
Many tears were shed by the people as she was speaking
these words; and divers supplications were made unto him to
alter his opinion, but all in vain. Wherefore commending them
181
all unto God, she took her way with her maid and one of her
kinsmen, in the habit of a pilgrim, well furnished with silver and
precious jewels, telling no man whither she went and never
rested till she came to Florence; where arriving by fortune at a
poor widows house, she contented herself with the state of a poor
pilgrim, desirous to hear news of her lord; whom by fortune she
saw the next day passing by the house where she lay, on horseback
with his company. And although she knew him well enough, yet
she demanded of the goodwife of the house what he was; who
answered that he was a strange gentleman, called the Count
Beltramo of Rossiglione, a courteous knight, and well beloved in
the city; and that he was marvellously in love with a neighbour
of hers, that was a gentlewoman, very poor and of small substance,
nevertheless of right honest life and report, and by reason of her
poverty was yet unmarried, and dwelt with her mother, that was
a wise and honest lady.
The Countess well noting these words, and by little and little
debating every particular point thereof, comprehending the effect
of those news, concluded what to do; and, when she had well
understanded which was the house, and the name of the lady
and of her daughter that was beloved of the Count, upon a day
repaired to the house secretly in the habit of a pilgrim; where
finding the mother and daughter in poor estate amongst their
family, after she had saluted them, told the mother that she had
to say unto her. The gentlewoman rising up, courteously
entertained her; and being entered alone into a chamber, they
sat down, and the Countess began to say unto her in this wi se:
Madam, methink that ye be one upon whom Fortune doth
frown, so well as upon me. But, if you please, you may both
comfort me and yourself.
The lady answered that there was nothing in the world
whereof she was more desirous than of honest comfort. The
Countess proceeding in her talk said unto her :
I have need now of your fidelity and trust; whereupon if I
do stay and you deceive me, you shall both undo me and yourself.
Tell me then what it is hardly, s^id the gentlewoman, if
it be your pleasure, for you shall never be deceived of me.
182
Then the Countess began to recite her whole estate of love:
telling her what she was, and what had chanced to that present
day, in such perfit order as the gentlewoman, believing her words
because she had partly heard report thereof before, began to have
compassion upon her; and after that the Countess had rehearsed
all the whole circumstance she continued her purpose, saying:
Now you have heard, amongst other my troubles, what two
things they be which behoveth me to have if I do recover my
husband; which I know none can help me to obtain, but only
you, if it be true that I hear; which is, that the Count, my husband,
is far in love with your daughter.
To whom the gentlewoman sai d:
Madam, if the Count love my daughter, I know not; albeit
the likelihood is great. But what am I able to do in that which you
desire?
Madam, answered the Countess, I will tell you. But first I
will declare what I mean to do for you, if my determination be
brought to effect. I see your fair daughter of good age, ready to
marry. But, as I understand, the cause why she is ummarried is
the lack of substance to bestow upon her. Wherefore I purpose,
for recompense of the pleasure which you shall do for me, to give
so much ready money to marry her honourably as you shall think
sufficient.
The Countesss offer was very well liked of the lady, because
she was but poor. Y et, having a noble heart, she said unto her:
Madam, tell me wherein I may do you service; and if it be a
thing honest, I will gladly perform it; and, the same being brought
to pass, do as it shall please you.
Then said the Countess :
I think it is requisite that, by someone whom you trust, that
you give knowledge to the Count my husband that your daughter
is and shall be at his commandment; and, to the intent she may
be well assured that he loveth her indeed above any other, thac
she prayeth him to send her a ring that he weareth upon his
finger; which ring she heard tell he loved very dearly. And when
he sendeth the ring, you shall give it unto me, and afterwards
183
send him word that your daughter is ready to accomplish his
pleasure. And then you shall cause him secretly to come hither,
and place me by him instead of your daughter. Peradventure God
will give me the grace that I may be with child. And so, having
this ring on my finger and the child in mine arms begotten by
him, I shall recover him, and by your means continue with him
as a wife ought to do with her husband.
This thing seemed difficult unto the gentlewoman, fearing
that there would follow reproach unto her daughter. Notwith
standing, considering what an honest part it were to be a mean
that the good lady should recover her husband and that she
should to it for a good purpose, having affiance in her honest
affection, not only promised the Countess to bring this to pass,
but in few days with great subtlety, following the order wherein
she was instructed, she had gotten the ring, although it was with
the Counts ill will, and took order that the Countess instead of
her daughter did lie with him. And at the first meeting, so affect-
uously desired by the Count, God so disposed the matter that
the Countess was begotten with child, of two goodly sons; and
her delivery chanced at the due time. Whereupon the gentlewoman
not only contended the Countess at that time with the company
of her husband, but at many other times so secretly that it was
never known - the Count not thinking that he had lien with his
wife, but with her whom he loved. To whom at his uprising in
the morning, he used many courteous and amiable words and
gave divers fai r and precious jewels, which the Countess kept
most carefully.
And when she perceived herself with child, she determined
no more to trouble the gentlewoman, but said unto her:
Madam, thanks be to God and you, I have the thing that
I desire; and even so it is time to recompense your desert, that
afterwards I may depart.
The gentlewoman said unto her that, if she had done any
pleasure agreeable to her mind, she was right glad thereof; which
she did, not for hope of reward, but because it appertained to
her by welldoing so to do. Whereunto the Countess sai d:
Y our saying pleaseth me well; and likewise for my part, I
do not purpose to give unto you the thing you shall demand of
184
me in reward but for consideration of your well-doing which duty
forceth me so to do.
The gentlewoman then, constrained with necessity, demanded
of her with great bashfulness an hundred pounds to marry her
daughter. The Countess, perceiving the shamefastness of the
gentlewoman and hearing her courteous demand, gave her five
hundred pounds, and so many fair and costly jewels which almost
amounted to like valour. For which the gentlewoman, more than
contented, gave most hearty thanks to the Countess; who departed
from the gentlewoman and returned to her lodging. The gentle
woman, to take occasion from the Count of any farther repair or
sending to her house, took her daughter with her and went into
the country to her friends.
The Count Beltramo, within few days after, being revoked
home to his own house by his subjects, hearing that the Countess
was departed from thence, returned. The Countess, knowing that
her husband was gone from Florence and returned into his country,
was very glad and contented, and she continued in Florence till
the time of her childbed was come and was brought a-bed of two
sons, which were very like unto their father; and caused them
carefully to be nursed and brought up; and when she saw time,
she took her journey, unknown to any man, and arrived at
Montpellier; and resting herself there for certain days, hearing
news of the Count and where he was, and that upon the day of
All Saints he purposed to make a great feast and assembly of
ladies and knights, in her pilgrims weed she went thither. And
knowing that they were all assembled at the palace of the Count,
ready to sit down at the table, she passed through the people
without change of apparel, with her two sons in her arms; and
when she was come up into the hall, even to the place where the
Count was, falling down prostrate at his feet weeping, said unto
him :
My lord, I am thy poor infortunate wife, who, to th intent
thou mightest return and dwell in thine own house, have been a
great while begging about the world. Therefore I now beseech thee,
for the honour of God, that thou wilt observe the conditions which
the two knights that I sent unto thee did command me to do. For
behold, here in mine arms, not only one son begotten by thee, but
twain; and likewise thy ring. I t is now time then, if thou keep
promise, that I should be received as thy wife.
185
The Count hearing this was greatly astoned, and knew the
ring, and the children also, they were so like him.
But tell me, quoth he, how is this come to pass?
The Countess, to the great admiration of the Count and of all
those that were in presence, rehearsed unto them in order all that
which had been done, and the whole discourse thereof.
For which cause the Count, knowing the things she had spoken
to be true and perceiving her constant mind and good wit and the
two fair young boys, to keep his promise made, and to please his
subjects and the ladies that made suit unto him to accept her from
that time forth as his lawful wife and to honour her, abjected his
obstinate rigour, causing her to rise up, and embraced and kissed
her, acknowledging her again for his lawful wife. And after he
had apparelled her according to her estate, to the great pleasure
and contentation of those that were there and of all his other
friends not only that day but many others, he kept great cheer; and
from that time forth he loved and honoured her as his dear spouse
and wife.1
(1) Elizabethan Love Stories, ed., T.J .B. Spencer (Harmondsworth : Penguin,
1968).
Seeing People Off (Max Beerbohm)
I am not good at all. To do it well seems to me one of the most
difficult things in the world, and probably seems so to you, too.
To see a friend off from Waterloo to Vauxhall were easy
enough. But we are never called on to perform that small feat. I t
is only when a friend is going on a longish journey, and will be
absent for a longish time, that we turn up at the railway station.
The dearer the friend, and the longer the journey, and the longer
the likely absence, the earlier do we turn up, and the more la
mentably do we fail. Our failure is in exact ratio to the seriousness
of the occasion, and to the depth of our feeling.
I n a room, or even on a door-step, we can make the farewell
quite worthily. We can express in our faces the genuine sorrow we
feel. Nor do words fail us. There is no awkwardness, no restraint,
on either side. The thread of intimacy has not been snapped. The
leave-taking is an ideal one. Why not, then, leave the leave-taking
at that? Always, departing friends implore us not to bother to come
to the railway station next morning. Always, we are deaf to these
entreaties, knowing them to be not quite sincere. The departing
friends would think it very odd of us if we took them at their
word. Besides, they really do want to see us again. And that wish
is heartily reciprocated. We duly turn up. And then, oh, then, what
a gulf yawns! We stretch our arms vainly across it. We have uttsrly
lost touch. We have nothing at all to say. We gaze at each other
as dumb animals gaze at human beings. We make conversation -
and such conversation! We know that these are the friends from
whom we parted overnight. They know that we have not altered.
Y et, on the surface, everything is different; and the tension is such
that we only long for the guard to blow his whistle and put an end
to the farce.
187
On a cold gray morning of last week I duly turned up at
Euston, to see off an old friend who was starting for America.
Overnight, we had given him a farewell dinner, in which
sadness was well mingled with festivity. Y ears probably would
elapse before his return. Some of us might never see him again.
Not ignoring the shadow of the fature, we gaily celebrated the
past. We were as thankful to have known our guest as we were
grieved to lose him; and both these emotions were made evident.
I t was a perfect farewell.
And now, here we were, stiff and self-conscious on the
platform; and, framed in the window of the railway-carriage,
was the face of our friend; but it was as the face of a stranger - a
stranger anxious to please, an appealing stranger, an awkward
stranger. Have you got everything? asked one of us, breaking a
silence. Yes, everything, said our friend, with a pleasant nod.
Everything, he repeated, with the emphasis of an empty brain.
Y oull be able to lunch on the train, said I , though this prophecy
had already been made more than once. Oh, yes, he said with
conviction. He added that the trai n went straight through
Liverpool. This fact seemed to strike us rather odd. We exchanged
glances. Doesnt it stop at Crewe? asked one of us. No, said
our friend, briefly. He seemed almost disagreeable. There was a
long pause. One of us, with a nod and a forced smile at the
traveler, said, Well! The nod, the smile, and the unmeaning
monosyllable, were returned conscientiously. Another pause was
broken by one of us with a fit of coughing. I t was an obviously
assumed fit, but it served to pass the time. The bustle of the
platform was unabated. There was no sign of the trai ns departure.
Release - ours, and our friends - was not yet.
My wandering eye alighted on a rather portly middle-aged
man who was talking earnestly from the platform to a young
lady at the next window but one to ours. His fine profile was
vaguely familiar to me. The young lady was evidently American,
and he was evidently English; otherwise I should have guessed
from his impressive air that he was her father. I wish I could
hear what he was saying. I was sure he was giving the very best
advice; and the strong tenderness of his gaze was really beautiful.
He seemed magnetic, as he poured out his final injunctions.
I could feel something of his magnetism, even where I stood. And
188
the magnetism, like the profile, was vaguely familiar to me.
Where had I experienced it?
I n a flash I remembered. The man was Hubert le Ros. But
how changed since last I saw him! That was seven or eight years
ago, in the Strand. He was then (as usual) out of an engagement,
and borrowed half-a-crown. I t seemed a privilege to lend anything
to him. He was always magnetic. And why his magnetism had
never made him successful on the L ondon stage was always a
mystery to me. He was an excellent actor, and a man of sober
habit. But like many others of his kind, Hubert le Ros (I do not,
of course, give the actual name by which he was known) drifted
seedily into the provinces; and I , like every one else, ceased to
remember him.
I t was strange to see him, after all these years, here on the
platform of Euston, looking so prosperous and solid. I t was not
only the flesh that he had put on, but also the clothes, that made
him hard to recognize. I n the old days, an imitation fur coat had
seemed to be as integral a part of him as were his ill-shorn
lantern jaws. But now his costume was a model of rich and
somber moderation, drawing, not calling, attention to itself. He
looked like a banker. Any one would have been proud to be seen
off by him.
Stand back, please. The trai n was about to start, and I
waved farewell to my friend. Le Ros did not stand back. He stood
clasping in both hands the hands of the young American. Stand
back, sir, please! He obeyed, but quickly darted forward again to
whisper some final word. I think there were tears in her eyes.
There certainly were tears in his when at length, having watched
the trai n out of sight, he turned around. He seemed, nevertheless,
delighted to see me. He asked me where I had been hiding all
these years; and simultaneously repaid r^e the half-crown as
though it had been borrowed yesterday. He linked his arm in
mine, and walked me slowly along the platform, saying with what
pleasure he read my dramatic criticism every Saturday.
I told him, in return, how much he was missed on the stage.
Ah, yes, he said, I never act on the stage nowadays. He laid
some emphasis on the word stage, and I asked him where, then,
he did act. On the platform, he answered. Y ou mean, said I,
189
that you recite at concerts? He smiled. This, he whispered,
striking his stick on the ground, is the platform I mean. Had
his mysterious prosperity unhinged him? He looked quite sane.
I begged him to be more explicit.
I suppose, he said presently, giving me a light for the cigar
which he had offered me, you have been seeing a friend off?
I assented. He asked me what I supposed he had been doing. I
said that I had watched him doing the same thing. No, he said
gravely. That lady was not a friend of mine. I met her for the
first time this morning, less than half an hour ago, here, and
again he struck the platform with his stick.
I confessed that I was bewildered. He smiled. Y ou may, he
said, have heard of the Anglo-American Social Bureau? I had
not. He explained to me that of the thousands of Americans who
annually pass through England there are many hundreds who
have no English friends. I n the olds days they used to bring
letters of introduction. But the English are so inhospitable that
these letters are hardly worth the paper they are written on.
Thus, said Le Ros, the A.A.S.B. supplies a long-felt want. Ame
ricans are a sociable people, and most of them have plenty of
money to spend. The A.A.S.B. supplies them with English friends.
Fifty per cent, of the fees is paid over to the friends. The other
fifty is retained by the A.A.S.B. I am not, alas, a director. I f I
were, I should be a very rich man indeed. I am only an employee.
But even so I do very well. I am one of the seers-off.
Again I asked for enlightenment. Many Americans, he said,
cannot afford to keep friends in England. But they can all afford
to be seen off. The fee is only five pounds (twenty-five dollars)
for a single traveler; and eight pounds (forty dollars) for a party
of two or more. They send that in to the Bureau, giving the date
of their departure, and a description by which the seer-off can
identify them on the platform. And then - well, then they are
seen off.
But is it worth it? I exclaimed. Of course it is worth it,
said Le Ros. I t prevents them from feeling out of it. I t earns
them the respect of the guard. I t saves them from being despised
by their fellow passengers - the people who are going to be on
the boat. I t gives them a footing for the whole voyage. Besides,
it is a great pleasure in itself. Y ou saw me seeing that young lady
190
off. Didnt you think that I did it beautifully? Beautifully,
I admitted; I envied you. There was I - Yes, I can imagine. There
were you, shuffling from foot to foot, staring blankly at your
friend, trying to make conversation. I know. T hats how I used to
be myself, before I studied, and went into the thing professionally.
I dont say that I am perfect yet. I m still a martyr to platform
fright. A railway station is the most difficult of all places to act
in, so you have discovered for yourself. But, I said with
resentment, I wasnt trying to act. I really felt. So did I, my
boy, said Le Ros. Y ou cant act without feeling. Whats his
name, the Frenchman - Diderot, yes - said you could; but what
did he know about it? Didnt you see those tears in my eyes when
the trai n started? I hadnt forced them. I tell you I was moved.
So were you, I dare say. But you couldnt have pumped up a tear
to prove it. Y ou cant express your feelings. I n other words, you
cant act. At any rate, he added kindly, not in a railway station.
Teach me! I cried. He looked thoughtfully at me. Well, he
said at length, the seeing-off season is practically over. Y es, I ll
give you a course. I have a good many pupils on hand already;
but yes, he said, consulting an ornate note-book, I could give
you an hour on Tuesdays and Fridays.
His terms, I confess, are rather high. But I dont grudge the
investment.1
Clown sings.
O mistress mine, where are you roaming?
O, stay and hear; your true loves coming,
That can sing both high and low.
Trip no further, pretty sweeting;
J ourneys end in lovers meeting,
Every wise mans son doth know...
What is love? Tis not hereafter;
Present mirth hath present laughter;
Whats to come is still unsure.
I n delay there lies no plenty,
Then come kiss me, sweet and twenty;
Y ouths a stuff will not endure.2
(Twelfth Night, II.iii.38-51)
(1) Adventures in English L iterature.
(2) W. Shakespeare, The Complete Works, ed., P. Alexander.
A Hanging (George Orwell)
I t was in Burma, a sodden morning of the rains. A sickly light,
like yellow tinfoil, was slanting over the high walls into the jail
yard. We were waiting outside the condemned cells, a row of
sheds fronted with double bars, like small animal cages. Each cell
measured about ten feet by ten and was quite bare within except
for a plank bed and a pot for drinking water. I n some of them
brown, silent men were squatting at the inner bars, with their
blankets draped round them. These were the condemned men.
due to be hanged within the next week or two.
One prisoner had been brought out of his cell. He was a
Hindu, a puny wisp of a man, with a shaven head and vague
liquid eyes. He had a thick, sprouting moustache, absurdly too
big for his body, rather like the moustache of a comic man on
the films. Six tall I ndian warders were guarding him and getting
him ready for the gallows. Two of them stood by with rifles and
fixed bayonets, while the others handcuffed him, passed a chain
through his handcuffs and fixed it to their belts, and lashed his
arms tight to his sides. They crowded very close about him, with
their hands always on him in a careful, caressing grip, as though
all the while feeling him to make sure he was there. I t was like
men handling fish which is still alive and may jump back into
the water. But he stood quite unresisting, yielding his arms limply
to the ropes, as though he hardly noticed what was happening.
Eight oclock struck and a bugle call, desolately thin in the
wet air, floated from the distant barracks. The superintendent of
the jail, who was standing apart from the rest of us, moodily
prodding the gravel with his stick, raised his head at the sound.
He was an army doctor, with a grey toothbrush moustache and a
192
gruff voice. For Gods sake hurry up, Francis, he said irritably.
The man ought to have been dead by this time. Arent you ready
yet?
Francis, the head jailer, a fat Dravidian in a white drill suit
and gold spectacles, waved his black hand, Y es sir, yes sir, he
bubbled. All iss satisfactorily prepared. The hangman iss waiting.
We shall proceed.
Well, quick march, then. The prisoners cant get their break
fast till this jobs over.
We set out for the gallows. Two warders marched on either
side of the prisoner, with thei r rifles at the slope; two others
marched close against him, gripping him by arm and shoulder,
as though at once pushing and supporting him. The rest of us,
magistrates and the like, followed behind. Suddenly, when we had
gone ten yards, the procession stopped short without any order
or warning. A dreadful thing had happened - a dog, come goodness
knows whence, had appeared in the yard. I t came bounding among
us with loud volley of barks and leapt round us wagging its whole
body, wild with glee at finding so many human beings together.
I t was a large wooly dog, half Airedale, half pariah. For a moment
it pranced round us, and then, before anyone could stop it, it had
made a dash for the prisoner, and jumping up tried to lick his
face. Everybody stood aghast, too taken aback even to grab the
dog.
Who let that bloody brute in here? said the superintendent
angrily. Catch it, someone!
A warder, detached from the escort, charged clumsily after
the dog, but it danced and gambolled just out of his reach, taking
everything as part of the game. A young Eurasian jailer picked
up a handful of gravel and tried to stone the dog away, but it
dodged the stones and came after us again. I ts yaps echoed from
the jail walls. The prisoner, in the grasp of the two warders,
looked on incuriously, as though this was another formality of
the hanging. Then we put my handkerchief through its collar
and moved off once more, with the dog still straining and
whimpering.
I t was about forty yards to the gallows. I watched the bare
brown back of the prisoner marching in front of me. He walked
193
clumsily with his bound arms, but quite steadily, with that
bobbing gait of the I ndian who never straightens his knees. At
each step his muscles slid neatly into place, the lock of hair on
his scalp danced up and down, his feet printed themselves on the
wet gravel. And once, in spite of the men who gripped him by
each shoulder, he stepped slightly aside to avoid a puddle on the
path.
I t is curious, but till that moment I had never realized what
it means to destroy a healthy, conscious man. When I saw the
prisoner step aside to avoid the puddle I saw the mystery, the
unspeakable wrongness, of cutting a life short when it is in full
tide. This man was not dying, he was alive just as we are alive.
All the organs of his body were working - bowels digesting food,
skin renewing itself, nails growing, tissues forming - all toiling
away in solemn foolery. His nails would still be growing when
he stood on the drop, when he was falling through the air with
a tenth of a second to live. His eyes saw the yellow gravel and
the grey walls, and his brain still remembered, foresaw, reasoned -
even about puddles. He and we were a party of men walking
together, seeing, hearing, feeling, understanding the same world;
and in two minutes, with a sudden snap, one of us would be
gone - one mind less, one world less.
The gallows stood in a small yard, separate from the main
grounds of the prison, and overgrown with tall prickly weeds. I t
was a brick erection like three sides of a shed, with planking on
top, and above that two beams and a crossbar with the rope
dangling. The hangman, a grey-haired convict in the white
uniform of the prison, was waiting beside his machine. He greeted
us with a servile crouch as we entered. At a word from Francis
the two warders, gripping the prisoner more closely than ever,
half led, half pushed him to the gallows and helped him clumsily
up the ladder. Then the hagman climbed up and fixed the rope
round the prisoners neck.
We stood, waiting, five yards away. The warders had formed
in a rough circle round the gallows. And then, when the noose
was fixed, the prisoner began crying out to his god. I t was a
high, reiterated cry of Ram! Ram! Ram! Ram! not urgent and
fearful like a prayer or cry for help, but steady, rhytmical, almost
like the tolling of a bell. The dog answered the sound with ?.
194
whine. The hangman, still standing on the gallows, produced a
small cotton bag like a flour sack and drew it down over the
prisoners face. But the sound, muffled by the cloth, still persisted,
over and over again: Ram! Ram! Ram! Ram!
The hangman climbed down and stood ready, holding th-3
lever. Minutes seemed to pass. The steady, muffled crying from
the prisoner went on and on, Ram! Ram! Ram! never faltering
for an instant. The superintendent, his head on his chest, was
slowly poking the ground with his stick; perhaps he was counting
the cries, allowing the prisoner a fixed number - fifty, perhaps,
or a hundred. Everyone had changed colour. The I ndians had
gone grey like bad coffee, and one or two of the bayonets wers
wavering. We looked at the lashed, hooded man on the drop, and
listened to his cries - each cry another second of life; the same
thought was in all our minds : oh, kill him quickly, get it over,
stop that abominable noise!
Suddenly the superintendent made up his mind. Throwing
up his head he made a swift motion with his stick. Chalo! he
shouted almost fiercely.
There was a clanking noise, and then dead silence. The
prisoner had vanished, and the rope was twisting on itself. I let
go of the dog, and it galloped immediately to the back of the
gallows; but when it got there it stopped short, barked, and then
retreated into a corner of the yard, where it stood among the
weeds, looking timorously out at us. We went round the gallows
to inspect the prisoners body. He was dangling with his toes
pointed straight downwards, very slowly revolving, as dead as a
stone.
The superintendent reached out with his stick and poked the
bare brown body; it oscillated slightly. Hes all right., said the
superintendent. He backed out from under the gallows, and blew
out a deep breath. The moody look had gone out of his face quite
suddenly. He glanced at his wristwatch. Eight minutes past eight.
Well, thats all for this morning, thank God.
The warders unfixed bayonets and marched away. The dog.
sobered and conscious of having misbehaved itself, slipped after
them. We walked out of the gallows yard, past the condemned
cells with their waiting prisoners, into the big central yard of
195
the prison. The convicts, under the command of warders armed
with lathis, were already receiving their breakfast. They squatted
in long rows, each man holding a tin pannikin, while two warders
with buckets marched round ladling out rice; it seemed quite a
homely, jolly scene, after the hanging. An enormous relief had
come upon us now that the job was done. One felt an impulse to
sing, to break into a run, to snigger. All at once everyone began
chattering gaily.
The Eurasian boy walking beside me nodded towards the
way we had come, with a knowing smi l e: Do you know, sir, our
friend, (he meant the dead man) when he heard his appeal had
been dismissed, he pissed on the floor of his cell. From fright.
K indly take one of my cigarettes, sir. Do you not admire my new
silver case, sir? From the box wallah, two rupees eight annas.
Classy European style.
Several people laughed - at what, nobody seemed certain.
Francis was walking by the superintendent, talking garrulously:
Well, sir, all hass passed off with the utmost satisfactoriness.
I t was all finished - flick! like that. I t iss not always so - oah, no!
I have known cases where the doctor wass obliged to go beneath
the gallows and pull the prissoners legs to ensure decease. Most
disagreeable!
Wriggling about, eh? T hats bad, said the superintendent.
Ach, sir, it iss worse when they become refractory! One man,
I recall, clung to the bars of hiss cage when we went to take him
out. Y ou will scarcely credit, sir, that it took six warders to
dislodge him, three pulling at each leg. We reasoned with him.
My dear fellow, we said, think of all the pain and trouble you
are causing to us! But no, he would not listen! Ach, he v/ass very
troublesome!
I found that I was laughing quite loudly. Everyone was
laughing. Even the superintendent grinned in a tolerant way.
Y oud better all come out and have a drink, he said quite
genially. I ve got a bottle of whisky in the car. We could do
with it.
We went through the big double gates of the prison into the
road. Pulling at his legs! exclaimed a Burmese magistrate
196
suddenly, and burst into a loud chuckling. We all began laughing
again. At that moment Franciss anecdote seemed extraordinarily
funny. We all had a drink together, native and European alike,
quite amicably. The dead man was a hundred yards away.1
from 'Song
(J ohn Donne)
) Go and catch a falling star,
Get with child a mandrake root,
Tell me where all past years are,
Or who cleft the Devils foot,
Teach me to hear mermaids singing,
Or to keep off envys stinging,
And find
What wind
Serves to advance an honest mind.2
(1) George Orwell, Decline of the English Murder and Other Essays (Har-
mondsworth : Penguin, 1965).
(2) The Norton Anthology of English L iterature, vol. 1, p. 883.
(William Saroyan)
The Summer of the Beautiful White Horse
One day back there in the good old days when I was nine and
the world was full of every imaginable kind of magnificence,
and life was still a delightful and mysterious dream, my cousin
Mourad, who was considered crazy by everybody who knew him
except me, came to my house at four in the morning and woke
me by tapping on the window of my room.
Aram, he said.
I jumped out of bed and looked out the window.
I couldnt believe what I saw.
I t wasnt morning yet, but it was summer and with daybreak
not many minutes around the corner of the world it was light
enough for me to know I wasnt dreaming.
My cousin Mourad was sitting on a beautiful white horse.
I stuck my head out of the window and rubbed my eyes.
Yes, he said in Armenian. I ts a horse. Y oure not dreaming.
Make it quick if you want to ride.
I know my cousin Mourad enjoyed being alive more than
anybody else who had ever fallen into the world by mistake, but
this was more than even I could believe.
I n the first place, my earliest memories had been memories
of horses and my first longings had been longings to ride.
This was the wonderful part.
I n the second place, we were poor.
183
This was the part that wouldn't permit me to believe what
I saw.
We were poor. We had no money. Our whole tribe was poverty-
stricken. Every branch of the Garoghlanian family was living in
the most amazing and comical poverty in the world. Nobody
could understand where we ever got money enough to keep us
with food in our bellies, not even the old men of the family. Most
important of all, though, we were famous for our honesty. We
had been famous for our honesty for something like eleven
centuries, even when we had been the wealthiest family in what
we liked to think was the world. We were proud first, honest next,
and after that we believed in right and wrong. None of us would
take advantage of anybody in the world, let alone steal.
Consequently, even though I could see the horse, so magni
ficent; even though I could smell it, so lovely; even though I could
hear it breathing, so exciting; I couldnt believe the horse had
anything to do with my cousin Mourad or with me or with any
of the other members of our family asleep or awake, because I
knew my cousin Mourad couldn't have bought the horse, and if
he couldnt have bought it he must have stolen it, and I refused
to believe he had stolen it.
No member of the Garoghlanian family could be a thief.
I stared first at my cousin and then at the horse. There was
a pious stillness and humor in each of them which on the one
hand delighted me and on the other frightened me.
Mourad, I said, where did you steal this horse?
Leap out of the window, he said, if you want to ride.
It was true, then. He had stolen the horse. There was no
question about it. He had come to invite me to ride or not, as
I chose.
Well, it seemed to me stealing a horse for a ride was not the
same thing as stealing something else, such as money. For all I
knew, maybe it wasnt stealing at all If you were crazy about
horses the way my cousin Mourad and I were, it wasnt stealing.
It wouldnt become stealing until we offered to sell the horse,
which of course I know we would never do.
199
Let. me put on some clothes, I said.
All right, he said, but hurry.
I leaped into my clothes.
I jumped down to the yard from the window and leaped up
onto the horse behind my cousin Mourad.
That year we lived at the edge of town, on Walnut Avenue.
Behind our house was the country : vineyards, orchards, irrigation
ditches, and country roads. I n less than three minutes we were
on Olive Avenue, and then the horse began to trot. The air was
new and lovely to breathe. The feel of the horse running was
wonderful. My cousin Mourad who was considered one of the
craziest members of our family began to sing. I mean, he began
to roar.
Every family has a crazy streak in it somewhere, and my
cousin Mourad was considered the natural descendant of the
crazy streak in our tribe. Before him was our uncle Khosrove,
an enormous man with a powerful head of black hair and the
largest mustache in the San J oaqin Valley, a man so furious in
temper, so irritable, so impatient that he stopped anyone from
talking by roaring. I t is no harm; pay no attention to it.
That was all, no matter what anybody happened to be talking
about. Once it was his own son Arak running eight blocks to the
barber shop where his father was having his mustache trimmed
to tell him thei r house was on fire. This man Khosrove sat up in
the chair and roared. I t is no harm; pay no attention to it. The
barber said. But the boy says your house is on fire. So Khosrove
roared, Enough, it is no harm, I say.
My cousin Mourad was considered the natural descendant of
this man, although Mourads father was Zorab. who was practical
and nothing else. T hats how it was in our tribe. A man could be
the father of his son's flesh, but that did not mean that he was
also the father of his spirit. The distribution of the various kinds
of spirit of our tribe had been from the beginning capricious and
vagrant.
We rode and my cousin Mourad sang. For all anybody knew
we were still in the old country where, at least according to some
200
of our neighbors, we belonged. We let the horse run as long as it
felt like running.
At last my cousin Mourad said, Get down. I want to ride alone.
Will you let me ride alone? I said.
That is up to the horse, my cousin said. Get down.
The horse will let me ride, I said.
We shall see, he said. Dont forget that I have a way with a
horse.
Well, I said, any way you have with a horse, I have also.
For the sake of your safety, he said, let us hope so. Get down.
All right, I said, but remember youve got to let me try to
ride alone.
I got down and my cousin Mourad kicked his heels into the
horse and shouted, Vazire, run. The horse stood on its hind legs,
snorted, and burst into a fury of speed that was the loveliest
thing I had ever seen. My cousin Mourad raced the horse across
a field of dry grass to an irrigation ditch, crossed the ditch on the
horse, and five minutes later returned, dripping wet.
The sun was coming up.
Now i ts my turn to ride, I said.
My cousin Mourad got off the horse.
Ride, he said.
I leaped to the back of the horse and for a moment knew
the awfulest fear imaginable. The horse did not move.
Kick into his muscles, my cousin Mourad said. What are you
waiting for? Weve got to take him back before everybody in the
world is up and about.
I kicked into the muscles of the horse. Once again it reared
and snorted. Then it began to run. I didnt know what to do.
I nstead of running across the field to the irrigation ditch the
horse ran down the road to the vineyard of Dikran Halabian
where it began to leap over vines. The horse leaped over seven
vines before I fell. Then it continued running.
201
My cousin Mourad came running down the road.
I m not worried about you, he shouted. Weve got to get that
horse. Y ou go this way and I ll go this way. I f you come upon
him, be kindly. I ll be near.
I continued down the road and my cousin Mourad went across
the field toward the irrigation ditch.
I t took him half an hour to find the horse and bring him back.
All right, he said, jump on. The whole world is awake now.
What will we do? I said.
Well, he said, well either take him back or hide him until
tomorrow morning.
He didnt sound worried and I knew hed hide him and not
take him back. Not for a while, at any rate.
Where will we hide him- I said.
I know a place, he said.
How long ago did you steal this horse? I said.
I t suddenly dawned on me that he dad been taking these early
morning rides for some time and had come for me this morning
only because he knew how much I longed to ride.
Who said anything about stealing a horse? he said.
Anyhow, I said, how long ago did you begin riding every
morning?
Not until this morning, he said.
Are you telling the truth? I said.
Of course not, he said, but if we are found out, thats what
youre to say. I dont want both of us to be liars. All you know
is that we started riding this morning.
All right, I said.
He walked the horse quietly to the barn of a deserted vineyard
which at one time had been the pride of a farmer named Fetvajian.
There were some oats and dry alfalfa in the barn.
202
I t wasnt easy, he said, to get the horse to behave so nicely.
At first it wanted to run wild, but as I ve told you, I have a way
with a horse. I can get it to want to do anything I want it to do.
Horses understand me.
Hor/ do you do it? I said.
I have an understanding with a horse, he said.
Yes, but what sort of an understanding? I said.
A simple and honest one, he said.
Well, I said, I wish I knew how to reach an understanding
like that with a horse.
Y oure still a small boy, he said. When you get to be thirteen
youll know how to do it.
I went home and ate a hearty breakfast.
That afternoon my uncle Khosrove came to our house for
coffee and cigarattes. He sat in the parlor, sipping and smoking
and remembering the old country. Then another visitor arrived,
a farmer named J ohn Byro, an Assyrian who, out of loneliness,
had learned to speak Armenian. My mother brought the lonely
visitor coffee and tobacco and he rolled a cigarette and sipped
and smoked, and then at last, sighing sadly, he said, My white
horse which was stolen last month is still gone. I cannot under
stand it.
My uncle Khosrove became very irritated and shouted. I t's
no har n.,What is the loss of a horse? Havent we all lost the
homeland? What is the crying over a horse?
That may be all right for you, a city dweller, to say, J ohn
Byro said, but what of my surrey? What good is a surrey without
a horse?
Pay no attention to it, my uncle Khosrove roared.
I walked ten miles to get here, J ohn Byro said.
Y ou have legs, my uncle Khosrove shouted.
My left leg pains me, the farmer said.
We began walking home.
203
Pay no attention to it, my uncle Khosrove roared.
That horse cost me sixty dollars, the farmer said.
I spit on money, my uncle Khosrove said.
He got up and stalked out of the house, slamming the screen
door.
My mother explained.
He has a gentle heart, she said. I t is simply that he is home
sick and such a large man.
The farmer went away and I ran over to my cousin Mourad's
house.
He was sitting under a peach tree, trying to repair the hurt
wing of a young robin which could not fly. He was talking to
the bird.
What is it? he said.
The farmer, J ohn Byro, I said. He visited our house. He
wants his horse. Y ouve had it a* month. I want you to promise
not to take it back until I learn to ride.
I t will take you a year to learn to ride, my cousin Mourad
said.
We could keep the horse a year, I said.
My cousin Mourad leaped to his feet.
What? he roared. Are you inviting a member of the Garogh-
lanian family to steal? The horse must go back to its true owner.
When? I said.
I n six months at the latest, he said.
He threw the bird into the air. The bird tried hard, almost
fell twice, but at last flew away, high and straight.
Early every morning for two weeks my cousin Mourad and
I took the horse out of the barn of the deserted vineyard where
we were hiding it and rode it, and every morning the horse, when
it was my turn to ride alone, leaped over grape vines and small
trees and threw me and ran away. Nevertheless, I hoped in time
to learn to ride the way my cousin Mourad rode.
204
One morning on the way to Fetvajians deserted vineyard we
ran into the farmer J ohn Byro who was on his way to town.
Let me do the talking, my cousin Mourad said. I have a way
with farmers.
Good morning, J ohn Byro, my cousin Mourad said to the
farmer.
Good morning, sons of my friends, he said. What is the name
of your horse?
My Heart, my cousin Mourad said in Armenian.
A lovely name, J ohn Byro said, for a lovely horse. I could
swear it is the horse that was stolen from me many weeks ago.
May I look into its mouth?
Of course, Mourad said.
The farmer looked into the mouth of the horse.
Tooth for tooth, he said. I would swear it is my horse if I
didnt know your parents. The fame of your family for honesty
is well known to me. Y et the horse is the twin of my horse. A
suspicious man would believe his eyes instead of his heart. Good
day, my young friends.
Good day, J ohn Byro, my cousin Mourad said.
Early the following morning we took the horse to J ohn Byros
vineyard and put it in the barn. The dogs followed us around
without making a sound.
The dogs, I whispered to my cousin Mourad. I thought they
would bark.
They would at somebody else, he said. I have a way with dogs.
My cousin Mourad put his arms around the horse, pressed
his nose into the horses nose, patted it, and then we went away
That afternoon J ohn Byro came to our house in his surrey
and showed my mother the horse that had been stolen and
returned.
I do not know what to think, he said. The horse is stronger
than ever. Better - tempered, too. I thank God.
205
My uncle Khosrove, who was in the parlor, became irritated
and shouted, Quiet, man, quiet. Y our horse has been returned.
Pay no attention to it.1
Small Words
When you come right down to it, there is no law that says
you have to use big words when you write or talk.
There are lots of small words, and good ones, that can be
made to say all the things you want to say, quite as well as the
big ones. I t may take a bit more time to find them at first. But
it can be well worth it, for all of us know what they mean. Some
small words, more than you might think, are rich with just the
right feel, the right taste, as if made to help you say a thing the
way it should be said.
Small words can be crisp, brief, tersego to the point, like
a knife. They have a charm all their own. They dance, twist, turn,
sing. Like sparks in the night they light the way for the eyes of
those who read. They are the grace notes of prose. Y ou know
what they say the way you know a day is bright and fairat first
sight. And you find, as you read, that you like the way they say
it. Small words are gay. And they can catch large thoughts and
hold them up for all to see, like rare stones in rings of gold, or
joy in the eyes of a child. Some make you feel, as well as see: the
cold deep dark of night, the hot salt sting of tears.
Small words move with ease where big words stand stillor
worse, bog down and get in the way of what you want to say.
There is not much, in all truth, that small words will not sayand
say quite well.2
J oseph Ecclesine
(1) Great Tales of the Far West, ed., Alex Austin (New Y ork, 1956).
(2) Willard R. Espy, An Almanac of Words at Play (New Y ork, 1975), p. 133.
The Rock (E.M. Forster)
We had been talking for some time, and she .was so full of kindness
and of insight that at last I ventured to ask about her husband.
Did you'ever question him? I hope so, she added, seeing that
I hesitated.
I went down to see him last month. We went for a sail.
Did he charge you anything?
I did pay him a little.
And I suppose you talked to the people?
The excitement is over. They resent him no longer. They
I wont say understand, for nobody could understand. But they
have accepted him.'
I hoped for that, she said gravely. They are simple and
manly again, and he will be one of them. Y ou saw the rock?
Oh yes. He showed me the rock.
On the north coast of Cornwall there is a promontory, high
and fantastic, stretching for half a mile into the sea. I n places it
is crowned with broad boulders, in places its backbone is so-narrow
that one can see the water on either side, foaming against pre
cipices that are polished black. Great moors are behind it, full
of cairns and stone circles and the chimneys of deserted mines.
Nearer at hand lies the farmers country, a fertile strip that
follows the indentations of the cliff. And close under the pro
montory itself is a little fishing village, so that many types of
civilization, fruitful and fruitless, can be encompassed in a single
gaze.
207
The rock of which she was speaking is hidden from all of
them, for it lies very low in the water. I t is some two hundred
yards from the extreme point and resembles a square brown desk,
with a slope towards the land. A wave will break on the high
part, seethe down the slope, and then be merged in the surrounding
blue, to break yet again at the foot of the promontory. One day,
during their holidays, he sailed too near this rock, capsized, and
was washed up onto it. There he lay, face downwards, with the
rising tide frothing over him. She was up on the headland, and
ran to the village for help. A boat put out at once. They rowed
manfully they were splendid fellows and they reached him
just as his hands relaxed and he was sliding head foremost into
death. So much is known to all of us, and it was the crisis of his
life. But. in a story about his life, it is not the crisis.
She began to speak, but waited a moment for the maid to
clear away the tea. I n the waning light her room seemed gentle
and grey, and there hung about it an odour (I do not write 'the
odour) of Roman Catholicism, which is assuredly among the
gracious things of the world. I t was the room of a woman
who had found time to be good to herself as well as to
others; who had brought forth fruit, spiritual and temporal; who
had borne a mysterious tragedy not only with patience but actually
with joy.
When he got to land, she said, he would not even shake
hands with them. He kept on saying, I dont kno>v what to do
I cant think. I shall come to you again, and they replied, Oh,
thatll be all right, sir. Y ou can imagine the scene, and it was
not till the evening that I realized his difficulty. Y ou ho*v much
would you give for your life?
I stared blankly.
I hope that you will never have to decide. May you always
have your life as a right. Most of us do. But now and then a life
is saved as one might save a vase from breaking and then
the proprietor must think what it is worth.
I s there not a tari ff for rescues? said I, inclined to be
irritable and dense.
I n calm weather it was quite calm and they did not run
the slightest danger the tari ff appears to be fifteen shillings
I
208
a rescuer. For two pounds five my husband could have been
clear of all obligation. We neither of us felt two pounds five
enough. Next morning we left, full of promises. I think they still
believed in us, but I am not sure.
She paused, and I ventured to say : But a sum that was great
to them that was the point. The question is purely practical.
So all our friends said. One suggested a hundred pounds,
another the present of a new boat, another that every Christmas,
I should knit each man a comforter. Y ou see, there are no such
things as purely practical questions. Every questions, springs
straight out of the infinite, and until you acknowledge that you
will never anwser it.
Then what did you suggest?
I suggested that I should settle that bill myself, and never
show him the receipt. But he refused and, I think, rightly. Nor
do I know what I should have done.
But what did those three men want? I persisted. Y ou
cannot drive me from i t : thats the point.
They would have accepted anything : they were in want of
nothing. Until we tourists came they were happy and independent.
We taught them the craving for money money obtained by
rowing half a mile upon the tranquil sea. The minister, with
whom we corresponded, implored us to be quick. He said that the
whole village was anxious and greedy, and that the men were
posing as heroes. And there were we, finding the world more
glorious every day, the air more delicate, music sweeter, birds,
sky, the sun everything transfigured because he had been
saved. And our love, we had been married five years, but now
it never seemed to have been love before. Can you tell me what
these things are worth?
I was silent. I told myself that this was fluid, unsubstantial
stuff. But in my heart I knew that she and all that she said was
a rock in the tideway.
For a time he was merely interested. He was amused at the
problem, and the sensations it aroused in him. But at last he only
cared for the solution. He found it one evening in this 'little
209
room, when a sunset, more glorious than todays, was flaming
under the wych-elm. He asked me, as I ask you, what such things
were worth, and gave the answer: Nothing; and nothing is my
reward to the men who saved me. I sai d: I t is the only possible
reward. But they will never understand it. I shall make them
understand it in time, he told me, for my gift of nothing shall
be all that I have in the world.
Again the story becomes common property. He sold up his
goods everything every cherished trifle that he had and
gave the value of them to the poor. Some money was settled on
her, and that he could not touch, but he gave away the rest. Then
he went down to that village penniless and asked for charity
from his rescuers.
His sufferings had been terrible. He drew out all their dis
appointment and pettiness and cruelty; she covered her face
when she spoke of it. I was glad to tell her that this had passed:
they had come to treat him as an idiot and then as a good fellow,
and now he was working for one of them. As I moved from her
room I said, No one but you will ever understand it. But her
eyes filled with tears and she cried : Dont praise me for that.
For if I had not understood, he might be with us now.
This conversation taught me that some of us can meet
reality on this side of the grave. I do not envy them. Such
adventures may profit the disembodied soul, but as long as I
have flesh and blood I pray that my grossness preserve me. Our
lower nature has its dreams. Mine is of a certain farm, windy
but fruitful, halfway between the deserted moorland and the
uninhabitable sea. Hither, at rare intervals, she should descend
and ascend, to shatter their spiritual communion by one caress.1
(1) E.M. Forster, The Life to Come and Other Stories (Harmondsworth:
Penguin, 1972).
210
Emma
A novel by J ane Austen, begun in 1814 and published in 1816.
Emma, a clever and very self-satisfied young lady, is the
daughter, and mistress of the house, of Mr. Woodhouse, an amiable
old valetudinarian. Emma takes under her wing Harriet Smith,
the daughter of some person unknown, a pretty but foolish girl
of 17. Emmas active mind sets to work on schemes for Harriets
advancement, and the story is mainly occupied with the mortifi
cations to which Emma is subjected as a result of her injudicious
attempts in this connection. But all ends well, and Harriet and
Emma herself find suitable husbands.2
(2) The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English L iterature, sec. ed., revised by
D. Eagle (L ondon: Oxford U.P., 1970).
Signs and Symbols (Vladimir Nabokov)
For the fourth time in as many years they were confronted with
the problem of what birthday present to bring a young man who
was incurably deranged in his mind. He had no desires. Man-
made objects were to him either hives of evil, vibrant with a
malignant activity that he alone could perceive, or gross comforts
for which no use could be found in his abstract world. After
eliminating a number of articles that might offend him or
frighten him (anything in the gadget line for instance was
taboo), his parents chose a dainty and innocent tri f l e: a basket
with ten different fruit jellies in ten little jars.
At the time of his birth they had been married already for a
long ti me: a score of years had elapsed, and now they were quite
old. Her drab grey hair was done anyhow. She wore cheap black
dresses. Unlike other women of her age (such as Mrs Sol, their
next-door neighbour, whose face was all pink and mauve with
paint and whose hat was a cluster of brookside flowers), she
presented a naked white countenance to the fault - finding light
of spring days. Her husband, who in the old country had been
a fairly successful business man, was now wholly dependent on
his brother I saac, a real American of almost forty years standing.
They seldom saw him and had nicknamed him the Prince.
That Friday everything went wrong. The Underground train
lost its life current between two stations, and for a quarter of
an hour one could hear nothing but the dutiful beating of ones
heart and the rustling of newspapers. The bus they had to take
next kept them waiting for ages; and when it did come, it was
crammed with garrulous high - school children. I t was raining
hard as they walked up the brown path leading to the sanitarium.
212
There they waited again; and instead of their boy shuffling into
the room as the usually did (his poor face blotched with acne,
ill - shaven, sullen, and confused), a nurse they knew, and did
not care for, appeared at last and brightly explained that he had
again attempted to take his life. He was all right, she said, but
a visit might disturb him. The place was so miserably understaffed,
and things got mislaid or mixed up so easily, that they decided
not to leave their present in the office but to bring it to him next
time they came.
She waited for her husband to open his umbrella and then
took his arm. He kept clearing his throat in a special resonant
way he had when he was upset. They reached the bus - stop
shelter on the other side of the street and he closed the umbrella.
A few feet away, under a swaying and dripping tree, a tiny half-
dead unfledged bird was helplessly twitching in a puddle.
During the long ride to the Underground station, she and her
husband did not exchange a word; and every time she glanced
at his old hands (swollen veins, brown - spotted skin), clasped and
twitching upon the handle of his umbrella, she felt the mounting
pressure of tears. As she looked around trying to hook her mind
on to something, it gave her a kind of soft shock, a mixture of
compassion and wonder, to notice that one of the passengers, a girl
with dark hair and grubby red toenails, was weeping on the
shoulder of an older woman. Whom did that woman resemble?
She resembled Rebecca Borisovna, whose daughter had marired
one of the Soloveichiks in Minsk, years ago.
The last time their son had tried to take his life, his method
had been, in the doctors words, a masterpiece of inventiveness;
he would have succeeded, had not an envious fellow patient
thought he was learning to fly and stopped him. What he
really wanted to do was to tear a hole in his world and escape.
The system of his delusions had been the subject of an
elaborate paper in a scientific monthly, but long before that she
and her husband had puzzled it out for themselves. Referential
mania, Herman Brink had called it. I n these very rare cases the
patient imagines that everything happening around him is a
veiled reference to his personality and existence. He excludes real
people from the conspiracy because he considers himself to be
213
so much mor.e intelligent than other men. Phen^.snal nature
shadows him wherever he goes. Clouds in the staring sky transmit
to one another, by means of slow signs incredibly detailed infor
mation regarding him. His inmost thoughts are discussed at
nightfall, in manual alphabet, by darkly gesticulating trees.
Pebbles or stains or sun flecks form patterns representing in some
awful way messages which he must intercept. Everything is a
cipher and of everything he is the theme. Some of the spies are
detached observers, such as glass surfaces and still pools; others,
such as coats in store windows, are prejudiced witnesses, lynchers
at heart; others again (running water, storms) are hysterical to
the point of insanity, have a distorted opinion of him and
grotesquely misinterpret his actions. He must be always on his
guard and devote every minute and module of life to the decoding
of the undulation of things. The very air he exhales is indexed
and filed away. I f the only interest he provokes were limited to
his immediate surroundings but alas it is not! With distance
the torrents of wild scandal increase in volume and volubility.
The silhouettes of his blood corpuscles, magnified a million times,
flit over vast plains; and still farther, great mountains of un
bearable solidity and height sum up in terms of granite and
groaning firs the ultimate truth of his being.
When they emerged from the thunder and foul air of the Under
ground railway, the last dregs of the day were mixed with the
street lights. She wanted to buy some fish for supper, so she
handed him the basket of jelly jars, telling him to go home. He
walked up to the third landing and then remembered he had given
her the keys earlier in the day.
I n silence he sat down on the steps and in silence rose when
some ten minutes later she came, heavily trudging upstairs, wanly
smiling, shaking her head in depreciation of her silliness. They
entered thei r two - room flat and he at once went to the mirror.
Straining the corners of his mouth apart by means of his thumbs,
with a horrible masklike grimace, he removed his new hopelessly
uncomfortable dental plate and severed the long tusks of saliva
connecting him to it. He had read his Russaian - language news
paper while she laid the table. Still reading, he ate the pale
victuals that needed no teeth. She knew his moods and was also
silent.
214
When hcw%d gone to bed, she remained in the living-room
with her pack of soiled cards and her old albums. Across the
narrow yard where the rai n tinkled in the dark against some
battered ash cans, windows were blandly alight and in one of
them a black-troucered man with his bare elbows raised could be
seen lying supine on an untidly bed. She pulled the blind down
and examined the photographs. As a baby he looked more surprised
than most babies. From a fold in the album, a German maid they
had had in Leipzig and her fat-faced fiance fell out. Minsk, the
Revolution, Leipzig, Berlin, Leipzig, a slanting house front badly
out of focus. Four years old, in a park: moodily, shyly, with
puckered forehead, looking away from an eager squirrel as he
would from any other stranger. Aunt Rosa, a fussy, angular, wild
eyed old lady, who had lived in a tremulous world of bad news,
bankruptcies, trai n accidents, cancerous growths until the
Germans put her to death, together with all the people she had
worried about. Aged six that was when he drew wonderful birds
with human hands and feet, and suffered from insomnia like a
grown-up man. His cousin, now a famous chess player. He again,
aged about eight, already difficult to understand, afraid of the
wallpaper in the passage, afraid of a certain picture in a book
which merely showed an idyllic landscape with rocks on a hillside
and an old cart wheel hanging from the branch of a leafless tree.
Aged ten: the year they left Europe. The shame, the pity, the
humiliating difficulties, the ugly, vicious, backward children he
was with in that special school. And then came a time in his life,
coinciding with a long convalescence after pneumonia, when
those little phobias of his which his parents had stubbornly
regarded as the eccentricities of a prodigiously gifted child har
dened as it were into a dense tangle of logically interacting i l l u
sions, making him totally inaccessible to normal minds.
This, and much more, she accepted for after all living did
mean accepting the loss of one joy after another, not even joys
in her case mere possibilities of improvement. She thought of
the endless waves of pain that for some reason or other she and
her husband had to endure; of the invisible giants hurting her
boy in some unimaginable fashion; of the incalculable amount
of tenderness contained in the world; of the fate of this tender
ness, which is either crushed, or wasted, or transformed into
madness; of neglected children humming to themselves in unswept
215
corners: of beautiful weeds that cannot hide from the farmer
and helplessly have to watch the shadow of his simian stoop leave
mangled flowers in its wake, as the monstrous darkness approaches.
I t was past midnight when from the living-room she heard her
husband moan; and presently he staggered in, wearing over his
night-gown the old overcoat with astrakhan collar which he much
preferred to the nice blue bathrobe he had.
I cant sleep, he cried.
Why, she asked, why cant you sleep? Y ou were so tired.
I cant sleep because I am dying, he said and lay down on
the couch.
I s it your stomach? Do you want me to call Dr Solov?
No doctors, no doctors, he moaned: To the devil with
doctors! We must get him out of there quick. Otherwise well be
responsible. Responsible! he repeated and hurled himself into a
sitting position, both feet on the floor, thumping his forehead
with his clenched fist.
All right, she said quietly, we shall bring him home to
morrow morning.
I would like some tea, said her husband and retired to the
bathroom.
Bending with difficulty, she retrieved some playing cards
and a photograph or two that had slipped from the couch to the
fl oor: knave of hearts, nine of spades, ace of spades. Elsa and
her bestial beau.
He returned in high spirits, saying in a loud voice:
I have it all figured out. We will give him the bedroom. Each
of us will spend part of the night near him and the other part on
this couch. By turns. We will have the doctor see him at least
twice a week. I t does not matter what the Prince says. He wont
have to say much anyway because it will come out cheaper.
The telephone rang. I t was an unusual hour for their telephone
to ring. His left slipper had come off and he groped for it with his
heel and toe as he stood in the middle of the room, and childishly,
toothlessly, gaped at his wife. Having more English than he did, it
was she who attended to calls.
216
Can I speak to Charlie, said a girls dull tittle voice.
What number you want? No. That is not the right number.
The receiver was gently cradled. Her hand went to her old
tired heart.
I t frightened me, she said.
He smiled a quick smile and immediately resumed his excited
monologue. They would fetch him as soon as it was day. Knives
would have to be kept in a locked drawer. Even at his worst he
represented no danger to other people.
The telephone rang a second time. The same toneless anxious
young voice asked for Charlie.
Y ou have the incorrect number. I will tell you what you are
doing; you are turning the letter O instead of the zero.
They sat down to their unexpected festive midnight tea. The
birthday present stood on the table. He sipped noisily; his face
was flushed; every now and then he imparted a circular motion
to his raised glass so as to make the sugar dissolve more
thoroughly. The vein on the side of his bald head where there
was a large birthmark stood out conspicuously and, although he
had shaved that morning, a silvery bristle showed on his chin.
While she poured him another glass of tea, he put on his spectacles
and re-examined with pleasure the luminous yellow, green, red
little jars. His clumsy moist lips spelled out their eloquent l abel s:
apricot, grape, beech plum, quince. He had got to crab apple,
when the telephone rang again.1
Philebus (Plato)
PRI NCI PAL IDEAS ADVANCED
Philebus has maintained that pleasure is the good, while
Socrates contends that wisdom is better than pleasure.
To decide the issue, Socrates considers whether a life of
pleasure without wisdom or knowledge would be worth while;
(1) Vladimir Nabokov, Nabokovs Dozen (Harmonsworth: Penguin, 1971).
and he decides that if pleasure is not known, or realized, it has
no value.
But a life of wisdom which is in no way pleasant is also
without value.
Wisdom contributes more than pleasure does to the good, for
by wisdom order and harmony are achieved, and they are the
essential features of the good.
I n the final ordering of goods, as a result of the discussion,
measure is ranked first; second is that which is ordered by
measure, the symmetrical and the beautiful; third is mind or
wisdom, which possesses more of beauty, symmetry, and truth
than does pleasure; fourth is the class of arts, sciences, and true
opinions; and fifth is the class of pure pleasures, those accom
panying the practice of the pure arts and sciences.2
211
(2) Masterpieces of World Philosophy in Summary Form, ed., Frank N. Magill
(London, 1963).
J orge Luis Borges
J . L. Borges, born in Argentina in 1899 but a citizen of the world,
was considered by many critics in 1971 to be the greatest living
Latin-American author and one of the foremost living writers in
any language. Unlike the majority of writers to whom Spanish
is the mother tongue, Borges was unbelievably facile in English.
He also had the virtue of translating well into other language,
so that his influence and fame were not limited to Hispanic
readers.
Blind since 1955, Borges was director of A rgentinas national
library and taught English at the University of Buenos Aires
when he was not traveling, lecturing, or continuing his own
prodigious output. His milieu was the short story and poetry, and
the subjects that preoccupied him were the vagaries of time and
the attributes of courage, of mythological beasts, and metap
hysics. Although he was an old-fashioned and conservative man
who abhorred the crowdpleasing dictator J ean Peron, Borges had
the facility of appealing to the young and rebellious...
The young Borges was educated in Geneva, because his father
was an anarchist who objected to the government having a hand
in his schooling. Borges father had written a novel, while his
mother was a translator of Herbert Read, Hawthorne, Melville,
Faulkner, and Virginia Woolf. Both parents encouraged him in
the pursuit of a purely literary life, and it was not unlit the 30s
that he became a librarian in Argentina to earn his living. Borges
lost that job when Peron seized power. He was made librarian
for the national library after the dictator was overthrown.
Some of his better-known writings include The Aleph and
Other Stories, Ficciones, L abyrinths, Dreamtigers, A Personal
219
Anthology, and The Book of I maginary Beings. His own auto
biography, written in English, demonstrates his bilinguality.
Borges long had been considered a possible candidate for the
Nobel Prize for L iterature. When the 1971 prize went to Chilean
poet Pablo Neruda, Borges commented: I n spite of our political
differences, I think the Academy has been very wise.1
(1) Encyclopedia Britannica Book of the Y ear 1972, p. 124.
J osip Broz Tito
Marshal Tito, 79, became Y ugoslavias president for the sixth
time on J uly 29, 1071. But in his acceptance speech before the
Federal Assembly in Belgrade, Tito, the countrys leader since
1945, indicated that this would have to be his last five-year
presidential term, and he declined the offer to remain president
for life. His reelection was welcomed by Communists and non-
Communists alike. Within the Communist Party, the liberals
saw it as a guarantee for implementation of the bold reform
program initiated by Tito in 1970. The conservatives believed that
he would not allow the country to become too liberal at home or
too pre-Western in its foreign policies. Earlier in the year, at a
dramatic meeting of party leaders from Y ugoslavias six republics
and two autonomous provinces, Tito had powerfully reasserted
his leadership and ended months of tension within the party...
Tito was born at Kumrovec, near Zagreb, Croatia (then part
of the Austro-Hungarian empire), on May 25, 1892. Early in World
War I he was captured by the Russians and in 1917 joined the
Red Army. Returning home in 1920, he joined the Y ugoslav
Communist Party, of which he became secretary-general in 1937.
During World War I I he arganized and led the Y ugoslav partisans
against the German occupiers and in 1945, by then a legendary
figure, he became prime minister. Subsequently he developed a
Y ugoslav Brand of Communism, and in 1948 Y ugoslavia was
expelled from the Cominform. Tito then became increasingly
identified with a policy of nonalignment.1
(1) Encyclopedia Britannica Book of the Y ear 1972, p. 149.
TRKE MET NLER
Altrmalar
1. Slu, kendini tutmakta olan iki polisin elinden kat.
2. Adam eve girmi, param alm ve kimseyi uyandrmadan n
kapdan kmay baarm.
3. Grnrde aralarnda hibir anlamazlk olmad halde,
iki lke arasndaki ilikiler yine kesildi.
4. Hadi almaya ara verip birer ay ielim.
5. Dou blgelerimizde bagsteren salgn hastalkla ilgili hi
bir haber alamyoruz.
6. Bilim insan yaamnda birok deiikliklere yol at, ama in^
sana kendini tantmay baaramad.
7. Bugne dek meclise kadnlarn zgrl konusunda hibir
yasa tasars getirilmedi.
8. Glkler kiinin en iyi zelliklerini ortaya karabilecei
gibi, onun ykmna da yol aabilir.
9. Her toplantda ayn konuyu aar, durmadan konuur, ve
baka kimseyi konuturmaz.
10. K itapta yle gzel bir iire rasladm ki, hemn kardeimi a
rdm ve iiri yksek sesle ona da okudum.
11. alman nasl gidiyor? Y aknda bitirebilecek misin?
12. yle ok isiz var ki, i bulmak kolay deil bu gnlerde.
13. Bu yl et fiyatnn deceini sanmyorum, ne dersin?
14. Deniz ykseliyor, kumsalda ok kalma.
222
15. Duvara trmanmaya alrken gmleimin bir dmesi kop
tu.
16. Mary resimde her zaman iyi kar.
17. J ohnun yeni kitab ne zaman kyor?
18. Bugn bize gelsene, karmla da tanm olursun.
19. Sanayi retimini ksma konusunda her trl plana sendika
lar kar kyor.
20. Doktorlar sigara ve ikiyi azaltmam sylediler.
21. L tfen ben konuurken szm kesme. Sylemek istediini
daha sonra da syleyebilirsin.
22. Pastadan kk bir para kesti ve bana verdi.
23. Gazetedeki ilan kesti ve antasna koydu.
24. Plann tek kusuru var: bize pahalya mal olacak.
25. K yaklayor; kmr almakta ge kalmamalyz.
26. Bahar geldi, gnler uzuyor.
27. alman nasl gidiyor? iyi gidiyor, teekkr ederim.
28. Sen bir de kaan bal grmeliydin!
29. zr dilerim, ge kaldm. Bir toplantdaydm ve kaamadm.
30. Hastal atl att ve yeniden eski iine dnd.
31. Bu gl nasl yeneceiz? Ben bir zm yolu dnemi
yorum.
32. Seni telefonla aradm ama karamadm.
33. iin bitince kalm.
34. Btn parasn yoksullara datt.
35. ngilizce konuma tarz onu ele veriyor.
36. Duygularn saklamaya alt ama gzlerindeki yalar onu
ele verdi.
37. K k kardeine vurmay brak!
38. Ne oluyor burda? Niye bu kadar ok grlt yapyorsunuz?
223
39. J im fkesini kontrol etmeyi baard ve hibir ey demedi.
40. K t hava yeni yolun yaplmasn geciktirdi.
41. Bykbabam en kk olunu her zaman bir alkanlk r
nei olarak gsterir.
42. Seni iinden alkoymak istemem.
43. Perdeyi ek de ieri gne girmesin.
44. haftadr eve gitmediini yanllkla azndan kard.
45. Siz dardayken ocua kim bakacak?
46. Evimiz parka bakyor.
47. Y amur balaynca en yakn snacak yere att kendini.
48. u yaznn ne demek istediini anlayabiliyor musun?
49. L tfen bir liste hazrla ve herkese dat.
50. Birbirinizden nefret etmediinize gre niye pp barm
yorsunuz?
51. Doru syle, bu masal sen uydurdun, deil mi?
52. Bu kalabalkta kzkardeini seebilir misin?
53. ler yine dzelmeye balyor.
54. Y arn sabah belki erken uyanamayabilirim; beni otelden al
may unutma.
55. Y eni postaneye yer amak iin caddedeki evlerin yarsn y
kyorlar.
56. ocuk gibi davranmay brak, kendini topla!
57. Bir kenara biraz para ayrdm, tatile kmak istiyorum.
58. Pastann geri kalann yarma ayr.
59. Seninle konumak iin be dakika ayrdm.
60. K itaplar dzenli bir ekilde dolaba kaldr.
61. Fabrikada kan yangn retimi geciktirdi.
62. Toplant gelecek haftaya ertelendi.
63. Unutmadan telefon numarasn yazaym.
64. Bylesi kaba davrana dayanamam.
65. Y olda eski bir dosta rasladm.
224
6G. Dikkat etmezsen ban belaya girecek.
67. Haftaya anlama bitiyor.
68. K ahvaltdan hemen sonra ev iine balad.
69. Ar antalarn yere koy da biraz dinlen.
70. Herkes kayp ocuu aramaya koyuldu.
71. En ufak bir dokunma bombay patlatabilir.
72. Siyah kuma mcevherleri iyi gsterir.
73. Savatan sonra yeni bir hkmet kuruldu.
74. Saati paralarna ayr da bak bakalm neresi bozuk.
75. Muhasebe ubesine yeni bir memur almaya karar verdik.
76. Mdr iten karldna gre, yerine kim geecek dersm?
77. irketimiz geen yl iki meyva paketleme irketini devrald.
78. J ohn son gnlerde sk imeye balad.
79. Derhal u radyoyu ks!
80. Hafif mzik gerekten hi ilgimi ekmiyor.
81. Sylediinin yanl olduu ortaya kt.
1971in nemli Olaylar
1. ili inle diplomatik iliki kurdu.
2. ngilterenin Uruguay elisi, Montevideoda Tupamaro geril
lalar tarafndan karld.
3. Msr ve rdnn, Birlemi Milletler ve Drt Byklerden,
srailin igal altndaki topraklarda srekli olarak yerleme
sini nlemek iin aba gstermelerini istedii bildiriliyor.
4. svirenin Brezilya elisi, Brezilyal terristler tarafndan
karldktan 40 gn sonra salverildi.
5. ngilterede posta iileri, lke tarihinde ilk kez, lke apn
da posta grevine balad.
6. Bat Almanya babakan Willy Brandt ve Fransa Cumhur
bakan Pompidou Pariste yar yllk grmelerine balad.
7. Uganda devlet bakan Milton Obote, general idi Amin n
derliinde bir hkmet darbesiyle drld. Obote, Millet
ler topluluu devlet bakanlar toplantsndan dnyordu.
8. Moskovadaki ABD elilii, Amerikal gazetecilerin rahatsz
edilmelerine kar ikinci protesto notasn verdi.
9. Apollo 14 insanl uzay arac aya frlatld.
10. Dou ve Bat Berlin arasnda 19 yldr ilk kez telefon balan
ts kuruldu.
11. Kuzey rlandann Belfast kentinde K atoliklerle ngiliz bir
likleri arasnda atmalar kt.
12. Apollo 14 aya indi.
13. Bat Pakistanla in arasndaki kara yolu resmen ald.
226
14. srailin igal edilmi tm Arap topraklarndan ekilmesi ha
linde Msrn bir bar anlamas imzalamaya istekli oldu
u bildirildi.
15. Pakistan merkez hkmeti Dou Pakistan bamszlk hare
ketinin bastrldn duyurdu.
16. A rjantin, 1966dan bu yana yasa d ilan edilmi olan siya
sal partilerin yasallatrldn bildirdi.
17. Sovyetler Birlii babakan Aleksei Kosigin, Bat Avrupa ile
daha sk ekonomik balar kurulmas iin arda bulundu.
18. Sovyetler Birlii devlet bakan Podgorni ve Msr devlet ba
kam Sedat, K ahirede iki gn sren grmelerden sonra,
bir dostluk ve ibirlii anlamas imzaladlar.
19. Dnya Salk rgt, Hindistan - Dou Pakistan snr blge
sinde koleradan bin kiinin ldn bildirdi.
20. nl caz trompetisi Louis Armstrong New Y orkta ld.
21. Uganda Devlet Bakan di Amin, Tanzanya snrn geen
her uan drlmesi iin emir verdi.
22. I rak rdnle olan snrn kapatt ve rdn elisinin geri
ekilmesini istedi.
23. Sudan, SSCB elilik maviri ile Bulgar elisini istenmeyen
adam ilan etti.
24. Pers imparatorluunun 2500. yldnmn kutlama trenleri
rann Persepolis kentinde balad.
25. Nobel Bar dl, Dou - Bat gerilimini azaltma yolunda
gsterdii abalardan dolay, Bat Almanya Babakan Willy
Brandta verildi.
26. ili Devlet Bakan Ailende, yiyecek ktln protesto eden
gsterilerin balamas zerine yiyecek datmnn hkmet
denetiminde yaplacam bildirdi.
Planlama Kurulu Trkiyenin Ekonomik Sorunlarn
Grt
Y ksek Planlama K urulu bugn Babakanlkta Babakan Blent
Ecevitin bakanlnda toplanarak ekonomik konular grt.
iyi haber alan kaynaklardan bildirildiine gre K urul ayr
ca Drdnc Be Y llk Plan da ele ald. Drdnc Be Y llk
Plan iki gn nce Meclis Planlama K omisyonu tarafndan yeni
den gzden geirilmek zere Meclise geri gnderilmiti.
Plan tasla son Demirel Hkmeti tarafndan hazrlanm
ve 30 kasm gece yars Meclise sunulmutu. O sra bu taslan
gerei gibi hazrlanmadna ilikin sylentiler kmt.
Y ksek Planlama K urulu Cuma gn leden sonra yeniden
toplanarak ekonomik durum ve be yllk plan zerinde grmer
lerinl srdrecek.
Devlet Bakanlar Hikmet etin ve Enver Akova, Maliye Baka
n Ziya Mezzinolu, Sanayi ve Teknoloji Bakan Orhan Alp ve
Devlet Planlama Tekilat yetkilileri, K urul yeleri olarak bugn
yaplan toplantya katldlar.
Babakanlktan yaplan aklamaya gre, K urul yesi olma
yan bakan; Ticaret Bakan Teoman K prller, Gmrk ve
Tekel Bakan Tuncay Matarac, ve Y erel Y netimler Bakan K e
nan Bulutolu da toplantya katlarak bakanlklaryla ilgili konu
larda Y ksek Planlama K uruluna bilgi verdiler.1
Pakistanda Butto Y anda 200 Kii Tutukland Pakistan g
venlik kuvvetleri Pencap eyaletinde dk babakan Zlfikr Ali
Butto tarafllarndan 200 kiiyi tutuklamtr. Y abanc gzlemci
(1) Turkish Daily News (Trkesi B. Bozkurt).
228
ler bu nlemlerin Buttonun yaknda balayacak durumas sra
snda kma olasl bulunan olaylar nlemek iin alnd ileri
srmlerdir. Geen hafta da Pakistann deiik kentlerinde yz
lerce kii tutuklanmt.
Butto, yolsuzluklar yaptna ilikin sulamalardan dolay bu
hafta iinde tutuklu bulunduu L ahor Cezaevinde yarglanacak
tr.2
Bar, Ama Her ey Pahasna Deil...
Daha on gn nce srail Savunma Bakan Ezer Weizman bir K a
hire pazarnda kalabalk arasnda yryor, el skyor, alklar ve
alom sesleriyle karlanyordu. Bugnse yalnz atk kalar
grrd evresinde.
K onumaclar yzyze getiren bar grmelerinin, sk sk
ar szlerin de kullanld bir szckler savama dnmesiyle
birlikte, Msrda sraile kar dmanca bir hava da giderek yo
unlamakta.
Bakan Enver Sedat lkesinde yapt sert konumada srail
Babakan Menahem Begine kibirli derken duygularna gem
vurmakta aka glk ekiyor ve halknn tepkisini dile getiri
yordu. Sedat, bir ay nce ayn srail Babakanndan dostum diye
sz etmiti.
Y ksek mevkide bir Msr hkmet grevlisi Halkn tutu
mundaki deiiklii grebiliyorsunuz, diyor. Belki srail halk
nn deil, ama srail hkmetinin bar istemedii kans uyand
herkeste. Dnce ve tutumlar da buna gre deiiyor.
Y ar resmi K ahire basn imdilik sraili Ziyonist dman
olarak nitelemekten kamyor ve bu ynde kamu oyunu kkrt
myor. Bununla birlikte, imdiye dek yalnzca Sovyetler Birliine
ve Sedatn bar saldrsna kar kan Arap lkelerine yneltti
i ar eletirilere artk sraili de katyor.
Bakentin nde gelen gazetelerinden gnlk El Ahbarda ge
en Pazartesi gn bir karikatr yer ald. Bu karikatrde Begin,
sraile kar sert bir tutum benimsemi olan Suriye, I rak, Ceza
(2) Milliyet, 10 Mart 1978.
229
yir, Gney Y emen ve L ibyann yannda gsteriliyor ve, Sedat
ve teki dnya lkelerini kastederek ikiye kar altyz deniyor
du.
Bir sre nce Weizmanm, K ahire Belediye Bakanlna
aday, seim kampanyasna km bir politikac gibi sevinten
parlayan bir yzle dolat pazar yerinde kuyumcu Ahmet Ab
dul Fatah fkeden titriyordu.
On gn nce buraya geldiinde herkes neeyle yanma kou
yordu. Bugn elini bile skmazdm. Topramz almak istedii
besbelli. Ne pahasna olursa olsun bar istediimizi sanyor.
K rkbe yandaki kuyumcu srail halkna kar kt bir ni
yet beslemediini ama gerekirse onlarla arpacan sylyor.
Topram geri isterim, diyor.
Bir ka gn nce barn bir adm tede olduunu sanyor
dum, diyor gzlk Osman Halil, imdiyse belki yllarca tede.
Beginin sraili elden geldiince geniletmek istedii anlalyor.
Bar istemedii belli, nk ona bar teklif ettiimizde arkasn
dnd.
Msrda srail halkna kar ak bir dmanlk belirtisi g
rlmyor. Sedat da Halk Meclisinde yapt konumada srail hal
kn bar zlemi iinde olarak belirlemiti. Ancak, hl K ahl-
rede bulunan srail gazetecileri huzursuzluklarn gizlemiyorlar.
Bu gazeteciler henz bir kt muameleden sz etmiyorlarsa
da, srail televizyonu muhabiri Avram Nire gre, bir ka gn
ncesinin neeli havas ortadan kalkm.
Sedat mecliste yapt sert konumada bar kapsnn henz
ak olduunu sylemi, ancak, en byk alk da u szleriyle
toplam t : Topramn tek bir santimetresinde bile herhangi
bir srail yerlemesine izin vermeyeceim. Gerekirse dnyann so
nu gelene dek arprz.
Bu szlere meclisin verdii karlk, Msrllarn kazandklar
na inandklar Ekim 1973 savann ba naras ol du: Allah- Ek-
ber.1
230
Y unanistan Baharda Zirve Bulumas neriyor
ATNA, 24 Ocak (AP) Babakan K onstantin K aramanlis, B
lent Ecevite gnderdii bir mesajda Ecevitin, iki komu lke
arasndaki anlamazlklar tartmak zere bir zirve bulumas
yapma nerisini uygun grdn bildirmitir.
Toplanty aceleye getirmenin baarszla yol aabileceine
iaret eden K aramanlis, olumlu sonuca ulamay salayacak ge
rekli hazrlklarn tamamlanabilmesi iin grmelerin ilkbahar
da yaplmasn istemitir.
Basma datlan mesajn metni udur:
Aramzda kiisel bir grmenin yararl olacana hi kuku
yok. Bununla birlikte, her ikimizin de istedii gibi, grmelerin
yararl olabilmesi iin geni hazrlk almalar gerekmektedir.
Aksi takdirde yaratlm olacak beklentilerin boa kmas,
zm yollan bulunmasn kolaylatrmaktan ok gletirebile-
cektir.
Grmemizin nmzdeki bahar aylarnda, ngrlen te
mas ve toplantlar gerekletirildikten sonra yaplmasnn uygun
olaca grndeyim.
Gnderilen mesaj Trkiyenin yeni babakannn buluma
arsna cevap niteliindeydi. Bu arda, iki NATO lkesi ara
snda K brs, Ege K ta sahanl ve hava sahas konularnda yl
lardr sregelen anlamazlklarn ele alnaca bir grme ne
riliyordu. Ecevit, grme tari hini n saptanmasn K aramanlise
brakacan belirtmiti.
K aramanlisin nmzdeki bahardan nisan ya da mays ay
larn kastettii sanlyor.
Y zelli kelimelik mesajda ayrca unlara yer veriliyor: Bil
diiniz gibi, kamu oyuna da duyurduum kiisel inancm odur ki,
Y unanistan ve Trkiye arasnda dostluk ve ibirlii balarnn
yeniden kurulmas hr iki lke halknn da yararnadr. Bu i nan
cmn somut kantn gerek gemite gerekse yakn zamanlarda
vermitim.
Mesaj u szlerle son bul uyor: Sizin ve Trk halknn mut
luluu iin en iten dileklerimi sunarm.2
(1,2) Turkish Daily Newstan Trkeye eviren B. Bozkurt,
Bahar iiri
231
(Ataol Behramolu)
Bu sabah mutlulua a pencereni
bir gzel arn dnk kederinden
bahar geldi bahar geldi gnein doduu yerden
ocuum uzat ellerini
u gzelim bulut gzl buzay
duy byle koturan sevinci
dinle nasl tel - tel arpyor
toprak anann kalbi
yle yanbama imenlere uzan
kulak ver gmbrtsne dnyann
sonra gnein baharn ve akn
trksn syleyelim bir azdan1
K imseden (Ferit Edg)
Zaman gemiyor, diyor Birinci Ses.
Niin istiyorsun zamann gemesini? diyor ikinci Ses.
ihtiyarlamak iin, diyor Birinci Ses.
Zaman geiyor, diyor ikinci Ses. Hem de kendiliinden. Bu
konuda ok yorma kendini.
Zamann getiini duymuyorum burada, diyor Birinci Ses.
Sanki her eyle birlikte zaman da durmu.
Belki de durmutur. Belki her zaman durmutur. Bundan sa
na ne?
Gnler saylyor, diyor Birinci Ses. Saatler saylyor. Nasl
bana ne?
Zamann akn abuklatr, madem bu kadar ilgilisin, diyor
ikinci Ses. Arln duymamak iin stnde. Bu bizim elimizde.
Nasl? diyor birinci Ses.
Anlatarak, eski gnleri anarak, gelecei dnerek, diyor i kin
ci Ses.
(1) 20. Y zyl Trk iiri Antolojisi, derleyen lham Soysal, Ankara: Bilgi Ya
ynevi, 1973.
232
Bunun bir yardm dokunur mu sanyorsun? diyor Birinci
Ses.
Baka bir kar yol gremiyorum, diyor kinci Ses. zellikle
bu iinde bulunduumuz koullarda.
yleyse konu, anlat, ama yalnz gelecekten szet, diyor Bi
rinci Ses.
Gelecekten szetmek iin, diyor ikinci Ses, dn ansmak, bu
gn szcklere aktarmak gerek.
yleyse sus. K apa eneni, diyor Birinci Ses. Hi deilse bu ak
am.
Hayr, diyor ikinci Ses. Sen baladn. Ben devam edeceim.
Eski gnleri anlatacam. Eski yaamlar. Eski lmleri. Eski ak
lar. Eski yerleri.
Y eter, diyor Birinci Ses. Dinleyesim yok. Y eter.
Dinlesen de, dinlemesen de, diyor ikinci Ses. Hi bir ey yaz
maz. K endim iin konuuyorum u anda.
Byk bencil, diye suluyor Birinci Ses. Her zaman byleydin.
Her zaman kendin iin konutun. Her zaman kendin iin anlattn.
Her zaman kendin iin yaadn. Anlatacaklarn, hi deilse, iin
den anlat.
Zaten iimden konuuyorum, diyor ikinci Ses. Her zaman
yaptm gibi. Dar vuran yalnz mrltlarm. Dar vuran sz
ckler deil. Olsa olsa heceler, nleyemediim.
Hepsi senin olsun, diyor Birinci Ses. unu bil ki seni dinleme
yeceim bu gece.
ister dinle, ister dinleme, bu sana kalm bir ey, diyor ikinci
Ses. Ben balyorum...
Biliyor musun, sen bir az insanla benziyorsun? diyor Birin
ci Ses.
insana m diyor ikinci Ses. Bir az m?
insanla dedim, diyor Birinci Ses. ,
Nerem benziyor? diyor ikinci Ses.
Tabiatn, diyor Birinci Ses.
Hangi tabiyatm, diyor ikinci Ses,
233
Huzurlu gnlerini tedirgin gnler izliyor, diyor Birinci Ses.
Bunda su bende mi? diyor kinci Ses.
Ne var ki huzurlu gnlerden sklyorsun ve tedirginliini
kendin yaratyorsun.
Baka? diyor ikinci Ses.
Bir ey yapyorsun, baarnca onu ykmak istiyorsun.
Bahede yaptm kpek kulbesinden mi sz ediyorsun? Y ok
sa dn sabah ocuklarla avluda yaptm kardan adamdan m?
diyor ikinci Ses.
Senden szediyorum, diyor Birinci Ses. Ka kez yktn mutlu
luunu...
Onlar mutluluk deildi, diyor ikinci Ses.
Ka kez yktn sevdiklerini.
Onlar sevdiklerim deildi.
Ka kez bozdun dostluklar.
Mutluluk, sevdiklerim, dostluklar olsayd, imdi burda olmaz
dm. Hi deilse byle olmazdm.
Rahat kmza batyor, diyor Birinci Ses.
Benim rahat yz grdm syleyemezsin, diyor ikinci
Ses.
Y eryznn en rahat adamydn, bir zamanlar, diyor Birinci
Ses. Ama insanln nasl savalar varsa, senin de i savan var,
seni balatan da bu.
Teekkr ederim, diyor ikinci Ses...
Bu otelde tek kiilik oda yoktu. Bu kentteki otellerin hi bi
rinde. Tek kiilik oda istiyorum, dedin. Otelci garip garip yzne
bakt ve bu kentteki otellerde tek kiilik oda bulunmadn sy
ledi. Sen, iki kiilik olsun, iki yatak paras veririm, dedin. O, bo
yatmz var ama, bo odamz yok, dedi. Sen, Ben yabanclarla
ayn odada yatamam, dedin. O, Ziyan yok, alrsn, dedi, ister is
temez bir yabancnn horlad bir odada geceleyecektin (daha
sonralar, bir ok kiinin horlad odalarda kaldn. Ve ml m
l uyuyarak). O gece, bir yandan bir yana dnm, doru-drst
uyuyamamtn. K irden kararm bir yastk. Tavandan sarkan
snk bir ampul. Baucunda bir gaz lambas... Serven balyor
diye dnmtn.
234
Sabah erken kalkp, kentte dolamaya kmtn. Y olculua
devam etmen gerekiyordu. Gidecein kente bir ara aramtn.
Bir otobs var kalkacak. Ama saat kata kalkar, bilinmez. Oto
bsn dolmas gerekti.
Ne zaman dolar? .
Belli olmaz. Arada bir urayn siz.
Merak etmeyin, bekleriz Sizi almadan gitmeyiz...
Y olu bilmiyordum. Ve drt bir yanm da tat. Bana atn
veren kylnn dedii gibi yaptm, dizginleri gevek braktm :
At yolu bilir.
Uurumlarn kysnda, talarn stnden, yava, temkinli,
snal admlarla atlyordu. Ve stndeki binicinin, yabanc (hem
de acemi) olduunu bilirmiesine, rktmeden, yava yava iler
liyordu. Y anlmyorsam byle iki saat kadar gittik. Y ol boyu bir
tek canlyla (ne insan ne hayvan) karlamadan. Sonunda uzak
tan bir ka ev grnd. Gn batmak zereydi. Bir dere getik.
Sonra kye vardk. K yn iinde durmad at. Ola ki bu kyde de
il yeri, diye dndm. K peklerin havlamasna, saldrmasna
aldr etmeden, kyn en son evlerinden biri nnde durdu kr
atm. Evden kadnlar kt. Hep bir azdan barmaya ve bana
sorular yadrmaya baladlar. Ne karlk vereceimi bilemiyor
dum. Bazlar alyordu. En sonunda kyn iinden Trke bilen
bir_ adam geldi. Ve kendisine, atn sahibine bir ey olmadn,
atn bana verdiini, kendisinin de ok gemeden koyunlarla bir
likte varacan syledim.
At aldlar. Torbam aldlar. Ve beni buyur ettiler. Y astklar
konuldu. Pstekiler serildi. Soba yakld. ay demlendi. Ve nice
sonra, bana atn veren kyl (Hassoydu ad, o gece rendim)
koyunlaryla birlikte geldi.
O geceyi Hassonun evinde geirdim. Ertesi sabah, gndou-
mundan hemen sonra, yola koyulduk. O nde, ben arkada, iki at
l....
Nerde balamtk konumaya?
K onumalarmza baklrsa, souk bir da banda, diyor Bi
rinci Ses.
Ayn da banda m? diyor ikinci Ses.
t
Hi bir nemi yok, diyor Birinci Ses. Bir deniz kysnda da
balam olabiliriz.
Bir lde olmasn? diyor ikinci Ses.
Olabilir, diyor Birinci Ses.
Eer yleyse, ok ykseldik, diyor ikinci Ses (alayc).
Sanmam, diyor Birinci Ses. Y er deitirmekle ilerleneceine
inanacak kadar saf deilim, ok kr.
Ah, demek onun iin olduumuz yerde ilerlemekten szedi-
yorsun? diyor ikinci Ses.
Evet, diyor Birinci Ses.
ilerliyor muyuz dersin? diyor (gene alayc) ikinci Ses.
Bilmiyorum, diyor Birinci Ses. Zamanla greceiz. Gcmz-
ce, yeteneklerimizce, oynaklarmzca, elbet ilerlemi olacaz.
Niin? diyor ikinci Ses.
Ne niin? diyor Birinci Ses.
Niin, diyor kinci Ses. Niin balamtk sze?
Bir balangc var m sanyorsun? diyor Birinci Ses.
Olmas gerek, diyor ikinci Ses.
Bizimki bir devam, diyor Birinci Ses. lde, deniz kysnda,
ovada, dada, bir kyde, bir kentte balanm bir konumann
devam.
Ama u anda, hi deilse burda, sz biz aldmza gre, ni
in devam ettiimizi, niin konutuumuzu bilmemiz gerekir, di
yor ikinci Ses.
Bu soruyu hi bir zaman sormadm, diyor Birinci Ses.
Y alnzlmz m anlatyoruz? diyor kinci Ses.
Grdn gibi, diyor Birinci Ses.
Bu da ban m anlatyoruz? diyor kinci Ses.
Diyebiliriz, diyor Birinci Ses.

Geldiimiz yerleri, sevdiimiz insanlar m anlatyoruz? di

yor ikinci Ses.
Elimizden geldiince, bir az olsun, belleimiz izin verdiince,
diyor Birinci Ses.
Y oksa srgnmz m? K peklerin ulumalarn m? len
ocuklar m? aresizliimizi mi? K orkumuzu mu? lenli insan
larn arasnda bir ilenli (lnetli) olarak bulunuumuzu mu
235
236
Bilmiyorum, diyor (kesin) Birinci Ses.
yleyse niin konuuyorsun? diyor kinci Ses. yleyse niin
devam ediyorsun?
Y olculuumuzun yksn anlatmak iin, diyor Birinci Ses.1
iir (lk Tamer)
iir her gn yeniden balar
Her sabah uyanr,
Y kar kelimelerini,
harflerini tarar.
Uzun uzun bakar akan suya,
dalar dnmeden edemez.
ayn ier,
sigarasn ier,
her sabah gazetesini okur.
Ninesinin dizlerine ektii rt
gne yllarm hat rlat r ona,
deniz gecelerini,
kar ovalarn
Evden kar, komularn grr,
i yerlerini denetler sonra,
dosyalara girer,
hamallarn srtnda tanr,
dolmu duraklarnda kahyalk eder,
atlar bir kuun kanadna,
iftlikleri inceler havadan,
maden damarlarnda snr,
heryeri, her insann ktasn dolar.
Her eyi bytr iinde.
Her eyi kltr.
nk gariptir yrei,
hibir yree benzemez
iir yreinden baka.
Her gn yeniden anlar
ufack birey olduunu. .
(1) Ferit Edg, Kimse, stanbul: Ada Y aynlar, 1976, s. 76 -78, 82-83, 149-
150, 183 -185.
Bir delikanlnn kravatdr,
gen bir kzn mendilidir,
bir izcinin kasketidir.
K aybolursa dnya yklmaz geri
ama ondan boalan yeri
hzn doldurur.
Bilir bunu,
iin iin sevinir.
Su topraa kavuursa
ekin olur, ekmek olur,
kan kle karrsa ne olur?
Bu sorunun cevabn arar boyuna,
ikindi st yorulur artk,
karanlk basmadan yatar.
Uyurgezerlerin en alkandr. 1
(1) Varlk. Nisan 1973.
alkuu (Reat Nuri Gntekin)
zet
Feride ksz bir kzdr. K k yata annesini ve babasn kay
beder. Teyzesinin yanna gelir. Bir Fransz okuluna yatl verilir.
Zeki, baarl ve afacandr. Okulda yaramazlyla n salar, bu yz
den hocalar ona alkuu adn takarlar.
Btn tatillerini teyzesinin evinde geirir. Byynce ok g
zel bir kz olur. Teyzesinin olu K muran bu hayat dolu kz iin
iin sever. Bir sre sonra sevgisine karlk grr. Teyze de bu du
rumu istedii iin hemen nianlanrlar. Birgn bir kadn gelerek
Ferideye K murann Mnevre adnda hasta bir kzla ilikisi bu
lunduunu ve onunla evleneceine sz verdiini aklar. Bunu da
mektuplaryla ispetlar.
Feride bunu duyunca, evden kaar. Y al stninesinin yanna
snr. Ardndan, Bakanla bavurarak retmen olur. Anado
lunun birok kylerini dolar. Gzellii her gittii yerde bana
dert aar. Bu yzden sk sk yer deitirir. Zeyniler kynde dok
tor Hayrullah Beyle tanr. Ayrlrlar. Aradan yllar geer. Bir
gn K uadasnda yeniden karlarlar.
Hayrullah Bey bekr, yal, sevimli, drst bir adamdr. Fe-
rideyi kz gibi sever. Arkadalklar dedikodu dourunca, ikisi de
g durumda kalrlar. Bunu nlemek iin nikhlanrlar. Fakat
eskisi gibi baba-kz olarak dosta yaarlar. Feride an defteri tu
tar. Bir gn onu yitirir. Defteri Hayrullah Bey bulur. Merak edip
okur. K zn hl K muran sevdiini renir. Defteri saklar.
Hastalannca, Ferideye bir paket brakr. Ancak ldkten sonra
teyzesine vermek zere ondan sz alr. Bir sre sonra da lr.
Feride paketi teyzesine gtrr. Bir ka gn kalp grevine dne
cektir. K muran onun ayrlmasn beklemeden paketi aar. B
239
tn gece defteri okur. Ertesi gn yola kacak olan Ferideyi b
rakmaz. Onu kucana alarak arabaya bindirir. Kz bir iki dire
nirse de, iinden ok mutludur. Dayanamaz, kendini kocasnn
kollarna brakr.1
Roman bitirdiimiz zaman bizde yerleen ilk ve umum
kanaat, bu eserin o zamana kadar yazlm romanlar arasnda
deiik bir ey olduudur. Bu deiiklik, romann hemen hemen
her unsurunda kolaylkla mahade edilebilir. (...) L ehinde olan
btn bu noktalara; hafif bir romantizme brnm realizmi,
kuvvetli bir mahedenin neticelerini, hepsi de aramzda yaayan
ok eitli ve iyi izilmi birok tipleri (...) de ekleyince, alku-
u'nun uyandrd geni ilgiyi anlamak daha da kolaylar. Hep
iyi ynlerini sayp dktmz alkuunun hi bir kusuru da
yok mudur? (...) En mhimi, phesiz ki, roman teknii bak
mndan tad muvazenesizliktir. Bunun balca sebebi de, piyes
ten evirme olmasdr. (K enan Akyz).2
Kayk, J .M. de Vasconcelosun roman, ev: Aydn Eme, Hrriyet
Y aynlar, K asm 1976.
Daha nce eker Portakal adl romanyla tandmz Brezilya
l romanc Vasconcelosun bizde yaymlanan son iki romann
henz okuyabildim. Zengin Gney Amerika romannn nde ge
len adlarndan biri olan Vasconcelos, iirli dili, cokulu, arpc
anlatmyla, Brezilyann yoksul, orta halli, iyi insanlarnn ev
resine sokuyor bizi yine....
Y azarn nerdeyse bata gelen zelliklerinden biri olan, doay
la, aalarla, kularla konumas, K aykm ana temasn olutu
ruyor. Brezilyann Amazon nehrinin ve kysndaki yabanc or
manlarn esiz bir gzellikle anlatld romanda, yerlilerden hi
kimsenin ne zaman, nereden gelip oraya yerletiini bilmedii
Ze Oroco adnda bir garip insan vardr. Y erlilerin bildii tek ey,
onun ok iyi bir insan olduu, herkese yardm ettii, herkesin de
onu sevdiidir. Ama arada bir kimsenin nedenini bilmedii bir
hzn basknna uradnda, Rosinha adn verdii kayyla or
tadan kaybolur, nehrin yukar blgelerinde, gllerde aylarca dola-
(1,2) Refika Taner, Asm Bezirci, Seme Romanlar, stanbul : Hr Y aynevi,
1973, s. 70, 71.
240
nr, avlanr durur. Onun bu gizemli davranlar, bir de aalarla,
kularla, en ok da kay Rosinhayla konumas, yerlilerin ona
rkek bir saygyla bakmalarna, onu bir byc sanmalarna ne
den olur. Amazon boyunca ilerlerken, ormandaki aalarn brbi-
riyle, rzgrla, nehirle konumalarn, ormandaki yaam sava
mnn o olaanst yksn hep Rosinha ile Ze Oroconun ko
numalarndan dinleriz.
Gnn birinde, ormana, yerlilerin hastalklarn iyiletirme
ye gelmi bir doktor, Ze Oroconun, bu aalarla konuma yk
sn duyar ve onunla tanmak ister. Tannca da Ze Oroconun
deli olduuna inanarak iyiletirmek iin kente gtrmeye kan
drr onu. Ze Oroco kentte, bir deliler evinde yl kalr. Deli ol
madn bilen ama kimseyi buna inandramayan Ze Oroco, ger
ek deliler arasnda korkun ikencelere, aalanmalara urar.
En kts, bir doktorun her gn gelip kendisine, Aa aatr
ve aalar konumazlar szlerini yineletmesi.
yl sonra, insanlarn ve dnyann iyiliine, gzelliine
inanmayan, suskun, iine kapank, btn yaama isteini yitir
mi bir insan olarak, ama akllanm olarak salverilir. Bir bar
da karn tokluuna barmen yardmcl yaparak yaamn sr
drr. Ancak, iyi bilmektedir ki, deliler evindeki o korkun ya
am koullarna dnmek istemiyorsa, aalarn aa olduuna ve
konumayacaklarna inanmas, inanmyorsa da yle grnmesi
gerekmektedir.
Y alanlarla, sahteliklerle yaamn gzelliini bozan, onu daya
nlmaz bir yk durumuna, hayalsiz, iirsiz, nerdeyse katlanlmas
gereken bir zorunluluk durumuna getiren davran ve bak a
larnn yarglanmas, bunlara kar bir bakaldrdr Kayk.
Ze Oroco, yllar sonra, yoksul bir sanatnn para yardmyla
ormana yeniden dndnde ve artk rd, i gremedii
iin yaklmay bekleyen Rosinhasn bulduunda, Rosinha yle
syler ona:
Sen mi delisin? Aalar anladn, nesnelerle konutuun
iin mi? Ne sersemlik! Asl deli, Tanrnm iirini yitiren, yrekle
rini katlatran ve artk birbirlerini anlatmaktan yoksun olan
br insanlardr, onlardr deli olan.1
Mehmet H. Doan
(1) Milliyet Sanat Dergisi, 6 Mart 1978.
241
i lhan Berk ile Bir Koouma
Resim yapmak sizi ne lde ilgilendiriyor? Bundan ama
cnz nedir? Resim sizin bir sorununuz mudur?
Y azmak benim iin byk bir mutsuzluktur. Bu yeryz
n olduu gibi grmeme engel olan ve bana yeryzn cehen
nem eden bu yazmak eyleminden kurtulduum, mutlu olduum
bir tek ey var: Resim yapmak.
Byk bir mutluluk duyuyorum resim yaparken. Y aad
mn, bu dnyada olduumun tek kantym gibi gneniyorum. De
liler gibi seviniyorum resim yaparken. Hereyi, hereyi unutabili
yorum. Bu dnyadaki btn gzel eylerin ta gbeindeymiim
gibi oluyorum. Bu yeryzn yeni gryormuum, uradaki ek
sik bir ta ben koyuyormuum, u maviyi ben getiriyormuum,
u mutsuzluklarn stn ben iziyormuum gibi kvan duyuyo
rum.
Niin bu? Resim benim sorunum deil de onun iin mi? K en
dimi onunla dorulamak istemediim, sildiim iin mi? yle ola
cak. Byle diyorum, nk resim yaparken kendimi bir yana ata
biliyorum; benim yaptm resmi herkesin yapabileceine inan
yorum. oun, iiri de niin byle dnemiyorum? demiimdir
kendi kendine. Onu da niin byle herkesin yapamyorum, her
kesin olmuyor, ite o zaman yazmak bir mutsuzluk olmayacaktr
benim iin. Birlikte niin iiri de oaltmayalm. Resim yaparken
bunlar diyorum ite. Ama sonunda bunlar demenin bir ie ya
ramadn gryorum. Mutsuzluum da o zaman yeniden bal
yor.
Resimde benim sevdiim yanllardr. Y anllara baylrm,
bir kolun, bir elin yanl konmas beni ilgilendirir. Bunu bile bile
yapmam, dorusunu yapamadm iin, yapmak istemediim iin
yaparm. Benim resmi bilmediim aktr. Y aptklarmn bir de
eri varsa, bu bilmememden ileri geliyor diyebilirim. Y anlta
sevdiim kvan, artclk, bilgisizliktir. Aslnda, resim nedir
bilmek isterim, ama pek dmem bunun stne, igdme, duy
gularma brakrm. Ustalk, hem hi mi hi, ilgilendirmez beni.2
(2) Soyut, Nisan 1976.
242
Mavi Anadoludan (Azra Erhat)
Biz kendi memleketimizi tanmayz. Otomobilimiz de olsa, i tu
rizmi Boazii, Florya veya Kilyostan, bilemediniz Bursa veya
zmirden teye gtrmeyiz. Trkiyenin birok ehirlerine ancak
iimiz derse gideriz, grlecek, gezilecek yerlerini biliriz, ama
onlar grmek, gezmek iin katlanlacak zahmetlerin nnde y
lar, tatillerimizi imkn olursa d memleketlerde, olmazsa stan
bul evresinde geirir dururuz. K endi memleketimizi bize ecnebi
ler tan t r desem yeridir....
J eep Anadoluda yolculuk etmek iin ideal bir tattr, am- -
yaca hendek, gemiyecei ta yn yoktur. J eepte oturunca in
san gven duyar, ak havada spor yapyormu gibi olur. J eepi-
miz Tuzla fabrikasndan yeni km bir makine, ofrmz iyi
bir ocuktu, bu yolculukta rasladm aslan J eep ofrlerinin ilki.
Arabasn yle hesapl bir ustalkla kullanyordu ki, bizim taksi
ofrnn deyimiyle tatan taa atlamak bir zevk oluyordu. K al
d ki, Eenin birok yerlerinde olduu gibi burada da gzel bir
yol yaplyordu. Zeytin aalar ile rtl da yamalarnn man
zarasna doyum olmuyordu. Bir saat bir eyrekte Behrama var
dk. Y olda bir yolcu da almtk. Behrama bir motr satn alma
ya gidiyormu, tede bir zeytinya fabrikas varm. Gelin fab
rikam gezin, diyordu, Edremite denizden gidersiniz. M. Fellot
pek denizci deildir. Programmza gre akam Bergamada olma
mz gerektiini bin glkle kendisine anlattm delikanl da
sonunda vazgeip, bize Behramda ay ikram etmekle yetindi....
zmir otelleri Anadolu otelciliinin bakmsz, babo karak
terini kaybetmemiler, ne aile pansiyonu, ne de turistik otel ol- .
ma yoluna girebilmilerdir. Hemen hi birinin lokantas yoktur.
Kaldmz otelin dardan grnne diyecek yoktu: gzel bir
bina, caddeye alan byk kapsndan ieri girdiniz mi, aydn ve
ferah bir hol. Anahtarlarmz alp, iyi bir otelde kalacamza
sevinerek M. Fellot ile yukarya ktk. Bir merdiven, bir merdi
ven daha, tam be kat ktk. Otel alt kat olduu halde asansr
yok. Merdiven hallar pis. K atlarda ne bir garson, ne bir oda hiz
metisi. Oda hizmetileri sabah geliyor, leye kadar i gryor,
sonra srra kadem basyorlar. Anadolu otellerinin ounda ya
taklara temiz araf ancak mteri odasna geldikten sonra ko
nuyor. Tuttuunuz odaya girerken bakasnn brakt buru-
243
mu yata grp tiksinti duyuyorsunuz ve araf deise, oda si
linip sprlse bile, ilk kt intiba stnzden atamyorsunuz.
Bu otellerin hi birinde bir ba grmedim, kapda bir sr oluk
ocuk var, ama bunlara yol gsterecek, ilerini bir dzen iinde
grmelerini salayacak bir tek idareci yok. Otelin sahibi binas
n sanki gelip geen mterilere brakm. Onlar oteli ne hale so
karlarsa soksunlar demi ve ekilmi, i nsan bu kaytszl, bu
mirasyedilii hibir mantk erevesine sokamadndan daha da
ok sinirleniyor. Otelcilik bir ticaret ise, otel sahibinin tccar ol
mas, yani malnn srmn arttrmak iin onu iyi durumda bu
lundurmas gerekmez mi? Y ok bu adam bir misafirhane tutuyor
da, otelini mterilere vur patlasn al oynasn keyif srmeleri
iin ayorsa, misafirin rahatn dnmemeli midir? iyi bir otel
de bu iki zihniyetin birlemesi gerek. Bizde ise otelci ne tccar
dr, ne de ev sahibi, ou zaman vaktini baka ilerle geiren, ka
zancn baka yollardan salayan grnmez, duyulmaz bir kiidir.
Belediyenin koyduu tarifelerle Anadoluda otel iletmenin ok
kazanl bir i olmadn kabul etsek bile, otelcilerimizden ya bu
deveyi gtmeleri, ya da bu diyardan gmelerini salk vermek
ten baka aremiz kalmaz....
Gazetecinin en byk zevki nedir diye sorarsanz, hemen de
rim ki: ileri srd bir fikrin benimsendiini, gerekletiini
grmek. Y olculuumuzda iki defa tattm bu zevki. Affedersiniz
ama Efesin helasndan bahsetmitim, birka yazmda bakmsz
dr, pistir, turistler bunu grnce bizim milletin temiz olmad
yargsna varyorlar diye szlanmtm. Efeste heladan gayri an
latacak eyim mi yok diye benimle alay edenler oldu, gene de yl
madm, hel zerine yazdm durdum. Bir de bu sefer gidiimde
ne greyim: Helada su akyor, her taraf temiz, bakml!...
Helenenin gzelliinden bin yldr sz edilir. Ama gzelli
ini dillere destan etmi bunca air, bu gzelin nasl bir gzel ol
duunu sylemezler. Salar sar m, siyah m, kumral myd, gz
leri mavi mi, kara m, yeil miydi, uzun boylu muydu, orta boylu
mu? Bilmeyiz. Bir bildiimiz varsa, ister gen olsun, ister yal
olsun, Heleneyi gren her erkein ona arzu ile tututuudur. Her
insana birok sfatlar takan Homeros bile Helene zerine yalnz
unu syleyebiliyor:
Y zne bakan lmsz tanralara benzetir onu.
ilka tarife gelmeyen bir gzellie tanrsal derdi, biz bu
244
gn atom anda cins cazibe bombas gibi lflar ediyoruz. Hep
si ayn kapya kar. Ne var ki, Helene phesiz gzel, ok gzel
di, daha dorusu ilka airleri ok gzel bir kadn anlatmak i h
tiyacn duymular ve ona Helene adn takmlardr.
Bu gzelliin srrn biraz da douunda aramal. Aphrodite
denizin kpnden domusa, Helene dnyaya geliinin acayip
lii bakmndan taray bile geride brakr. Sparta kral Tynda-
reosun Leda adl bir kars varm. Zeus L eday sevmi, lml
kadnlarla birlemek iin binbir kla girmekten ekinmeyen
tanr, Ledaya bir kuu kuu biiminde yaklam. K uun st be
yaz gzelliine kaplan Leda onu kollar arasna alm sevmi.
Bir zaman sonra da iki yumurta yumurtlam. Birinden Helene,
brnden Zeusun kizleri diye anlan K astor ile Polydeukes
km.1
Doumunun 200. Ylnda Constable (Zeynep Oral)
ngilterede klasik resim dendi mi, akla ilk gelenler Turner ve
Constabledr. Getiimiz yl btn dnya Turnerin 200. doum
yln kutlad, bu yl da Constablen. 1776nm haziran aynda n
gilterenin kk bir kynde doan Constable, yaam boyunca
ngiltereden ayrlmad. Y ine de bu, ingilizlerin onu yaad s
rece hor grmelerine engel olamad. ngiltere bundan iki yz yl
nce var m yok mu Turner diyordu. Constablem deerini ilk
anlayan Fransa oldu. Daha o sralar tablolarn satn alyor, e
itli nianlarla dllendiriyorlard kendisini. Bu arada unu da
belirtelim : Bizde de ngiltereyi konu alan edebiyatlarmz, ne
dense hep Turnerin tablolarndan esinlenmiler, (ilk aklmza
gelen rnek: Atlas kitabnda i lhan Berk). Turnerin eserleri
neelidir. Sonsuz bir renk cmb ierir, Constablemkilerinse
gereki olduu dikkati eker, stelik Constable, yaad evreyi
en belirgin biimde saati saatine tuvaline aktarmay bilen ender
sanatlardandr. Y ine, bu sanatnn ayaklar daha sk bir bi
imde topraa basmaktadr. Constablem 200. doum yldnm
nedeniyle ngilterenin eitli kentlerinde sergiler dzenleniyor.
Ancak, ngiltere, sanaty eitli kk sergilerle anarken, Fran
sa, lkesinde bulunan tm eserlerini bir elde toplayp dev bir ser
ti ) Azra Erhat, Mavi Anadolu, stanbul, 1960, s. 88, 93, 101-102, 108-109,
134 -135.
245
gi hazrlad. imdi, her iki lkenin sanatseverleri, hangi anma
sergisinin daha grkemli olacan tartyor. ngiltere ayrca,
sanatya yaarken deer vermemi olmann utancn gidermeye
urayor.1
Orhan Veli
Adnan Veli, kardeinin lmnden sonra onun ans iin yayn
lad kitapta, Orhan Veliyi yle belirlemektedir:
K kten beri zayf, elimsiz bir bnyesi vard, l
d vakit 1.82 boyunda, 62 kilo arlnda idi. Vcudu ol
duka kemikli, kollar ile bacaklar epey uzundu. Gsn
ne doru eerek, hafife yaylanarak yrrd.
38 numara gmlek, 42 numara ayakkab, 57 numara
apka giyerdi. Ama apka ile dolat hemen hemen hi
grlmezdi. Salar ou zaman alnnn stne derdi.
Ara sra sakal da brakrd.
Elleri gayet ince, beyazd. Parmaklar adamakll uzun,
trnaklar pembe, uzun ve yuvarlakt. Geni bir aln, sivri
bir enesi vard. Dudaklar enikonu etli idi. Burnu tm-
sekliydi. Y z, genliinde kard ergenlik sivilceleri se
bebiyle prtklyd.
K k yanda iken ok sevdii yemekleri, pilav, pa
tates, et diye tari f ederdi. Y emek hususunda son derece
mkilpesentti. Domates, zeytin ve soan katiyen yemezdi.
Sucukla pastrmay ok sevmesine ramen, sarmsaktan
son derece tiksinirdi. Kereviz, yer elmas, karnbahar, laha
na, ikembe, paa, onun katiyen azna koymad eyler
di. Stten, i yumurtadan deta kaard. Bununla bera
ber yumurtann ok pimiini severdi. En ok sevdii ye
mek balk, en fazla tiksindii de cierdi. Baln her eidi
ni, pilavla makarnann salalsm, et yemeklerini, sebzeler
den enginar, kuru fasulyeyi, btn konserveleri itiha ile
yerdi.
(1) Milliyet Sanat Dergisi, 9 Temmuz 1976.
246
Bal, reel, buna benzer ar tatllar pek tercih etmez
di. St sevmemesine ramen, stten yaplan tatllar, bil
hassa muhallebi ile stlac, nihayet kabak tatlsn her za-
' man yemek isterdi.
lk zamanlarda ttnden nefret ederdi. Sonradan siga
rann tiryakisi oldu. Eskiden Harman, Y aka, Y alova, Y eni
ce sigaralarn kullanrd. ay ok koyu, kahveyi de e
kersiz ierdi. K ahve dknl son zamanlarda ar bir
hal almt. Byk bira bardaklar ile gnde yedi sekiz bar
dak kahve itii olurdu.
ikiye de ok dknd. Hi durmadan gnlerce arap
iebilirdi. Bununla beraber, ne kadar iki ierse isin, ar
balln kaybetmez, glmsemesini unutmazd. Ankara
da kran ve Macar lokantalarna, stanbulda nadiren
Degstasyon, sk sk da Balk Pazarndaki Lamboya gider
di. Lambo, onun en sevdii dostlarmdand. Tepebanda
sokak aralarndaki meyhanelere devam ettii de olurdu.
Boaziine, hele Gks Deresine baylrd. Bu dere
nin denize kart noktadaki krmz eve oldum olas hay
rand. Balk tutmak, krek ekmek, yzmek en holand
eylerdi. Herkesle iyi geinir, kimsenin kalbini krmaz,
dostlarna kar her dim sayg duyard. Son zamanlarda
en ok Sabahattin Eyboluna balanmt. Akamlar,
ge yatar, sabahlar erken kalkard. Y rmekten hi bk-
mazd. Bazen Beyolundan Saryere kadar yryerek, s
lk alarak gittii olurdu.
Orhan Veli, 1950de Ankarada bir kaza geirdi. K aranlk bir so
kakta, Belediye tarafndan alan, fakat gece feneri konulmayan
bir ukura dt. Ba zedelendi. ki ay sonra stanbula geldi.
...Vcudundaki szlardan ikyet ediyordu. 14 kasm
sal gn bir arkadann evinde le yemei yerken fena
lk geirdi. Hastahaneye kaldrld. Beyninde damar atla
mas yznden balayan baygnln sebebi ilkin hekimler
tarafndan anlalamad. Alkol zehirlenmesine kar tedavi
yapld. Orhan Veli saat- 20.00de komaya girdi. Btn gay
retlere ramen 14 kasm sal gecesi saat 23.30da komadan
kurtulamayarak Cerrahpaa Hastahanesinde hayata gzle
rini yumdu. Depoya gnderilen elbiselerinin ertesi gn cep
247
leri kartrld. Atyarlarna ait bir programla, sar amba
laj kadna sarlm bir di fras kt. Frann sarl
olduu kada Ak Resmigeidi adl iirini yazmt.1
Git Bahar Git, K orkuyorum Senden (Oktay Akbal)
Nisan gelmez mi, iimde bir pencere alr. Y eni bir kiilikle ba
karm dar. Y eillik, gzellik, iyilik, tatllk. Umut vericidir ne
varsa. Mutluluk, yaamn kendisidir. Kiiolu, elini uzatsa hereyi
elde edecektir. K olaydr, basittir, yakndr zlemler.
i lkbaharn esizlii burda ya zaten, insan yenileiyor, tazele
iyor. G kazanyor. K rgnlklar atyor iinden. Hepsini gemi
sayyor, bir daha gelmeyecek diye belliyor. K tlkleri unutuyor.
En gzel, en taze umutlarla yeniden douyor yeryzne.
Eski baharlar hatrlayn. Her baharda yeni bir insan olma
dnz m? Y eni bir sevi bekliyordu bir kede. Eski bir sevi yeni
tad kazanacakt. Eski sevgiliniz, genleecekti. kmaz umutlar
nz, hemencecik oluverecek sanmam mydnz? Btn engeller,
glkler, bir daha karlamamak zere silinip gitmemi miydi?
Evet, ilkbahar doann bir nimetidir bize. Y lda bir defa ki
inin deimesi iin frsat yaratr. Sanki der ki, ite ben sende
yepyeni bir g yaratyorum. Sana tazeleme, dirilme imknn
salyorum. Hi bir eyin zaman gemez, hi bir ey bsbtn
elden gitmez. En yenik dtn an bile baar birazck tende
dir. Bahar, Nisann o gneli gnlerinde bize bir g as yapar.
Bir sre yaarz bu gl hali. Sonra yava yava alrz, eski ki
iliimize, eski uyuukluumuza dneriz. Eski mutsuzluklara,
umutsuzluklara kavuuruz. Hani rahatlarz da. nk bahar bizi
tedirgin etmitir, huzurumuzu karmtr. Y eni almalara atl
mak, yeni sevilere balamak, eski sevileri gzelletirmek, unutul
mu umutlarmz diriltmek abasn uyandrmtr. Birden vaz
geeriz bunlardan, kskn, umutsuz, rahat, tembel halimizi al
rz. Oh, ne rahatt r bu! Nedir u baharn bize ettii? Bahar kse
rek ekip gider sonunda. Sanki kendisine lyk olmayan biz i n
sanlardan kaar kurtulur.
Neler hatrlatyor u Nisan gnleri? isteyip de ulaamadmz
lkeleri mi? Bir zamanlar elde etmek iin didindiimiz eyleri mi?
Neler neler! Hatrlamak, kimi iin mutluluk, kimi iin mutsuzluk
(1) 100 nl Trk Eseri, 2, s. 1231.
248
tur. yle anlar vardr ki hatrlamas bile ac verir. K ck mut
luluk anlar vardr byle anlarn iinde, ite baharn gc, o k
k mutluluklar kat kat bytmesidir, ilk gnlerde bunlar bizi
zmez, ama bahar gnleri geip gittike, yazn sca bastka
anlar zmeye balar kiiyi. Bir bahar daha gitti gidecek derken,
bir de bakarz ki ne bahar var, ne de yaz...
Ata bir yazsnda Git bahar, korkuyorum senden demiti.
ok severdi bahar aylarn koca Ata. K orkmakta haklym, bir
bahar gn dnyamz brakt. Y aam o kadar seven insann,
bahara git diyebilmesi iin, bu korkuyu gerekten duymas ge
rekliydi. Bahardan niye korkarz; yaamay ok, ama ok gzel
letirdii iin. Olduundan fazla gzel gsterdii iin... Y aam
gzel, ama baharn bizde uyandrd o esiz duygunun aydnl
ndaki gibi deil! Evet, git bahar korkuyorum senden... Hem kor
kuyorum, hem de seviyorum. K orku ile sevgi tek duyguda birle
irse, daha tehlikeli olur. Kiiyi kmazlara srkler.1
ubat Sabah (Oktay Akbal )
Eskiden tnele girer girmez, tatl bir snma duyardk. Y azsa,
ehrin skc bunaltsnn dnda bir serinlie kendimizi brak-
verirdik. Tnel o Tnel gene! Ama k gnlerindeki o eski scak
l kalmad. Sanki ocukluumuzun, genliimizin Tneli gitti
de yerine baka bir tnel geldi.
Sabahn sekizi... K arl bir stanbul gn balam. amur,
rzgr, souk. Tneldeyim. Be dakikadr arabann kalkmasn
bekliyorum, iimiz titriyor dmz titriyor. Paltolarn yakas kal
kk, eller cepte, insanlar geliyorlar, geiyorlar, oturuyorlar. Gaze
te okuyan bir ben varm. K armda paltolu bir adam. Y annda
ona benzer biri daha. Y anlarda, telerde gene sabah insanlar...
Araba kalkmyor bir trl. Bekleiyoruz. Herkes kendi iine
dalm. Gzlerden bir ey anlalmyor. Neler kuruyorlar, neler
dnyorlar, neler neler umuyorlar, bekliyorlar, zlyorlar? On
be yirmi kiiyiz arabada, iki gen te ayakta durmu. Bir ufak
(1) Oktay Akbal, Konumuz Edebiyat, stanbul, 1968,
249
ocuk tede. Eir orta yal kadn. Bunlar alan insanlar. Beyo-
lu'ndan K arakye inecekler. Dalacaklar orada drt yne.
Bazan zaman ne de gemek bilmez! Braktm gazeteyi, ev-
remdekileri seyrediyorum seyretmiyor gibi yaparak! Kimse kim
seyle konumuyor, kimse kimseye aldrmyor, kimse kimseyi umur
samyor. imdi bir yangn ksa, imdi bir deprem olsa, imdi ne
bileyim beklenilmedik bir felketle karlasak herkes kendi ca
nn kurtarmaya bakar, ezer iner tekileri... Bir sevgi aydnl
yok bu sabah insanlarn yzlerinde. Bir mutluluk parlay yok
gzlerinde, baklarnda, dudaklarnn kvrlnda, insanlk d
insanlar bunlar. K ar, souk, rzgr m bylesine ktmser, karan
lk, mutsuz klm onlar?
Glmesini bilmeyen insanlarz biz. Glmesini bilmeyen, -
renemeyen. Elenmesini de, mutluluk duymasn da bilmeyiz. Hi
birimiz bilmeyiz. Bymzden kmze dek. Y a kaba kaba
kahkahalar atarz, ya da pis pis srtrz.
Bu insanlar hi glmemi mi acaba? Bakyorum, u karm
daki kara paltolu nasl gler, glse, glebilse? Y anndaki, teki,
daha teki, o kadn, o ocuk... Nasl glerler, nasl glecekler? Bi
razck glmseme bambaka yapacak onlar. Gzellik verecek, ya
amann kutsalln yanstacak yzlerine... Ama glmyorlar,
glmeyecekler, glemeyeceiz. Hep somurtacaz karlkl. Pis
pis, dmanca bakarak birbirimize, kaamak kaamak...
iyi ki kendimi gremiyorum. Ben de onlardanm, biliyorum.
Belki, karmdakiler de bana bakp kendi mutsuzluklarn daha
iyi duyuyorlar. Aa yukar ayn eyleri akllarndan geiriyor
lar. Hava souk, karl. Tatlar az. iler bozuk. Haberler kt. Bu
gn dnden, yarn bugnden daha umutsuz. ubat aynn bir kar
l gn. Glme nedir bilmeyen insanlarn bir araya geldii bir
sabah, iyice iliyor iime o uzayp giden be dakikalk zamann
knts...
Araba kalkt, iki dakika sonra K arakydeyiz. Somurtkan i n
sanlar karl havada dalyorlar oraya buraya. Baka somurtmu
insanlar kaldrmlarda, dolmu ardnda, vapur yolunda... Mutsuz
bir toplum bu...1
(1) Oktay Akbal, Tarzan ld, stanbul : E Y aynlar, 1969.
250
Dnce zgrl (Sabahattin Eybolu)
zgr dnce, Bat uygarlnn armaandr insanlara. En
soylu, en gl yan da budur Bat uygarlnn. Dounun kl
tr tarihinde zaman zaman Baty derinlik bakmndan yaya b
rakan dnceler bulunabilir, ama donmu, kalplam, dinle-
mi, dolaysyla insan kafasn dizginlemi dncelerdir. K ald
ki bu dnceleri deerlendiren, Hindin, inin dnce zindan
larna k tutan Batl zgr dnrler olmutur.
zgr dnce, btn kalplar, altndan da olsa btn ka
fesleri, btn yasaklar ykan dncedir. Bylesi dnce ancak
kulluun her trlsn, Tanrnm kulluunu bile hogrmeyen
bir dnya grne almakla olabilir. Bylesi bir dnya gr
ne almaksa, insan, yaamay hor grenlerin harc deildir.
Batnn dnce zgrl insann insan smrmesini, ez
mesini, ortadan kaldrm mdr henz? Hayr, insan kasaplarn
karlar iin besleyen nice Belikallar, daha dn Montaignein
Fransasnda, Goethenin Almanyasnda, Shakespearein ngilte
resinde, Boccaccionun talyasnda nice zgrlk dman cana
varlar grdk. Ne var ki, insan kasaplaryla savaan ve yarn bu
kasapln kkn kurutabilecek olan tek g ayn Batnn d
nce zgrldr. Smrclerin Tanrdan, K iliseden, dikta
trden ok zgr dnceden korkmas bundandr.
Dnce zgrl, insan kulluktan kurtard lde tedir
gin de eder, zgr dnceyi yaratan ve gelitiren Bat, onun iin
zgr dnce uruna en ok kurban vermi lkedir. Avrupa d
nce uruna en ok kurban vermi dnya parasdr. Asyada
yaamadan, dnmeden len, ldrlen insanlara acyanlar ka
dar acmayanlar da hakl olabilir. K oyun olmay kabul eden bir
insan iin kurban edilmek bir ereftir olsa olsa. Btn sorun ko
yun olmamakta, obana : Beni nereye gtryorsun? Mezbahaya
m, demekte.
zgr dnce hem tutucu, geleneki, hem de zgr olamaz.
Nasl olabilir ki; dnce zgrl, eski dnce kalplarn kr
mann t kendisidir.' K endi akln kullanmayan insan, kitaplarn
en gzeline de inansa, zgr dnemiyor demektir. Buna kar
lk yalnz kendi akln beenen de zgr dnyor saylmaz.
Nasl saylsn ki; zgr dnce, btn akllara ba vuran, ken
25]
dini beenmeyen, durmadan gelimek isteyen dncenin t ken
disidir.
Dnce zgrln savunanlarn, sada solda, Amerikada,
Rusyada, Douda, Batda kalplaan her trl dnceye kar
olmalar kanlmaz bir namus borcudur. Y eni bir dnce don
duu anda btn donmu eski dncelerle ayn yatadr. Buzlar
dnyasnda zaman durur, zgr dnce buz dolabn yaratr,
ama ne kadar gsterili de olsa, iine girmez.
zgr dnce ve bamsz millet kavramlar birbirine sk
skya bal ve ayn kaynaktan domadr. Dou tarihinde zgr
dnce olmad lde bamsz millet de yoktu. Her yerden
nce ngiltere, Fransa ve Amerikada gelien zgrlk kavram
bamszlk kavramyla at ba beraber gitmitir. Ne var ki her
memlekette de imparatorluk sevdalar, zaman zaman, insan
dncesinin gzelim akn durdurup tutarsz bir kurt mant
na ynelmitir. Bizim A tatrkmz, Batnm karsna, Bat-
nn en soylu dncesiyle km, Napoleonun ihanet ettii z
grlk ve bamszlk ilkelerini benimsemi, zgrlk ve bam
szlk dmanlarnn btn dnyada ve kendi yurdundaki eleba
larna kar insanca bir sava amtr. Sapan kltan stn
gren bu byk asker tutarl ve ince Batllardan daha Batl bir
zgrlk ve bamszlk kahramandr. Onunla vnmek yalnz
zgrl ve bamszl sonuna kadar savunanlarn hakkdr.1
Ev ve Bahe
(Sabahattin K udret Aksal)
Dar geitten yrnrd dmdz,
Ev srtn dayam yamaca,
Aalarn glgesinde bahe,
Bacasnda duman gece gndz.
Gn dnmyle yazn, gne
Uzaklanca rperir kavak
Y alnzlyla uuldayarak,
Beklerdim akamla bir yitik ku
tsn uzakta, dan ardnda.2
(1) Y eni Trk Edebiyatndan Semeler, derleyen Y amur Atsz, stanbul, San
der Y aynlar, 1976.
(2) Varlk, Ocak 1977.
252
Birler
(Talat Sait Halman)
Hi bir bcek yemez pcksz lenleri.
i nsan uyanr varla tam ld anda.
lmsz olsa iek, hi gzel kokar myd?
Bir biim bulsa bulut kendine, alar myd?
a kan a : bayku sevinir krlne.
Baka gz yoksa gz iinde - krz.3
Fil Hamdi Nasl Yakalamd (Aziz Nesin)
stanbul Emniyet Mdrlnden, btn tara vilyetleri Emni
yet Mdrlne u telgraf ekilmiti:
Otuz be yanda, uzun boylu, iki yz kilo arlnda, kum
ral, dii eksik, st enede bir az dii dolgulu, alt sol kpek dii
altn kaplama, izgili kahverengi elbiseli, salar olduka dkl
m, ablak ehreli, kahverengi gzl, Fil Hamdi adnda azl
sabkal bir dolandrc, gn gece iinde oturduklar nbet
kulbesini byk bir dikkatle bekledikleri iin uykusuz kalan iki
polis memurumuzun, yolda giderlerken uyuklamalarn frsat bi
lerek ellerinden kamtr. Y aptmz tahkikat, takibat ve tetki-
kat sonunda, Fil Hamdinin kat kesin olarak anlalmtr.
Vilyetiniz ve vilyetinizdeki kaza karakollarndan birine ura
d veya bir polis memuruna yol, adres sorduu takdirde, kendi
sine ltfen merakla yolunu beklediimizi, bizi daha fazla intizar
da brakmyarak, mnasip, bo bir zamannda stanbul Emniyet
Mdrlne gelerek teslim olmasn rica etliimizi syleyin.
Azl sabkal Fil Hamdinin fotoraf iliiktir.
Tara vilyetlerinden birinin istasyonunda iki polis memuru
konuuyor:
(3) Varlk, Ocak 1977.
253
Ramazan, kardeim, u salep ien herif mutlaka Fil Hamdi.
Hm.. Benziyor... Resmi kar bakalm.
Bir resim karr arkadana gsterir.
O deil be Ramazan. O senin resmin!
H... Bayramda ektirmitim. Nasl?
iyi ama, ack glseydin be!... u Fil Hamdinin resmini bul.
Ramazan cebinden bir sr resim karr, kartrr.
Bu benim olann resmi... Bu askerlik hatras. Bu kimdi
Mahmut?
O mu? ey olacak... Eroin kaaks Duman Ali..
Bu da otel faresi Suphi... Resimler birbirine karm. Bul
u Fili be Ramazan!
Mahmutla Ramazan resimleri kartrrlar, Fil Hamdinin
resmini ararlar.
abuk ol Mahmut... Herif salebi iti, kaacak...
Bak, nasl bakyor etrafna.
Buldum, u resim olacak. Tamam, t kendisi!
phelendikleri adamn yanma giderler.
Hemerim, yle dursana...
Bir resime, bir de adamn yzne bakarlar.
Bir de yan dur bakaym.
A-ah, benzemiyor be Ramazan.
Bir kere de komiser bey grsn Mahmut. Belki o benzetir.
Hemerim, haydi yr... K arakola kadar gideceksin.
*
Baka bir tara vilyetinin pazar yerinde iki memur konuu
yor :
Ayp oldu be kr kardeim. Akama kadar fr dolandk,
u Fil Hamdiyi yakalayamadk.
u adam olmasn?
Belki de odur. Soralm.
Adamn yanna giderler.
Baym, senin adn ne?
Mustafa...
Birbirinin kul a na:
Mustafa diyor.
254
Hamdi diyecek deil ya... Adn saklyor.
Akl sra bizi kandracak.
Baym, biraz gelir misiniz?
Bir tara vilyetinin kahvesinde iki memur konuuyor:
Dn ben tane Fil Hamdi yakaladm, komiser hi birini
beenmedi.
u bizim komiser de amma mklpesent haaaa...
Hit!... Y ava konu, aktrma. u ay ien adama yan
gzle bak!
O be... T kendisi!...
Ama, gelen evrakta iman diye yazyordu. Bu zayf, iske
let gibi herif...
Zayflamtr birader, kaak gezmek kolay m?
yle ya... Ama bu esmer. Fil Hamdi kumralm.
Dada bayrda gezmekten rengi atmtr.
Haklsn. Y alnz birader bunun sk siyah salar var.
Evrakta Fil Hamdinin salar dklm diye yazyordu.
Eh artk o kadarck da olur. Herif tannmamak iin belki
peruka takmtr.
Ne duruyoruz? Y akalyalm.
Adama yaklatlar.
Adn ne senin?
Hamdi...
Birbirine mnal manal bakp glerler.
Y r bakalm karakola... Haydi!
Ne var? Ne oldu?
Fazla sorma! K arakolda renirsin.
Bir tara vilyetinin, btn tara vilyetlerinde olduu gibi,
bir iki kilometrelik asfalt zerinde iki polis yoldan geen bir
adam yakalarlar.
A azn!
Azmda bir ey yok ki benim.
Madem bir ey yok, aarsn.
255
Adam azn aar, ikisi birden adamn dilerine bakarlar.
Polisin biri brne sorar :
Baksana u evraka, ka dii yoktu?
br evrak okur:
dii eksik, st enede bir az dii dolgulu, alt sol ene
de kpek dii altn kaplama...
Polis memuru adamn dilerini sayar :
Bir, iki, .. Drt... Oynama be! arttn... Bir, iki, ,
drt, be... Y irmi drt... Y irmi drt dii var.
Y irmi drt m? K a tane eksik? Senin ka diin eksik, bi
liyor musun?
Sekiz... : i
ektirmitir. Delilleri ortadan kaldrmak iin dilerini
ektirmitir.
Benim dilerim takmadr. Azmda hi kendi diim yok...
Evrakta takma olup olmadn yazyor muydu?
Y azmyor. Unutmulardr. Bu canm, bu... T kendisi..
Kpek diine baksana, altn kaplama... Baym, gel bizimle bera
ber.
Nereye?
K arakola!... Y r!...
Tara vilyetleri Emniyet Mdrlklerinden stanbul Emni
yet Mdrlne gnde yzlerce telgraf geliyordu:
Falan falan tarihli, filn filn sayl telgrafa cevaptr.
Vilyetimiz dahilinde on drt tane izgili kahverengi elbiseli,
sekiz tane kpek dii altm kaplamal olmak zere yirmi iki Fil
Hamdi yakalanmtr. Bu miktarn istee yeter olup olmadnn,
aratrmaa devam edip etmeyeceimizin emir buyurulmasn
sayg ile rica ederim.
Falan falan tarihli, filn filn sayl yksek telgrafnza ce
vaptr :
Vilyetimiz dahilinde 180 kilo ile 220 kilo arasnda iki dzne
Fil Hamdi yakalanm olup, aradaki kilo farknn, kantarlarn
256
ayarszlndan ileri geldiini, hepsinin de gzlerinin kahverengi
olduuna gre, Fil Hamdi olduklarnda en ufak bir pheye yer
kalmadn, yakalanan Fil Hamdiler sevkedilmi olup, gzden
kam olanlar varsa, onlarn da byk dikkatle arandn ve
peyderpey sevkedileceini sayg ile arzederim.
stanbul Emniyet Mdrlnden, tara Emniyet Mdrlk
lerine gnderilen tel graf :
Koyacak btn yerler dolmu olduundan, imdilik eldeki
Fil Hamdiler yeter grlmtr, ikinci bir emre kadar Fil Ham-
dilerin yakalanmasna ve aranmasna ara verilmesini teekkrle
rimle rica ederim.
NOT: Fi rar eden Fil Hamdi yakalanmtr.1
(1) Cumhuriyetten Sonra Hikye ve Roman 1940 - 1950, derleyen Tahir Alangu,
stanbul, 1965.
ippolit ippolitovi (Adnan Binyazar)
Anton ehovun bir yks var. Ad Edebiyat retmeni.1 Asl
ad da byle midir, bilmiyorum, yk, ehova zg esprilerle ge
liiyor. K imi yerlerde, soluk aldrmamacasma gldryor kiiyi
ehov. ehov biraz da bu! Dnya yaznnda glmeyle dnme
arasnda ok kaim bir izgidir ehov. yklerinin tmnde, y
neldii insann doal yapsndan nasl bir dnya kardn g
renler, yazarn gerek bir byc olduunu anlamlardr, zeri
ne eileceim sorun da yazarn bu gcn ortaya koymaktr.
nsan daa benzetirim ben. iinde; bulunmadk, grlme
dik madenlerin bulunduu daa. Belki yz yl, bin yl, on bin yl...
sonra, insanla nice yararlar (belki zararlar da) olacak maden
ler bulunacaktr dalarn derin kelerinde. Hani, halk arasnda
dnyann geleceini bir tasarlay vardr. Derler ki, giderek, dn
ya dmdz olacak, engebe mengebe kalmayacak, bir yumurta ko
yacaksn bir yere, elli kilometre uzaklktan bile greceksin yumur
(1) Edebiyat retmeni adl yk, ehovun K orkulu Gece (Varlk Y aynlar)
adl kitabnda yer alyor.
257
tay. Bu gerek d, hatt usd gibi grnen dsel izgilerin
gerekleebileceine inanmasa da insan, en azndan zerinde dur
ma gereksemesi duymaldr. Bir yazarn belirttiine gre insan,
geree uymayan d kurmamtr. Dalar da dzleecek bir gn,
ii d bilinecek dalarn.
K onu bu deil. Olmazln olabilirliini dnme ynnden
yararlandm bu rnekten. ehovun yklerinde de bu daa bak
ma anlaynn insana uygulann gryoruz. Nasl dan derin
likleri, bugn ad san bilinmez birtakm nedenleri dndr
yorsa, ehovun ykleri de insann gerekliini dndryor.
Bu gerek, hemen her varln dndrd bir zde anlam
n bulmaktadr. Gnbirlik grntlerle balayan insan belirle
mesi, lmezlik lleriyle sonsuzlayor ehovda. Szkonusu et
tiim Edebiyat retmeni adl ykye bu alardan yaklaarak
baz sonulara varmak istiyorum.
Glle dnn arasnda bir kaln izgi olarak belirlemi
tim ehovu. Bu nedenle nce, gln ve dnn ne olduu
nu belirtmek gerek. Szgelimi yk (Edebiyat retmeni) t
myle gzden geirilirse, onda, glnecek bir ynn olmad ko
layca grlebilir, yky ilk okuyanlarn, zellikle byle bir y
n saptayabileceklerini hi sanmyorum, ykye glen biriyle
karlasalar ap kalabilirler de. nk konunun hi bir zgn
l yok. ok gen grnl edebiyat retmeni Nikitin, eles-
tovun kz Mansyay sever. Mansya da onu. Evin bir karanlk
kesinde birbirlerine sarlp ptkten sonra da bu sevgilerini
aka ortaya koyarlar, i kalr evlenmeye. Onu da yaparlar. Ni
kitin, kendi gereiyle evlilik gerei (duygusall ve tasarlama
lar) arasndaki elikiyle karlanca bir zeletiriden geirir ki
ileri ve olaylar. Bundan doal ne vardr yeryznde? Evlilii se
en her insann bana gelir bylesi olaylar. Kukusuz, bu doal
olaylarda glnecek bir yan da yoktur. Gene bir ara giri yapa
ym, ite ehovun sanat bu ustalkta younlayor. Byle bir ara
giri yapmken glnmeyecek baka eyleri de sralayaym.
Aa dallarndaki karga yuvalarn birer kocaman apkaya
benzetmesi de glnecek ey deil. Nikitinin Mansyaya sevgi
sini bildirme yolunda karlat gln olaylar bile herkese
gln olarak nitelendirilmeyebilir. Gene Nikitinin, kendini ev
lenmi sayp abuk sabuk dlemelerine bile glnmeyebilir. En
duygusal annda, sevgilisi Mansyaya Sevgili kk sanm
258
diye mektuplar yazan Nikitin gln bulunabilir mi? Mansya-
nn ablas Varyanm densizlikleri (densiz olduu denli acmakl
durumu) gln mdr ki?... Espri szcnn r sesini du
yup, iskemlenin altndan rrr... nga-nga-nga diye hrlayan Mu-
kay gln bulabilir misiniz?
ylesine allm espriler ki bunlar, gldre gldre glme
yi unutturmutur insana. Sinemasnda bu, tiyatrosunda bu (hele
hele de tiyatroda), gnlk ilikilerde bu...
Siz ne diyeceksiniz bilmem, ama ben, Nikitinin oda arkada
ippolit ippolitoviin szlerine nce ok gldm. Anlatp anlatp
evremde, glenler bulmaya altm. Glenler de oldu. Ama,
ippolitovii gln buluyorum diye bana m gldler, gldkleri,
gerekten ippolitovi miydi? Bunu da kestirmek g. Gene bir
ayra aaym burada, ppolitoviin szlerini yazmadan nce, onu
ksaca tantaym size.
ippolitovi yknn ba kiilerinden deildir. Denebilir ki,
grnte, kiilerinden bile deildir. nk etken olmaktan te,
edilgen bir kiidir. Etkenlii, ba kiinin olumasnda, karakter
lerin belirmesinde gsterir kendini. Meyve deil, meyveyi (hatt
aac) besleyen z. ehov, ippolitovii olayn dnda gibi gs
terip yknn dnsel yapsn kurmak ister gibidir. yle ta
ntyor ykc, ippolitovii : ippolitovi henz yal saylmaz
d; kzla alan ksa sakal, kalkk burnuyla yz kabacayd, ay
dndan ok, basit bir iiyi andryordu. Bununla beraber ho, ba
bacan bir hali vard... Corafyada (Tarih - corafya retmeni
dir ippolitovi) en ok nem verdii ey, harita; tarihte de krono
loji idi. Gece yarlarna kadar haritalar mavi kalemle dzeltir,
kronoloji cetvelleri hazrlard. Can skcdr, opurdur, kabuu
na ekilmitir, siliktir. Grlyor ki, glnmemesi gereken tm
nitelikler ippolitovite toplanmtr.
Beni gldren sz udur: Nikitinin evlenme trenine, arka
da ippolit ippolitovi de gelmitir. K entin nemli kiilerinden
biri, Mansyay kutlarken, Evlendikten sonra da hep byle bir
gl goncas gibi taptaze kalnz gzelim. der. ippolitovi ise Ni-
kitine unlar syler: imdiye kadar bekrdnz, tek banza
yayordunuz. Artk evlendiniz, ift oldunuz. K entin ileri gele
ninin syledii tumturakl, tantanal szle, ippolitoviin syle
dii basmakalp sz arasnda bir ayrm yoktur. Ne var ki, deer
259
yarglar ynnden, bu iki sz ayn teraziye konmamaktadr. G
lnmesi gereken de budur.
Glmeyi, deiik bir durum karsnda kendinden geme bi
iminde snrlandrrsam, kukusuz, kendimi ok yanl yanstaca
m tehlikesiyle yz yze kalacam. Oysa, glmek, dnmek,
dnmekse ac duymaktr. Shakespearee zg bir mantksal bu
luu anstan bu szn kendimi byk gsterme gibi bir korku
yarattna da ylece dokunarak, Edebiyat retmeni adl y
kde, bunun somutluunu gstermeye alacam. K entin nem
li kiisinin syledii szn, zentili bir eyler yaratma isteinin
dnda bir deeri var mdr? Y eryznde gonca gibi kalan i n
san olur mu? Olmayacak eye niye dilek dilenir? Diyeceksiniz ki,
kzlacak eydir bu, niye glnsn? En etkili gllerin, kzgnlk
la yapld kansndaym ben. Her yaratk, oluur, geliir, sonra
yok olup gider. Tomurcuk, gonca, gsterili bir gl... Son
ras, gne nlaryla, syla buruma ve yok olup gitme. Gerek,
gonca gibi kalmay dnmede deildir, gl yaprann burua
can dnmektir.
ippolitoviin sz ise, nceki szden ayr bir anlam kapsa
myor. O da gerei, basmakalp, dmdz bir biimde syler. D
n evinde sylenmemesi gereken bir sz aransa, ppolitoviin
syledii en uygun der. Kukusuz, bekr insan, tek basma ya
ar, evlendii zaman da ift olur. Bu, Tekerlekleri dnen otomo
bil hzla gidiyordu. demek samalna dmek olur. Hani Fran
sada biri, mezar tama, lmeden on be dakika nce yayordu.
gibisinden bir sz yazdrm, byle bir ey, ippolitoviin syledi
i. Ama neden kentin nemli kiisinin syledii goncal sz ye-
rindedir de, ippolitoviinki samadr, basmakalptr, dzdr?
Evlilik duygusu iinde neredeyse kanat takp uacak gibi se
vinli olan Nikitinin gelip dayand nokta, yukardaki soruyu
yantlamaya ynldr. Nikitini kendi kendiyle konuturarak, so
nuca ok iyi varyor ehov: Gerek eitimci deildi... J imnaz-
larnda (orta dereceli okul) ek asll Y unanca retmeni vard;
ona benzetti kendini, tpk onun gibi yeteneksiz, silik, memur
ruhluydu... Zaten retmenlie istidad d'a yoktu. Eitimden an
lamyor, ocuklara yaklaamyor, onlar anlamyordu, retti k
lerinin deerini kavrayamyor, gereine inanmyordu, l en ippo-
lit ippolitovi dpedz, kaln kafalnn biriydi; arkadalar,
renciler bile onun ne verebildiini bilirdi. Ama Nikitin, tpk
260
Y unanca retmeni ek gibi kaln kafalln ustalkla grebi
liyor, kendini satmasn beceriyordu... Hepsinin cahilliklerini,
hayata ksknlklerini saklama abalarn sezer gibi oldu. Kendi
huzursuzluunu belli etmemek iin yzne glmser bir ifade
verdi. Nikitinin, zeletirisini yaparak vard sonu, insann i
tensizliini btn ayrntlaryla yanstyor.
Giyinik yatmak doru deil, elbise buruur. Gece soyunarak
yatmak gerekir. diyen ippolitoviin dnyas hari ta izmenin ve
kronoloji dzenlemenin dna kmaz, ldnde bile, Volga
Hazere dklr... Atlar, arpa ve kuru otla beslenir. diyerek bu
basmakalp dnceden kurtulamayan ippolit I ppolitovi, insann
itensizliine, byk bir tepkidir. K ar olduumuz, ama kendi
mize ynelen bir tepki...
te, Nikitinin renkli, dsel dnyasndan kopup bir buna
lm dnyasna dmesinde bu gerein etkisi byktr, ippolito
viin gereini kavrayan Nikitinle, Kr talih! Btn dnyay
dzeltmek iin mi yaratlmm? diye baran Hamletin buna
lm arasnda bir ayrm var m? Ama glyoruz ippolitovie, Ni-
kitine, hatta Hamlete.
Nasl sylenirse sylensin, ister tumturakl, ister dmdz.
Syleyenleri tanmak nemlidir. Gldmz karsnda gln
letiimizi anladmz an, insanlmz da yenilemi olacaz.
Y alnz glnl anlamak da yetmez, gldrnn (komedya)
derinliindeki, insan aalatc gerei de kavramak gerekir. O
zaman ne denli korkun bir bunalm dnyasnda yaadmz
kacaktr ortaya. nk en byk bunalm, deerlere verdiimiz
anlamdan doar. Deerliyle deersizi ayramamaktan doar. At
iziyle it izini birbirine kartrmaktan doar.1
Koullanma
On yedinci yzyl ngiliz airi J ohn Milton, Kayp Cennet adl
uzun iirinde balca kiiye ver veri r: Tanr, insanolu, ve
eytan, insanolu, akln elmeye abalayan, kt ve yanln
temsilcisi eytanla, doru yolun gstericisi Tanr arasnda boca
lar. Eletirmen ve yorumcular bu epik iirin ba kiisinin kim ol
(1) Varlk, Temmuz 1972.
261
duu konusunu yllar boyu tartrlar. Grne gre bu kii Tan
r olmaldr. Dorunun ve iyinin temsilcisi, yaratcs, varlklarn
en ycesi odur. Miltonun amacnn da, bu yaptnda Tanry y
celtmek olduu bilinmektedir, stelik yaptta sk sk Tanrnm
ycelerden yce olduu yinelenir. Gelgelelim, eytann ba kii
olduu dncesi hemen hemen ayn lde geerlilik kazanm
tr. nk, kt yolun, yanln temsilcisi de olsa; iirde en ok
eytann ad, dolaplar, becerileri gemekte, hep o tantlmakta
dr. K tlkleri vurgulanyor olsa da, ondan sz edilmektedir
hep. Sanki, bilmeden, gnmz reklamlarnn balca arac olan
koullandrma yntemini kullanm Milton. Diyelim ki, beyz
dizelik bir blmde eytann gcnden, olaanst zekasndan,
kurnazlndan sz ederken, ardndan iki dizeyle Tanr iyi
dir, gc ise tm bu saylanlarn ok tesindedir, demi.
Kimi eletirmenlerin buradan kardklar sonu u : Milton
gerekte (belki bilinaltndan) eytan ok daha ekici bir kii
olarak canlandrm, tm zellikleriyle bize tantm. Tanr i i n
se, Y celerden yceydi ve iyiydi, demekle yetinmi. Bilerek ya
da bilmeyerek eytan izmi.2
Ekmek
(Akam saat 7.00 sular. ADAM bakkala girer.)
ADAM : Ekmeiniz var m?
BAKKAL : Var, ama pek taze deil. Bir bakn.
(ADAM, BAKKALn uzatt ekmei ba parmayla iaret par
ma arasnda skar.)
A. : Hmm. Dnden kalma m?
(BAKKAL belli belirsiz duraklar.)
B. : Sabahn ekmei, ama akta durduundan st kuruyor.
A. : Arasam bulabilir miyim dersiniz bu yaknlarda?
B .: isterseniz bir arayn, ama sanmam. Bu saate kalmyor pek.
Elimizde kalan ekmekleri frn geri almyor. Biz de ok geti rtmi
yoruz.
A .: Bakn, gene de kalm elinizde ama.
(2) B. Bozkurt.
262
B .: K alyor. Tek tk. Onlar da sizin gibi ge gelenlere satyo
ruz.
A : Ben de ekmeimi lenden alrm bundan byle.
B .: Siz gelmezseniz bakas gelir. Bir sre sonra siz de tavsatr
snz ii zaten. Sonra, ne bileyim, iiniz kar, unutursunuz, gene
gelirsiniz. Y a da baka bakkala gidersiniz.
A .: Ne yani, beni benden iyi mi bileceksiniz?
B .: Siz ya da bakas. Her akam birka kii kar ekmek arama
ya. Bulamadklar da ok olur. trla, kekle filan idare ederler.
A .: Ben etmem... Neyse, ben yle saa sola bir baksam, bu ek
mei benim iin saklar msnz?
B .: Saklayamam. Bir yerde taze ekmek bulur bir daha uramaz
snz,
A .: Uramaz olur muyum canm!
B .: Uraanz da almazsnz bu ekmei. Niye alacaksnz tazesini
bulmuken. O arada belki alacak biri kar, size saklayacam
derken onu da karrm.
A .: Peki, ekmein parasn braksam...
B .: Taze ekmek bulursanz gelip geri alrsnz ama paranz.
A. : Tabii alrm. Ekmei gtrmyorum ki.
B .: iyi ama, ben bu ite bir ey kazanm olmam ki. Paray b
rakmanzn ne nemi kalyor. Gelip geri alacak olduktan sonra.
A .: O zaman, ekmei alp gideyim. Parasn da vereyim. Ka
para? iki buuk lira deil mi? Aln ite. Eer tazesini bulursam
dnerim. Y z yirmi be kuruumu geri verirsiniz.
B .: Ekmek fiyat her yerde ayndr, iki buuk liralk ekmei size
niye yz yirmi be kurua vereyim?
A .: Canm, amma da adamsnz! Y a hi satamazsanz ekmei?
Elinizde kalrsa? iki buuk lira zarar etmi olmayacak msnz?
B .: Y a satarsam? Hem bu iin yarn, brgn de var.
A .: Bu ekmek yarna kadar oktan bozulur. Baksanza ta gibi.
Bugn satamazsanz bir daha hi satamazsnz.
B .: Bal gibi satarm. Bazan yleleri geliyor ki, ta verseniz suda
slayp yiyecekler.
A .: imdi bir dakika. yle dnelim: Ben size le st gelip
bir ekmek alyorum. Eve gidiyorum. Bakyorum ki bir tane de ka
263
rm alm. Ekmei geri getiriyorum. Size durumu anlatyorum. Pa
ram geri vermez misiniz?
B .: (hafif akn) Nasl yani?
A .: Pekala anladnz ne demek istediimi.
B .: Veririm.
A .: imdi de ayn ey olamaz m? Ekmei alrm. Bakarm ihti--
yacm yok, geri getiririm. Param da geri isterim.
B .: Y ok beyim yok. imdi durum baka. Bir kere, le st sizin
bakkalda ne iiniz var. iinizde olursunuz. Hem o zaman ekmei
miz de bol olur. Bayat ekmeimiz de olmaz. Olsa da almazsnz.
A .: Niye almazmm?
B .: Baka yerden tazesini alrsnz da ondan.
A .: Aman canm, bayat mayat, alyorum ekmei.
B .: Vazgetim beyim, satmyorum.
A : Ne demek satmyorum?
B .: Basbaya satmyorum.
A .: Parasn veriyoruz ya be adam! Niye satmyormuun?
B .: Ne bileyim ben, satmyorum ite.
A .: Nasl olur, bakkaln ii maln satmak deil midir?
B .: Bu ekmei satmyorum. Hem imdi aklma geldi, bizde de
ekmek yok bu akam.
A .: Senin yznden ekmeksiz mi kalacaz yani? Peki, be lira
vereyim ekmee?
B .: Hayr.
A .: On lira?
B .: Satmyorum dedik ya beyim, satmyorum.1
nc Mevki (Sait Faik Abasyank)
Vagonun iindeki alt kiiden bir tanesi, dayanamad ve yannda-
ki ne:
Gideceim yol ok uzak, dedi.
Y anndaki, gz kapaklar yar ak, uykulu kara gzl bir
adamd. Sapanca Gl bu adamn gzlerinin iinde przsz, dal
gasz, bir damla k ve cam gibi parldad. Sordu :
(1) B. Bozikurt.
264
Neresi?
K ayseriye gidiyorum, ilk defa, mrmde ilk uzun yolcu
luum. Y anma bir gazete bile almamm. Y olculuk, bilhassa tren
yolculuu skc, yorucu, zc ey!..
yledir.
yledir diyen, Sapanca Glnn elma bahelerine gzlerini
kapad. Ve ar ar, gl, elma ve plak ocuklar dnerek
uyudu.
Y anma bir gazete bile almam adam, sklyor, zlyor, uyu
mak istiyor, uyuyamyor. Kayseri ok acayip bir kinat, Seddiin
kenarnda bir tuhaf ehir gibi muhayyelesini gcklyor: Hanlar,
kervansaraylar, dar sokaklarda amar ykayp ocuklarn d
ven yal kadnlar, ellerinde uzun birer pastrma le yemeini
yiyen memurlar ve uzayan bir gn.
K ayseriye giden, ksa boylu, sevimli yzl, sar gzl, csse
sinden hi umulmayan kaim, kocaman, tyl ellere malik bir
adamd. K arsndaki iman adam gazetesini bir tarafa braktk
tan sonra, K ayseriye giden adama bakt, glmsedi:
Demek ki K ayseriye, dedi.
K ayseriye giden, daire mdr hat rn sormu ihtiyar ve
mahcup bir memur gibi sevindi. Y ana sklm ve yana skl
ma zaman gemi bir kk kz gibi kzard.
Evet, K ayseriye efendim. Zatliniz de mi? Gzel midir
efendim, Kayseri, nasldr?
K ayseriye demek hi terif buyrulmad?
i lk uzun seyahatim, efendim. Szn temsili, K asmpaada
dodum, Beyolunu bilmem efendim.
Y a, vah vah!
Gazetesinin iln sayfalarn okumaya dalan iman adama,
K ayseriye giden K asmpaal hayretle bakt. Niin, vah vah di
yordu? Acaba K ayseriye gidiyor diye mi zlyor? Y oksa, Bey-
oluna kmad iin mi hznleniyordu? iman adam, kafa
sndaki dncelere de vah vah diyebilir, diye dnd. Ferahlad.
Geyve boaznn kayalklar dibinde birer ekiya, bazan birer
kahraman, hayaletler, insanlar, silhlar ve bombalar, bir ete
265
gizlidir. Bu kayalarda vahi keilere, yaban kedilerine tesadf et
mezsek hayret etmelidir. K k bir su, bu dekorun gizli grn
mez kahramanlarna, ekiyalarma, yabani hayvanlarna ses verir.
Kk, masum derelerin kzl tyl kayalarn dibinde cengver
arklar syledii akam zaman gelmiti. Alt kiiden imdi
yemek yiyordu. K asmpaadan Beyoluna hi kmam adam
ilk konumaya balad zaman kara gzlerini amt. K onumak
istemedii, hl Sapanca Glnn elmalklar ve kestane aa
lar, plak ocuklarile uyuduu anlalyordu. Gazetesini bitirmi
adam zntlyd. Defterine bir eyler kaydediyordu. Kede
bada kurmu, nce kunduralarn, sonra da oraplarn kar
m birisi, sska yznden taan bir canllkla, yanndakine Bo
naka bir eyler anlatyordu. Onun yanndaki, bir Srp kyls
kadar sar, krmz bir genti. Ne muztarip glyordu. L isanlarn
anlamadmz insanlarn haleti ruhiyelerini kefetmek hususun
da ok ciziz. Onlarn bizim hergnk konutuumuzdan daha
baka, daha mhim eyler konutuklarn sanrz. Bir mddet
onlarla ok alkadar olduumuz halde biraz sonra onlar unutu
verir, yine kendimize, lisanmza ve etrafmza, yani kendi kendi'
mize dneriz.
Tren durmu; Geyve istasyonu toz, bulut ve akam pembelie
iinde bir sar in ehri gibi kaynayor; yalnayak ocuklar, sa
lar perian arabaclar ve bir kasket yamuru istasyonu dolduru
yordu. Bu kasketlerin altnda insanlar; budaylarn, tahta tra
versleri, zm ekmek ve bir vagon penceresinden kendilerine ba
kan bir hayali dnyorlar. Zaman, akamn tozpembesine ka
rm, iptidai bir zaman, bu insanlar ta K ayserilere gtren
hain ve dehetli homurtuya; yani imendferin yal manivelas
ve yars kzl tekerlekli makinesine bakyordu.
O, zamanla bir olmu yolculardand. Geyve istasyonunda bir
aa bir yukar dolayor; yazn korkun stmasnn gkyzne
ve gkyznn yldzlarna kadar sirayet eden bu kk kasabay
terke hazrlanyordu. Bu, uzun bir stma geirmi insanlarn kor
kusu gzlerinde, dala byk bir mahlktu. O da K ayseriye gi
decekti. K ayserinin havas iyiydi. Erciyesin resmini grmt.
Ovalarn ve kk tmseklerin yannda, etrafna hi bir dost ve
sevgili takmadan bir bekr adam gibi ykseliveren Erciyei d
hilere benzetirdi, yle kurak ve kimsesiz memleketlerde kendi
balarna sivriliveren insanlardan bir insand sanki Erciye. K ay
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seriyi deil, Erciyei seven adam da deminki be kiilik ve altn-
cs ben olduum kompartmana girdi. Sen isteksiz kendisine ye
atm. O, marur oturdu. Bu yer onun sarih hakk idi. K imsenin
surat etmeye hakk yoktu.
Salar ve yarm kasketi arklar kadar tozlu, pantalonu ve
ceketi derisinin rengi kadar hareli ve yamal, ilk bakta grbz
bir kyl, sekizinci yolcumuz oldu. K yllerden bahsettiimiz za
man aslan gibidir, soan ekmek yer, aslan gibi olur deriz. By-
leleri olduunu inkr etmek ne kadar yanlsa; vehen aslan gibi
gzkt halde, kaburga kemikleri kk, iindeki zanm pek
ou haddinden fazla bym veya klm kyllere de tesa
df edilmez demek o kadar yanltr. Soan ekmek yalnz ehirli
midesine deil, kyl midesine de dokunabilir ve dokunmaktadr.
Kyl de acaip bir saffet, fakat beklenilmeyen bir cesaretle
kendisine isteksizce verilen yere skt. Hatt biraz daha yer aa
bilmek iin saa sola kprdand. Bir kylnn bu kadar pikin
olacan tahmin edemiyen iman adam, bana bakt. Ben gzle
rimi ve iimi kylden yana evirdim. iman adam selm vermi
te karsndaki almam gibi kzard. Kyl heybesini am, hey
beden kumlu bir ekmekle iki domates karmt. Domatesler ne
tatl eylere benziyordu. Bir tanesini de bana uzatt. Ne abuk
anlamtk. Uzatlan eyi glerek aldm. K endi francalamla ye
meye baladm. Bir lokma kaar peynirini kylye uzattm. Ald.
Koklad, sucuk koklayan bir K aramanl yziyle:
stanbul ii olduu belli, dedi. Halis Balkan olmal?
Y ok be day. Bu istasyon kaar.
Daha iyisi de olurmu demek, dedi.
Sonra dnerek ilve etti :
Daha iyisi can sal
imdi hepsi uyuyordu. Hepsi, tanmadklar bir ehir d
nerek uyuyorlard. Kyl ile K asmpaal uyankt. Ben uyuyor
muydum? Gzlerim kapalyd, kafamda kk ocuklarla dolu
bir mektep... kafas aydnlk bir arkada, ve sergzet. Bir k
k tonton kafa dnerek dalyordum. Kyl, Eskiehirde indi.
Onun indiinin farkndaym. K asmpaal hl uyumuyor. Gz
n aana lkrd yetitirmeye alyordu. Fakat gzn kimse
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amyordu ki. Bu his bende o kadar kuvvetliydi ki, ve K asmpa-
al o kadar benim gzm amam kolluyordu ki.
Tren durdu. Gecenin iinde Haymana bkir bir orman sesi
veriyor. Geyvede stma kapm entellektelin de gzleri kapal
ve dnceleri bir rya kadar gayri uur. Bir kk kazann is
tasyonunda inip unutulmak, imanlamak. Bir kasap kziyle ev
lenmek, belediye reisiyle sigara imek, tahri rat ktibiyle tavla
oynamak... ve gelip gemek mmkn olabilse diye dnyor.
Haymana ovas yalnz geceleri glge veren aalaryle hayatna
karacak. O, bu kafasyle kocaman bir kstek sahibi olabilecek.
Belki bir srs olacak. Ona da bir mddet sonra hayvan alp
satt iin cambaz diyecekler. Cambaz ne gzel bir kelime.
Tren ar ar hareket ediyor. K asmpaal uyuyor ve ko
numuyor. Bir belediye fenerinin aydnlatt tozlu sokan ba
ndaki evin muamba perdelerinden ilenen her kompartmanda
uyumayan yolcular var. Ben salonu dolayorum. Bir kk o
cuk uyumu. Uyku ne dinlendirici. Y erime kk ocuun sa
larndan ve kafasndan aldm bir masumiyetle kyorum.
Ayn ocukluk sinirlerime yaylyor. Fakat zehirlenir gibi uyu
yorum. (1)
( ) Sait Faik Abasyank, Semaver, K umpanya, stanbul : Varlk Y aynlar, 1965.