Source: new york Times Magazine
During the epidemic, new york Times Magazine invited 29 authors to write short stories inspired by the epidemic and set up THE DECAMERON column, which was inspired by Giovanni Boccaccio’s collection of realistic novels "decameron" and set in Florence, which was ravaged by the plague in the 14th century.
Decameron, painted by sandro botticelli in 1487.
We selected five novels from this column, including aliens who participated in the galactic aid program, lonely souls wandering in isolated cells, a "charitable" robber, mutual watch under a conceptual device and a clinical record full of family love. These novels show people’s desperate desire for hope and love during the epidemic period in a humorous or calm or warm style. As far as the genre of fiction is concerned, since there will be great and important real news all the time, why do we need imaginary stories instead?
"When reality becomes surreal, only novels can make it meaningful." Source: new york Times Magazine
"Art is to make life more interesting than art itself," Robert Filliou, a French surf painter, wrote in one of his works. Life is often very deceptive, and it is easy for us to ignore some established and profound facts, even if they are laid out before our eyes. There is a word in Italian: novelle, which refers not only to simple fictional stories, but also to non-fictional social reality. The fascinating stories in decameron are the real life of Florence. When the reality becomes surreal, reading novels is not only a way to understand and perceive the times, but also a force that supports us in difficulties.
1. You Chaokai: Systems
Charles Yu is a Chinese-American writer. His Guide to the Survival of the Science Fiction Universe was selected as the best book of the year by The New York Times and Time magazine. As a screenwriter, he participated in the compilation of some episodes of HBO series "westworld" and was nominated for two American Writers Association Awards. His novels and nonfiction works have been published in The New Yorker, The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal for many times.
They need each other, like each other and miss each other.
Source: new york Times Magazine
In this story, the author describes a device, or rather, it is the materialization of modern society. Everyone has a different box. The box follows the rotation of the earth and the natural laws of the sun rising and the moon setting. They communicate and collide through the box. Although the world in the box is so similar to the well-known world, one day they will come out of the box and stand in the sun, because the eternal thing is that they need real contact, they need each other, like each other and miss each other.
(The following is a fragment of the novel)
They need each other, like each other and miss each other.
They will ask themselves:
Will cats get depressed?
They search:
Food bank donation. The food bank near me.
What is an epidemic outbreak? What is the rest period? How to ensure the safety of children? How to ensure the safety of the elderly? How old is old? Am I old enough?
Numbers, rising numbers of infections.
How long will the symptoms of coronavirus appear? Do you have a coronavirus vaccine? How to avoid virus infection? How did the coronavirus start? Is the virus getting worse? What is mental health? How to judge whether I am depressed or not? Which is the safest takeaway?
They search:
The telephone number of the unemployment office.
When can we reopen the bowling alley?
……
They search:
The cat is still depressed.
We are in a bear market.
What is a bear market?
What is payroll tax reduction?
What is martial law?
How to take refuge in situ?
Safest city life?
Symptoms of fever, symptoms of dry cough ……
How to make hand sanitizer? How to sew a mask? What is N95? How to lower body temperature? Living alone, what if I am alone?
Some people are radical. Some people are confused. Some people forget. Some people follow the rules They share the device: the air, information and ideas in the device.
Some people enjoy breathing as their right to live. Some people cannot breathe.
……
They will move on, coming out of one box after another and walking into the sun. The circulation and operation of the system are restored. They will still send messages to each other. Some people will be confused. Some people will share food. Some people will die. Some people will starve. And some people will still be alone
The device is still that device. But change is inevitable-rebuilding or looking for a new model. They will fly into the air again and gather in the hub by thousands. They will push each other’s air and make hahaha or other sounds produced by real communication-in order to convey invisible emotional signals. Because there are always things that are eternal-they need each other, like each other and miss each other.
2. david mitchell: If Dreams Are Horses.
David Mitchell, an English novelist and screenwriter, whose work Cloud Map was shortlisted for the Booker Prize. The title of this short story is taken from the Scottish proverb-If wishes are horses, beggars can ride. The moral is that if hope can make things come true, even people who have nothing will have everything they want.
I stood up and found that Zam’s bed was empty, with no sheets and nothing.
Source: new york Times Magazine
Thirty years later, the epidemic is still not over. My former cellmate was infected, so I had to move to a single isolation cell. Although it is a single room, an asymptomatic infected person has checked into this isolation cabin before me. His name is Zam. Dirty windows, breakfast and lunch once a day, the company of mice, and boring cabin life. Fortunately, Zam accompanied me. He cared about me and chatted with me. He said that survival is a superpower when eating less, and left all the food to me. On the third day of my stay, I began to have symptoms of infection. The doctor is from China, surnamed Wang. I noticed that when Zam was chatting with Dr. Wang, Zam’s voice suddenly became very strange, as if it were coming from a distant place. Zam also said that he would supervise me to take medicine until I recovered. After a few days, my condition improved greatly.
(The following is a fragment of the novel)
"It’s thanks to my exclusive nurse, Zam," I said to Dr. Wang.
"Good. Who’s Zam?"
"Zam", I pointed to my upper bunk.
"What are you talking about … the superior? Or the warden? "
We were all puzzled. "No, Zam, my roommate, doctor. You saw him last time."
Dr. Wang looked at a loss. "We won’t allow two prisoners to be held in an isolation cell."
"I’m afraid you people really allow it."
"If there is a third person in such a small place, I won’t miss it."
I shouted to the upper berth, "Zam, answer."
My cellmate didn’t make a sound. Is he asleep?
Dr. Wang looked at my condition and was very worried. He went on to say, "Have you taken any hallucinogenic drugs? I won’t report it to the warden, but as your doctor, I must know."
"It’s not funny, Zam." I stood up and found Zam’s bed was empty, with no sheets and nothing.
3. Mia Cotto: "An Obliging Robber"
Mia Couto, a famous Mozambican writer, is an influential African writer in Portuguese literature. She won the cames Prize in 2013, the most important Portuguese literature prize, and the Neustadt International Literature Prize in 2014.
People wearing masks have friendly expressions and speak softly, but I don’t let myself be fooled.
Source: new york Times Magazine
The robber in front of him shouted "Keep your distance" to me. He barged in like this, holding a pistol, even though he said it was a thermometer and he was from the Ministry of Health. But I won’t be fooled. My wife died of tuberculosis, I was almost killed by smallpox, and malaria took our only son, but no one wants to know. I live far from the hospital, and I am poor. The liar and robber continued to lie. He said I might be asymptomatic. I don’t understand. I hardly go out. He said that he would come again next week after leaving a hygiene brochure, soap and a small bottle of alcohol. I see, the disease he said should be called "indifference".
(The following is a fragment of the novel)
I didn’t listen to his instructions to keep my distance, so I walked up to him and hugged him. The robber resisted vigorously, broke free from my arm and returned to the car. He took off his clothes in a hurry, just like taking off the coat of the plague, and the name of this plague is poverty.
I smiled and waved goodbye to him. After so many years of torture, I have been able to reconcile with human nature. I think this is a clumsy robber, but he is a good man. Next time he comes, I’ll let him steal the old TV in my bedroom.
4. Margaret Atwood: Impatient Griselda.
Margaret Atwood is a Canadian novelist, essayist and poet. She is also a feminist and social activist. She is the winner of Booker Award and Arthur Clark Award. Her works have been shortlisted for the Governor-General Award of Canada for seven times and won two awards. She is one of the most respected novelists in the contemporary era. Her Handmaid’s Tale was adapted into a series of dramas of the same name, which aroused strong social repercussions.
Sir and madam, I also hope that the plague will pass soon, so that I can return to my normal life.
Source: new york Times Magazine
The octopus-like aliens took part in the galactic crisis assistance program to help people on earth survive the plague. In order to appease the earthlings and help them pass the time, the alien told a story to the earthlings: on an ancient planet, there were a pair of twin sisters, who were inferior species with "false feet"-patient Griselda (sister) and impatient Griselda (sister). There was a violent duke who induced his sister to marry him on the grounds of promoting her status through marriage. My sister, worried about her safety, disguised herself as a dishwasher and went to the back kitchen of the Duke’s house. She learned that the duke treated his new wife very badly and was rude to her in public, even punching her. Angry sister asked out her younger sister and exchanged identities with her, intending to kill the duke. In the garden at night, my sister cut the duke’s throat, and then the two sisters ate up the duke’s bones, brocade robes and everything on him.
(The following is a fragment of the novel, and the narrator is an "octopus" alien)
What? What is WTF? Sorry, I don’t understand.
Yes, sir and madam, I admit that this is a cross-cultural moment. I simply said the choice I would make if I were in their situation. But storytelling does help us to understand each other across social, historical and even evolutionary gaps, doesn’t it?
Later, the twin sisters married two other beautiful "false feet" of the same kind and they lived happily in the palace. Several relatives of the duke became suspicious. They came to inquire about the news and were eaten by their sisters.
End of story.
You don’t like this ending? Not a regular ending? So which is your favorite ending? Oh no, the ending you imagine will be completely another story. I’m not interested in that story, and I can’t tell it well. But you have to admit, I did tell this story very well, didn’t I? You see, you even forgot to sniffle. Sniffing is very annoying. On my planet, only people who are treated as snacks will sniffle.
I have to go now. There are several other quarantine groups on my appeasement list, and my job is to help them pass the time, just like I did for you. Yes, madam, sir, the difficulties will pass anyway, but not so soon.
Now I’m going to slide out from the bottom of the door. No skeleton helped me a lot. Yes, sir and madam. I also hope that the plague will pass soon. So I can get back to my normal life.
5. Liz Moore: Clinical Notes
Liz Moore, an American writer, won the Rome Prize for Literature in 2014, and her works include The Invisible World.
Clinical record of a high fever in infants.
Source: new york Times Magazine
In this story, Liz recorded the psychological changes from the symptoms of the baby to the parents in the form of a clinical report, and the author described a warm little family story with the calm brushwork of a bystander. At the end, the baby who succeeded in getting out of danger went to sleep quietly. Under the dim light, the mother looked at the shadow of the baby’s face and the undulating breathing. She thought of her grandmother who always had candy in her pocket, her mother who accompanied her to watch The Sound of Music when she was sick, and many grandparents who held their children with the same tenderness. She repeatedly touched the baby’s skin, "warm but not hot, warm but not hot", she repeated, was it a chant or a prayer …
We regard this article as the final one of this selection, because it is a novel that can bring love and hope to readers, just like bathing in the long-lost sun after a plum rain. Just as at the end of decameron, the young people didn’t leave their Florence forever. Two weeks later, they decided to return-not because the plague was over, but because after laughing, crying and imagining the new rules of living together, they could finally see the present again and think about the future. The stories told in those days when they left their homes made their world, at least temporarily, lively again. It is very important and meaningful to remember that we will eventually die, because we often forget it in our lives. At the same time, we must live in the present and try our best to remember what life is like now-this is the message conveyed by decameron.
Attachment: the complete catalogue of THE DECAMERON PROJECT
1. Title of the article: Systems (Device)
Author: Charles Yu
2. article title: "if wishes are horses" (if dreams are horses)
Author: David Mitchell
3. Title of the article: "An Obliging Robber" (kind robber)
Author: Mia Couto
4. Title of the article: Impassional Griselda (Impatient Griselda)
Author: Margaret Atwood
5. Title: Clinical Notes (Clinical Report)
Author: Liz Moore
6. One Thing (a little thing)
Author: Edwidge Danticat
7. The Team
Author: Tommy Orange
8. Line 19 Woodstock/Glisan (Bus No.19)
Author: Karen Russell
9. Tales from the L.A. River (a legend from the Los Angeles River)
Author: Colm Toibin
10. "recognition" (recognition)
Author: Victor Lavalle
11.《Sleep (falling asleep)
Author: Uzodinma Iweala
12.《Outside (outdoor)
Author: Etgar Keret
13.《The Perfect Travel Buddy (Best Travel Companion)
By Paolo Giordano
14. "a blue sky like this" (the sky is so blue)
Author: Mona Awad
15.《The Rock (Rock)
Author: Leila Slimani
16.《Keepsakes (souvenir)
By Andrew O’Hagan
17. The Girl with the Big Red Suitcase (a girl with a big red suitcase)
By Rachel Kushner
18.《The Walk (Walking)
Author: Kamila Shamsie
19.《The Morningside (Morning Life)
Author: Téa Obreht
20.《Screen Time (screen time)
Author: Alejandro Zambra
21.《How We Used to Play (how we used to play)
Author: Dinaw Mengestu
22.《Prudent Girls (cautious girl)
Author: Rivers Solomon
23. "Under the Magnolia" (under the magnolia tree)
Author: Yiyun Li
24.《The Cellar (cellar)
Author: Dina Nayeri
25. "To the Wall" (desperate)
Author: Esi Edugyan
26. that time at my brother’s wedding (at that time, at my brother’s wedding)
Author: Laila Lalami
27. "A time of death, the death of time" (the time of death and the death of time)
Author: Julián Fuks
28 28.《Barcelona:Open City (Barcelona: Open City)
Author: John Wray
29.《Origin Story (Origin Story)
Author: Matthew Baker
This article is compiled and arranged exclusively for Phoenix Net Culture, and may not be reproduced without permission.
Editor | Dabao
Editor | Wei Bingxin
Photo | new york Times Magazine
Original title: Novelists and Novels under Epidemic Situation: Modern decameron Created by Atwood and Other Writers.
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