比起眼盲，心盲或許才最可怕──《失明症漫記》

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• 早陣子聽播客不約而同地有講者介紹葡萄牙作家若澤·薩拉馬戈(José Sarmago)所寫的《失明症漫記》(Blindness)，這讓近年不太看非科幻小說的我產生興趣，結果很快便讀完這部小說。讀罷本書的第一個感想是︰幸好我不是在2020年疫情爆發初期讀到這本災難小說，不然的話我一邊看到現實世界不停上演的種種荒誕情節，一邊經歷小說裏的文明社會急速崩壞，我很難不將小說裏的種種情節投射到現實世界中，而這只會令我對這個世界感到更加無助與沮喪。此外，本書的驚慄程度遠超我預期，那些迫真細緻的環境和人物描寫讓我多次深陷於書中場境並久久不能自拔，這種「體驗」恐怕是再驚嚇的恐怖電影或是再迫真的虛擬實境遊戲也沒法提供。
• 故事的情節十分簡單︰一個城市突然爆發離奇疫症，感染的人都會在沒有徵兆的情況下突然失去視力。初時政府將感染人士和密切接觸者送進隔離營(經過疫情這些詞彙讀起來多麼耳熟能詳)，然後作者便聚焦描寫這個隔離營的生活狀況，人們賴以為生的社會制度與法規便迅速消失，取而代之的是殘酷無情的叢林法則，大部份人為了生存都放棄文明社會的道德規範與價值觀，一些人透過暴力威嚇來榨壓弱者，甚至向他們施暴來釋放他們最原始最獸性的慾望。隨著傳染病越傳越廣，集中營內的資源和環境也越來越惡劣，人們最終只能放下所有道德底線奮力掙扎，務求在這黑暗世界中尋找到指向出口的一線光。諷刺的是，和現實世界的失明者不同，書內失明者的雙眼卻會看到白茫茫一片，這與他們身處的黑暗世界形成強烈對比。
• 作者在書中對很多細節都有很細緻的描寫，例如盲人失去視力後如何適應在隔離營的生活、在物資日趨匱乏的情況下盲人如何逐步卸下道德枷鎖來改變想法、再到衛生環境急速惡化盲人摒棄所有生活常規(隨地便溺、赤祼全身活動)、還有盲人面對暴力威嚇時所產生的恐懼與絕望情緒、到最後盲人在瘟疫橫行的都市內如何覓食求存等，這些場景和人物狀態都在書中有很生動立體的描寫，而這令讀者更易代入到故事中的失序世界，並深深感受到盲人所面對的恐怖與絕望。書中不時出現遍地屎尿、臭氣沖天的污穢場景，也少不了關於人性陰暗面的描寫，更有一幕令人看得毛骨悚然的性侵情節，作者似要透過這些鉅細無遺的描寫來迫使讀者直視這些醜陋畫面，同時也讓我們深思︰到底平日看似牢不可破的社會制度在面對危機時是否仍能堅如磐石？人們在生死關頭又是否仍能維持我們賴以自豪的人性與尊嚴？人類與野獸真的有著不可逾越的界線嗎？
• 雖然本書以失明這種天馬行空的傳染病為開端，但這亦是小說中唯一一個奇幻之處，接下來書中大部份情節均按著現實世界中的自然常理來推演，換句話說作者單憑一個簡單的構思便打破我們對現實世界的種種認知並創造出全新的想像空間，這是非常簡單但亦極富想象力的設定，而且很有「Less is more」的味道。與此同時書中大部份情節均不需借助任何非自然力量來發展，各個人物的行為和情節在現實世界中都絕對可能發生，這種既虛構亦真實的故事情節為讀者帶來更強烈的恐懼與震撼︰一方面書中的悲慘世界和不堪入目的暴行已經足以令人感到驚駭，但想到同樣的情節也可能在現實世界中發生時，讀者便很難不將書中的情景投射到現實生活中，而這或許是小說更讓人感到可怕的地方。
• 整部小說的另一個有趣設定便是醫生的妻子，她是書中唯一一個保持正常視力的人物。當你以為她能夠在盲人世界中自由穿梭甚至借著她的「超能力」來號令他們時，她卻害怕因為自己這份「天賦」而被迫服務所有盲人、甚至因此成為他們的奴隸，結果她只能小心翼翼地隱藏自己的「天賦」，但同時又要適時地協助盲人(如帶領他們下樓領取食物)。在作者筆下，她被塑造成心地善良同時又富堅定意志的英雌角色；她知道自己有責任協助丈夫及身邊同伙感染者在逆境中掙扎求存(如帶領他們逃出隔離營、尋找食物等)、她(還有一眾女感染者)為了食物願意忍辱負重屈服於暴徒的無理要求(這一幕我差點看不下去)、她甚至盡力協助她身邊的盲人維持最低限度的尊嚴(如協助他們洗澡、換上乾淨衣服)。她曾經說到︰

If we cannot live entirely like human beings, at least let us do everything in our power not to live entirely like animals.

• 在這個黑暗無底的深淵中，醫生的妻子在隔離營內外一直默默承受種種悲傷、憤怒與責任，她的存在成為了眾人活下去的最大希望。如果說整部小說有甚麼最發光發亮的人物，這位醫生的妻子想必當之無愧。
• 這部小說的另一個特點便是奇特的書寫風格。首先全書人物都沒有名字，作者往往以「The first blind man」、「The girl with a dark glasses」之類的簡短形容來指明人物。更特別的是作者在全書中只使用逗點和句號兩個標點符號，連眾人的對話也不以引號來標明，只以首字大階來標示對話開始(據說中文版有加入冒號來表示類似意思)，結果一些多人對話便如以下內容般混雜在一起，很容易讓人看得暈頭轉向︰

We can stay here, said the girl with dark glasses, Our house is bigger, Assuming it has not been occupied, the wife of the first blind man pointed out, When we get there we’ll find out, and if it should be occupied we can come back here, or go and take a look at your house, or yours, she added, addressing the old man with the black eyepatch, and he replied, I have no home of my own, I lived alone in a room, Have you no family, asked the girl with dark glasses, No family whatsoever, Not even a wife, children, brothers and sisters, No one, Unless my parents turn up, I shall be alone just like you. I’ll stay with you, said the boy with the squint, but did not add, Unless my mother turns up, he did not lay down this condition, strange behaviour, or perhaps not so strange, the young quickly adapt, they have their whole life before them. What do you think, asked the doctor’s wife, I’m going with you, said the girl with dark glasses, all I ask is that you should bring me here once a week just in case my parents should happen to return, Will you leave the keys with the neighbour below, There’s no alternative, she cannot take more than she has taken already, She might destroy things, Now that I’ve been here, perhaps not, We’re coming with you too, said the first blind man, although we should like, as soon as possible, to pass by our home and find out what has happened, Of course, No point in passing by my house, I’ve already told you it was just a room. But you’ll come with us, Yes, on one condition, at first sight it must seem scandalous for someone to lay down conditions when he is being done a favour, but some old people are like that, they make up in pride for the little time remaining to them, What condition is that, asked the doctor, When I start becoming an impossible burden, you must tell me, and if, out of friendship or pity, you should decide to say nothing, I hope I’ll still have enough judgment to do the necessary, And what might that be, I’d like to know, asked the girl with dark glasses, Withdraw, take myself off, disappear, as elephants used to do, I’ve heard it said that recently things have been different, none of these animals reach old age, You’re not exactly an elephant, Nor am I exactly a man, Especially if you start giving childish replies, retorted the girl with dark glasses, and the conversation went no further.

• 除了對話，作者在敍述事件時又經常使用大量子句來編寫出冗長繁複的句子︰

When, for the first time, a bus-driver was suddenly struck by blindness as he was driving his vehicle on a public road, despite the casualties and injuries resulting from the disaster, people did not pay much attention for the same reason, that is to say, out of force of habit, and the director of public relations of the transport company felt able to declare, without further ado, that the disaster had been caused by human error, regrettable no doubt, but, all things considered, as unforeseeable as a heart attack in the case of someone who had never suffered from a heart complaint. Our employees, explained the director, as well as the mechanical and electrical parts of our buses, are periodically subjected to rigorous checks, as can be seen, showing a direct and clear relation of cause and effect, in the extremely low percentage of accidents in which, generally speaking, our company’s vehicles have been involved.

• 初時我實在很不習慣(甚至是有點討厭)這種寫作風格，但是讀到後段才開始想到這或許也和失明者的感受有關︰對於失明者(特別是剛失明的人)而言，所有人都失去了臉孔，而這就像人失去了名字一樣被抹走一種可供辨認的特徵，所有人的特徵都是矇矓抽象的；同時在失明者的感官世界中，各種資訊(包括聽覺和觸覺)都只能如碎片般進入腦海，失明者只能自行重新組織、消化、解讀，情況有如書中這些充滿跳躍式子句的冗長句子。這些寫作手法令讀者透過間接的方式體會盲人只能藉著模糊、零碎的資訊來探知世界的感受。
• 作者雖然在最後還是讓一眾主要人物有個美好結局，但同時作者亦透過醫生的妻子指出︰

I don’t think we did go blind, I think we are blind, Blind but seeing, Blind people who can see, but do not see.

• 在現實世界中，作者經常向世界的種種不公義而感到憤怒。據說曾有一名記者詢問他為什麼要寫《失明症漫記》，他回答：「我過得很好，但這個世界不好。」在本書中，作者對人性陰暗面進行了不少描寫，迫使讀者直視這些不堪真相，或許作者希望藉此表達大部份人都對這些邪惡和不公選擇視而不見，這種選擇性失明往往比生理性失明更可怕。