爱华网AnInterviewwithCarylPhillips
ZhangHelong
Abstract：CarylPhillips，bornintheCaribbeanandraisedinEngland，isaleadingnovelistincontemporaryBritishliterature．Hisbest-knownnovelsincludeHigherGround（1989），Cam-bridge（1991），CrossingtheRiver（1993），whichwasshortlistedforthe1993BookerPrize，TheNatureofBlood（1997），andADistantShore（2003），thewinnerofthe2004CommonwealthWritersPrize．HisworksmainlyfocusontheAfricanDiasporabothinhistoryandinthecontem-poraryworld．InMarch2011，Dr．ZhangHelong，ProfessorofShanghaiInternationalStudiesU-niversityandaFulbrightResearchScholaratYaleUniversity，interviewedPhillipsinNewYork．Inthisinterview，Phillipstalksaboutthesubjectmatterandnarrativestructureinhismajorworks，andstatesthatfictionisanalternativehistory．HeadmitsthathewasinfluencedbyAfri-canAmericanwriterslikeRalphEllison，RichardWrightandJamesBaldwin，andexplainswhyheisconcernedwithissueslikebelonginganddisplacementasamigrantwriter．HebelievesthatBritishcultureisdominantinhisbloodalthoughhemaybeculturallyhybridtosomeextent．Keywords：CarylPhillipsDiasporaslavenarrativeidentityculturalhybridity
Author：Dr．ZhangHelongisprofessoratInstituteofLiteraryStudies，ShanghaiInternationalStudiesUniversity（Shanghai200083，China）．HisresearchfieldiscontemporaryBritishfiction．Email：hlzhang@shisu．edu．cn
标题：卡里尔·菲利普斯访谈录
内容摘要：卡里尔·菲利普斯是当代英国著名黑人小说家。他出生于加勒比海的圣基茨岛，
《高地》（1989）、《剑桥》（1991）、《渡河》四个月后随父母移居英国。他的长篇小说代表作有
（1993）、《血液的本质》（1997）、《远岸》（2003）等，其中《渡河》获1993年布克小说奖提名，《远岸》获2004年英联邦最佳作家奖。他的作品主要以描写非裔流散者为主。2011年3
《外国文学研究》月，应之邀，上海外国语大学张和龙教授在耶鲁大学做富布莱特研究学者期间赴纽约对菲利普斯进行了专访。在访谈中，菲利普斯谈及自己的小说主旨与叙事结构，认为小说是另一种历史。他表示自己深受美国非裔作家埃里森、赖特、鲍德温等人的影响。作为旅居美国的英国作家，他对身份、归属与错位等问题非常关注。他还提及自己熟悉英美国与加勒比文化，但身上流淌着的主要是英国文化的血液。国、
关键词：卡里尔·菲利普斯流散奴隶叙事身份文化混杂
作者简介：张和龙，文学博士，上海外国语大学文学研究院教授，主要研究当代英国小说。
2外国文学研究2011年第3期
Zhang：Inmid-1980s，youpublished2shortnovels，TheFinalPassage（1985）andAStateofIndependence（1986）．Asyousaidatonetime，thesetwoearlynovelsareconventional，linearandchronologicalintime．Inretrospectasanestablishednovelist，whatwouldbeyourpresentfeelingstowardthem？
Phillips：ActuallythefirstsectionofTheFinalPassageiscalled“TheEnd．”Soit’snotthatchronological．AStateofIndependenceisquitechronological．（Butin）TheFinalPassage，actually，theepigraphisfromEliot，andisabouttime．IthinkIwasveryaware，evenintheveryfirstnovel，ofmovementintime，andnotdoingthingsinachronologicalorder．Icouldhavebe-
t．Rightfromthebe-gunthenovelintheCaribbean，andjustprogressedtoEngland，butIdidn’
ginning，Iwasinterestedintherelationshipofstorytellingtotime．
Actually，mythirdplay，TheShelter，issetintwodifferenttimeperiods，the18thcenturyinthefirstact，andthesecondactinthe1950s．Theplaywaspublishedandperformedin1983．ThatwastwoyearsbeforeTheFinalPassage．SoIthinkevenbeforeTheFinalPassage，Iwasbecomingawareoftryingtotellstorieswhichutilizedelementsoftimeinamorecreativeway．
smuchmoreformallyWithregardtoAStateofIndependenceyouareabsolutelycorrect．It’
chronological，withaconventionalnarrative．IthinkprobablybecauseitwasbornoutofobservingtheCaribbeanataparticularturningpoint．It’sacontemporarynovel，asortofsemi-politicalno-
treallyfeelasthoughIhadmuchroomtomovearoundintime．Ijustwantedtovel，soIdidn’
tellwhatIthoughtwasquiteanimportantstory．
Zhang：Yournext3novels，HigherGround（1989），Cambridge（1991），andCrossingtheRiver（1993），haveestablishedyourselfasagreatestnovelist．Intheseworks，therewasobvious-lyaturnofdirectionfromyourearlywritings．Whatwasyourstateofmindduringthatperiod？
Phillips：IthinkobviouslyIbegantotravelalotmore．Iwasfortunatelyabletocometothe
dalsobeenintheCaribbeanalotduringtheUnitedStatesquiteabitduringthisperiod．I’
1980s，soIthinkIwasbeginningtoseerelationshipsbetweenBritain，America，andtheCarib-bean，andwastryingtosomehownotonlyunderstandtherelationshipsinacontemporarysense，buttotrytounderstandthestoriesthatwerecirculated，ifyoulike，historicallybetweenthesethreeregions：theCaribbean，theUnitedStatesandBritain．Thereseemedtobelotsofuntoldnarrativesinthesesocieties．
sagoodquestionaboutmystateofmind．IsuspectitwasdefinitelyinfluencedbythefactIt’
thatIwastravelingquiteabitduringthisperiod．During1990，1991and1992，Iwaslivingin
teaching．IwroteCambridgebeforeIcametoAmericatoteach．Iwrotetheno-theUnitedStates，
velintheCaribbean，andfinishedthatnovelin1990．InSeptember1990，ItookmyfirstjobasateacherinAmericainMassachusetts．SoIthinkCrossingtheRiverdefinitelywasthefirstbookIwrotewhenactuallylivingintheUnitedStates．ButwithCambridge，IwaslivingintheCaribbe-an．
Zhang：These3novelsrepresentedyourintenseinterestinhistory．Yourrepresentationofhistoryisuniqueandparticularlyenlightening．Whatisyournotionofhistory？Whatdoyouthinkoftherelationshipbetweenhistoryandfiction？
Phillips：Mynotionofhistoryisit’sastory．Theword“story”isactuallycontainedintheword“history．”Somebodyhasconstructedthestorytoexplainwhowe，thecollectivewe，are，whetherweareChinese，whetherweareAmericans，whetherweareBritish；somebodyhascon-
smyideaofhistory；tomeit’sjustastory．structedthestorytoexplaintouswhoweare．That’
It’sopentointerpretation．It’sopentobechallenged．It’sopentobere-writtenandre-struc-tured．Itshouldn’tbetheBiblicalstory，youknow．Everythingisopentointerpretation，butIthinktheconventionalnotionofhistorywereceiveinschoolisthatthereisonlyonestory．Be-
ZhangHelong：AnInterviewwithCarylPhillips3
causeofmyupbringing，IneverbelievedthestorythatIwastoldofthehistoryofBritain．IneverreallybelievedanystorythatwastoldtomeashistorybecauseIalwaysknewitwasopentointer-
whenIwastravelingquiteabitbehindpretation．Thiswasreinforcedformeduringtheearly80s，
theIronCurtainincountrieslikeEastGermanyandPoland，whereitwasobviousthattheirnotionofhistorywasconstructedbytheSovietUnion．Itwasn’ttheirhistoryreally．SoeverywhereIseemedtoturn，Iwasseeingthesefalsehistories．Soforme，fictionwasjustanalternativehisto-ry．It’sjustadifferentwayoftellingastory，hopefully，inamoreengagingway．
Zhang：Asfarastheslavenarrativeisconcerned，ProfessorHenryLouisGatessaidthat“inthelonghistoryofhumanbondage，itwasonlytheblackslavesintheUnitedStateswhocreatedagenreofliterature．”Yourwritingsseemtofollowthissub-genreofliterature，butobviouslyinaverydifferentway．Haveyoueverbeeninfluencedbythepreviousslavenarrative？
Phillips：I’vereadacouple，butI’venotbeeninfluencedbytheform，theactualstruc-
venotreallybeeninfluencedbyanythingthat’sbeensaidcritically．Ithinkthemostture，andI’
importantinfluenceisthefacttheyexist．Thefactthattheslave，orformerslave，founditpossi-bletowritetheirstorymeansthatIcanmakeuseofthatmodeofexpressioninmywriting．Slavesdidwritetheirstories；thereforeIcanimaginemyselfintothemindoftheslave，andwriteasto-ry．Sothefactthatslavenarrativesexistisimportantbecauseitmakesitpossibleformetoimag-ine．ButIneversatdowntolookattheslavenarrativeasaliteraryformandthoughtofthemasbeinginfluential．
Zhang：IcanfindsomesignificantconsistenciesinHigherGround，Cambridge，andCross-ingtheRiver．Itseemstomelikeatrilogy．Didyouintendthemtobecontinuousinthematiccon-cernandformalexperimentation？
Phillips：No，notatall．Butobviouslytheywerewrittenquiteclosetogether，soperhapsitmakessensethatyoumightthinkofthemasatrilogy．No．Iwasjustconcernedwithwritingthenextbook．Ididn’tthinkofthemasbeingrelated．
Zhang：I’venoticedthatthestructuresofthe3novelsareverysimilartoeachother．Thereareusuallyseveralbothseparatedandconnectedsectionsineachofthem．Whateffectwouldyouexpectthestructuretoproduce？
Phillips：TheonlyeffectIhopethestructureproducesisthatitengagesthereaderinaway
con-whichchallengesthereadertothinkaboutconnectionsbetweenpeopleandplacesandtimes，
tthoughtaboutbefore．Isometimesthinkofmyselfastry-nectionsthatperhapsthereaderhasn’
talwaysconnectbyingtobuildbridgesanddigtunnelsbetweenvariouspartsofbooksthatdon’
wayofcharactersinthemannerinwhichaconventionalnovelmight．Generallyyouarenotgoingtopickupabook，thenhalfwaythroughthenovel，haveacompletelynewcharacterappear，orsuddenlymovetoacompletelydifferentcentury，becausethiswouldbetodisrupttheunityof
Iamhopingthatthereaderwillunderstandthatuni-character，placeandtime．Butinmybooks，
tyoftimeandplaceandcharacterisnotalwaysapplicabletothelivesofthesepeople．Ifcharac-tershavebeensubjectedtomigration，slavery，orthesekindsofdisruption，thenit’sveryhardtowriteabookaboutthelivesofsuchpeoplewhichisbaseduponconventionsoftime，placeandcharacter．Thiswouldbetoassumethattheworldiskindofstatic．Thebigeventsthathappeninmost19thcenturynovelsareeventsoftheheart．Theyarenotalwaysgreateruptionsofhistory，tearingapartone’sfamily，leavingone’sland，havingtolearnanewlanguage．SoIcan’tnar-
tassumethattheworldrateanovelwhichisabouttheseideasinaveryconventionalway．Ican’
isjustthesamewhenIgotobedintheeveningasitwillbeinthenextmorning．SoIhavetofindanewwayofreflectingthelivesofthepeopleinthebook．I’vegottofindawayofconnectingthemtothereaderwhichsuggestsdisruption，discontinuity，surprisingthings．That’swhatI’m
4外国文学研究2011年第3期
tryingtodointhesebooks；I’mtryingtodosomethingwiththeformthatsuggeststheturbulenceinthelivesofthesepeople．
Zhang：InTheNatureofBlood（1997），youdescribedboththepersecutionofJewishpeo-pleinancientandcontemporaryhistoryandthevictimizationofBlackpeople．Whatwereyourmotivationandintentiontomakesuchjuxtaposition？
Phillips：Theyarejuxtaposedbecauseinmymindtheyareconnected．IfyougrowupinEu-ropeyouknowthatthegreatnarrativeofloss，andthegreatnarrativeofrupture，istheHolo-caust，thekillingof6millioninnocentJewishpeopleinthemiddleofthe20thcentury．Itseemstomethatifyouareinterested，asIam，inhowtoparticipateinasociety，andwhentobecomeasafeparticipantinasociety，thenthestoryofwhathappenedtotheJewishpeopleinthemiddleofthelastcenturyisagreathorrorstory，astoryofalmostunimaginableloss，becauseJewishpeo-pleinAustria，Germany，France，andmanyothercountries，werenotjustparticipatingontheedgeofsociety，theywerecentraltothesociety，sociallyandculturally．Ifoneunderstandsthatstory，orcomestotermswiththatstory，thenitremindsmeinsomewaysofthetypeofdisrup-tion，andthetypeofdifficultiesthatblackpeopleinthediaspora，notjustblackpeopleinEu-rope，butinAfrica，intheCaribbean，inAmerica，havesuffered．Thisideathatyoucanpartici-pateinthesociety，butitcanbetakenawayfromyouanyminute．Youcanloseyourjob，be-causeofprejudice，becauseofdiscrimination．Sothetwothingsseemtometoberelatedinmyhead，assomebodygrewupinEurope，andwasveryawareoftheHolocaust．
Zhang：InADistantShore（2003）andIntheFallingSnow（2009），you’vechangedyoursettingsandsubjectmatterfromhistorytocontemporaryworld，butIcanstillfindsomecontinuityinyourthematicconcern．Whatkindoftheconnectiondidyouwanttoestablishbetweenhistoryandcontemporaryworld？
Phillips：Iwasn’treallythinkingtoomuchaboutthehistoricalinbothofthesenovels．Imeanobviouslythereareconcernsofthehistoricalthereinbothofthesenovels，butwhatwasmo-tivatingmetowritethemwasarealsenseofdisappointmentwithBritain．IamalwaystravelingtoBritain，butIhaven’tactuallylivedinBritainnowformorethan10years．Iwassomewhatdisap-pointedthatthesocietywasnotmakingmoreradicalstrides，morepositivestrides，towardsbe-comingamoremulti-culturalandharmonioussociety．SomeoftheproblemsthatIrecognizedfrommyownchildhoodcontinuetobeproblematicinBritain．Sointhatsense，yes，historywasfeed-ingthem，becauseIwasthinkingexactlythesamethingsarestillhappening．ButIwantedtotry
slivesarebeingreallytosaysomethingaboutwherethenationisatthemoment，howpeople’
badlyaffectedbyexactlythesameproblemsofpeoplenotcomingtotermswiththeirhistoryinBritain．
Zhang：InADistantShore，asinsomeofyourotherworks，yourexperimentationisimpres-
stechnicalexperimentationbyincludingloosepa-sive．ItsomewhatremindsmeofBSJohnson’
gesinaboxthatcouldbereadinanyorder．Butyoursisdifferentandmuchmoresuccessful．Wheredidyoudrawyourinspirationfrom？
Phillips：Idon’treallyknow．That’shonestlytrue．Ijustwanttowritethenovel，andtheactualformofitjustemergesoutofwritingit．Iseldomhaveaplan，andIgenerallydon’thaveanyparticularmodelinmind．
Zhang：DancingintheDark（2005）isasurprise，becauseit’scompletelyanAmerican
vebeenintheUSAformorethan20years，andyou’renowanAmericanciti-story．Sofar，you’
zen．Coulditbepossiblethatonedayyouwouldbe“labeled”asanAmericanwriterlikeNabok-ov？
Phillips：No．Idon’tthinkso．ThefirstthingtosayaboutthatisIdon’tcontrolthela-
ZhangHelong：AnInterviewwithCarylPhillips5
bels．Sowhateveranybodywantstocallme，it’suptothem．I’mintheNortonAnthologyofAf-ricanAmericanLiterature，butIdon’tthinkmyselfasanAmericanwriter．
maBritishwriter．ButpeopleoftencallmeaIfIweremadetochoose，IwouldsaythatI’
“Caribbeanwriter．”IwillgotoSouthAfricathisweekend，andthepeopletherewrotetomeandsaid，“CouldweputyoudowninourprogramasStKitts-Britain？”Sopeopleaskmeoften．Whatevertheyask，Igenerallysayyes．IftheysayAmerican，Iwouldsayno．InBritain，people（are）kindofsuspiciousofmetosomeextentbecauseI’mnotthere．However，Ienjoythefree-domofbeingawayfromBritain．Idon’tgototheliteraryparties．I’veneverbeenphotographed
tgotodinnerwithotherwriters．Idon’tgotoliterarygatherings．Sowithotherwriters．Idon’
I’mnotreallyseenthatmuch．Sothereisafreedominnothavingtoparticipateinanybody’slit-erarygames．Butthere’salsoadanger，becausepeopledon’treallyknowwheretoplaceyousometimes；theyarenotsure，butIprobablypreferthefreedom．
Zhang：I’vereadsomewherethatyourfavoriteAmericanwritersincludeRalphEllison，RichardWright，JamesBaldwin．TheirworksusuallyfocusonAfricanAmericansincontemporarylife，butonthecontraryyougodeepintothehistoryinmanyofyourworks．Howwouldyouiden-tifytheinfluencesthatyoumighthavereceivedfromtheminspiteofthedifferences？
Phillips：Theinfluencesareveryclear．Ellison，Ilikehisessaysalot．Ilikethefacthe
twanttohavetorepre-grappledwithwhatonemighttermtheburdenofrepresentation．Hedidn’
sentwhatwouldhavebeencalledinthosedays，theNegroes．Hewastryingtobecomeawriter，withoutthatburden．Iadmirehiswork，andIlikethedifferentwayshewritesaboutthisissueinhisessays．
RichardWright，IadmirebecausehisfirstnovelNativeSonwasthebookthatmademewanttobeawriter．That’sthebookthatIreadthatverymuchchangedmyviewofwhatanovelcouldbe，anditpowerfullyrevealedtomewhatthepotentialpoweroffictionwas．Sothisnovelisex-tremelyimportanttome．
AndBaldwin，becauseIknewBaldwin，andhewasafriend，andobviouslyIadmirehiswork．HewasthefirstrealwriterthatIeverknew，thatIgottoknow．HewasthefirstwriterwhomIcouldsitdownandtalkto．
So（Ilike）allthreeofthemforverydifferentreasons．Allthreeofthem，evenEllison，spentagreatdealoftimelivingoutsidetheUnitedStates．Obviously，BaldwinandWright，livedin，anddiedin，France．ButEllisonwasinItaly，hewasinFrancetoo．Lessthantheothertwo，buttheyallhadwhatIcalldifficultieswiththenationalnarrative．Theyparticipatedandcontribu-tedbutdidn’twanttoparticipatetoomuch．Irecognizethatinmyself．IthinkWrightandBald-winbothhadasimilarkindofproblemwithAmerica．TheywerewritingtoAmerica，andwantedAmericatochange，butatthesametime，didn’tnecessarilywanttobeinAmericaforthewhole
twanttobeacheerleaderforAmerica．time．Theydidn’
Zhang：InEmpireWindrush：FiftyYearsofWritingaboutBlackBritain，editedbyOnyeka-chiWambu，youwereplacedinagroupofwritersunderthetitleof“LookingbackinAnger．”Howmuchdoyouthinkyourwritingisanangrylookatimperialismandcolonialisminhistory？
Phillips：Idon’tthinkit’sanger．Ithinkit’sadefinitefrustration，definitedisappoint-ment．I’mfrustratedwithBritain，andI’mdisappointedwithBritain．Thereisnoquestionaboutthat．Idon’thavetobeangry，becauseIhavesomewheretoputmyfrustration，Ihaveanoutlet．IthinkIwouldbeangryifIwasreadingthenewspapers，andreadingreportsaboutthings，andseeingthingsandIcouldn’tdoanythingaboutit．I’mfrustrated；alotofthethingsI’vewrittenaboutaremotivatedbyfrustration．I’vewrittenalot，outofdisappointment．
Zhang：Inyournon-fictionExtravagantStrangers：ALiteratureofBelonging（1997），you
6外国文学研究2011年第3期
mademeditationonbelongingbywriterswhowerenotborninBritain．Howisthis“vexingques-tionofbelonging”（xiii）onyourpartispossiblyrelatedtothesubversionofliteraryconventionsinyourfiction？
Phillips：I’mveryconcernedwiththeissueofbelonging，andit’sinterestingtorelateittoliterature．Ithinkmanywriterswhoemergedbeforemelookedtootherpartsoftheworldfortheirliteraryinfluences．TheylookedbeyondBritain．TheylookedtoLatinAmerica．TheylookedtotheFarEast．TheylookedtotheUnitedStatesofAmerica．Sotheliteraryformsandwaysofex-pressingoneselfwithintraditionalEnglishliterature，havechangedbecauseofthosewriterswho
tfeeltheybelongedinsomewayinEngland．Thesewriterswerepreparedtolookelse-didn’
where，fornarrativegrowth．RememberthisisthecountryofShakespeare，Milton，Dryden，Dickens，andyouaremadetofeelthateverythingyoucouldpossiblywantinliteratureisrighthere．PerhapstheearliergenerationsjustlookedtotheotherEnglishwriters．Butinthesecond
suddenly，alotofwriterswhodidn’tfeeltheybelongedforonereasonorhalfofthe20thcentury，
another，lookedelsewhereandbroughtthesedifferentliterarytraditionsintowhatisnowregardedasEnglishliterature．
saveryveryimportantword．It’scriticalbecauseifButBelongingisthekeyword；that’
youbelong，thereisanelementofsafety，anelementofparticipation，thepossibilityofgrowth．If
tfeelyoubelong，you’realwayslookingoveryourshoulder；you’llneverbefullyrelax-youdon’
ed．That’stheconditionofmanypeopleinmanypartsoftheworld．Theydon’tquitefeeltheybelong，soIdon’teverseeitjustinBritishterms，orinracialterms，tomeit’saglobalprob-lem．Therearecomplexissuestodowithclass，issuestodowithreligion，issuestodowithgen-der，issuestodowithrace．Notquitebelongingtoasociety，yetwantingto，isauniversalphe-nomenon．
Zhang：Inyournon-fictionANewWorldOrder，yousay“Irecognizetheplace，Ifeelathomehere，butIdon’tbelong．Iamof，andnotof，thisplace”（2）．Yourepeatedthesen-tencesseveraltimesinthisbook．Whatisusuallytherelationshipbetweenyourpersonalfeelingofbelongingandthedisplacementofmanycharactersinyourownfiction？
Phillips：You’recorrect．I’mveryattractedtocharacterswhodon’tquitebelong，becauseIrecognizesomething，noteverything，butIrecognizesomethingoftheirdilemmafrommyownsituation．AsIsayinthatessay，thedilemmaistobeoftheplace，butnotofitinsomeways．Somattractedtocharacterswhofindthemselvesinthatdilemma．I’
Zhang：Yourworkshavebeenonmigrationanddisplacement．Whatisyourmotivationofdoingso？
Phillips：Themotivationbehindeverythingistomakesure，firstofall，thatitisrecorded．Thedifficultiesthatpeoplearesuffering，makesurethey’rerecorded，makesurewehaverecor-
andhowtheyhavecourageouslytriedtodealwithdedwhatproblemshavebeenvisitedonpeople，
them．Thatisthefirstthing．Ifweneverrecordourhumanexperience，oursenseofloss，our
dhavenomapofhowtosenseoflove，oursenseofdisplacement，oursenseofbetrayal，thenwe’
lookatourselvesandunderstandwhoweare，whatwe’redoinginthisworld．That’sthefirstim-portantthing，torecord．
Secondly，oneobviouslyhopestochangetheworld．It’sabigthing．Whensomeonefinishesabookofmine，orfinisheswatchingaplayofmine，Iwantthemtothinkabouttheworldina
sthehope．WhenIgotoseeagreatfilm，Isitandthinkabouttheslightlydifferentway．That’
worldinaslightlydifferentway，becausethedirectorhasopenedmyeyestosomething．
Zhang：InTheEuropeanTribe（1987），you“addressthemorespecificproblemsoftribal-ismandracisminthesoulofEurope”（xi）．InyournewbookColorMeEnglish，thereisanes-
ZhangHelong：AnInterviewwithCarylPhillips7
sayentitled“Americantribalism．”Asaracistandnationalistsentiment，istribalismpossiblyauniversalphenomenon？
Phillips：Yes，it’sauniversalphenomenon．However，youcanonlywriteaboutitifyouunderstandit．YouknowI’velivedintheU．S．forquitealongtimenow，soIcanseesomeas-pectsoftribalism，someaspectsofdiscrimination，inequityandsooninthiscountryveryclearly．
tseethem．WithreferencetotheEuropeantribe，ofWhenIfirstcametolivehereIcouldn’
courseIgrewupinEurope，IseeEurope’shypocrisies．Isawit，that’swhyIwantedtowriteaboutit，becauserelativelyfewpeopleweretalkingaboutit．Theseaspectsoftribalism，ofdis-crimination，ofprejudice，theyhavetoberecorded，writtendown，talkedabout，andwriterscanhelptodothis．
Zhang：Consideringyourpersonalbackground，couldyoupossiblybecaughtbetweensever-alculturesorsubcultures，forexample，theEnglish，theCaribbean，theAfrican，theAmerican，etc？Haveyoureverexperiencedculturalconflicts？Whatdoyouthinkofculturalhybridity？
Phillips：Inordertowriteaboutasociety，youhavetoknowthesocietyprettywell．Youcan’tjustapproachasocietyandhaveacasualknowledgeofitandthentrytoconstructthechar-acters’situation．Youhavetohaveareasonablyprofoundknowledge．IthinkIcouldwriteano-velsetinBritain．IcouldwriteanovelsetinAmerica，andcouldwriteanovelsetintheCarib-bean．
Imaybeculturallyhybridtosomeextent，becauseIunderstandmanyaspectsofAmericanculture．IunderstandCaribbeancultureverywell．AndIunderstandBritishculture．Butit’snot
snotsomethingthatcomesfrommyblood；I’vegainedmyrightsbylivingmybirthright；it’
there．I’velivedinthesethreeplaces．
Zhang：Whatcultureisdominantinyourblood，theBritish，theCaribbean，theAfrican，ortheAmerican？
Phillips：NotAfrican．IwouldsayBritish．It’swhereIgrewup，whereIlearnedtospeak，whereIlearnedtodream．IwouldalwayssayBritain．IfIlivedintheUnitedStatesfor50years，IwouldstillprobablysayBritain．BecauseBritainiswhereIfirstwrote，whereIfirstbegantothinkofmyselfasawriter．ButIdohavesomeunderstandingoftheintricaciesofAmericanlife，partlythroughteachingmanygenerationsofstudentsnow，partlythroughbeingluckyenoughtotravelindifferentpartsofthecountrydoingreadings．Throughtraveling，Ihavesomequiteinti-mateunderstandingofthiscountry，butit’llneverbeasdetailedasBritain．
【WorksCited】
Gates，HenryLouis．TheClassicSlaveNarratives．NewYork：PenguinBooks，1987．
Phillips，Caryl．TheEuropeanTribe．London：Faber＆Faber，1987．
---．ExtravagantStrangers：ALiteratureofBelonging．London：FaberandFaber，1997．
2002．---．ANewWorldOrder：Essays．NewYork：Vintage，
Wambu，Onyekachi，ed．EmpireWindrush：FiftyYearsofWritingaboutBlackBritain．London：V．Gollancz，
1998．
责任编辑：罗良功
百度搜索“爱华网”,专业资料,生活学习,尽在爱华网
