美国国家公共电台 NPR 'Native Son' Is Reborn, In 'Still Kind Of The Same America'

 

DAVID GREENE, HOST:

In America's complicated history with race, sometimes the most revealing stories are told and retold in fiction. That's the case for Richard Wright's influential¹ 1940 novel "Native Son." Its lead character, 20-year-old Bigger Thomas, dreams of a life beyond his impoverished² neighborhood of maybe even becoming a pilot one day.

(SOUNDBITE OF FILM, "NATIVE SON")

ASHTON SANDERS: (As Bigger) I feel like a bird, you know? - in it and of it, flying high and above it.

GREENE: That's from a new film version of "Native Son" set in present day Chicago. It debuts³ on HBO this Saturday. And NPR's Mandalit del Barco has more.

(SOUNDBITE OF FILM, "NATIVE SON")

SANDERS: (As Bigger) Oh, s***.

SANAA LATHAN: (As Trudy) Big, it's over there. It's over there. It's over there.

MANDALIT DEL BARCO, BYLINE⁵: As in the classic novel, the new "Native Son" movie begins with Bigger Thomas killing⁶ a huge rat in his house where he lives in Chicago with his siblings⁷ and their single mother.

(SOUNDBITE OF FILM, "NATIVE SON")

LATHAN: (As Trudy, yelling).

DEL BARCO: This time, the story of the young, black man is set in contemporary times. His troubles accelerate after he gets hired as a driver for a wealthy white family, the Daltons. Here he is meeting Mr. Dalton, who prides himself on being a liberal. He's played by Bill Camp.

(SOUNDBITE OF FILM, "NATIVE SON")

BILL CAMP: (As Henry) Your first name is Bigger.

SANDERS: (As Bigger) Yeah. My friends call me Big.

CAMP: (As Henry) Like Biggie.

SANDERS: (As Bigger) After Biggie Smalls, no.

CAMP: (As Henry) Good, seeing how Christopher Wallace came to a difficult end.

SANDERS: (As Bigger) (Laughter).

DEL BARCO: Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright⁸ Suzan-Lori Parks wrote the screenplay. And the adaptation was directed by artist Rashid Johnson. Ashton Sanders, who was in the Oscar-winning movie "Moonlight," plays Bigger. In this version, he sports green hair and a graffiti-covered leather jacket. On set, Sanders explained Bigger is into both punk music and Beethoven.

SANDERS: Along with the pressures of being a black man in this America, he's also dealing⁹ with the pressures of being this other other in America, being this Afro punk and dealing with his circumstances and his environment.

DEL BARCO: Bigger is tasked with driving Dalton's wild child daughter Mary, played by Margaret Qualley. Mary rebels against her privilege and impetuously tries to connect with Bigger, as in this scene.

(SOUNDBITE OF FILM, "NATIVE SON")

MARGARET QUALLEY: (As Mary) I live in such a affluenza bubble. I have no idea about, like, what black people actually think about what's going on in the world right now.

SANDERS: (As Bigger) Well, I'll be sure to mention that at our next black meeting.

(LAUGHTER)

DEL BARCO: Mary and her boyfriend Jan fashion themselves as political radicals¹¹. At the movie's premiere at the Sundance Film Festival in January, writer Suzan-Lori Parks talked about how she updated their story.

SUZAN-LORI PARKS: In the original novel, Jan was a member of the Communist Party. So the Communist Party these days is not the same kind of party as it was back in the day. So immediately, I said, well, we've got some parties that are also relevant like Occupy or the anti-fascist movement that a young person might want to join in that might cause some consternation¹² in the hearts and minds of progressive, wealthy parents.

DEL BARCO: There are a few other changes. In Wright's best-selling novel, Bigger was a rapist and a murderer portrayed¹³ as a victim more a product of his environment. That characterization has been controversial. Novelist James Baldwin once wrote a critique in his 1955 book "Notes Of A Native Son," Baldwin blasted Bigger's portrayal¹⁴ as stereotypical¹⁵ and unsympathetic. But "Native Son" remains¹⁶ popular. Over the years, it's been adapted for stage and made into a movie twice. Author Richard Wright starred as Bigger Thomas in the 1951 movie. Here he is doing his screen test.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

RICHARD WRIGHT: (As Bigger) It's funny the way the white folks treat us, ain't it?

UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR: (As character) It better be funny.

WRIGHT: (As Bigger) You know, I reckon the white folks is right because if I took up one of them planes in the air full of bombs, I'd just let two of them drop anywhere to see what would happen. Bloom, bloom, bloom.

(LAUGHTER)

DEL BARCO: The character Bigger Thomas still resonates, says Ashton Sanders, who portrays¹⁷ him in the HBO version.

SANDERS: It's always been rough for a black man living in America, you know? There's always pressures that are put on us with - you know, I feel like the black man walks around with an anxiety because of the way that America views him, the world views him, you know? And so yeah, it's still very relevant because this is still kind of the same America.

DEL BARCO: At his film's Sundance premiere, director Johnson explains why he thinks Richard Wright's book is timely.

RASHID JOHNSON: And his story "Native Son," however divisive, is an incredibly complicated telling of how we're to examine some aspects of the black psyche¹⁸.

DEL BARCO: Rashid Johnson also examines the black psyche in his artwork, which has been shown at major museums and galleries around the world, like the David Kordansky Gallery in Los Angeles. Just before he took off to direct "Native Son," he had an art opening there.

(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC)

DEL BARCO: It was a packed house and featured live music, poetry, paintings and sculpture. His work explores cultural identity and race. He mixes media - shea butter, potted plants, stacks of books and vinyl records. Visitor Kidogo Kennedy pondered one of Johnson's recurring¹⁹ images - a square, black skull²⁰ scribbled²¹ with big, swirly²² eyes.

KIDOGO KENNEDY: It reminds me. This is Bigger. That's who I'm looking at when I look at these grimaces²³ and eyes that are bulging²⁴. I think of him. I think of "Native Son." I think of Bigger.

DEL BARCO: A few weeks later, Johnson was on location in Cleveland, shooting Native Son. Before the cameras rolled on one scene, he spray-painted that skull image on a brick wall.

(SOUNDBITE OF PAINT SPRAYING)

JOHNSON: That's a character that I've used that I call "Anxious Men." I just kind of put it in the background. But I think this film has quite a bit of moments of anxiety and alludes²⁵ to the idea of anxiety and how it functions in our characters as well as in society as a whole.

DEL BARCO: On the wall of an alley¹⁰, for another scene, Johnson spray-painted the word run; another theme he uses in his artwork.

JOHNSON: The idea of escape has been, thematically, a big part of my practice. And so it also lives in this film as far as how Bigger kind of is negotiating with what he's done. And the idea of kind of running and escape, I think, are also kind of strong themes that live in this film and in my work simultaneously²⁶.

DEL BARCO: So you put a little bit of yourself into the film, too.

JOHNSON: I think it's hard not to.

DEL BARCO: Johnson's 7-year-old son Julius makes a cameo in one scene. And gallery owner David Kordansky plays a record store owner in the film. Johnson has made short films for commissions at the Guggenheim and at the Garage Museum of Contemporary Art in Moscow. But this is his debut⁴ as a feature film director.

JOHNSON: This dialogue - this is not easy, this part. I'd be free like a bird - in it and of it but flying high above it and looking down on all you Earth-bound suckers. Thank God I'm not acting²⁷ in this movie.

DEL BARCO: Still, Rashid Johnson seems at ease directing the actors - quite the opposite of an anxious man.

JOHNSON: Cut.

UNIDENTIFIED PERSON: Cut, cut. Cut.

JOHNSON: I'm happy if the camera's happy.

DEL BARCO: Mandalit del Barco, NPR News.

(SOUNDBITE OF DUKE ELLINGTON'S "IN A SENTIMENTAL MOOD")

1 influential   

adj.有影响的，有权势的

参考例句：

• He always tries to get in with the most influential people.他总是试图巴结最有影响的人物。
• He is a very influential man in the government.他在政府中是个很有影响的人物。

2 impoverished   

adj.穷困的，无力的，用尽了的v.使（某人）贫穷( impoverish的过去式和过去分词 )；使（某物）贫瘠或恶化

参考例句：

• the impoverished areas of the city 这个城市的贫民区
• They were impoverished by a prolonged spell of unemployment. 他们因长期失业而一贫如洗。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 debuts   

演员首次演出( debut的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• He never really debuts the idea of taking money from his parents any longer. 他从此就再也没有认真起过向父母要钱的念头。
• This young soprano debuts next month at the metropolitan opera. 这位年轻的女高音歌唱家下个月将在纽约大都会歌剧院举行首演。

4 debut   

n.首次演出，初次露面

参考例句：

• That same year he made his Broadway debut, playing a suave radio journalist.在那同一年里，他初次在百老汇登台，扮演一个温文而雅的电台记者。
• The actress made her debut in the new comedy.这位演员在那出新喜剧中首次登台演出。

5 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

6 killing   

n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财

参考例句：

• Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。
• Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。

7 siblings   

n.兄弟，姐妹( sibling的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• A triplet sleeps amongst its two siblings. 一个三胞胎睡在其两个同胞之间。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• She has no way of tracking the donor or her half-siblings down. 她没办法找到那个捐精者或她的兄弟姐妹。 来自时文部分

8 playwright   

n.剧作家，编写剧本的人

参考例句：

• Gwyn Thomas was a famous playwright.格温·托马斯是著名的剧作家。
• The playwright was slaughtered by the press.这位剧作家受到新闻界的无情批判。

9 dealing   

n.经商方法，待人态度

参考例句：

• This store has an excellent reputation for fair dealing.该商店因买卖公道而享有极高的声誉。
• His fair dealing earned our confidence.他的诚实的行为获得我们的信任。

10 alley   

n.小巷，胡同；小径，小路

参考例句：

• We live in the same alley.我们住在同一条小巷里。
• The blind alley ended in a brick wall.这条死胡同的尽头是砖墙。

11 radicals   

n.激进分子( radical的名词复数 )；根基；基本原理；[数学]根数

参考例句：

• Some militant leaders want to merge with white radicals. 一些好斗的领导人要和白人中的激进派联合。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The worry is that the radicals will grow more intransigent. 现在人们担忧激进分子会变得更加不妥协。 来自辞典例句

12 consternation   

n.大为吃惊，惊骇

参考例句：

• He was filled with consternation to hear that his friend was so ill.他听说朋友病得那么厉害，感到非常震惊。
• Sam stared at him in consternation.萨姆惊恐不安地注视着他。

13 portrayed   

v.画像( portray的过去式和过去分词 )；描述；描绘；描画

参考例句：

• Throughout the trial, he portrayed himself as the victim. 在审讯过程中，他始终把自己说成是受害者。
• The author portrayed his father as a vicious drunkard. 作者把他父亲描绘成一个可恶的酒鬼。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

14 portrayal   

n.饰演；描画

参考例句：

• His novel is a vivid portrayal of life in a mining community.他的小说生动地描绘了矿区的生活。
• The portrayal of the characters in the novel is lifelike.该书中的人物写得有血有肉。

15 stereotypical   

n.常规

参考例句：

• Personas should be typical and believable, but not stereotypical. 人物角色应该是典型和可信赖的，但不是一成不变的。 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓
• Anything could be stereotypical, so I guess it could be criticism. 任何东西都可以变的老套，所以我猜那就是一种批评。 来自互联网

16 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

17 portrays   

v.画像( portray的第三人称单数 )；描述；描绘；描画

参考例句：

• The museum collection vividly portrays the heritage of 200 years of canals. 博物馆的藏品让运河200 年的历史再现眼前。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The film portrays Gandhi as a kind of superman. 这部电影把甘地描绘成一个超人。 来自《简明英汉词典》

18 psyche   

n.精神；灵魂

参考例句：

• His exploration of the myth brings insight into the American psyche.他对这个神话的探讨揭示了美国人的心理。
• She spent her life plumbing the mysteries of the human psyche.她毕生探索人类心灵的奥秘。

19 recurring   

adj.往复的，再次发生的

参考例句：

• This kind of problem is recurring often. 这类问题经常发生。
• For our own country, it has been a time for recurring trial. 就我们国家而言，它经过了一个反复考验的时期。

20 skull   

n.头骨；颅骨

参考例句：

• The skull bones fuse between the ages of fifteen and twenty-five.头骨在15至25岁之间长合。
• He fell out of the window and cracked his skull.他从窗子摔了出去，跌裂了颅骨。

21 scribbled   

v.潦草的书写( scribble的过去式和过去分词 )；乱画；草草地写；匆匆记下

参考例句：

• She scribbled his phone number on a scrap of paper. 她把他的电话号码匆匆写在一张小纸片上。
• He scribbled a note to his sister before leaving. 临行前，他给妹妹草草写了一封短信。

22 swirly   

成涡旋形的

参考例句：

• There is now a black swirly animation when a spell is resisted. 当法术被抵抗的时候有一个黑色旋涡形的效果。 来自互联网

23 grimaces   

n.（表蔑视、厌恶等）面部扭曲，鬼脸( grimace的名词复数 )v.扮鬼相，做鬼脸( grimace的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• Mr. Clark winked at the rude child making grimaces. 克拉克先生假装没有看见那个野孩子做鬼脸。 来自辞典例句
• The most ridiculous grimaces were purposely or unconsciously indulged in. 故意或者无心地扮出最滑稽可笑的鬼脸。 来自辞典例句

24 bulging   

膨胀； 凸出（部）； 打气； 折皱

参考例句：

• Her pockets were bulging with presents. 她的口袋里装满了礼物。
• Conscious of the bulging red folder, Nim told her,"Ask if it's important." 尼姆想到那个鼓鼓囊囊的红色文件夹便告诉她：“问问是不是重要的事。”

25 alludes   

提及，暗指( allude的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• In the vegetable kingdom Mr. Mivart only alludes to two cases. 在植物界中，密伐脱先生仅提出两点。
• Black-box testing alludes to test that are conducted at the software interface. 黑箱测试是指测试软件接口进行。

26 simultaneously   

adv.同时发生地，同时进行地

参考例句：

• The radar beam can track a number of targets almost simultaneously.雷达波几乎可以同时追着多个目标。
• The Windows allow a computer user to execute multiple programs simultaneously.Windows允许计算机用户同时运行多个程序。

27 acting   

n.演戏，行为，假装；adj.代理的，临时的，演出用的

参考例句：

• Ignore her,she's just acting.别理她，她只是假装的。
• During the seventies,her acting career was in eclipse.在七十年代，她的表演生涯黯然失色。