PBS高端访谈:大声阅读的巨大力量

JUDY WOODRUFF: As we head into the holiday week, here's a suggestion for when your flight is delayed, or you just can't possibly watch any more football. Get a book and read out loud. But don't just gather the kids and the grandkids. Tonight, beloved children's book author Kate DiCamillo shares her humble¹ opinion on the universal and age-defying magic of listening to a shared story.

KATE DICAMILLO, Author, Louisiana's Way Home: It's 1972, and I'm 8 years old and in second grade at Clermont Elementary in Clermont, Florida. The classroom floors are wood, and there's a ticking clock on the wall, and there's a chalkboard, and there are mottoes to live by strung up above it. And the teacher, Ms. Boyette, is wearing cat eyeglasses with glinting rhinestones². She's reading aloud to us from Island of the Blue Dolphins. And we have just come to a part of the book where the main character tames a wild dog, a wild dog. And I'm literally³ on the edge of my seat. I'm listening, listening, caught up in the wonder of at all. I'm a kid who loves a story. But also in that second grade classroom seated not too far away from me, there's a class bully⁴. Because I am so terrified of this boy, he doesn't even seem real to me. He is, in my mind, less a boy and more a monster. In any case, Ms. Boyette is reading. And I look over at this boy because he is someone I am very much in the habit of keeping an eye on. And I notice that he is listening too, that he is engaged by the story, that he, like me, is leaning forward in his seat and listening with his whole heart. I stare at him, open-mouthed. I'm struck with a sudden knowledge that this boy that I'm so afraid of is in fact just like me. He's a kid who likes a story. The boy must feel my eyes on him, because he turns. He sees me seeing him, and something miraculous⁵ happens. He smiles at me. Really. And then another miracle. I, unafraid, smile back. We're two kids smiling at each other. Why have I never forgotten this small moment? Why, almost 50 years later, do I still recall every detail of it? I think it's because that moment illustrates⁶ so beautifully the power of reading out loud. Reading aloud ushers⁷ us into a third place, a safe room. It's a room where everyone involved, the reader and the listener, can put down their defenses and lower their guard. We humans long not just for story, not just for the flow of language, but for the connection that comes when words are read aloud. That connection provides illumination. It lets us see each other. When people talk about the importance of reading aloud, they almost always mean an adult reading to the child. We forget about the surly adolescent and the confused young adult and the weary⁸ middle-aged⁹ and the lonely old. We need it too. We all need that third place, that safe room that reading out loud provides. We all need that chance to see each other.

JUDY WOODRUFF: What a great piece of advice.

朱迪·伍德拉夫：度假州即将来临，这里给大家一个小建议：如果航班延误了，或者不想再看足球比赛的时候，可以拿出一本书来朗读。但千万别叫儿子辈和孙子辈一起。今晚，备受喜爱的少儿读物作家凯特·迪卡米洛将分享她对倾听共同故事对所有人亘古不变的魅力。

凯特·迪卡米洛，作家，路易斯安那州：1972年，我8岁，在加州克莱蒙的克莱蒙小学读二年级。教室有木质的地板、时钟、黑板，黑板上还有格言。波耶特老师带着莱茵石制的猫眼眼镜，闪着光。老师正在给我们朗读《蓝色的海豚岛》。当时正读到主角驯服一只野犬的情节。这只野犬非常有野性。而我已经坐不住了——我全神贯注地听着，为整个故事所着迷。我是个喜欢听故事的小孩儿。不过，在离我作为不远的地方，有一个班级里的恶霸。因为我特别怕这个男孩，他在我眼中甚至像一种虚幻的强大存在。他在我眼中不是不像个男孩子，更像一只猛兽。但波耶特老师还在读着，并没有什么异样。我看向这个男孩，因为我已经习惯时刻注意他的动向了。我注意到他居然也在听老师讲故事，而且听得很专注。他跟我一样，身子前倾，全心听着故事。我难以置信地看着他，突然得知这个男孩跟我相似的感觉让我恐惧极了，我沉浸于这种恐惧中无法自拔——他居然也是喜欢听故事的孩子。他大概是感受到了我的目光注视，因为他突然转过身来。他看到我在看他了，这时候，神奇的事情发生了——他居然对我笑了。我肯定没看错。然后，又一个神奇的事情出现了。我居然没有害怕地对他回笑。我们两个孩子就这样笑眯眯地看着对方。我为什么一直无法忘掉这如沧海一粟的一刻呢？为什么即便是50年后的今天，我依然能回想起这件事的每个细节呢？我认为这是因为那一刻完美地诠释了朗读的力量。朗读能让我们进入另一个世界，一个安全的空间。在这个空间里，每个人都投入其中，无论是讲者还是听者都是如此。他们能放下自己的戒备和警惕。长期以来，人类不只关注故事本身，也不只关注语言的流动性，还关注朗读的时候人与人之间的联系。这种联系感照亮了黑暗，让我们能看见彼此。每当有人谈论朗读的重要性时，就好像朗读只属于成年人。我们忘却了一件事——每个人都是从乖张搞的少年变成了满心疑惑的成年人，又变成了操心不断的中年人，最后成为孤独老去的老人。孩子们也需要朗读，谁不需要这样一个空间呢，一个朗读创造的安全空间。我们都需要借助朗读的机会来看见彼此。

朱迪·伍德拉夫：感谢您的建议。

1 humble   

adj.谦卑的，恭顺的；地位低下的；v.降低，贬低

参考例句：

• In my humble opinion,he will win the election.依我拙见，他将在选举中获胜。
• Defeat and failure make people humble.挫折与失败会使人谦卑。

2 rhinestones   

n.莱茵石，人造钻石( rhinestone的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• It's got rhinestones and zebra stripes on it. 上面有人造钻石，还是斑马条的。 来自电影对白
• The final touch was a single white glove, studded with rhinestones. 最触动人的是一只白色手套，上面点缀着人造钻石。 来自互联网

3 literally   

adv.照字面意义，逐字地；确实

参考例句：

• He translated the passage literally.他逐字逐句地翻译这段文字。
• Sometimes she would not sit down till she was literally faint.有时候，她不走到真正要昏厥了，决不肯坐下来。

4 bully   

n.恃强欺弱者，小流氓；vt.威胁，欺侮

参考例句：

• A bully is always a coward.暴汉常是懦夫。
• The boy gave the bully a pelt on the back with a pebble.那男孩用石子掷击小流氓的背脊。

5 miraculous   

adj.像奇迹一样的，不可思议的

参考例句：

• The wounded man made a miraculous recovery.伤员奇迹般地痊愈了。
• They won a miraculous victory over much stronger enemy.他们战胜了远比自己强大的敌人，赢得了非凡的胜利。

6 illustrates   

给…加插图( illustrate的第三人称单数 )； 说明； 表明； （用示例、图画等）说明

参考例句：

• This historical novel illustrates the breaking up of feudal society in microcosm. 这部历史小说是走向崩溃的封建社会的缩影。
• Alfred Adler, a famous doctor, had an experience which illustrates this. 阿尔弗莱德 - 阿德勒是一位著名的医生，他有过可以说明这点的经历。 来自中级百科部分

7 ushers   

n.引座员( usher的名词复数 )；招待员；门房；助理教员v.引，领，陪同( usher的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• Seats clicked, ushers bowed while he looked blandly on. 座位发出啪啦啪啦的声响，领座员朝客人们鞠躬，而他在一边温和殷勤地看着。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹
• The minister then offers a brief prayer of dedication, and the ushers return to their seats. 于是牧师又做了一个简短的奉献的祈祷，各招待员也各自回座位。 来自辞典例句

8 weary   

adj.疲劳的，使人疲劳的；vi.厌烦，不耐烦

参考例句：

• He has laid out all his strength and is weary.他使出了全部气力，非常疲倦。
• I am weary of his constant complaints.我对他不断发牢骚感到厌烦。

9 middle-aged   

adj.中年的

参考例句：

• I noticed two middle-aged passengers.我注意到两个中年乘客。
• The new skin balm was welcome by middle-aged women.这种新护肤香膏受到了中年妇女的欢迎。