Diary of a Madman
Author: Lu Xun
A certain gentleman, Kunzhong, whose name is hidden now, is still a good friend in middle school. After many years of separation, the news is gradually missing. A few days ago, I heard that he was seriously ill. When he returned to his hometown, he took a roundabout way to visit, but he only met one person, who said that the patient was his younger brother. Lao Jun came all the way to see me, but he had already recovered early and was waiting for a job somewhere. Because of his laughter, he showed me two volumes of his diary, saying that he could see his illness that day and might as well present it to his old friends. If you read it carefully, you will know what is wrong with it, such as "persecution maniac". The language is quite confusing and incoherent, and there are many absurd words. There is no moon or day on it, but the ink color and font are different. It seems that it was not written at one time. There are also some connections among them, and I will summarize one article here for the research of doctors. There are errors in the language in the record, and it is difficult to change a word. However, although the names of the people are all from the village, they are not known to the world and have no general meaning, but they are all easy to identify. As for the title of the book, I wrote it after my recovery and will not change it. Met on April 2, seventh year.
One
Tonight, the moonlight is very good.
I haven’t seen him for more than thirty years. But when I saw him today, I felt particularly refreshed. Only then did I realize that the past thirty years or so had been spent in coma; however, one must be very careful. Otherwise, why would the Zhao family's dog even look at me?
My fear is justified.
Two
There is no moonlight today, I know something is wrong. When he went out carefully in the morning, Zhao Guiweng had a strange look in his eyes: he seemed to be afraid of me, as if he wanted to harm me. There were seven or eight people whispering about me, smiling at me with their mouths open. I felt cold from head to toe, knowing that their arrangements were all in place.
I am not afraid, I will still go my way. A group of children in front were also talking about me; their eyes were the same as Zhao Guiweng's, and their faces were livid. I think I have some grudge against the child, and he does the same. I couldn't help shouting, "Tell me!" and they ran away.
I thought: What grudges do I have against Zhao Guiweng, and what grudges do the people on the road have against me? Only twenty years ago, Mr. Gu Jiu kicked Mr. Gu Jiu’s old journal. Very unhappy. Although Zhao Guiweng did not know him, he must have heard the news and expressed his grievances. He also agreed that people on the road would fight against me. But what about small children? At that time, they were not born yet, so why are they still opening their strange eyes today, as if they were afraid of me and seemed to want to harm me. This really scares me, makes me curious and sad.
I understand. This is what their mother-in-law taught me!
Three
I can't sleep at night. Everything must be studied before you can understand it.
They—some of them had been caned by the magistrate, some of them had been slapped in the mouth by a gentleman, some of the government servants had taken advantage of his wife, and some of them had been forced to death by their creditors; their expressions at that time were all... Not as scared as yesterday, nor as fierce.
The strangest thing is that the woman on the street yesterday beat her son and said, "I'm going to bite you a few times before I get angry!" But he looked at me. I was startled and couldn't hide it; the group of people with green faces and fangs burst into laughter. Chen Laowu caught up and dragged me back home.
When I was dragged home, everyone at home pretended not to know me; their faces were all the same as others. After entering the study, he locked the door behind him, as if he was locking up a chicken or duck. This incident makes me more and more unable to guess the details.
A few days ago, the tenants of Langzi Village came to complain and told my elder brother that a big evil man in their village had been beaten to death by everyone; a few people dug out his heart and liver and used oil to kill him. Fried and eaten, it can strengthen your courage. I interrupted, and both the tenant and the eldest brother looked at me. Only today did I realize that their vision was exactly the same as that of the group outside.
When I think about it, I feel cold from the top of my head to my heels.
If they can eat people, they may not eat me.
Look at the woman’s words of “bite you a few times”, the smiles of a group of green-faced and fanged men, and the words of the tenants the day before yesterday, they are obviously secret codes. I saw that his words were full of poison and his smile was full of knives. Their teeth are all white and sharp, they are cannibals.
According to my own opinion, although he is not a bad person, since he kicked the Gu family's book, it is hard to say. They seemed to have ulterior motives, which I couldn't guess at all. Besides, when they fall out, they call people evil. I still remember that my elder brother taught me how to make a speech. No matter how good a person is, if he repeats a few sentences, he will make a few circles; if he forgives a bad person, he will say, "He is a master who makes a difference." I can guess what they are thinking; besides, it is time to eat.
Everything must be studied before you can understand it.
People have often eaten people since ancient times. I still remember it, but I don’t know it clearly. I looked up the history and found that there was no chronology in this history, and the words "benevolence, righteousness, and morality" were written on each crooked leaf. I couldn't sleep anyway, so I read carefully for half the night, and then I saw the words between the words. There were two words written all over the book, which were "cannibalism"!
There are so many words written in the book, and the tenants said so many things, but they all looked at me with strange eyes and smiles.
I am a human being too, and they want to eat me!
Four
In the morning, I sat quietly for a while. Chen Laowu brought in rice, a bowl of vegetables and a bowl of steamed fish; the fish's eyes were white and hard, and its mouth was open, just like that group of people who wanted to eat people. After eating a few chopsticks, I couldn't tell if it was a fish or a human being, so I vomited it out.
I said, "Lao Wu, tell my eldest brother that I am so bored that I want to go for a walk in the garden." Lao Wu refused and left; after a short pause, he came and opened the door.
I didn’t move, studying how they manipulated me; knowing that they would definitely not relax. really! My eldest brother attracted an old man and walked slowly over; his eyes were filled with fierceness, and he was afraid that I would see it, so he just lowered his head to the ground and looked at me secretly from the side of his glasses. The eldest brother said, "You seem to be fine today." I said, "Yes." The eldest brother said, "Let Mr. He come and give you a diagnosis today." I said, "Okay!" In fact, didn't I know that this old man was the executioner? Pretending! It's nothing more than using the name of checking the pulse to guess the fat and barrenness: because of this merit, I also eat a piece of meat. I'm not afraid either; although they don't eat people, they are more courageous than them. Hold out two fists and see how he will strike. The old man sat, closed his eyes, touched it for a while, and stayed there for a while. Then he opened his ghost eyes and said, "Don't think about it. Just rest quietly for a few days and it will be fine."
< p>Don't think too much, just take care of yourself quietly! After being fattened, they can naturally eat more; what are the benefits to me and how can I be "well"? This group of people want to eat people, but they are also sneaky, trying to cover up, and dare not attack directly. It really makes me laugh to death. I couldn't help it, so I laughed loudly, very happily. I know that there is courage and righteousness in this laughter. The old man and the eldest brother both lost their composure and were suppressed by my courage and righteousness.But I have courage, the more they want to eat me and take advantage of this courage. The old man stepped out of the door and walked not far before he whispered to his elder brother, "Eat quickly!" The elder brother nodded. It turns out you are there too! Although this discovery seemed unexpected, it was also unexpected: the person who joins forces to eat me is my brother!
The cannibal is my brother!
I am the brother of a cannibal!
I myself was eaten, but I am still the brother of the cannibal!
五
In the past few days, I have taken a step back and thought: Even if the old man was not pretending to be an executioner, but was really a doctor, he would still be a cannibal. Their founder Li Shizhen's "What's Herbal Medicine" (4) clearly states that human flesh can be fried and eaten; how can he still say that he doesn't eat humans?
As for my eldest brother, I did not accuse him unfairly. When he was lecturing to me, he said personally that one could "eat one's son and eat one"⑸; once again when he happened to talk about a bad person, he said that not only should he be killed, but he should also "eat the flesh and sleep with the skin"⑹. I was still young at that time, and my heart beat for a long time. The day before yesterday, a tenant from Langzi Village told him about eating heart and liver. He was not surprised and kept nodding. It can be seen that his thoughts are as ruthless as before. Since it is possible to "exchange food for food", everything is easy to obtain and anyone can eat it. In the past, I only listened to his reasoning and was confused; now I know that when he is reasoning, not only is his lips smeared with human oil, but his heart is full of cannibalism.
Six
It was so dark that I didn’t know whether it was day or night. The Zhao family's dog barked again.
The ferocity of a lion, the cowardice of a rabbit, the cunning of a fox,...
Seven
I know their methods, and I kill them quickly, yes Those who don't want to do it, and they don't dare to do it, for fear of causing trouble. So they all joined forces and laid a trap to force me to kill myself. Just look at the appearance of men and women on the street a few days ago, and what my eldest brother has done these days, you can understand eight or nine points. It would be best to take off the belt, hang it on the beam, and strangle it tightly. They were not charged with murder, and they got their wish, so naturally they all burst into whimpering laughter with joy. Otherwise, I will be frightened and worried to death. Although I am a little thin, I can still give my approval a few times.
They only eat dead meat! ——I remember reading in some book that there is a kind of thing called "Hai Yi Na", which has ugly eyes and appearance. It often eats dead meat, chews even the huge bones carefully, and then swallows it. It's scary to think about it.
"Hai Yi Na" is the relative of the wolf, and the wolf is the parent family of the dog. The day before yesterday, the Zhao family's dog looked at me a few times, which showed that he was also complicit and had been contacted for a long time. The old man looked at the ground, how could he hide it from me?
The most pitiable thing is my eldest brother. He is also a human being, so why is he not afraid at all? And why is he working together to eat me? Or are you just used to it and don’t think it’s wrong? Or have you lost your conscience and committed the crime knowingly?
When I curse cannibals, I start with them; when I want to convert cannibals, I start with them.
Eight
In fact, by now, they should have understood this truth...
Suddenly a person came; he was only about twenty years old, His appearance was not very clear, he was smiling, and he nodded to me, but his smile didn't look like a real smile. I asked him, "Cannibalism is a thing, right?" He still smiled and said, "It's not a year of famine, how can he eat people?" I immediately knew that he was also a member of the group and liked to eat people, so I took the courage to A hundred times more, I have to ask him.
"Really?"
"What are you asking him about? You really know how to tell jokes. ...The weather is very good today."
The weather is nice and the moon is very bright. But I want to ask you, "right?"
He disagreed. He replied nonchalantly, "No..."
"No? Why did they eat it?!"
"It's nothing..."
"Nothing? Langzi Village eats it now; and the book says, red and new!"
His face changed, as green as iron. He opened his eyes and said, "There are many, this has always been like this..."
"It has always been like this, is it right?"
"I don't want to tell you these truths; anyway, you You shouldn’t say it, it’s your fault if you say it!”
I jumped up and opened my eyes, and the man was gone. A large amount of sweat broke out all over my body. He is much younger than my eldest brother, but he is actually in the same group; his mother must have taught him this first. He was also afraid that he had already taught this to his son; so even the children looked at me fiercely.
Nine
I wanted to eat people, but I was afraid of being eaten by others, so I looked at each other with extremely suspicious eyes. ...
Without this thought, I can walk, eat and sleep with ease, how comfortable it is. This is just a threshold, a juncture. They were fathers, sons, brothers, couples, friends, teachers, students, enemies, and strangers. They all formed a group, encouraged each other, held each other in check, and refused to take this step even to death.
Ten
Early in the morning, I went to look for my eldest brother; he stood outside the hall door looking at the sky, so I walked behind him, blocked the door, and was extremely calm and kind to him. Said,
"Brother, I have something to tell you."
"That's what you say," he quickly turned around and nodded.
"I only have a few words, but I can't say them out. Brother, in the beginning, the barbaric people probably ate a few people. Later, because of different thoughts, some stopped eating people. They just wanted to be better, so they became Some people have become real people, but they still eat them - just like insects, some people have changed into fish, birds, and monkeys, and some have not become better, and they are still insects. People who don’t eat people are so ashamed. Those who are afraid of insects are far, far behind.
“Yi Ya steamed his son and gave it to Jie and Zhou. Who knows that since Pangu opened up the world, he has eaten Yi Ya's son; from Yi Ya's son, he has eaten Xu Xilin; from Xu Xilin, he has eaten people captured in Langzi Village. Last year, prisoners were killed in the city, and a man with tuberculosis dipped a steamed bun in the blood and licked it.
"If they want to eat me, you can't think of it alone; but why join them? People who eat people can't do anything; they will eat me, and they will also eat you. If you are in a group, you will also suffer. But as long as you change one step, everyone will be at peace. Even though it has always been like this, we can be extra friendly today. Brother, I believe you can say that the tenants yesterday. We want to reduce the rent, but you said you can't."
At first, he just sneered, but then his eyes became fierce, and his face turned blue once his secret was revealed. There was a group of people standing outside the gate. Zhao Guiweng and his dog were also inside, and they all poked their heads in. Some of them could not see their faces, as if they were covered with cloth; some of them still had green faces and fangs, smiling with their mouths pursed. I know them as a gang, they are all cannibals.
But I also know that their thoughts are very different. One kind thinks that it has always been like this and should eat it; the other kind knows that it shouldn’t be eaten, but still wants to eat it, and is afraid that others will tell him off, so he listened to me He became even angrier, but he pursed his lips and sneered.
At this time, the eldest brother suddenly showed a fierce look and shouted loudly,
"Get out! What's so good about a madman!"
At this time, I again Understand one of their ingenuities. Not only were they unwilling to change, but they had already made arrangements to cover me with the name of a madman. If I eat it in the future, not only will it be safe, but I'm afraid someone will fall in love with it. The tenant said that everyone ate a bad person, and this was exactly the method. This is their old record!
Chen Laowu also walked in angrily. No matter how you hold my tongue, I have to say to this group of people,
"You can change, start from the bottom of your heart! You must know that cannibals will not be tolerated in the world in the future.< /p>
“If you don’t change, you will eat up too. Even if they give birth to many more, they will be eliminated by real people, just like a hunter who kills the wolf cubs! ——Same as a bug! "
That group of people were all driven away by Chen Laowu. My eldest brother didn't know where he was. Chen Laowu advised me to go back to the house. The house was all dark. The beams and rafters were all dark. It trembled on my head; after shaking for a while, it got bigger and piled on me. It was so heavy that I couldn't move. I knew that his heaviness was fake, so I couldn't move. I struggled out and broke out in a sweat, but I wanted to say, "Change it immediately, start from the bottom of your heart!" You must know that cannibals will not be tolerated in the future..."
October
The sun does not rise, the door does not open, and there are only two meals every day.
p>I picked up the chopsticks and thought of my elder brother; I knew that the reason for my sister's death was all his fault. My sister was only five years old at that time, and her cute and pitiful appearance was still in front of me, and she couldn't stop crying. But he advised his mother not to cry; probably because she ate it, she would feel a little sorry when she cried. If she could still feel sorry for herself...
I don't know whether my mother knew that my sister was eaten by her elder brother.
My mother knew it, but when she cried, she didn’t explain it, and she probably thought it was appropriate. I remember when I was four or five years old, I was sitting in front of the hall enjoying the cool air. My eldest brother said that my mother-in-law was sick and it was my son. You have to cut off a piece of meat and cook it for him to eat, then you can be regarded as a good person. My mother didn't say no. If I can eat a piece of meat, I can eat the whole piece. But now that I think about it, the way I cried is really impressive. Sad, this is really a strange thing!
Twelve
I can’t think about it.
I just realized it today. I have been among them for many years; my eldest brother was taking care of the housework, and my sister happened to be dead, so he might not have been involved in the meals and secretly fed us.
I might not have stopped eating my sister unintentionally. A few pieces of meat, now it’s my turn...
With four thousand years of cannibalism, I didn’t know it at first, but now I understand that it’s hard to see real people!
Thirteen
There is no child who has ever eaten a human being, or is there still one?
Save the child...
April 1918.
Notes ⑴ This article was originally published in Volume 4, Issue 5, of "New Youth" in May 1918. It was the first time that the author used the pseudonym "Lu Xun" in the history of modern literature in my country. A novel that strongly criticizes the feudal ethics of "cannibalism". In addition to mentioning the reasons for it in the "Preface" of this book ("The Scream"), the author also mentioned it in the preface to the second volume of the "Chinese New Literature Series". "It is pointed out that it is "intended to expose the evils of the family system and ethics", you can refer to ⑵ Candidates: The official system of the Qing Dynasty, middle and lower-level officials who obtained official titles through imperial examinations or donations, but did not have actual positions, were drawn by the Ministry of Personnel. Distributed to a certain ministry or province and awaiting commission, they are called candidates. ⑶Mr. Gu Jiu's old journal: This is a metaphor for the long history of feudal rule in our country. ⑷"Compendium of Materia Medica": refers to the "Compendium of Materia Medica", the medicine of the Ming Dynasty. Li Shizhen's (1518-1593) pharmacology book, fifty-two volumes, once mentioned the use of human flesh to treat tuberculosis in Chen Zangqi's "Compendium of Materia Medica" and expressed objections here. The book "clearly states that human flesh can be fried and eaten", which should be a "mistake" by the "madman". ⑸ "Eat after changing his son": The words can be found in "Zuo Zhuan" in the 15th year of Xuangong, which was written by Hua Yuan, a general of the Song Dynasty. The Chu general recounted the tragic situation when the capital of the Song Dynasty was besieged by the Chu army: "I exchanged my sons for food, and dissected the corpses for cooking.
"⑹"Eat meat and sleep on skin": The saying comes from "Zuo Zhuan" in the 21st year of Duke Xiang. Jin State Prefecture Chuo said to Duke Qi Zhuang: "However, the two sons are like animals. I eat their meat and sleep on their skins." "(Note: "Er Zi" refers to Zhu Chuo and Guo Zui of Qi State, who were once captured by Zhou Chuo.) ⑺ "Hai Yi Na": transliteration of English hyena, that is, hyena (also known as hyena), a carnivorous animal Beasts often follow lions, tigers and other ferocious beasts and feed on the remains of the beasts. ⑻Yi Ya: People from the Qi State in the Spring and Autumn Period were good at seasoning. Serving the Duke (note: referring to Duke Huan of Qi), the Duke said, "I have not tasted the steamed baby," so he steamed his first son and presented it to the Duke. "Jie and Zhou were the last monarchs of the Xia and Shang dynasties in our country, and Yi Ya was not a contemporary of them. The saying here that "Yi Ya steamed his son and gave it to Jie and Zhou" is also a "madman" and his language is quite mixed. "Incoherent" performance. ⑼Xu Xilin: implicitly refers to Xu Xilin (1873-1907), courtesy name Boxun, a native of Shaoxing, Zhejiang, an important member of the revolutionary group Guangfu Hui in the late Qing Dynasty. In 1907, he and Qiu Jin prepared to conduct military campaigns in Zhejiang and Anhui The province revolted at the same time. On July 6, under the cover of his identity as the director of the Anhui Patrol Office and the supervisor of the Patrol School, he took advantage of the graduation ceremony of the school to assassinate Enming, the governor of Anhui. He led the students to attack the Ordnance Bureau and was arrested on the same day. They were brutally killed, and their hearts and livers were dug out and fried by Enming's guards. ⑽ Refers to "cutting one's own thighs to cure one's parents", that is, cutting off one's own thighs and boiling them into medicine to cure the serious illness of one's parents. This is an act of foolish filial piety in feudal society. "History of the Song Dynasty·Election Zhi 1": "If the superior chooses people based on filial piety, the brave ones will have their shares cut off, and the timid ones will be buried in the tomb. ”