2017-05-20

【Aiden in English】

        Pearl Sydenstricker Buck was a West Virginia native. However, she went to China at an early age due to her father’s occupation of a missionary. She spent her first forty years or so in Jiangsu and Anhui of China excluding her education in Randolph-Macon Woman's College and Cornell Univ. for a few years, eventually to return to Green Hill Farm in PA.

        So who is Pearl S. Buck?

        Well, Pearl S. Buck, also known as John Sedges, was a writer, quite famous from what I know. She awarded a Nobel Prize in literature back to 1938, which on its own stands for a momentous feat. Her most famous book, The Good Earth, is internationally recognized about family stories in a Chinese village. However, her life was much more than just a writer. Pearl S. Buck was the founder of the Pearl Buck International, a child’s sponsorship program around the world.

        Today I visited her estate, now transformed into the National Historic Site. It used to be a mixed-race Asian orphanage called Welcome House, which is impressive. Pearl S. Buck only had one biological daughter and adopted many more.

        The house itself is nothing out of the ordinary barn to another late-19th century on the outside. The real surprise comes within. Pearl S. Buck was an American, yes, but essentially lived in an Oriental life. She loved Chinese clothing, food, furniture, and literature. So, as far as her home went, she converted the house into a mash-up of American and Chinese culture. From the china and the chopsticks to the oriental paintings and calligraphies on the walls, the roots to Pearl S. Buck were constantly reminded throughout the house.

        I find it how Pearl S. Buck integrated another culture into a home so well, especially when her husband and most children were not of Asian ethnicity. And, technically speaking, neither was she. However, this, more than anything, shows the independence of Pearl S. Buck to represent what she is, continuing on her own culture and what she grew up with.

        Many of Pearl’s books were based on her own experiences in life. Because of what she experienced in China, it became an inspiration to her novels and stories. Furthermore, her care for children past on beyond the pages and into the real world.  Pearl S. Buck International is a sponsorship system for children, in which donors give money to support orphans.

        Pearl S. Buck House has now been converted to a public tourist attraction, as well as a place to host events like a wedding ceremony. But she is still around, in the air, in the water, in the house. She was buried along the driveway, with her Chinese name, 赛珍珠, inscribed on the grave.

【红霞译文】

        赛珍珠（全名为珍珠·赛登斯特里克·巴克）是西维吉尼亚人，不过她在年幼的时候就随当传教士的父亲来到中国，除了分别前往伦道夫·梅康女子学院和康奈尔大学接受高等教育外，前半生差不多有四十年的光景生活于中国江苏安徽一带，最后才返回宾州绿山农场。

        赛珍珠何许人也？

        赛珍珠又叫约翰·塞德斯，是一位相当了不起的作家，1938年荣获诺贝尔文学奖，从此名扬天下，以中国乡村农民生活为背景的《大地》被视为赛珍珠最具代表性的著作，引起国际性关注。然而，她不仅以写作为生，而且还是“赛珍珠国际”的创始人，该机构致力于全球儿童公益事业。

        今天我前往赛珍珠庄园参观，现在这里已定为国家历史文化遗址，该故居过去一度曾被用作孤儿院──“欢迎之家”，帮助收养具有亚洲血统的美国弃儿，令人深受感动。赛珍珠自己仅生过一个女儿，领养的孩子却有很多。

        赛珍珠故居外表上看起来跟廿世纪后期普通农舍没啥两样，真正惊艳的地方莫过于内部布局。虽说赛珍珠是地道的美国人，但却保持东方人生活方式。她喜欢中国服装、饮食、家具和文学，无论把家安在何处，室内摆设充满美中两国文化气息，从瓷器筷子到墙上悬挂的东方字画，不断地让人想起赛珍珠深厚的生活根基。

        我发觉赛珍珠故居兼收并蓄中为洋用，巧妙地将舶来文化融入自身生活之中，特别是其老公和多数子女并非亚裔出身，严格地说，她也不算。然而这恰好说明赛珍珠特立独行，在保持自身文化元素的同时，始终对生于斯长于斯的故土一往情深。

        赛珍珠很多作品源于个人亲身经历，正因为那段中国生活阅历，激发了她著书立说的热情。此外，赛珍珠关怀儿童，并让理想成为现实，赛珍珠国际是一个救济儿童的基金会，热心人可通过这个组织向孤儿捐款。

        如今赛珍珠故居不但对外开放供游人参观，而且还提供婚庆喜筵特色服务，空气中、池塘边、庄园里，赛珍珠依然活在人间。她的遗体葬在离故居不远的路边，墓碑上刻着中文名字“赛珍珠”。

Today in History(历史上的今天):

2016 Seventh-Grade Spring Concert(2016年初二春季音乐会)

2015 Mont Band Spring Concert(2015年蒙小管乐队春季音乐会)

Crosslink(相关博文):

Fallingwater, PA(宾州落水山莊)