The Young Man
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Summary
The Young Man (original French title Le jeune homme) is a short memoir by Annie Ernaux, winner of the 2022 Nobel Prize in Literature. The French edition was published in 2022, and the English translation by Alison L. Strayer was brought out by Seven Stories Press in 2023; the main text runs to just over sixty pages. In the book, Ernaux looks back on her affair, in her fifties, with a man some thirty years her junior (referred to throughout as "A."). On one hand, the relationship carries her back into her memories of youth, letting her see again the self who was then regarded as a "shameless girl"; on the other, it gives her a sense of agelessness beyond time, as if she were living her life backwards. The two once talked of having a child together, even as she was acutely aware that time was moving forward and menopause was approaching. The work continues Ernaux's characteristic mode of writing: no plotted narrative, no sentimental flourishes, but a cool, precise, almost sociological gaze that dissects the interplay of desire, age, class, shame and memory. An affair that looks "scandalous" becomes, in her hands, a way into examining women's lived experience and the passage of time. Short in length and restrained in language, the book is an important text for understanding Ernaux's late-period writing.
Editor's review
2022年诺贝尔文学奖得主安妮·埃尔诺，把她最擅长的“自我写作”推向了一个敏感地带：五十多岁的女人，与比她年轻三十岁的男人相爱。对于这段关系，她没有把它写成猎奇故事，也没有写成辩护词，而是像解剖一样，把身体、欲望、羞耻、阶层与时间一层层剥开。 这本书篇幅极短，一个小时左右即可读完，却带来很高的阅读密度。埃尔诺的句子干净、准确、不抒情；读者很容易被那些近乎冷酷的自我审视击中：她在恋人身上看见自己逝去的青春，也在镜子般的关系里重新确认“我正在老去”这一事实。语言平实，情感却很深。 英译本由长期翻译埃尔诺的 Alison L. Strayer 执笔，语调与《悠悠岁月》《一个男人的位置》等作品保持一致。适合想要了解埃尔诺写作风格、对女性生命经验与时间议题感兴趣的读者；若期待完整情节的长篇小说，则可能会觉得它过于简省。
Who it's for
A good fit for
- 读过安妮·埃尔诺《悠悠岁月》《一个男人的位置》，想继续追读其作品的读者
- 对女性写作、自传体写作与诺贝尔文学奖作家感兴趣的读者
- 关注年龄、欲望、身体与时间议题的读者
- 喜欢短篇、克制、思辨式回忆录，可在一两小时内读完一本书的读者
Not a good fit for
- 期待传统长篇情节、完整叙事弧线的读者
- 对直白的身体与性描写较为敏感的读者
- 希望读一部“纯粹浪漫爱情故事”的读者
Reading tips
- 建议一口气读完，本书篇幅很短，中断反而会削弱其情绪的连贯性
- 可结合作者《一个男人的位置》《简单的激情》对读，观察她如何反复书写欲望与阶层
- 留意书中关于时间与年龄的句子，它们是理解全书的关键线索
- 读后可写一段自己的“时间记忆”，体会埃尔诺式自我审视的写法
FAQ
这本书和乔伊斯的《一个青年艺术家的肖像》是同一本吗？
不是。乔伊斯那部作品的原题是 A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man，属于长篇小说；本书《The Young Man》是安妮·埃尔诺的短篇回忆录，法文原题 Le jeune homme，2022年出版，内容与乔伊斯无关。
这本书大概有多长？读完需要多久？
英文版正文约六十余页，属于短篇回忆录，多数读者一到两小时即可读完，适合作为一次阅读体验完成。
书中的“A.”是真实人物吗？
埃尔诺的写作一向以自身经历为材料，书中以字母“A.”代指那位比她年轻约三十岁的恋人，不披露其真实姓名，这也是她一贯处理身边人物的方式。
需要先读过埃尔诺的其他作品吗？
不需要。本书可以独立阅读，篇幅短、语言直白。若读过《简单的激情》或《悠悠岁月》，会更容易理解她的写作手法与反复出现的主题。
这本书获得过什么奖项吗？
本书本身未获专门奖项，但其作者安妮·埃尔诺于2022年获得诺贝尔文学奖，出版社在封面与宣传中均标注了这一点。英文版在 Goodreads 等平台评分约3.7分。
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