陈瑞琳：拓展海外华文文坛生存空间

吴洋

尝试着走近陈瑞琳，是从海外华文文坛代表人物访谈，以及国内外诸多专家学者研究她的散文作品和文学评论开始的。小说家陈忠实说：“陈瑞琳热爱她脚下走过的每一寸土地，然而她更爱人！”贾平凹则说：“陈瑞琳的文字里有汉唐之风，丰腴、大气。”央视4套在做她的专访时，将她定位为“凿碑立传的文学女人”。

陈瑞琳，13岁起在报刊发表小说、散文、诗歌，1977年，15岁的她考上西北大学中文系，不满20岁便已成为大学老师。1992年，作为陪读家属随同丈夫赴美留学。虽然这样的选择让原本正要腾飞的文学事业在迈出国门的一刹那被重新改写，但聪慧而敏感的她却在海外文坛开辟了另一番天地。时至今日，陈瑞琳取得了公认的非凡成就，被誉为“当代海外新移民文学的重量级评论家”“海外华文文学的开创者”。

陪读打拼的散文作家

来到大洋彼岸后的陈瑞琳首先是以散文写作者身份出道的，她的散文（尤其是后期散文）既闪烁着现实人生的浪漫，又不乏时空的悠远与历史的沉思。而她的文学评论则在冷冰冰的理论中注入了一种浪漫的色彩与情感的火焰。张爱玲认为，好的作品“还是在于它是以（作家）人生的安稳作底子来描写人生的飞扬的”。陈瑞琳应该就是这样的作家。她的心态之所以达到“飞扬”与“安稳”二者妙不可言的平衡，首先得益于她对生命力度高昂的自信心。文学女人从不缺乏敏感，陈瑞琳却总是“丰面带笑”“大肚能容”，她的个性开朗达观，正面看人生，好意揣测人，她到哪里，哪里就有充满感染力的笑声。而这种散文风格和人生态度的鲜明显现和被人辨识，除了童年、青年时期境遇的影响外，还与30岁以后她在异国他乡陪读、奋斗的经历紧密相连，她的文学表达与经历分享为移居并需要适应新的语言文化生活圈的人们如何走出漂泊的迷惘、找到自身存在价值提供了具体而励志的借鉴样本。

这期间，她一边在各式各样的餐馆打工，一边给各种报纸投稿，也当过记者、办过报纸、开过书店、编过文学杂志以及做过华语电台节目等，几乎是跟文学有关的都尝试过。再到后来，还举办各种文学征文活动，苦耕勤力，因为深知“众人拾柴火焰高”“断根之虞”萦绕于心，她在所有可能的场所呼吁汉语写作的“承继”，做华文写作的领航员、中美文化的联络员。1998年，中国文联出版社出版了她的首部散文集《走天涯——我在美国的日子》。1999年，休斯顿市长向她颁发了“荣誉市民”及“文化亲善大使”称号。在说起自己同胞的种种情况时，她的情思总是更为浓郁与深邃，她对自己笔下那些旅美或访美的医生、作家、商人、雕塑家、演员和运动员等都十分动情地加以描绘，她不仅希望在美利坚这块土地上生活的炎黄子孙们能够成为出类拔萃的榜样，更怀念和祝福在遥远的祖国的亲人们都向着美好的明天迈进。

陈瑞琳这颗虔诚和灼热的心灵，常常透过字里行间强烈震荡着。她很自然和形象地从东西方文化的不同视角，作出有趣而又发人深思的比较，这对于中国读者了解美国以及整个世界都是很有帮助的。《将要忘记的事》是陈瑞琳写给逝去的母亲抑或是写给自己的一篇回忆录，初到他乡时奋斗的历程、丰富的见闻和深沉的思索，以及对追寻文学之梦的满腔热情和执著奋进在文中娓娓道来，在饱尝生活的酸甜苦辣后还能以诙谐幽默的语言让人会心一笑，文笔之细腻，情真之意切，让人感同身受。

海外华文文学的创新推手

回首来时路，陈瑞琳觉得那是一段“艰难而兴奋着，痛苦而快乐着”的美好日子。正因為深切感受和理解海外文学创作者的孤独和艰难，陈瑞琳便着手全面展开对海外华文文坛的俯瞰，开启了作为文学评论家的新征程。

1999年，美国《侨报》特别为陈瑞琳开辟了“海外新移民作家扫描”的评论专栏，以独特视角关注近年来海外新移民文学的创作。2005年，她和融融一起编著的北美新移民作家首部专辑《一代飞鸿——北美中国大陆新移民作家小说精选点评》在中美两地出版。2006年，《横看成岭侧成峰——北美新移民文学散论》一书惊艳问世，首评严歌苓、张翎等华文作家，被誉为当代北美华文文学研究的开山之作。同年，她荣获了中国《文艺报》评选的海外唯一的“理论创新奖”。

多年来，陈瑞琳不只是评论华文作品，推介华文作家，她还是一个导航者。因为海外华人写作，没有统一的理论指向，为此她提出“创新与再生”，力促华文文学为中华语言文化作出特殊的贡献。

格局须创新，深度、广度、力度都要下力，既超越“唐人街”文化的种族藩篱，又能以健康坦荡的心态直面西方文化的冲击，在“边缘”状态中独立清醒地重塑华人自我的文化身份，在“超越乡愁”的高度上寻找新的生命理想，这是她对华文写作内容的期许。

形式上也要“创新与再生”，须“对源远流长的中华文学传统展开自觉意义上的反思和开拓”。责其重源于深其望，不能不说，陈瑞琳的急切在于，海外华文文学是在用汉语语言文学与世界各民族文学“赛龙舟”，因此，就得有自己的速度，有自己的风姿，有自己的力度。陈瑞琳有着充分的勇气和卓越的能力跳出来当这个“龙舟赛”上喊号子的人。

拓展海外华文文坛生存空间

陈瑞琳说，海外华文文坛这个特殊的族群需要她倾注所有心血去关注、研究、扶持，同时，她自身也需要文学的拯救。为此，她多次担任“海外新移民作家国际笔会”会长，并举办海外新移民文学创作成果大展，使得新移民文学的创作与研究有了自己的空间。

一手写自己、一手评他人的陈瑞琳如今已过了“知天命”之年，但她却越来越觉得，“所谓好的中年，应该是低成本的慈悲人生，不再要物质的积累，却能求灵魂上的圆满，有人在乎，有人守候，有人懂得，每日收藏起生命里最美的缘”。这种能通过文字传达并感染读者的豁达、包容、乐观和大爱，这种能给他人以正面鼓舞和温馨慰藉的磅礴力量，是只有在命运变迁、时代更迭的岁月沉浮中守住了文学初心、实现了遥远梦想，以及“授人玫瑰”后“手留余香”之人的身上才独有的。

可以这样说，海外华文文学这一美丽风景是时代创造的，但陈瑞琳无疑是其中的一位卓越参与者和重要助推者。她的敏感把握、她的卓识远见、她的热情扶持、她的无私奉献，都让今天的文坛记住了她的名字。

（感謝林非、刘荒田、黄嘉华、宋晓英、陈屹对本文的贡献。）

Chen Ruilin： Pioneer of Overseas Chinese Literature

By  Wu Yang

Chen Ruilin began to publish her novels， essays and poetry when she was only 13 years old. In 1977， a 15-year-old Chen took the college entrance examination and was admitted to the Department of Chinese at Northwest University in Shaanxi province. Not yet reaching her 20th birthday， she had already become a lecturer teaching contemporary literature at Shaanxi Normal University， after finishing postgraduate studies.

In 1992， while waiting for her PhD interview， Chen learnt that her husband obtained the visa to study in the US. Standing at such a crossroads， she decided to choose family over career development after serious consideration. The original path Chen was pursuing had to be rewritten the moment she left China， but her intelligence and literary sensibility helped open another window for her. Now， her accomplishments have been widely recognized， and she is regarded as a “major critic on contemporary overseas Chinese literature”， and a “pioneer of overseas Chinese literature”.

Chen Zhongshi， a top contemporary Chinese author， once remarked， “Chen Ruilin loves every inch of land she has walked over， but above all， she loves people more！” Jia Pingwa， another renowned writer， said Chens writing is a mirror of her： “Her works remind people of literary styles of the Han and Tang dynasties， rich and majestic.”

Chen is both a prose writer and a literary critic， both an active participant in overseas Chinese literature and a promoter and a chaperone for overseas Chinese writers.

After arriving at the US， Chen Ruilin restarted her literary pursuit first as a prose writer. Her prose and essays （especially those published in the latter stages）， according to some scholars， are radiant with real-life romance as well as thoughtful contemplation on time and history. Indeed， her literary criticisms have injected color and emotion into theories that are invariably cold and rigid.

Eileen Chang （1920-1995） believed that good works “portray lifes successes based on the stability of life”. Chens works are considered as such， and the subtle balance between “success” and “stability” derives first and foremost from her self-confidence in life. Some female writers get overly sensitive to criticisms of their works， but Chen is quite the opposite. She is always full of smiles and magnanimous; wherever she goes， laughter follows. Such a cheerful and upbeat personality can be easily discerned in her writings， which， apart from childhood upbringing and the influence of circumstances during early adult years， has much to do with Chens experience of accompanying her husband to pursue further studies in the US and striving to gain a foothold there. Hers was more than an individual experience; it was a microcosm of tens of thousands of Chinese immigrating to the US， Europe， Australia and other Western countries in the 1990s. More importantly， Chen set a good example for those who have chosen to live in a different country， and who have to adapt to a new language， a new culture and a new life.

In the US， she wrote for a number of newspapers， worked as a journalist， owned a newspaper， operated a bookstore， edited a literary magazine ... she basically did everything literary. She also organized various literary competitions and， on every possible occasion， appealed for overseas Chinese to continue “inheriting” Chinese writing. She also served as a liaison between Chinese and American cultures; in 1999， the mayor of Houston named her an honorary citizen and a Goodwill Ambassador. In 1998， her first collection of essays， Traveling to the End of the World： My Days in the United States was published， in which she portrayed vividly all sorts of overseas Chinese — a doctor， a writer， a businessman， a sculptor， an actor， a sportsman. In another book， Things about to Be Forgotten， a memoir Chen penned both in memory of her mother and for herself， she talked of her experiences when she first set foot in the US. In one episode， she wrote：

Houston didnt believe in tears， but I needed money. I needed a job. I saw a city that wouldnt speak my language， and worse， I couldnt find my way back. Under the tall building in the downtown area， the last bus had already left， and it was getting dark and raining heavily. I dared not go to the nearest building for shelter， and only some tramps pointed at me， whispering to each other under the eaves. I finally found the phone booth， heard my cousins voice， and waited for her to drive here and pick me up. I would have to stand in the rain for at least an hour. I began to cry， anyway， there was no need to wipe tears， the moment the earth also seemed to stop spinning， lonely I seemed to stand at the gate of hell.

As the Russian poet Alexander Pushkin （1799-1837） once said， “What will pass will be nice.” Looking back， Chen Ruilin sees her journey in the US as one that is “both tough and exciting， both painful and happy”. Thanks to her firsthand knowledge and understanding of the loneliness and difficulties facing overseas Chinese authors， Chen began her career as a literary critic in 1999. Since then， she has been focusing on the literary works of new Chinese immigrants with unique perspectives. The China Press， a leading Chinese language newspaper catering to the Chinese American community in the US， specially opened a new column for Chen to look at new Chinese immigrant writers. In 2005， her co-edited book Selected Stories of North American Chinese Writers was published in China and the US， the first such collection of the new generation of North American Chinese authors. In 2006， her book Essays on North American Chinese Literature， regarded as a pioneering work in the study of new Chinese immigrant literature in North America， was published.

Chen finds that history has given her a “duty” not only to review Chinese works and promote Chinese writers， but also to “guide” the way. For overseas Chinese writers， there is no unified theoretical direction. Therefore， she proposed the idea of “innovation and regeneration”： The dynamic should be transformed to transcend the racial limitations of the “Chinatown culture”， but also to face the impact of Western culture with a healthy and open mind， and rebuild the cultural identity of the Chinese community， often regarded as being on the fringe of the mainstream society.

Today， already in her fifties， Chen Ruilin is still working hard to create a distinctive identity for overseas Chinese literature. Her sensitivity， her insight， her enthusiastic support for young writers and her selfless dedication have all contributed immensely to this endeavor.