伊利亞

董橋寫道：「天生閑散的人喜歡藍姆隨筆溫煦；天生尖刻的人討厭藍姆隨筆偽善。」我不知道他人如何看藍姆的伊利亞隨筆(The Essays of Elia)，我這個懶人倒很喜歡他的散文。可是我英文不好，借了回家查了字典也看不出頭緒，到頭來還是買了本中文譯本，中英對照來讀。可惜中文譯本只錄部份作品，非伊利亞隨筆隨筆的全部；可幸的是，不知是我英文進步了，還是那幾篇沒譯文的作品較淺白，譯本遺漏了的文章還能理出個頭來。可喜可賀。

看他的文章很難看出他哀愁的人生，雖不算是活在地獄中，但絕不算活在幸福中。在他的文章不時流露對身邊事物的欣賞，若他的人生真的充滿不幸的事情，我不得不妒忌他對悲傷或哀愁等消極情緒的抵抗能力，或許這源於英國人重視常識的傳統。

一個人因不幸而失去常識是常見的事。例如一些失戀的人要生要死又要刀仔拮大髀，又或者小時候受到猶太人的不友善對待，長大後要屠殺上百萬猶太人等；相信讀者們能點出更多好例子。讀者或會質疑所謂的「常識」是甚麼意思，其實常識不外乎理性上明顯為真的描述或明顯正確的倫理判斷。當然我們未必就常識的外延(extension)有共識；但沒可能會有正常人會質疑「阿媽係女人」、「老闆資金充裕但不準時出糧是不對的」等信念。這些信念構成我們認識世界的基礎。例如，根據歸納法，BBC報道的事情十居其九皆真，所以BBC報道達爾富爾的人道災難該為真。所以常識可謂一個正確世界觀的必需條件。

這些說話看起來好像沒甚麼大不了，提出來有點多餘；常識重要眾人皆知，但是，一般以為常識只限於街市菜價，輪街症，日常生活禮儀或科學常識，或李天命常掛在口邊的思方(當然這些也是相當重要的，尤其是思方)。依我看，一個人有沒有常識最重要還是有沒有所謂sense of proportion，這個概念我不知怎樣繙譯，大意就是說這個世界有很多不同的事情發生，不同的人有不同的際遇，有快樂的事亦有悲傷的事，有些人的一生慘不忍睹，有人如魚得水；因此，我不能從我自己的人生際遇，推論他人的人生也是一樣。例如我不能因我的人生慘不忍睹，就說"這個世界沒有美好的事，所有人都慘不忍睹，只是他們不知道罷了"等結論。這就像在說"我十歲前很窮，我的一生也會很窮"一樣荒謬。(溫馨小提示：其實這是以偏蓋全的謬誤)

照以上的條件看，蘭姆算是常識極強的人。他早年喪母(他姊姊精神病發弒母)，喪兄(英年早逝)，為照顧有精神病的姊姊而終身不娶(21歲求婚失敗，之後就發生弒母事件)，並且沒有上過大學(對於一個求知欲強而又受過一點點教育的英國少年來說，無法繼續上學其實蠻不幸的)。在如此背景下，他仍能以輕鬆的筆調訴說他如何在牛津大學校園中彌補沒有上過大學的遺憾：

"I can here play the gentleman, enact the student. To such a one as myself, who has been defrauded in his young years of the sweet food of academic institution, nowhere is so pleasant, to while away a few idle weeks at, as one or other of the Universities. "

又或是訴說一個畫家在情人節向鄰家女士示愛的故事:

"All Valentines are not foolish; and I shall not easily forget thine, my kind friend (if I may have leave to call you so) E. B. -- E. B. lived opposite a young maiden, whom he had often seen, unseen, from his parlour window in C--e-street. She was all joyousness and innocence, and just of an age to enjoy receiving a Valentine, and just of a temper to bear the disappointment of missing one with good humour. E. B. is an artist of no common powers; in the fancy parts of designing, perhaps inferior to none; his name is known at the bottom of many a well executed vignette in the way of his profession, but no further; for E. B. is modest, and the world meets nobody half-way. E. B. meditated how he could repay this young maiden for many a favour which she had done him unknown; for when a kindly face greets us, though but passing by, and never knows us again, nor we it, we should feel it as an obligation; and E. B. did. This good artist set himself at work to please the damsel. It was just before Valentine's day three years since. He wrought, unseen and unsuspected, a wondrous work. We need not say it was on the finest gilt paper with borders -- full, not of common hearts and heartless allegory, but all the prettiest stories of love from Ovid, and older poets than Ovid (for E. B. is a scholar.) There was Pyramus and Thisbe, and be sure Dido was not forgot, nor Hero and Leander, and swans more than sang in Cayster, with mottos and fanciful devices, such as beseemed, -- a work in short of magic. Iris dipt the woof. This on Valentine's eve he commended to the all-swallowing indiscriminate orifice--(O ignoble trust!) -- of the common post; but the humble medium did its duty, and from his watchful stand, the -- next morning, he saw the cheerful messenger knock, and by and by the precious charge delivered. He saw, unseen, the happy girl unfold the Valentine, dance about, clap her hands, as one after one the pretty emblems unfolded themselves. She danced about, not with light love, or foolish expectations, for she had no lover; or, if she had, none she knew that could have created those bright images which delighted her. It was more like some fairy present; a God-send, as our familiarly pious ancestors termed a benefit received, where the benefactor was unknown. It would do her no harm. It would do her good for ever after. It is good to love the unknown. I only give this as a specimen of E. B. and his modest way of doing a concealed kindness."

這些文章中鮮有透露他的不幸，這或許是他故意遺忘這些不幸的事；但可以肯定的是，蘭姆沒有因他的不幸而失去欣嘗世界美好事物的能力。這或許解釋了一個二戰美國老兵所說的話：

"The world is imperfect, nonetheless we live happily."