迈克尔•杰克逊是一个时代的标志,他出类拔萃的音乐才能、华丽丽的舞姿,以及愈发诡异的面容和丑闻不断的私生活,这些无不是人们的谈资。他身上闪耀着“传奇”的荣光,同时也不乏“娱乐大众”该具备的故事。众人惊叹他的成就的同时也不断揶揄讥讽他的外表和行为。如今,他走了。一切的过错都不再重要,他生活上事业上的危机都迎刃而解,所有的鲜花与掌声都重归于他。正如紫氏部在《源氏物语》里感叹的那样,“生前诚可恨,死后皆可爱”,他用死亡成全了我们对一个“传奇”最完整的想望。
——Mac
In startling ways, pop culture mirrors long-standing spiritual arguments. In an age where the stage has replaced the 1)pulpit—where the line between the two is all but invisible—morality is played out in the lives of celebrities. This is an 2)unsettling phenomenon. Princess Diana slips into the role of Holy Mother almost equal with 3)Mother Teresa. Michael Jackson’s call to “Heal the World” in a pop song spreads to every corner of the planet and probably touches more people than the Pope’s annual Christmas message.
通俗流行文化总是以令人诧异的方式反映着由来已久的精神理念。在这个布道坛被舞台代替的时代——两者的分界线已经难以察觉——道德伦理从名人的生活中体现了出来。这是一个让人不安的现象。戴安娜王妃不知不觉中充当了圣母的角色,几乎可与德蕾莎修女媲美。而迈克尔•杰克逊在一首流行歌中“拯救世界”的呼声传播到世界的每一个角落,或许比教皇每年的圣诞节致辞更鼓舞人心。
With the sudden, sad death of Michael Jackson, Michaelism begins to haunt us. His legendary musical achievements totally overshadow his 4)bizarre and controversial private life. It’s hard not to see Michael Jackson as a king of pop. I could not help but ponder Michael’s nature after I received an e-mail that pointed to “the 5)transcendent feeling he inspired in so many people with his music and his dancing. He seemed to be in another zone when he was performing and took others with him.” I agree. Throughout his solo career, Jackson’s versatility allowed him to experiment with various themes and 6)genres. Unlike many artists, Jackson did not write his songs on paper. Instead he would 7)dictate into a sound recorder; when recording he would sing from memory. In 1979, his album Off the Wall became the first album to 8)spawn four US top 10 hits. Awards were showered on him and the stage was set for his most remarkable achievement—1982’s Thriller, which remains the world’s biggest-selling album.
随着迈克尔•杰克逊令人伤感地溘然长逝,“迈克尔主义”开始缠上我们。他极具传奇色彩的音乐成就使他那古怪又充满争议的私生活变得黯然失色。要不将迈克尔•杰克逊视为“流行之王”恐怕很难。我收到过一封电子邮件,里面提及“他(迈克尔)的音乐和舞蹈给那么多的人带来了超然感。在表演的时候,他仿佛置身在另一个世界里,而且把其他人也带到那里去了。” 看着这封邮件,我不禁思考他究竟是怎样的一个人。我同意信中对他的描述。在他的个人演艺生涯中,他多才多艺,这使他可以尝试不同的主题,不同的风格。与许多其他艺人不同,迈克尔•杰克逊创作歌曲不会写在纸上,而是把歌录进录音机里,真正录音时,他会凭着记忆唱出来。1979年,单就《墙外》这个专辑,就产生了四首挺进美国排行榜前十名的歌——这可是史无前例的。接着各种奖项都纷至沓来,而一切都为他最了不起的成就做好了准备——1982年的专辑《颤栗》,其至今仍为世界上最畅销的专辑。
However, aside from the title of King of Pop, he also won a less welcome nickname— 9)Wacko Jacko. Everything he did came under a harsh spotlight, including his rapidly changing appearance. In 2003, Jackson was charged with seven counts of child sexual abuse and two counts of 10)administering an 11)intoxicating 12)agent in order to commit that 13)felony. Finally Jackson was cleared but became a virtual 14)recluse and a 15)nomad, traveling the world with his children. Creditors started to 16)close in on him, possessions were sold and 17)Neverland was left to 18)decay. He was left to rely largely on the support of wealthy friends attracted by his 19)stardom.
然而,除了流行乐坛王者这头衔外,他还有一个让他并不怎么受欢迎的外号——疯子杰克。他所做的一切都被毫不留情地暴露在聚光灯下,包括他那发生惊人变化的外表。在2003年,杰克逊被指控犯下七项儿童性侵犯罪以及另外两项给儿童下迷药以企图性侵犯的罪名。杰克逊最终得以开脱,而他从此也基本上成了一个遁世者,与他的孩子们四处漂泊。他的债主开始逼债,财产被变卖,“梦幻庄园”也被遗弃,荒废在一边。他的生活基本上是要靠那些被他的星光吸引的有钱朋友来支助。
His sudden death has brought him to the position of king of the world, once again. He got what he wanted—immortality.
他猝然离世让他再一次回到世界之王的位置了。他最终如愿以偿——永生不朽。
He’s going to be bigger in death than he ever was in life. Early death is the perfect career move for someone as big as he was who really didn’t seem to have much of a shot at regaining his former glory, no matter what he did. Look at 20)Elvis.
他将比活着的时候更显伟大。对于像他这样一个天王巨星来说,无论如何他已经不可能再重现往日的辉煌,他的早逝是他的事业最完美的一步。看看“猫王”就知道了。
I think he was a very 21)shrewd man—playing up the 22)weirdo angle as much as possible for the public because of the old saying that there is no such thing as “bad” publicity. Everyone looked at him. We 23)took the bait. I think he knew exactly what he was doing.
我认为他是一个精明的人——他竭力向公众呈现出怪人的一面,因为老话说,没“负面宣传”这回事,有人关注就是好事。所有人都在看他。我们上钩了。我觉得他很清楚自己所做的事。
Now he is dead. Strangers are brought together for this moment, usually through mass media, only to return to being strangers once the moment is gone. The message being communicated is far simpler than the 24)doctrines and 25)dogmas of organized faiths. Did Michael Jackson really heal the world in any meaningful sense? Did it help him be elevated to saintly status when in reality his private life contained more than its share of trouble, confusion, and turmoil?
现在他不在了。一众陌生人都为此聚到一起,这主要归功于大众媒体,待缅怀时刻结束,众人又再形同陌路。此时,被传播的信息比那些有组织的宗教信仰的教义和教条都简单得多。迈克尔•杰克逊真的以某种有意义的方式拯救了世界吗?尽管现实中他的私生活过度烦乱喧嚣,他所谓 “拯救世界”的信念行动能否助他上升到“神”那样的高度呢?
He tried to recapture an innocence he saw in children that he was denied and look where that got him. Things only started to really go downhill when the accusations started—then maybe he started to realize that his own children could be taken away from him as a result of his actions. The only thing he ever said publicly that he wanted was to stay young forever, and now he’s going to get his wish. He died very young, and what we’re witnessing now is the 26)deification of a pop star. Modern myths are created around a complicated personality and then a person becomes 27)sanctified for one reason or another. Regardless of whether you loved him or hated him—we’re seeing the creation of a modern myth—no matter what he has done, death sets him flawless and significant, and I’m fascinated by this.
他力图找寻从孩子们身上看到的自己已失落的童真,看看会有什么结果。当他面临指控后,事情才开始急转直下,可能也就是那个时候,他才意识到自己的行为可能导致这样的后果——自己的孩子会被带走。他惟一公开说过的一件事就是他想青春永驻,如今他梦想成真。他英年早逝,而我们现在看到的是一个流行明星如何被“神化”。围绕这一复杂人物的现代神话诞生了,一个人因为某些原因被奉若神明。不管你是爱他还是恨他,我们都目睹了现代神话的诞生,不管他曾经做了些什么,死亡令他成“足赤真金”,非同凡响。而我对这一点惊诧不已。
When Jackson sang Heal the World, to some extent, he did inspire such a feeling that healed his own wrongdoings and ours, even though it lasted for only several minutes. But today, I linger on the rare thing that Michael accomplished. As the King of Pop, he’s made incomparable achievements in the musical 28)arena, and even amidst the grief at his wrongdoings, a remembrance of that still 29)comes through.
当杰克逊唱起《拯救世界》,尽管歌曲只有短短的几分钟,但在一定程度上他让人相信他自己和我们的罪孽都被洗净。但今天,我反复思忖着迈克尔的一个难得成就——作为流行乐坛天王,他在音乐领域取得了无人可及的成就;因而,即使我们对他的过错心怀不满,对其思念之情仍向我们袭来。 
歌曲由Top100.cn 巨鲸音乐网提供
迈克尔 杰克逊(Michael Jackson)
Like a comet
Blazing ‘cross the evening sky
Gone too soon
Like a rainbow
Fading in the twinkling of an eye
Gone too soon
Shiny and sparkly
And splendidly bright
Here one day
Gone one night
Like the loss of sunlight
On a cloudy afternoon
Gone Too Soon
Like a castle
Built upon a sandy beach
Gone Too Soon
Like a perfect flower
That is just beyond your reach
Gone too soon
Born to amuse
To inspire, to delight
Here one day
Gone one night
Like a sunset
Dying with the rising of the moon
Gone too soon
Gone too soon