靠谱电子书 > 文学名著电子书 > my name is red-我的名字叫红 >

第111部分

my name is red-我的名字叫红-第111部分

小说: my name is red-我的名字叫红 字数: 每页4000字

按键盘上方向键 ← 或 → 可快速上下翻页,按键盘上的 Enter 键可回到本书目录页,按键盘上方向键 ↑ 可回到本页顶部!
————未阅读完?加入书签已便下次继续阅读!



the  lot  of  poets;  drunks;  hashish  addicts  and  dervishes  and  others  who 
cunningly  charmed  the  proprietor  into  allowing  them  to  join  this  mirthful 
and witty group。 I explained how confusion reigned as soon as the raid began。 
When  the  crowd  of  onlookers  gathered  by  the  proprietor  for  some  bawdy 
entertainment began to leave in a panic; no one thought to mount a defense 
of the establishment or of the poor old storyteller dressed as a woman。 Did I 
grieve over this calamity? “Yes! I; Mustafa the Painter; also known as ”Stork;“ 
who have truly devoted my entire life to illumination; find it necessary; each 
night; to sit together with my artist brethren and converse; joke; ridicule; pay 
pliments;  recite  poems  and  speak  in  innuendos;”  I  confessed;  looking 
directly into the eyes of dim…witted Butterfly; shrouded in the air of a plump; 
moist…eyed boy plagued by envy。 Even as an apprentice; this Butterfly of ours; 
whose eyes were still as lovely as a child’s; was a sensitive; fine…skinned beauty。 
Again; upon their asking me; I described how on the second day that the 
storyteller;  may  his  soul  find  peace  in  Heaven;  wandering  the  city  and 
neighborhoods   began   plying   his   trade   in   the   coffeehouse;   one   of   the 
miniaturists; perhaps under the influence of coffee; hung a picture on the wall 
to be amusing; the glib storyteller took notice and; as a joke of his own; began 
a  monologue  as  if  he  were  the  dog  in  the  picture;  which  met  with  great 
success; thenceforth; every night he continued to feature pictures drawn by the 
master miniaturists and to tell witty tales they whispered into his ear。 Because 
the  jibes  at  the  preacher  from  Erzurum  at  once  exhilarated  the  artists;  who 
lived  in  terror  of  the  preacher’s  wrath;  and  drew  more  customers  to  the 
coffeehouse; the proprietor from Edirne encouraged the performances。 
They  asked  me  my  interpretation  of  the  pictures  the  storyteller  hung  up 
behind  himself  each  night;  the  ones  they  found  during  their  raid  of  brother 
399 
 
Olive’s  empty  house。  I  explained  that  there  was  no  need  for  interpretation 
because the proprietor; like Olive himself; was a begging; thieving; wild wretch 
of  a  Kalenderi  dervish。  The  simple…minded  Elegant  Effendi;  terrified  of  Hoja 
Effendi’s   exhortations;   and   especially   of   his   fire…and…brimstone   Friday 
sermons;  must’ve  plained  of  them  to  the  Erzurumis。  Or  even  more 
probable; when Elegant warned them to stop in their mischief; the proprietor 
and Olive; both of the same temperament; conspired to cruelly do away with 
the  ill…fated  gilder。  The  Erzurumis;  incited  by  Elegant’s  murder;  and  perhaps 
because  Elegant  Effendi  had  described  Enishte’s  book  to  them;  held  Enishte 
responsible  for  the  murder  and  killed  him;  and;  they  must’ve  raided  the 
coffeehouse to plete their revenge。 
How much attention were chubby Butterfly and grave Black (he was like a 
ghost) paying to what I said as they ransacked my possessions; gleefully lifting 
every lid and leaving not a stone unturned? When they came across my boots; 
armor and bellished walnut trunk; a look of envy 
blossomed  on  Butterfly’s  childish  face;  and  I  once  again  declared  what 
everybody already knew quite well。 I was the first Muslim illustrator to set out 
on campaign with the army and the first to carefully study and depict what I’d 
witnessed  in  various  victory  Chronicles—the  firing  of  cannon;  the  towers  of 
enemy castles; the colors of infidel soldiers’ uniforms; the sprawl of corpses; 
the  piles  of  severed  heads  along  riverbanks  and  the  order  and  charge  of 
armored cavalry! 
When Butterfly asked me to show him how I donned my armor; I forthwith 
and without embarrassment took off my overshirt; my black rabbit…fur…lined 
undershirt;  my  trousers  and  my  underwear。  Pleased  with  the  way  they 
watched me by the light of the stove; I pulled on my clean long underwear; the 
thick shirt of red broadcloth worn under armor in cold weather; woolen socks; 
the boots of yellow leather; and over them; my gaiters。 Removing it from its 
case; I was delighted to put on my breastplate; then I turned my back toward 
Butterfly and as if ordering a pageboy; had him do up the laces of the armor 
tightly and ordered him to attach my shoulder plates。 As I was putting on my 
vambraces;  gloves;  the  camel  hair  sword  belt  and  finally  the  gold…worked 
helmet  that  I  wore  for  ceremonies;  I  proudly  declared  that  henceforth  battle 
scenes would never again be depicted as they’d been in days of old。 “It is no 
longer  permissible  to  depict  the  cavalries  of  two  opposing  armies  uniformly 
using  the  same  pattern  as  a  guide  and  simply  flipping  it  over  to  draw  the 
enemy’s  forces;”  I  said。  “From  now  on;  the  battle  scenes  made  in  the 
400 
 
workshops of the Ottomans will be drawn the way I’ve seen them and drawn 
them: a tumult of armies; horses; armor…clad warriors and bloodied bodies!” 
Seized by envy; Butterfly said; “The illuminator draws not what he sees; but 
what Allah sees。” 
“Yes;” I said; “however; exalted Allah certainly sees everything we see。” 
“Of course; Allah sees what we see; but He doesn’t perceive it the way we 
do;”  said  Butterfly  as  if  chastising  me。  “The  confused  battle  scene  that  we 
perceive  in  our  bewilderment;  He  perceives  in  His  omniscience  as  two 
opposing armies in an orderly array。” 
Naturally; I had a response。 I wanted to say; “It falls to us to believe in Allah 
and to depict only what He reveals to us; not what He conceals;” but I held my 
peace。 And I hadn’t kept quiet because Butterfly would otherwise accuse me of 
imitating the Europeans or because he was relentlessly striking one end of his 
dagger against my helmet and back; supposedly to test my armor; but because 
I calculated that only if I restrained myself and won over Black and this pretty…
eyed oaf could we deliver ourselves from Olive’s scheming。 
Once they knew they wouldn’t find what they were looking for here; they 
told  me  what  they  were  after。  There  was  a  picture  that  the  unspeakable 
murderer had absconded with…I said that my house was already searched for 
the  same  reason;  as  a  result;  the  wise  murderer  most  certainly  would’ve  hid 
that picture where nobody could ever find it (I was thinking of Olive); but did 
they  heed  my  words?  Black  explained  the  horse  drawn  with  clipped  nostrils 
and how the three…day period Our Sultan had granted Master Osman was well 
nigh  over。  When  I  inquired  further  about  the  significance  of  the  clipped 
nostrils;  Black  told  me;  looking  straight  into  my  eyes;  how  Master  Osman; 
analyzing them as a clue; linked them to Olive; although he suspected me even 
more; being no stranger to my ambitions。 
At  first;  it  appeared  they’d  e  here  prepared  to  believe  that  I  was  the 
murderer  and  to  find  proof  of  it;  but  in  my  opinion;  this  wasn’t  the  sole 
reason for their visit。 They’d also e knocking at my door out of loneliness 
and desperation。 When I opened the door; the dagger that Butterfly pointed at 
me  shook  in  his  hand。  Not  only  were  they  terrified;  thinking  that  the 
despicable murderer; whose identity they were at such pains to uncover; might 
corner them in the darkness; smiling like an old friend; and swiftly cut their 
throats; they were also losing sleep for fear that Master Osman might conspire 
with Our Sultan and the Head Treasurer to turn them over to the torturer—
not to mention the mob of Erzurumis roaming the streets; which demoralized 
401 
 
them。 In short; they desired my friendship。 But Master Osman had instilled in 
them the opposite notion。 It was my present obligation to show them sincerely 
how Master Osman was mistaken; which is what they’d hoped for deep down 
anyway。 
Simply declaring that the great master was mistaken and that he’d bee 
senile  would  surely  arouse  Butterfly’s  enmity。  For  in  the  watery  eyes  of  the 
handsome illuminator; whose eyelashes fluttered like the insect he was named 
for as he banged upon my armor with his dagger; I could still make out the 
pale fire of love he felt for the great master; whose favorite he had been。 In my 
youth;  the  closeness  of  those  two;  master  and  apprentice;  was  enviously 
ridiculed by the others; but they themselves paid no mind; they’d stare into 
each other’s eyes at length and fondle each other in front of everybody; later 
still;  Master  Osman  would  declare  tactlessly  that  Butterfly  was  possessed  of 
the most agile pen and the most mature color brush。 This declaration—often 
quite true—became the source of endless puns among the jealous miniaturists 
using  pens;  brushes;  inkpots  and  pen  boxes  in  vulgar  allusions;  devilish 
parisons  and  indecent  metaphors。  For  this  reason;  I’m  not  the  only  one 
who senses that Master Osman

返回目录 上一页 下一页 回到顶部 0 0

你可能喜欢的