詩歌原文
You Don't Know What Love Is
(an evening with Charles Bukowski)
by:Raymond Carver
You don't know what love is Bukowski said
I'm 51 years old look at me
I'm in love with this young broad
I got it bad but she's hung up too
so it's all right man that's the way it should be
I get in their blood and they can't get me out
They try everything to get away from me
but they all come back in the end
They all came back to me except
the one I planted
I cried over that one
but I cried easy in those days
Don't let me get onto the hard stuff man
I get mean then
I could sit here and drink beer
with you hippies all night
I could drink ten quarts of this beer
and nothing it's like water
But let me get onto the hard stuff
and I'll start throwing people out windows
I'll throw anybody out the window
I've done it
But you don't know what love is
You don't know because you've never
been in love it's that simple
I got this young broad see she's beautiful
She calls me Bukowski
Bukowski she says in this little voice
and I say What
But you don't know what love is
I'm telling you what it is
but you aren't listening
There isn't one of you in this room
would recognize love if it stepped up
and buggered you in the ass
I used to think poetry readings were a copout
Look I'm 51 years old and I've been around
I know they're a copout
but I said to myself Bukowski
starving is even more of a copout
So there you are and nothing is like it should be
That fellow what's his name Galway Kinnell
I saw his picture in a magazine
He has a handsome mug on him
but he's a teacher
Christ can you imagine
But then you're teachers too
here I am insulting you already
No I haven't heard of him
or him either
They're all termites
Maybe it's ego I don't read much anymore
but these people who build
reputations on five or six books
termites
Bukowski she says
Why do you listen to classical music all day
Can't you hear her saying that
Bukowski why do you listen to classical music all day
That surprises you doesn't it
You wouldn't think a crude bastard like me
could listen to classical music all day
Brahms Rachmaninoff Bartok Telemann
Shit I couldn't write up here
Too quiet up here too many trees
I like the city that's the place for me
I put on my classical music each morning
and sit down in front of my typewriter
I light a cigar and I smoke it like this see
and I say Bukowski you're a lucky man
Bukowski you've gone through it all
and you're a lucky man
and the blue smoke drifts across the table
and I look out the window onto Delongpre Avenue
and I see people walking up and down the sidewalk
and I puff on the cigar like this
and then I lay the cigar in the ashtray like this and take a deep breath
and I begin to write
Bukowski this is the life I say
it's good to be poor it's good to have hemorrhoids
it's good to be in love
But you don't know what it's like
You don't know what it's like to be in love
If you could see her you'd know what I mean
She thought I'd come up here and get laid
She just knew it
She told me she knew it
Shit I'm 51 years old and she's 25
and we're in love and she's jealous
Jesus it's beautiful
she said she'd claw my eyes out if I came up here
and got laid
Now that's love for you
What do any of you know about it
Let me tell you something
I've met men in jail who had more style
than the people who hang around colleges
and go to poetry readings
They're bloodsuckers who come to see
if the poet's socks are dirty
or if he smells under the arms
Believe me I won't disappoint em
But I want you to remember this
there's only one poet in this room tonight
only one poet in this town tonight
maybe only one real poet in this country tonight
and that's me
What do any of you know about life
What do any of you know about anything
Which of you here has been fired from a job
or else has beaten up your broad
or else has been beaten up by your broad
I was fired from Sears and Roebuck five times
They'd fire me then hire me back again
I was a stockboy for them when I was 35
and then got canned for stealing cookies
I know what's it like I've been there
I'm 51 years old now and I'm in love
This little broad she says
Bukowski
and I say What and she says
I think you're full of shit
and I say baby you understand me
She's the only broad in the world
man or woman
I'd take that from
But you don't know what love is
They all came back to me in the end too
every one of em came back
except that one I told you about
the one I planted We were together seven years
We used to drink a lot
I see a couple of typers in this room but
I don't see any poets
I'm not surprised
You have to have been in love to write poetry
and you don't know what it is to be in love
that's your trouble
Give me some of that stuff
That's right no ice good
That's good that's just fine
So let's get this show on the road
I know what I said but I'll have just one
That tastes good
Okay then let's go let's get this over with
only afterwards don't anyone stand close
to an open window
詩歌翻譯
你們不知道愛情是什麼
（某夜聽查爾斯·布可夫斯基演講）
翻譯：黍黎釋
你們不知道愛情是什麼，布可夫斯基說。
瞧我都五十一歲了
我愛上了這樣一個小娘們
我常樂而忘返她常耿耿於懷
你們知道這我已習以為常了
我愛她們深蝕骨髓她們卻見異思遷
她們想盡辦法離開我
最後都回到我身邊
除了我甩掉的那一個
她們都回到我身邊
為她我曾泣不成聲
那時我動不動就想哭
你們別再讓我喝烈酒了
我會不能自已的
我能坐在這兒喝著啤酒
整夜和你們暢談
我能喝十夸脫這樣的啤酒
跟水一樣，喝完半點事沒有
誰再讓我喝烈酒
我將把他扔到窗外
不管是誰
我曾乾過這事的
那是你們不知道愛情是什麼
你們不知道，那是因為你們沒愛過
就是這么簡單
我愛的這個小娘們長得漂亮
常叫我布可夫斯基
布可夫斯基，她低聲細語
我說幹嘛啊
你們不知道愛情是什麼
我就告訴你們愛情是什麼
但你們聽不進去
這屋子裡沒一個人想聽
你們認為愛情就是衝上去
像同性戀一樣搞她們的屁股
過去我認為讀詩是一種羞恥
瞧我都五十一歲了，也見過世面了
我知道他們也是這種德性
我經常捫心自問:布可夫斯基
比起他們，挨餓更是一種羞恥
因此在座的各位，他們沒啥可喜歡的
尤其是那個叫高爾韋·金內爾傢伙
我在雜誌上見過他
長著一張英俊的臉
而且他還是個老師
天啊你們可以想像
如果你們也是老師
我侮辱過你們
我沒聽過他
以及關於他的一切
他們全都是白蟻
也許是我自負，我沒讀過他們的詩
但是這些人憑著五六本詩集
而小有名堂
真是一群白蟻啊
布可夫斯基，她問我
為什麼你整天聽古典音樂
你們聽她說過沒：“布可夫斯基，為什麼你整天聽古典音樂”
這是不是讓你們感到吃驚
你們是否認為像我這樣的混蛋
不該整天聽古典音樂
勃拉姆斯、拉赫瑪尼諾夫、巴托克、泰勒曼
媽的，在這裡我真無法安心寫作
這裡樹太多安靜的可怕
我喜歡呆在城市那裡適合我
每早坐在打字機前放著古典音樂
像現在這樣點支雪茄抽起來
我說布可夫斯基，你是個幸運兒
布可夫斯基你所有事都能逢凶化吉
你是個幸運兒
煙霧在桌子上裊裊升騰
透過窗戶望著德隆普雷大街
看街上來往的人群
像這樣吐著煙霧
然後像這樣把菸蒂放進菸灰缸
深吸一口氣開始寫作
布可夫斯基，這就是我的生活方式
貧窮也好，痔瘡也罷
還有愛情
但你們不知道什麼是喜歡
你們不知道從喜歡轉變成愛情
如果你們見到她，你就知道我說的意思了
她認為我來這裡跟人上床
她就想這點破事
她告訴過我，她想的就是這點破事
媽的，我五十一歲了，她才二十五歲
我們在相愛，她還在吃醋
天啊，那是相當的美妙
她說如果再來這裡和別人上床
她就把她眼珠子挖出來
這就是所謂的的愛情
你們有誰知道這些
告訴你們個事吧
我在監獄裡遇見的犯人
比混大學的以及參加詩朗誦的人
更有風度
這些人就是一群寄生蟲
來看詩人襪子是不是很髒
腋下是不是狐臭
天啊，我對他們相當失望
但我想讓你們記住這些
今晚這個房間裡只有一位詩人
今晚這個鎮上只有一位詩人
今晚也許這個國家只有一位真正的詩人
那就是我
你們有誰知道什麼是生活
你們有誰知道關於我的一切
你們有誰工作中被炒掉過
或者揍過你們的娘們
以及被娘們揍過
在西爾斯·羅巴克我就被炒過五次
他們一次次的把我炒掉
又一次次的再僱傭我
三十五歲那年他們讓我看門守貨
我偷了罐餅乾
我知道那種滋味，因為我經歷過
我五十一歲了且在愛戀中
這個小娘們叫我
布可夫斯基
我說幹嘛啊
她說 我認為你滿口胡言
我說 寶貝你懂我的
她是世上我見過最
獨一無二的女人
我從愛情中找到靈感
你們不知道什麼是愛情
她們最後都回到我身邊
除了一個
都回到我身邊，剛才我說過。
我深愛著她，我們在一起七年
我們經常喝好多酒
我看到屋裡沒有詩人
就幾個打字員
我並不吃驚
寫詩就得懂愛情
不懂愛情你們就麻煩了
給我倒點酒
對了不加凍的
太好了就是這種感覺
乾一杯後面還有個派對呢
我知道我說過的話，我就喝一杯
喝著真爽
別站在窗邊了
喝完咱們就走
創作背景
雷蒙德·卡佛《你們不知道愛情是什麼》取材於一場1972年的文學講座，主講人是查爾斯·布可夫斯基(Charles Bukowski)——曾被他視為“英雄”的作家。這兩位作家有很多相似之處：兩人都曾掙扎於社會底層、生活一度潦倒，他們都既寫小說也寫詩，作品緊扣現實、文字風格簡單直白，除此之外，兩人都（至少曾經）是著名的酒鬼。卡佛的這首詩幾乎完全由布可夫斯基天馬行空的話語片段拼貼而成，詩中並沒有具體提到講座結束後的一個小型派對，但當時的場面在卡佛的傳記中有所記載：“人們看見布可夫斯基喝著各種各樣的酒，他抱怨、吹牛、咒罵；很快，隨著他醉得越來越厲害，他抓住那些女孩子，用他那張鬍子拉碴的臉去親她們的臉，女孩子們尖叫著跑出屋子”。
作者簡介
雷蒙德·卡佛是所謂“極簡派”的美國小說家，作品以短篇小說和詩歌為主。小說內容多是美國中產階級的不幸婚姻、酗酒殤情等，詩歌有些很有意思的小情詩。寫作手法上喜歡大段留白，刻畫幾個冷峻瞬間後戛然而止，讓讀者自己補完，屬於美國短篇小說技法里引導讀者情緒的一派，給人留下了很深的印象，也是他鮮明的個人風格。
