Agatha Christie: The First Lady of Mystery
阿加莎.克里斯蒂：悬疑小说女王

From nndb.com 译/张玲

Mystery is an exhilarating element of life. Some of us revel in it, despite occasional overtones of real danger; some of us try not to think of the countless mysteries for which we have no answer, and the sense of insecurity and frustration they sometimes cause.

We often slip in and out of both categories for, in truth, we find ourselves fascinated by a sense of mystery, and the frightening thrill of suspense. When these elements can be provided for us to a heightened degree in literature or film, we are grateful; we would rather find them there than in the issues and concerns of our own lives!

Literature Enlightenment

On that day, Sept. 15, in the year 1891, Agatha May Clarissa Miller was born in Torquay, England. Her father was an American citizen, of modest private income, who home schooled her in mathematics. But when young Agatha was 11 years old he died, and she thereafter began attending regular classes in arithmetic and other subjects. She was an avid reader as well and soon became a great fan of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Her love of writing surfaced early as well, nurtured both by her mother and by neighboring novelist Eden Philpotts. Of this period Agatha remarked, "For some years I enjoyed myself very much writing stories of unrelieved gloom where most of the characters died."

Music and dance had always been an important part of her curriculum. So when Agatha's mother sent her off to Paris a few years later, for further schooling, it was with the hope that Agatha might one day emerge as an opera star. But although she did well in singing and music lessons Agatha developed terrible stage fright, making a career involving any kind of public performance utterly out of the question. After graduation Agatha and her mother embarked on an exciting 3-month tour of Egypt. But while other English folk went for the novelty and the chic, young Agatha felt in love with the history and with Middle Eastern ambience. The romance and the mystery of other cultures and of great civilizations long gone intrigued her greatly and became fuel a number of her later books, as well as a lifelong love of archaeology. But all that was in the distant future.

Stepping into the Literary Circle

When she returned to England Agatha found romance and adventure of a different kind. She met and married Archibald Christie, a handsome young lieutenant in the Royal Field Artillery. That same year, 1914, World War I began. And like many other patriotic young women the 24-year-old Agatha began volunteering her time for the war effort. She became a nurse at a Red Cross Hospital in Torquay, and eventually she took a post in the dispensary. There she gained an intimate knowledge of pharmaceutical drugs and their preparation and uses—including their lethaldosages.

少年时期的阿加莎

Meanwhile her love of writing and mysteries still flourished, and she began to think about writing her own novel. In 1916, egged on by her sister Madge, she decided to have a go at it. In just three weeks she managed to crank out her first novel, The Mysterious Affair at Styles. The novel debuted her now famous Belgian detective Hercule Poirot, the quirky yet logical little Poirot who would eventually appear in 39 novels.

But although finished quickly, the book took nearly four years to find publication. But once the reading public had gotten a taste of Agatha's work, her success as an author was assured. Her second book The Secret Adversary followed in 1922. And soon she was publishing at least one book per year—with nearly everything she produced selling astonishingly well. But life on the home front meanwhile was not so successful. Despite the birth of daughter Rosalind in 1919 and their mutual economic success, the Christies were drifting apart.

The Eleven Missing Days

Eventually, in 1926, Archie admitted he had a mistress and asked for a divorce. The highly sensitive Agatha was crushed. But what followed immediately after has haunted the legend of the great writer ever since. On the evening of Friday, December 3, 1926, Agatha went upstairs to kiss her daughter goodnight. Then, at 9:45 p.m., she got into the car and drove away. Later the vehicle was found abandoned several miles from home, with many of Agatha's personal belongings strewn about inside. There was no sign of Agatha herself however. Immediately a huge search was mounted, and the case attracted tremendous attention from the media as well as various public figures. Agatha's husband Archie meanwhile, who had been away for the weekend with his girlfriend, became the object of tremendous scorn and suspicion.

《暗藏杀机》英文版封面

But 11 days later Agatha was found, alive, at the Harrogate Hydropathic Hotel. Most curious of all, she had registered herself under a name patterned after her husband's mistress. According to a public statement made by police and family, Agatha was allegedly suffering from amnesia.

Archaeological Life

The Christies ultimately divorced in 1928. Several months later Agatha decided to go on a holiday, someplace exotic and foreign. She ended up aboard the Orient Express, headed for the Middle East. But even though the train ride provided fodder and inspiration for her later book, Murder on the Orient Express (1934), her final destination proved dreadfully boring. Arriving at last in Baghdad, Christie soon found herself bogged down in polite English society, and all usual accouterments.

Christie was aware however that some exciting archaeological work was being done farther south in Iraq. And she realized she could escape her implacable English hosts by arranging a visit to the dig site. As it turned out the wife of the chief archaeologist on site was a big fan of Christie's and an extended stay was easy to arrange. There at last she immersed herself in the exotic foreign world she had come to explore—strange foods, customs, the bustle of native workers.

But as it turned out, watching the ancient past emerge from the sands had a romance all its own. And the intellectual work of archaeology, figuring out the past from clues left behind, was a great deal like detective work. So, although she had to return to England, she eagerly accepted an invitation to return again the following year. When she did, she was assigned a handsome young archaeologist, Max Mallowan, to show her around and explain what had been learned during the years’ excavation. Agatha enjoyed his company as much as she did the tour itself. But of course she was certain he would never be interested in an "old lady" like herself, 14 years his senior. But when a family emergency called Agatha back to England, Max insisted on accompanying her. Six months later they were married.

It proved to be the beginning of a life of mutual respect, support, and adventuring with Agatha accompanying Max into the field for excavations as often as possible. According to Max, she had a meticulous manner, a keen eye, and seemingly endless patience. Meanwhile she continued to write her novels, with many of her stories inspired by the settings and characters she had encountered on their travels.

The Late Years

But by 1957 Agatha found it more difficult to manage camp life. Indeed she was so plagued by illness that year Max decided to call it quits. They retired from Nimrud and returned to England, where they busied themselves with writing and other projects. In 1968 Max was knighted for services to archaeology, and he was made a trustee of the British Museum in 1973. Agatha, in the meantime, was named the world's best-selling author in the English language (1961), and was created a Dame Commander of the British Empire (1971). She continued writing of course, and she became increasingly involved with the theater and film.

On January 12, 1976, Agatha died, following a short illness. She was 86 years old. Max's memoirs, published the following year, cited his feelings of emptiness after 45 years of a loving and creative partnership with Agatha. Two years later, on August 19, 1978, Mallowan himself died.

Despite the fact that Max Mallowan was considered one of the premier anthropologists of his day, it is his wife, Agatha Christie Mallowan, which the public best remembers. She wrote a total of 66 novels. A good number of her works have made their way into film. By many she is recognized as the single most popular mystery writer of all time. But as her own words reveal, Agatha was a vulnerable person, who struggled for success and happiness, as well as adventure. After all, "Life, itself, is a mystery adventure," an entanglement difficult to find out—a wonder too vast to comprehend—never solved, never ceasing. As Mary McCarthy wrote: "We all live in suspense, from day to day, from hour to hour; in other words, we are the heroes of our own stories."

“神秘”是生活中一个令人兴奋不已的元素。有人对它乐此不疲，尽管有时神秘背后隐藏的是真实的危险；有人却对它避之唯恐不及，因为我们无法解释的神秘之事不胜枚举，每每令我们惴惴不安、灰心丧气。

实际上，我们往往在这两种反应之间穿梭徘徊，因为我们发现，这种神秘莫测的感觉，以及悬而未决带来的惊悚刺激，让我们深深为之着迷。因此，当我们发现有些文学作品或电影能将这些元素高度演绎并呈现在我们面前时，我们对此感激不已；相比在现实生活中担惊受怕，我们宁愿这些神秘惊悚的元素只出现在那些虚拟的世界中！

文学启蒙

1891年9月15日，阿加莎·梅·克拉丽莎·米勒出生于英格兰的托尔奎市。她父亲是个美国人，收入一般，他在家里教小阿加莎数学。但是，当小阿加莎11岁时，父亲离世了。此后，阿加莎开始接受正规的教育，学习算数和其他科目。她还很喜欢阅读，很快就疯狂地迷上了阿瑟·柯南道尔爵士的作品。小阿加莎的邻居是一位小说家，名叫伊登·菲尔波茨，她的热心指点，加上阿加莎母亲的悉心培养，使阿加莎很早就表现出了对写作的热爱。对于这一时期的生活，阿加莎如此描述道：“曾经有几年，我非常喜欢写一些压抑忧伤的悲剧故事，其中大部分角色最后都离开了人世。”

音乐和舞蹈一直都是阿加莎学习过程中的重要课程。也正因为如此，几年之后，当阿加莎的母亲把她送到巴黎继续求学时，满心期望她日后会成为一位歌剧明星。尽管阿加莎的歌唱和音乐课成绩都很优秀，但她却患上了严重的舞台表演恐惧症，这样一来，任何涉及在公众场合表演的职业对阿加莎来说，都只能是可望而不可即了。毕业后，阿加莎和她的母亲踏上了激动人心的、为期三个月的埃及之旅。当其他英国人将喜爱的目光投向新奇时尚的事物时，年轻的阿加莎却爱上了埃及的历史和中东的氛围。浪漫神秘的异国文化和消逝已久的伟大文明极大地激发了她的热情，成为她后来创作诸多小说的灵感源泉，而且也使考古成为她毕生的热爱。不过，这些都是后话了。

初涉文坛

回到英格兰后，阿加莎经历了一段与埃及之行完全不同的浪漫与奇遇。她邂逅了阿奇博尔德·克里斯蒂，一位年轻英俊的皇家野战炮兵中尉，并且嫁给了他。就在同一年，也就是1914年，第一次世界大战爆发了。像其他许多满怀爱国热情的年轻女士一样，24岁的阿加莎志愿参加了战时救护工作。她成为托基一家红十字医院的护士，后来又转到药房工作。在那里，她掌握了药物及其制配和使用方面的知识——包括药物的致命剂量。

这段时间里，她对于写作以及悬疑小说的热爱持续高涨，而且她还开始考虑自己创作小说。1916年，在她姐姐麦琪的鼓励下，她决定尝试一下。仅用了三周时间，她就完成了自己的处女作——《斯泰尔斯的神秘案件》。在这部小说中，现已家喻户晓的人物形象比利时侦探赫尔克里·波洛初次亮相。随后，这位古怪却精于逻辑推理的小个子波洛相继出现在阿加莎的39部小说中。

这部小说尽管完成得很快，但却在约四年之后才得以出版。不过，一旦读者领略到阿加莎作品的魅力，她成为一名成功作家的命运也就确定无疑了。1922年，她的第二本书《暗藏杀机》问世。没过多久，她就开始每年至少出版一本书——而且几乎她写的每一部作品都十分畅销，令人称奇。然而，在此期间，她的家庭生活却并不那么一帆风顺。尽管克里斯蒂夫妇1919年生下了女儿罗莎琳德，双方在经济方面也都大有起色，但两人之间的感情却渐行渐远。

失踪之谜

1926年，阿奇终于承认自己有了外遇，并向阿加莎提出离婚。本来就极其敏感的阿加莎被彻底击垮了。但随即发生的一件事成为这位伟大作家传奇一生中的一个不解之谜。1926年12月3日，星期五的晚上，阿加莎上楼给了女儿一个晚安吻。随后，在晚上9点45分，她钻进汽车，驾车离开了。后来，人们在距离她家几英里的地方发现了这辆被遗弃的汽车，车里散落着许多阿加莎的个人物品，但却没发现阿加莎本人的任何踪迹。一场大规模的搜寻工作随即展开，整个事件引起了媒体以及形形色色的公众人物的极大关注。其时，阿加莎的丈夫阿奇正和他的女友在外地度周末，他受到了铺天盖地般的嘲讽和怀疑。

但是11天之后，人们在约克郡哈罗盖特的温泉宾馆找到了阿加莎，她还活着！最令人匪夷所思的是，她是仿照她丈夫情人的名字登记入住的。根据警方和她家人发表的一份公开声明称，阿加莎患有健忘症。

考古伉俪

克里斯蒂夫妇最终于1928年离婚。几个月后，阿加莎决定去异国他乡度假。她最后登上了“东方快车”专列，远赴中东。虽然此次火车旅行为她后来的作品——《东方快车谋杀案》（1934年）——提供了创作素材和灵感，但事实证明，此行的目的地却是一个极其乏味无聊的地方。克里斯蒂最终到达了巴格达，但很快就发现自己每天都得穿戴齐整，在英国上流聚会之中疲于应酬，无法抽身。

《东方快车谋杀案》英文版封面

不过，克里斯蒂了解到，在伊拉克南部的边远地区正进行着一项激动人心的考古工作。她意识到，如果她去参观考古发掘现场，就可以借机摆脱那些难以相处的英国主人的纠缠。没想到的是，当地首席考古学家的妻子是克里斯蒂的忠实书迷，要安排克里斯蒂在那里多住一段时间对她来说轻而易举。在那里，克里斯蒂终于沉浸在这个她前来探索的、充满异域风情的世界里——奇异的食物、不同的风俗，还有当地工人的忙碌。

阿加莎与第二任丈夫马克斯

然而，她后来意识到，亲眼看着古老的历史从沙土中慢慢浮现，这本身就自有一番浪漫。考古时的脑力工作——从遗留的蛛丝马迹中推测过去的真相—像极了侦探工作。因此，虽然她最后不得不返回英格兰，但是第二年，当考古队再次邀请她时，她毫不犹豫地接受了。重返考古地点后，一位年轻英俊的考古学家马克斯·马洛温负责带她四处参观，并向她解释这几年的发掘工作有哪些新收获。阿加莎非常享受这次旅行，也非常喜欢马克斯的陪伴。不过，阿加莎心里当然清楚，马克斯绝对不会对一个像她这样比自己大14岁的“老女人”感兴趣的。可是，当阿加莎因家中有急事要赶回英格兰时，马克斯却坚持要陪她回去。六个月后，他们结婚了。

这是一段新生活的开始，他们相敬如宾，相互扶持，共探险境，阿加莎尽可能地陪伴马克斯深入野外进行考古发掘。据马克斯描述，她行事谨慎，目光敏锐，似乎有着无穷的耐心。与此同时，阿加莎还继续写小说，其中很多故事的灵感都来自于他们旅途中遇到的人物和情景。

垂暮之年

但是，到了1957年，阿加莎发现自己很难再去过那种宿营生活了。那一年，她饱受病痛折磨，马克斯为此决定停止他的考古工作。他们从尼姆罗德撤了出来，回到英格兰，把所有时间都用于写作和其他项目。1968年，马克斯因对考古工作的杰出贡献被封为爵士；1973年，马克斯成为大英博物馆理事会理事。而在此期间，阿加莎被誉为全世界最畅销的英语作家（1961年），并获得“大英帝国女爵士”的封号（1971年）。当然，她笔耕不辍，并且开始越来越多地涉足戏剧和电影。

1976年1月12日，阿加莎因突染急症去世，享年86岁。第二年，马克斯的回忆录出版。他与阿加莎相伴度过45年的时光，两人相亲相爱，婚姻生活多姿多彩，如今一朝分离，马克斯备感空虚，他将这样的心情记述在回忆录里。1978年8月19日，阿加莎去世两年后，马洛温也告别了人世。

虽然马克斯·马洛温被视为当时最知名的人类学家之一，但让公众记忆最深的还是他的妻子——阿加莎·克里斯蒂·马洛温。她一生共创作了66部小说。她的作品中有很多已经被拍成电影。在许多人眼里，她是世界上最受欢迎的悬疑小说作家。但是，正如阿加莎自己的话中所透露的那样，她是一个脆弱的人，为了事业的成功、家庭的幸福和人生历险而痛苦挣扎。毕竟，“生活，本身就是一次神秘的历险，”是难以找到出路的痛苦纠结——一个超越人类理解能力的奇迹——无从解答，永不停歇。正如玛丽·麦卡锡所说：“我们都生活在悬念之中，日复一日，时刻不断；换言之，我们都是自己那个悬疑故事中的主角。”