The Use of Authentic Tianjin Expressions in Feng Jicai's Novels
冯骥才小说里的津字津言
"For some writers, their hometown belongs only to their childhood; it is the nest of their life, where their life was born. Once they grow up and spread their wings, they fly far away. But that is not the case for me. I have never left my hometown. I am too familiar with the feeling of returning to my homeland after traveling from all corners of the world, even across oceans. As soon as I see the 'Tianjin' sign on the highway, or hear an airline stewardess mention its name, my heart fills with a sense of reassurance, warmth, and complete relaxation... Wherever I go, I am a Tianjin person. Not only because Tianjin is my birthplace—but it is not just the nest of my life, it is the nest of my soul."— Preface "The Nest of the Soul" from Feng Jicai’s Tianjin
Feng Jicai is a prominent contemporary Chinese writer, renowned for his novels that highlight the unique regional culture of Tianjin, making him a representative figure of Tianjin's cultural flavor. Born and raised in Tianjin, Feng, as someone deeply connected with the land, has set his "Strange Tales of the World" trilogy and the four-part urban novel Ordinary World in Tianjin. These works are intricately linked to the city's street life, folk customs, and eccentric characters, with settings spanning from the late Qing Dynasty to the early Republic. In his novels, Feng uses authentic Tianjin dialect to portray the bold, sharp, and self-deprecating traits of Tianjin’s people, vividly depicting the local customs and daily life.
In Pointing Fingers and Talking About Tianjin, Feng Jicai discusses the connection between Tianjin dialect, Tianjin culture, and regional character: “To conclusively explain the origins of Tianjin dialect, it dates back to the Ming Dynasty when Zhu Di, the King of Yan, recruited soldiers from the Suzhou area in Anhui, bringing their Anhui dialect to Tianjin. When Tianjin people embedded their unique culture and regional character into it, the original Anhui accent became almost invisible, revealing the vibrant, straightforward, and rich Tianjin dialect. In this sense, local language is the living embodiment of its region's people.”
In Feng Jicai's works, a large number of Tianjin dialect words are used, such as:
Nouns include: "中腰" (middle), "中晌" (noon), "混星子" (little rascal), "麻经子" (hemp rope), "咬劲" (fierceness), "瞎叨咕" (rumors, hearsay), "规法" (rules and regulations), "能耐梗子" (capable person), "惹惹" (busybody), "腰叉子" (waist), "酱菜篓子" (scrap or useless item), "粘粥" (thick porridge, implying a large crowd), "花活" (tricks or means), and others. These are colloquial nouns commonly used in the vibrant Tianjin dialect, which infuse the writing with the unique atmosphere of Tianjin life.
Verbs: "耍把" (to engage in an activity), "言声" (to speak), "怔" (to be stunned), "拣巴" (to tidy up), "老帮" (to be experienced), "懂眼" (to understand), "折" (to fall), "拨愣" (to shake one's head), "白唬" (to talk nonsense), "觉知" (to know), "完活" (to finish), "抖愣" (to shiver), "言语" (to speak), "兜腰" (to hug around the waist). These dialect verbs add humor and vividness to the writing.
Adjectives: "没囊没气" (spineless), "撒丫子" (walking with big strides), "软" (not reliable), "坐实" (firmly established), "花哨" (flashy), "咋唬" (impatient), "扑棱" (shaking all over), "急赤白脸" (flustered and angry). These adjectives, often used in dialogue, highlight the distinctive character traits of individuals.
The use of a large number of colloquial terms from the Tianjin dialect in Feng Jicai's works makes reading them feel like listening to a storyteller narrating a tale, allowing readers to strongly experience the atmosphere of common people’s lives during the late Qing Dynasty, providing a refreshing sense of novelty.
In "Yin Yang Bagua", after Re Re acquires the so-called golden box, Jing Dou'er pulls him into a room and says, "Master, we need to make it clear. You must be kind to me and not treat me like a plaything. My life has been hard; my mother died when I was three, and no one has cared for me. My stepmother mistreated me, and that's why I became a maid. If you mistreat me again, I won’t have anyone to lean on, how miserable…" Jing Dou'er shows weakness and plays the victim to seek wealth and favor. However, once in a better position, her attitude changes drastically: "Why look for him? Such a bother, meddling and causing trouble, adding to the chaos or causing trouble?" This vividly illustrates Jing Dou'er’s petty and distasteful behavior.
--- However, when it suddenly interjects with a few phrases that the master and mistress usually use, like "getting a rash," it actually makes the guests burst into laughter, laughing so hard that they nearly fall over (From "Dead Bird").
----You manage to brew a pot of jasmine tea on your own. ("Three-Inch Golden Lotus")
---- Went to the restroom and took a long, steaming piss that smelled of smoke; when you return and just settle down, a big meaty hand lands on your shoulder. ("Yin-Yang Bagua")
---- On Shoushan Street, people most enjoy watching the drunk old woman staggering a few steps—swaying up and down, tilting left and right, spinning slowly and happily, looking like a lotus leaf in the wind. On rainy days, when the raindrops soak her, she resembles a slowly spinning large umbrella. And today, her swaying is particularly charming—her upper body sways left while her lower body sways right, spinning faster and faster. At first, she resembles a giant bird in the wind, but eventually, she becomes a dark, swirling vortex! ("The Drunken Old Woman")
---- Children in Tianjin have had disparaging nicknames since childhood, such as 傻蛋Silly Egg, 狗剩儿Dog Leftover, 屁眼子Little Rear End, 大臭Big Stinky,小臭Two Stinky, 三臭Three Stinky, 秃子Baldy, and 狗不理Dog Ignored, among others. It is said that these names are meant to be heard by the King of Hell so he won’t take note of them in the death register, ensuring they live a long life. Whether or not people believe it, everyone follows this practice for good luck. ("Divine Whip")
---- He looked at the envelope again and found that the photo was stuck inside. When he抻出来pulled the photo out, he felt something was off and not quite right. Upon closer inspection, he was stunned. ("Master of Qingyun Tower")
For Feng Jicai, Tianjin is a city of great significance. The folk customs and traditions depicted in his works are not only an important part of Tianjin's regional culture but also reflect the writer’s personal cultural experiences, memories, and identity.
In "Promoting Tianjin-flavored Novels," Feng Jicai says, “Local dialects and slang have their own distinctive style. Not only are they unique in tone, but their expressions also reflect the unique wisdom of the local people. Due to Tianjin's distinctive culture, lifestyle, people, and vernacular, we can gain a deep understanding of regional culture from Feng Jicai's Tianjin-flavored novels and experience the secular culture of 'Tianjin dialect' through the clever use of Tianjin accents and tones.”
“对于一些作家，故乡只属于自己的童年;它是自己生命的巢，生命在那里诞生;一旦长大后羽毛丰满，它就远走高飞。但我却不然，我从来没有离开过自己的家乡。我太熟悉一次次从天南海北、甚至远涉重洋旅行归来而返回故土的那种感觉了。只要在高速路上看到‘天津’的路牌，或者听到航空小姐说出它的名字，心中便充溢着一种踏实、一种温情、一种彻底的放松……无论到哪里，我都是天津人。不仅因为天津是我出生地——它绝不只是我生命的巢，而是灵魂的巢。”----《冯骥才的天津》的自序《灵魂的巢》
冯骥才是中国当代文坛的著名作家，以书写独具天津地域文化特色的小说见长，被称为津味文化的代表人物。冯骥才生于天津，长于天津，作为“与大地纠结最深的人”，他的“怪世奇谈” 三部曲和《俗世奇人》四部市井小说均以天津为故事发生地，内容与天津的市井风情、民俗掌故、奇人妙事紧密相连，时间设置跨清末民初。在小说中，冯骥才用地道的天津方言，展示津域众生性格中豪强炽热、快利锋芒、调侃自嘲的特点，勾勒出天津地道的风土人情和生活画面。
冯骥才在《指指点点说津门》中曾经谈到天津方言与天津文化、地域性格之间的联系：“如果结论式地说明天津方言岛的来源，便是明代朱棣“燕王扫北” 时，从安徽宿州市一带招募士兵而带来的安徽方言……当天津人把其独特的文化与地域性格置放其中，那外表的徽腔就隐形不见，分明是热辣率直、味儿浓厚的天津话了。从这个意义上说，地方语言是活生生地域的人。”
在冯骥才作品中，使用了大量的天津方言词汇，如：
名词类----“中腰”(中间)、“中晌”(中午)、“混星子”(小混混)、“麻经子”(麻绳)、“咬劲”(狠劲)、“瞎叨咕”(传言、小道消息)、“规法”(规定和章法)、“能耐梗子”(能耐人)、“惹惹”(好张罗事儿的人)、“腰叉子”(腰)、“酱菜篓子”(破玩意儿)、“粘粥”(很稠的粥：指人很多)、“花活”(手段)等，这些都是色彩鲜明的天津方言中所常用的口语名词，落笔就生出天津所特有的生活气息。
动词类----“耍把”(活动)、“言声”(说话)、“怔”(愣)、“拣巴”(收拾)、“老帮”(老练、经验丰富)、“懂眼”(明白)、“折”(倒)、“拨愣”(摇脑袋)、“白唬”(胡扯)、“觉知”(知道)、“完活”(完了、完事)、“抖愣”(哆嗦)、“言语”(说)、“兜腰”(搂腰)等，这些方言动词的使用使文章显得诙谐幽默、生动传神。
形容词类---- “没囊没气”(没志气的样子)、“撒丫子”(用大脚丫子走路的样子)、“软”(不对)、“坐实”(掷地有声)、“花哨”(色彩花哨)、“咋唬”(沉不住气的样子)、“扑棱”(浑身乱颤的样子)、“急赤白脸”(着急生气的样子)等。这些方言形容词多用于人物的对话上，彰显出人物鲜明的性格特色。
正是因为大量使用天津方言常用的口语词汇，读者阅读冯骥才的作品，就像听一位说书人娓娓道来，会让人强烈地感受到清朝末年平民生活的气息，令人耳目一新。
----《阴阳八卦》中惹惹拿到所谓的金匣子后，被精豆儿拉到屋里说道：“大少爷，咱得说好，你得使心疼我，别拿我当玩意儿。我命不好，三岁死了娘，没人疼过。后娘欺侮我，才来当丫头的，您要再欺侮我，连个人给我坐劲都役有，多惨……”精豆儿对惹惹示弱卖惨以求得财富和宠爱，而在得势后，态度来了大反转：“找他干嘛，瞎惹惹，乱掺和，再来个不干正事的，添忙还是添乱?”生动表现了精豆儿的小人嘴脸和令人厌恶的做派。(《阴阳八怪》)
----可是，它抽冷子蹦出几句老爷太太平时说的“起痱子”那类的话，反倒把客人逗得大笑，直笑得前仰后合。(《死鸟》)
----您自管酽酽沏一壶茉莉花茶。《三寸金莲》
----到厕所长长的撒了一泡烟味儿冒气儿的热尿，回来刚落坐，一只大肉手落在他的肩膀头上。( 《阴阳八卦》)
----首善街上人家，最爱瞧酒婆这醉醺醺的几步扭——上摆下摇，左歪右斜，悠悠旋转乐陶陶，看似风摆荷叶一般;逢到雨天，雨点淋身，便赛一张慢慢旋动的大伞了……而且今儿她一路上摇晃得分外好看，上身左摇，下身右摇，愈转愈疾，初时赛风中的大鹏鸟，后来竟赛一个黑黑的大漩涡!(《酒婆》)
----天津卫的孩子从小就有个贱名，叫什么傻蛋、狗剩儿、屁眼子、大臭、 二臭、三臭、秃子、狗不理等等。据说，那是为了叫阎王爷听见，瞧不上， 就写不到生死簿上去，永远也点不走，能长命。不管人们信不信，大家都这么做，图个吉利。(《神鞭》)
----再看信封，照片竟卡在里边，他捏住照片抻出来一瞧，有点别扭，不大对劲，他再细瞧，竟傻了。(《青云楼主》)
……
对于冯骥才而言，天津是一座意义非常的城市，作品中的民风民俗既是天津地域文化的重要组成部分，也是作家个人的文化体验、记忆与认同。
冯骥才在《发扬津味小说》中谈道: “地方方言俚语别具风格，不仅腔调独特，表达方式体现此地人民独有的智慧。 由于天津地方具有独具的文化、生活、人和口语。”我们可以从冯骥才的津味小说中了解深刻的地域文化，从津腔津调的天津方言的巧妙运用中感受“津嘴子”的世俗文化。
