＊ 本书探讨了“黑色”这个颜色以及概念，作者考虑了为什么横跨这么多文化以及时代，黑色依然是人们认为最“被咒”的颜色
＊ 书中更试图回答这个问题：黑色甚至是个颜色吗？
＊ 书中讨论了黑色在语言学、艺术、文学、种族议题、时尚界、广告界以及流行文化里的用途以及含义
＊ 作者在书中指出黑色如何在历史上被当作一些互相冲突的象征工具
希腊语的字“melancholia”（字面翻译是“黑色的胆汁“）是忧郁症以及黑暗情绪的定义。但是，“黑色小礼服“（little black dress）却是时尚以及经典的代表，拥有非常正面的意义。从古代到古典时代到今天，黑色一直都是一种象征、一个工具、一个隐喻。《黑色的故事》探讨了人们跟黑色之间的含糊关系，以及为什么这个颜色从古代到现在被当作最被咒的颜色。
古代的埃及人利用黑色来代表死亡，这个传统遗传到现代的西方社会。黑色内在的简朴以及严肃感让它成为多年来的商人、律师，甚至君主的服装选择。到了18以及19世纪，黑色开始成为流行，在街上开始看到更多人穿着这个颜色。现在，你很难在巴黎、纽约或东京的街头不看到从头到脚穿一身黑的潮人。早期的艺术家以及设计师对黑色非常感兴趣，从最早的洞穴壁画、Caravaggio以及Rembrandt如何在他们的作品里使用黑暗来显示某个意义，到Rothko如何用黑色来让他的作品更清晰。黑色的存在或者缺少总是有重要的意义。在过去，欧洲白人把黑色当作负面、邪恶的颜色，主要是受到当时有上百万的非洲黑人奴隶的影响。
为什么黑色到了今天还是这么有魔力以及吸引力？为什么它还是能够同时象征黑暗、邪恶、时尚以及魅力？这本书完全分析了黑色在历史以及今天的所有社会、政治、艺术以及性欲含义。
关于作者：
John Harvey是一位小说家以及评论家。他从1974年开始在剑桥教英语，在2000年成为University Reader in Literature and Visual Culture。他是剑桥的Emmanuel College的终生董事。他写过Men in Black（Reaktion, 1997）。
好评：
‘a richly informative treat, with curiosities culled from a very wide range of sources, and written with unostentatious elegance . . . In this book [Harvey] casts his net wide, taking his story as far back as prehistory and across areas of interest that seldom come together within the same covers: art history, religion (particularly Christianity and Islam), anthropology, literature, fashion, heraldry, geology and politics
. . . This is a book to instruct and delight.’ – Literary Review
‘Harvey presents a wide-ranging, often illuminating survey of many of [black’s] aspects . . . this book is a lively, well-written essay on an intriguing topic. Highly recommended.’ – Choice
‘a pacey tour de force for any reader with little or no previous knowledge of colour, fashion, religion, anthropology or art . . . [Harvey’s] style is composed and elegant . . . an extremely readable work, which is no mean feat in view of the scope and density of the subject matter and the wealth of information provided . . . The Story of Black serves as an excellent, readable and even joyful general introduction
to a complex topic’ – Journal of Visual Studies
‘No less an expert than Leonard da Vinci made it clear what he thought about the subject of this wonderfully written and illustrated book. “Black is no colour” said the Italian master of light and shade. This was not an artistic opinion
(his palette included a much used black pigment), but a factually precise statement. Scientifically black is the absence, or complete absorption of light. The view that “Black is Beautiful” was shared by many fine artists: “the most beautiful of all colours” said Tintoretto; “the Queen of colours” was Renoir’s view. Beethoven talked of “the black chord” he liked to use. With 100 fine illustrations,
this is an enlightening (literally!) book.’ – Diplomat magazine
‘If you fancy something thought-provoking to mull over, try John Harvey’s new work, The Story of Black. A thoughtful exploration of the colour (or is it a colour at all?), the book covers everything from black's connection with depression, mystery and death to artists and designers’ obsession with the hue.’ – Cambridge News
- 黑色的故事
- The Story of Black
- 作者：John Harvey
- 出版社代理人：Reaktion Books（英国）
- 出版时间：2013年9月
- 页数：336页、106张插图（60张彩色插图）
- 已售版权：日语
- 版权联系人：tina@peonyliteraryagency.com
内容介绍