意合 - 汉语之大美（II）

例一、一个英国人，不会说中国话，有一次在中国旅行。

如何译上句？

 “形合”、“意合”意识淡薄者，会作“意合 → 意合”译：

There was an Englishman. He could not speak Chinese. He was once traveling in China.

短句叠出，不见一个connective，如此英句，通常被视作baby English。

作“意合 → 形合”译，则得符合英语表达习惯之译：

An Englishman, who could not speak Chinese, was once traveling in China.（句中关系分句改成非限制性的可能好些。）

例二、I knew my command of English was my asset, for I might make a deal with a pianist who would give me access to his piano in exchange for English lessons.

此句共计31个单词，而connectives（斜体字）[介词和关系词等形式词（form words）]就有7个，占全句的23%！（我印象中connectives一般不包括介词，但形式词或功能词则可包括连接性词语、关系词和介词等，所以建议改为“形式词”或“功能词”。下文同类情况准此。）英语之重形合，可见一斑。而汉译时，则顾不了那么多的connectives（形式词）。作“形合 → 意合”译即可。如译：

我懂英语，知道这就是我的本钱，可以和一位钢琴师（家）进行互助，我教他英语，他教我钢琴。

土人呼止，弗听，嚼之，涩甚，急吐去。下骑觅泉漱口，始能言。土人大笑。盖柿须摘下，煮一沸始去其涩，余不知也。（沈复：《浮生六记》）

上段，洋洋洒洒52个字，竟无一connective（连接词）（形式词）！汉语之意合，除了造就了“四字结构”，或“骈句”，还造就了上段的美。上段有啥美？学界常用“瘦硬的美”来形容鲁迅的作品，就文字表达而言，我们是否可以认为上段是否也体现了一种“瘦硬的美”呢？谁人能再省略上段之一字？

翻译上段，就得作“意合 → 形合”译。不能简单地认为，只要使用些connectives，便能得佳译。在具体的上下文中，如何选择具体的connectives，与译者的语言修养有关，与译文质量有关。如：

初译：

The local residents shouted me to stop, I didn’t care and digested it, but it was so bad a taste that I vomited it immediately. Only after he jumped off the horse and found a fountain to clear his mouth could he begin to speak. The natives laughed. The persimmon, after taken from the tree, should be boiled to make the taste of bitterness lost. I had no idea of this before.（文中主语主要是’I’，怎么后来突然转成’he’了？）

此译使用了一些connectives。但是，如何正确判断汉语原句的逻辑内涵，使用正确的connectives，尚存问题。

下骑觅泉漱口，始能言。→ Only after he jumped off the horse and found a fountain to clear his mouth could he begin to speak. 连接词after用得别扭。语感告诉我们，这里需要一个before。

煮一沸始去其涩，余不知也。→ … be boiled to make the taste of bitterness lost. I had no idea of this before.  I had no idea of this before读来口味不佳，语感又告诉我们， “余不知也”独立译成一句，译笔稚嫩，若添加一个but，不仅拎出了隐含的逻辑关系，而且能省略一短句。

译文（请注意研究其中的connectives）：

The native people tried to stop me, but I wouldn’t listen to them. Only after taking a bite did I find it to have a very harsh flavor. So much so that I quickly spat it out and had to come down from horseback and rinse my mouth at a spring before I could speak, to the great merriment of my native advisers. For persimmons should be boiled in order to take away their harsh flavor, but I learnt this a little too late.（林语堂译）

从意合到形合，添加了connectives，如此一来，英译的遣词，似乎应该多于意合句。-- 此乃误解。比读证明：“形合”之英译，很多情况下，遣词不是增加了，而是减少了。

试比较：

    老境却如此颓唐！他触目伤怀，自然情不能自已。情郁于中，自然要发之于外；家庭琐屑便往往触他之怒。（朱自清：背影）

译文一：

To think that he should now be so downcast in old age! The discouraging state of affairs filled him with an uncontrollable feeling of deep sorrow, and his pent-up emotion had to find a vent. That is why even mere domestic trivialities would often make him angry.

译文拘谨，以意合句为主，且基本按照原文语序。意合形合的意识尚“发育”不良，connectives的使用不到位。译成三句，且遣词累赘！

译文二：

No one could have foreseen such a comedown in his old age! The thought of this naturally depressed him, and as he had to vent his irritation somehow, he often lost his temper over trifles. （杨宪益、戴乃迭译）

两译字数之比为：47：35！前译“牵丝攀藤”，后译怎一个“爽”字了得！诵前者，一如艰难举步于灌木丛中；览后者，则如轻快奔跑在“鸟巢”跑道！

且不论两译“触目伤怀”之反差，就说后译中的as，亦可品味。一个as，看似用得轻巧，却见语言功力，as成功折射了原句的“因果”，令文脉朗现，逻辑彰显。一个as，轻易替代了前译中的That is why…等众多字眼！（后译中的介词over也用得很地道，值得玩味。）

正确反映逻辑关系的connectives的运用，不仅能减“字”，甚至能减“句”。

我们过了江，进了车站。我买票，他忙着照看行李。（朱自清：背影）

译文一：

We entered the railway station after crossing the River. While I was at the booking office buying a ticket, father saw to my luggage.

译文二：

We crossed the Yangtze and arrived at the station, where I bought a ticket while he saw to my luggage. （杨宪益、戴乃迭译）

后译比前译多用了一个connective，一个关键的where，英语味更趋浓郁！且两句合并成了一句。

英译汉，作“意合 → 形合”译，非千篇一律也。

暂且不表汉语并不缺乏“形合句”，仅就表情达意的功能而言，形合是明示，意合是隐含，一般情况下，“明示”比“隐含”具有更多的强调意味。试比较：

How could you do it this way, when you know this might damage the apparatus?

a.（形合）既然你知道这样会损坏仪器，你怎么能这样做呢？

b.（意合）你知道这样会损坏仪器，你怎么能这样做呢？

If you tell me all about it, I shall be able to decide correctly.

a.（形合）如果你把一切都告诉我，那么，我就能作出正确决定。

b.（意合）你把一切都告诉我，我就能正确决定了。

译文a 取形合，遣词趋多，所含的强调意味则浓于取意合的译文b ，而后者给人一种“轻描淡写”的感觉。

若着眼语体，形合见庄重，而意合则显随便。试比较：

a. He had been left alone for scarcely two minutes, and when we came back we found him in his armchair, peacefully gone to sleep ---- but forever.

译文：让他一个人留在房里总共不过两分钟，当我们再进去的时候，便发现他在安乐椅上安静地睡着了-- 但已经永远睡着了。

此句选自恩格斯的Speech at the Graveside of Karl Marx（通例文章名不用斜体），原文系悼词，语体庄重。汉译是宜取形合，将when译出（当我们再进去……），如此，在语体上便与原文求得吻合。若取意合，将when隐而不译，亦能达意，如：……我们再进去，便发现……。则欠庄重，则难以像形合式的译文那样淋漓传递作者的沉重哀思。

b. It was quite late when we got back, nearly seven o’clock in the evening.

译文：我们到家已经很晚，快下午七点了。

原句摘自幽默小品故事How We Kept Mother’s Day，故事出自一个少年之口，行文诙谐活泼，充满生活气息。译文取意合，可谓恰倒好处。若译成：当我们回到家里的时候，时间已经很晚了，快到下午七点了。译文与原文在文体风格上的距离拉大，且显累赘。

英语重形合，并不是说，英语无意合。只消细心观察，我们不难发现英语中别具一格的意合句。限于篇幅，不在此赘述。