打工手记【57】:TheFeastofLife/生活之盛宴【I】【8月26日阴天上午】

标签:
生活之盛宴 |
分类: 翻译探索 |
The enjoyment of life covers many things: the enjoyment of
ourselves, of home life, of trees, flowers, clouds, winding rivers
and falling cataracts and the myriad things in Nature, and then the
enjoyment of poetry, art, contemplation, friendship, conversation,
and reading, which are all some form or other of the communion of
spirits.
【原译】
生活的快乐包括许多事情:自身的快乐,家庭的快乐,以及绿树、鲜花、云彩、蜿蜒的河流、飞流直下的瀑布、大自然的万事万物给我们带来的快乐,此外,还有诗歌、艺术、沉思、友谊、交谈、和阅读的快乐,这些都是某种精神交流形式的快乐。
【改译】
生活的快乐涵盖甚广:自己的快乐,居家的快乐,还有绿树、鲜花、云彩、河流、飞瀑、自然界的林林总总,给我们带来的快乐,此外,还有诗歌、艺术、沉思、友谊、交谈、和阅读带来的快乐,这些都是某种精神交流的快乐。
【小析】林语堂描绘了人生的“快乐大全”。有一种快乐不能从读者眼皮底下溜走!那就是:contemplation(沉思)。《美国传统词典》给contemplation
的释义之一是:thoughtful observation or study /
用心观察或研究。作为一个大学者,林语堂肯定在他的学术研究中获得了真正的快乐!诗人艾青曾经说过,你热爱身边的一切要达到眼里滚动热泪的地步。
改译之憾:未能译出winding
rivers中的winding(蜿蜒的),但是为了译文的整饬,这也算是“有所得必有所失”吧?
There are obvious things like the enjoyment of food, a gay
party or family reunion, an outing on a beautiful spring day; and
less obvious things like the enjoyment of poetry, art and
contemplation. I have found it impossible to call these two classes
of enjoyment material and spiritual, first because I do not believe
in this distinction, and secondly because I am puzzled whenever I
proceed to make this classification.
【原译】有一种显见的快乐,比如饮食的快乐,愉快聚会的快乐,或是家人团聚的快乐,美好春日出游的快乐,也有一种不那么显见的快乐,比如,读诗、品尝艺术品和沉思带来的快乐。我发现难以将这两类快乐称作物质的或是精神的快乐,首先,我不相信这样的区分,其次,每当我要作如此分类,我便困惑起来。
【改译】有一种显而易见的快乐,比如美食的快乐,聚会的快乐,或是家人团聚的快乐,春日出游的快乐,还有一种显而不易见的快乐,比如,欣赏诗歌和艺术品,以及沉思带来的快乐。我发现无法区分这两类快乐是物质的还是精神的,首先,我不相信这样的区分,其次,每当我要作如此分类,便感困惑。
【小析】事过境迁,林语堂若是生活在今日,也许不会写下a gay
party这样的文字。因为它的含义模棱两可(ambiguous),或可能产生误导(misleading)。因为,a gay
party有homosexual party
(同性恋聚会)之嫌;语言文字之“变”,是永恒的,有的语言学家将之比作缓慢的“冰河运动”(glacier
movement)。但是,“变”仍是可感的。比如,不久前,“小姐”是对女孩的尊称。有的女孩还乐于自称“本小姐……”,可是,“小姐”之词义如今正发生微妙变化。
译好obvious things / less obvious things不易。改译之“显而易见 /
显而不易见”不知读者能否接受?
How can I say, when I see a gay picnic party of men and women
and old people and children, what part of their pleasures is
material and what part spiritual? I see a child romping about on
the grass plot, another child making daisy chains, their mother
holding a piece of sandwich, the uncle of the family biting a
juicy, red apple, the father sprawling on the ground looking at the
sailing clouds, and grandfather holding a pipe in his mouth.
Probably somebody is playing a gramophone, and from the distance
there come the sound of music and the distant roar of the
waves.
【原译】当我见到男男女女,老的小的在快乐野炊,我怎么讲得清,他们哪部分快乐是物质的,哪部分又是精神的?我们见到一个孩童在草地上活蹦乱跳,另一个孩童在编制雏菊花环,伯父正在品尝一只多汁的红苹果,父亲仰卧在地上欣赏着蓝天行云,而祖父的嘴巴里正叼着一支烟斗,此刻,也许正有人在放留声机,远处飘来了音乐声,还有阵阵涛声。
【改译】见到男女老小在快乐野餐,我怎么讲得清,哪些快乐是物质的?哪些是精神的?我见到一个儿童嬉戏于草坪,另一个在编一个雏菊花环,妈妈手拿三明治,伯父正在吃着一只多汁的红苹果,爸爸仰卧于草地欣赏蓝天行云,爷爷嘴叼一支烟斗。此时,远处大概正有人在放着留声机,飘然而至的是悠扬的乐声,还伴着阵阵涛声。
【小析】本段让我们一窥林语堂先生思维缜密,例证生动,行文流畅之文风。精神快乐和肉体快乐难以截然分开的观点在本段进一步演绎。其中一个问号,并非疑问,而是修辞反问,称为rhetorical
question,《美国传统词典》对rhetorical question的释义是:A question to which no
answer is expected, often used for rhetorical effect /
反问是一种无需回答的问题,为达到修辞效果而使用。既然原文文采斐然,不妨译文也求点文采。如:
…from the distance there come the sound of music and the
distant roar of the waves. →
此时,远处大概正有人在放着留声机,飘然而至的是悠扬的乐声,还伴着阵阵涛声。
英语uncle意为the brother of one’s father or mother or the husband
of one’s aunt,
在汉语中没有完全的对应词。在缺少上下文的情况下,译作“伯父、叔父”等实乃无奈之举。