写在前面的话：

   《Early Autumn》 是美国黑人诗人 Langston Hughes 的短篇小说。在此之前，我并不知道有这样一部小说。有一个朋友偶然读到，感觉是一部脍炙人口的精品小说，强力推荐给我阅读，并且希望我能用中文翻译出来。我按照朋友给我提供的网址，找到了这部英文小说，用了几分钟的时间就读完了。

   虽然这部小说字数不多，但是读完以后，“无动于衷”的文字背后，却感受着朴素的悲凉，哀怨的情绪，仿佛平静的湖水下，荡漾着一波又一波的波澜，用手轻轻捧起一尝，都是苦涩。我慢慢地体会着女主人公平静内心下跌宕起伏的伤感情怀，更感叹作者的那种纯粹自然状态下的高超写作手法。

   这才是艺术创作，看似平淡无奇，其实饱满丰润的情感，好似一滴水滴入水中，慢慢散开，让人的心再也无法平静下来。谁又不是像浮萍那样，漫无目的四处漂流？ 到头来，总也逃不脱命运的摆布，陷入苦境中无法自拔。

   这样的好小说，应该早就有中文版本才对，可是我翻查了几遍，都没有发现中文的《Early Autumn》，于是便来了兴致，决定满足我的这个朋友的要求，用自己的理解把原文翻译出来，供大家欣赏。

   红花接触过中国文学作品，也接触过外国文学作品，深深感受到，作为一个很好的翻译家，文学功底必须相当丰厚，不但要翻译出作品的文字意思，更要理解作者要表达和没有表达的意图。还要有深厚的文学、历史、地理、政治。。。的功底。红花不才，初次尝试翻译，一定有许多欠缺之处，希望大家多多包涵，更欢迎指正错误。

   在此，红花要感谢这位一直关心我的朋友。红花越来越懒了，是你总是在背后推我一把，让我往前走两步。你的信任，让我感到些微的压力。但是，这样的感觉真的很好。谢谢。

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When Bill was very young, they had been in love. Many nights they had spent walking, talking together. Then something not very important had come between them, and they didn’t speak. Impulsively, she had married a man she thought she loved. Bill went away, bitter about women.



Yesterday, walking across Washington Square, she saw him for the first time in years.



“Bill Walker,” she said.

He stopped. At first he did not recognize her, to him she looked so old.

“Mary! Where did you come from?”

Unconsciously, she lifted her face as though wanting a kiss, but he held out his hand. She took it.

“I live in New York now,” she said.

“Oh” — smiling politely. Then a little frown came quickly between his eyes.

“Always wondered what happened to you, Bill.”

“I’m a lawyer. Nice firm, way downtown.”

“Married yet?”

“Sure. Two kids.”

“Oh,” she said.



A great many people went past them through the park. People they didn’t know. It was late afternoon. Nearly sunset. Cold.



“And your husband?” he asked her.

“We have three children. I work in the bursar’s office at Columbia.”

“You’re looking very . . .” (he wanted to say old) “. . . well,” he said.



She understood. Under the trees in Washington Square, she found herself desperately reaching back into the past. She had been older than he then in Ohio. Now she was not young at all. Bill was still young.



“We live on Central Park West,” she said. “Come and see us sometime.”

“Sure,” he replied. “You and your husband must have dinner with my family some night. Any night. Lucille and I’d love to have you.”



The leaves fell slowly from the trees in the Square. Fell without wind. Autumn dusk. She felt a little sick.



“We’d love it,” she answered.

“You ought to see my kids.” He grinned.



Suddenly the lights came on up the whole length of Fifth Avenue, chains of misty brilliance in the blue air.



“There’s my bus,” she said.

He held out his hand. “Good-bye.”

“When . . .” she wanted to say, but the bus was ready to pull off. The lights on the avenue blurred, twinkled, blurred. And she was afraid to open her mouth as she entered the bus. Afraid it would be impossible to utter a word.



Suddenly she shrieked very loudly. “Good-bye!” But the bus door had closed.



The bus started. People came between them outside, people crossing the street, people they didn’t know. Space and people. She lost sight of Bill. Then she remembered she had forgotten to give him her address — or to ask him for his — or tell him that her youngest boy was named Bill too. 

*****************************************

 初秋 

作者：Langston Hughes / 译文：绿叶红花美

 

相恋之时，比尔还很年轻。在那些不眠之夜，他们总是在一起散步、畅谈，难舍难分。然而，有一天，他们分道扬镳了，起因却是一件很不起眼的小事。女人一时冲动，嫁给了一个自认为她爱的男人。比尔品尝着女人带给他的痛苦，离开了令他伤心的地方。

昨天，她正步行走过华盛顿广场，却一眼看见了多年未曾再见面的他。

“比尔-沃克。”她喊他的名字。

他停住了脚步。最初的几秒钟，他并没有立刻认出她来。她看起来苍老了许多。

“玛丽！你怎么会在这里？”

不由自主地，她微仰起脸，期待那曾经熟悉的一个亲吻。但是，他却向她伸出了手，她只好握手。

“我现在住在纽约。”她说。

“哦，”他轻微地笑了笑，眉头却在不经意之间皱了一下。　

“一直挺牵挂你的，不知道你过得怎么样，比尔。”

“我现在是一名律师。公司还不错。在老城那头。”

“结婚了吗？”

“结了。两个孩子。”

“哦。”她无语。

天色已经接近黄昏。人们穿越公园，从他们身边匆匆而过。这些都是陌生人。傍晚悄悄来临，日落西下。寒气袭来，浑身感到一阵一阵的冷。

“你丈夫他——”他问她道

“我们有三个孩子。我在哥伦比亚的贝萨公司上班。”

“你看起来。。。没变。”他停顿了片刻，说。本来他想说：你怎么变得那么老了，都几乎认不出来了，但是，他止住了。

她知道他要说什么。站在华盛顿广场的树下，她意识到，她正在竭尽全力地努力回忆过去的往事。当年在俄亥俄的时候，她年龄就比他大一点，可是现在，她看起来是如此的苍老，毫无风韵可言，而比尔却还是那么风华正茂。

“我们就住在中央公园西面，”她说：“有空的时候过来玩儿。”

“好的。”他马上回答。“欢迎你和你的丈夫也来我家做客，我们可以共进晚餐。任何晚上都可以，露西和我将会万分荣幸。”

广场上，树叶慢慢落下，飞舞无助，欲泣还诉。。。无风。秋日黄昏，为何如此萧瑟伤怀。她感觉有些不舒服。

“我们会非常乐意前往府上拜访的。”她回答他。

“你还可以见见我的孩子。”他面带微笑地说。

突然，路灯点亮了，马路上灯火通明，照亮了长长的第五大道。灯火的亮光在薄雾中朦胧迷离，好像扰乱着无可奈何的心情。

“我的公车来了。”她说。

他伸手相握，和她道别：“再见。”

“什么时候。。。”她刚想说什么，汽车门却快要关上了。街上的灯火在她的视线中，闪烁着模糊迷茫的光，似明似暗，似暗似明。她跳上车子，竭力不让自己开口说话，她只怕是一开口，反而一个字也说不出来了。  

突然，她声嘶力竭地大喊：“再见！”就在这时，车门却无情地关上了。

车开了，匆匆的人群从他们身边走过，穿过街道。所有的人都是陌生人。空间是那么的空旷，人群是那样的拥挤，在空间和人群之中，她的比尔慢慢地从她的视线中消失。那个时候，她才想起来自己忘记给他她的地址 -- 或者向他要他的地址-- 或者告诉他，她最小的儿子名字也叫比尔。

 

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兰斯顿·休斯（1902 - 1967）

兰斯顿·休斯在美国文坛,尤其是黑人文学方面,是一个举足轻重的人物。他写过小说、戏剧、散文、历史、传记等各种文体的作品,但他主要以诗歌著称,被誉为”黑人民族的桂冠诗人”。

1960年代黑人领袖马丁·路德·金那篇流传至今、脍炙人口的《我有个梦想》，跟休斯的关于“梦想”的诗歌有直接的联系: 

Dreams 梦想 

Hold fast to dreams 紧紧抓住梦想
For if dreams die若是梦想消亡
Life is a broken-winged bird 生命就象鸟儿折了翅膀
That can never fly. 再也不能飞翔

Hold fast to dreams 紧紧抓住梦想
For when dreams go若是梦想消丧
Life is a barren field 生命就象贫瘠的荒野，
Frozen only with snow 雪覆冰封，万物不再生长


关于Langston Hughes的资料文字，均摘自网络。

文章没有费多少的功夫就写成了，但是发图片却花去了我将近一个小时的时间，却总也发不上去。我又是一个死较真的人，一遍又一遍，它不让我发，我偏发 。。。气死我啦啦啦啦。。。好吧，我认输。累了，今天就到这里了。