談結(jié)婚A Chat about Marriage

郁達(dá)夫Yu Dafu

| 譯文摘自張培基《英譯中國散文選一》

前些日子,林語堂先生似乎曾說過女子的唯一事業(yè),是在結(jié)婚?,F(xiàn)在一位法國大文豪來滬,對去訪問他的新聞記者的談話之中,又似乎說,男子欲成事業(yè),應(yīng)該不要結(jié)婚。
The other day, Mr. Lin Yutang said something to the effect that women’s only career lies in matrimony. Now, an eminent French writer declared at a press interview after arriving in Shanghai that men should stay bachelors if they want to achieve success in life.

要點(diǎn):
1,“似乎曾說過”意即“說過一些話,大意是…”譯為said something to the effect that,其中,to the effect意為”大意是…“如:To his inquiry if she were hurt, she made some incoherent reply to the effect that she did not know.
他問她是否受了傷,她語無倫次地回答說,她也不知道
2,“現(xiàn)在一位法國大文豪來滬,對去訪問他的新聞記者的談話之中“譯為an eminent French writer declared at a press interview after arriving in Shanghai,又是一個(gè)多動詞的句子,譯者將”談話“作為主要動詞,”來滬“譯為狀語~而且省去了譯“去訪問他的新聞記者”的繁瑣,直接以press interview代替,簡潔~
3,“男子欲成事業(yè),應(yīng)該不要結(jié)婚?!边\(yùn)用反話正譯的手法,譯為men should stay bachelors if they want to achieve success in life.這樣一來,不僅行文簡潔,也保證了原文的語氣~

綜述:注意本段這個(gè)多動句(就是這個(gè)多動詞句)的譯法以及反話正說

華盛頓-歐文是一個(gè)獨(dú)身的男子,但《見聞短記》里的一篇歌頌妻子的文章,卻寫得那么的優(yōu)美可愛。同樣查而斯-蘭姆也是個(gè)獨(dú)身的男子,而愛麗婭《獨(dú)身者的不平》一篇,又冷嘲熱諷,將結(jié)婚的男女和婚后必然的果子—小孩們—等,俏皮到了那一步田地。
Washington Irving was a confirmed bachelor, but in his Sketch Book there is an article extolling the wife as a graceful and lovely life-long partner. Charles Lamb, also a single man, in A Bachelor’s Complaint of the Behavior of Married People, one of his essays signed “Elia”, speaks mockingly of married people with their inevitable postnuptial fruits-the children.

要點(diǎn):
1,“華盛頓-歐文是一個(gè)獨(dú)身的男子,但《見聞短記》里的一篇歌頌妻子的文章,卻寫得那么的優(yōu)美可愛”譯為Washington Irving was a confirmed bachelor, but in his Sketch Book there is an article extolling the wife as a graceful and lovely life-long partner.合譯方法一:分句主語不同要統(tǒng)一主語(不要問我沒有主語怎么辦,找啊~,之后合并為一句
2,“同樣查而斯-蘭姆也是個(gè)獨(dú)身的男子…”注意譯者翻譯這句話時(shí)對于同位語的運(yùn)用~在表明”事物內(nèi)容和人物身份“的成分過多時(shí),可以用同位語,但要注意不要太多,不然會暈~
3,《獨(dú)身者的不平》為《愛麗亞散文集》中的一篇

綜述:?注意本段的合譯技巧以及同位語的使用

究竟是結(jié)婚的好呢,還是不結(jié)婚的好?這問題似乎同先有雞呢還是先有雞蛋一樣,常常有人提起,而也常常沒有人解決過的問題。照大體看來,想租房子的時(shí)候,是無眷莫問的,想做官的時(shí)候,又是朝里無裙莫做官的,想寫文章的時(shí)候,是獨(dú)身者不能寫我的妻的,凡此種種似乎都是結(jié)婚的好。
Marriage or no marriage, which is more desirable? The sounds like the chicken-and egg question, which, though often discussed, remains a perpetual puzzle. Generally speaking, one who has no family dependants is not supposed to rent a house, one who has no petticoat influence in the government should refrain from becoming an official, an unmarried male writer is in no position to write about “my wife”. All these seem to hint at the advantages of marriage.

要點(diǎn):
1,“究竟是結(jié)婚的好呢,還是不結(jié)婚的好?“是個(gè)如假包換的選擇疑問句,用which~
2, “這問題似乎同先有雞呢還是先有雞蛋一樣”譯為The sounds like the chicken-and- egg question, 其中chicken-and –question,意為“雞與蛋孰先難定“或”因果難定“,了解一些俗語成語,可以大大減少譯文所用字?jǐn)?shù),提高簡潔度?
3,“常常沒有人解決過的問題“譯為remains a perpetual puzzle.反話正說再次出現(xiàn)~童鞋們可以總結(jié)起來
4,“想租房子的時(shí)候,是無眷莫問的 “意為”沒有家屬就不能租房“譯為he who has no family dependants is not supposed to rent a house,合譯方法二:看看意思能不能合并或者用關(guān)聯(lián)詞串起來,根據(jù)意思順成一句話。
5,“想做官的時(shí)候,又是朝里無裙莫做官的“譯為one who has no petticoat influence in the government should refrain from becoming an official,“朝里無裙”是指在官場上沒有靠山,沒有裙帶關(guān)系?!叭埂爸溉箮шP(guān)系,譯為petticoat influence
6,“想寫文章的時(shí)候,是獨(dú)身者不能寫我的妻的”中的“獨(dú)身者”指“獨(dú)身男作家”,譯為unmarried male writer
7,“凡此種種似乎都是結(jié)婚的好”意即“這一切似乎都暗示了結(jié)婚的好處”

綜述:本段出現(xiàn)了三個(gè)關(guān)于“不能做某事”的表述,refrain from我們在《話說短文》中也有見到哦~積累積累積累~

可是要想結(jié)婚,第一要有錢,第二要有閑,第三要有職,這潘驢…的五個(gè)條件,卻也很不容易辦到。更何況結(jié)婚之后,“兒子自己要來”,在這世界人口過剩,經(jīng)濟(jì)恐慌,教育破產(chǎn),世風(fēng)不古的時(shí)候,萬一不慎,同蘭姆所說的一樣,兒子們?nèi)ド狭藬囝^臺,那真是連祖宗三代的楣都要倒盡,那里還有什么“官人請!娘子請!”的唱隨之樂可說呢?
But , to get married, you need to have five prerequisites, namely, money, leisure, employment, good looks and patentees, of which all are not always available. What’s more, after your marriage, your offspring will come to this world of themselves. And in a world with overpopulation, economic crisis, educational bankruptcy and deteriorating public morals, they may, just as Charles Lamb says, through their own acts of indiscretion, be sent to the gallows. With such a terrible misfortune befalling your family, how could you still have wedded bliss to speak of?

要點(diǎn):
1,“潘驢”源自《金瓶梅》第三回,指“潘安的貌”和“驢大行貨”,也就是說要有姣好的相貌和有實(shí)力。專屬中國古典文化詞,有些讀者根本不知道潘安是何許人。而關(guān)于中國文化的翻譯,有三種譯法,一是在西方文化語境中找一個(gè)能與之相對的典故;二是音譯“潘驢”一詞,并在最后加注解釋(即之前講到的釋義法);三是轉(zhuǎn)為譯出關(guān)鍵意思。譯文采取第三種譯法,“good looks and potentness”。避免了使用釋義法,保證文章流暢性~
2,“卻也很不容易辦到”意即“卻也不易都具備”,譯為of which all are not always available
3,“兒子自己要來”譯為your offspring will come to this world of themselves,of theme=automatically,此外,“兒子”指的就是“后代”的意思~
4,世風(fēng)=public moral之前在《我坐了木船中》也粗線過~
5,“萬一不慎”譯為through their own acts of indiscretion意為“由于他們自己的不檢點(diǎn)/魯莽”~
6,“倒祖宗三代的楣”算是中國的俗語了,一種夸張的說法,表示特別倒霉。這里的“三”只是一個(gè)虛數(shù)。中國文化中,往往在罵人時(shí)候喜歡把祖宗加在里面,加強(qiáng)語氣強(qiáng)度。這里張爺爺用family一詞,既滿足了中文的“達(dá)意”,又符合西方人的價(jià)值觀~
7,“’官人請!娘子請!’的唱隨之樂“譯為wedded bliss(閨房之樂),看古裝的小伙伴都知道“官人”、“娘子”,是中國古代夫妻之間相互稱謂的詞,這也是中國獨(dú)有的,不宜直譯~

綜述:有關(guān)中國傳統(tǒng)文化的表述,也是考試中比較常見的,本段介紹了三中譯法,童鞋們在平時(shí)練習(xí)時(shí)可以用啦~

左思右想,總覺得結(jié)婚也不好的,不結(jié)婚也是不好的。
Thinking the matter over and over again, I cannot but come to the conclusion that neither matrimony nor bachelorship has anything to recommend itself.

要點(diǎn):
1,“左思右想“=”思考再三“,”再三”這個(gè)詞之前也見過很多遍,可以譯為repeatedly ,over and over again, again and again, time and again, time after time~
2,” 總覺得”意即“我的結(jié)論是”“我得出了一個(gè)結(jié)論”~
3,“結(jié)婚也不好的,不結(jié)婚也是不好的”句中多個(gè)否定,用“否定詞+ nor”~

綜述:本段相較前面幾段而言,比較容易~根據(jù)要點(diǎn)回顧下以前的知識即可~

聲明:本雙語文章的中文評析系滬江英語原創(chuàng)內(nèi)容,轉(zhuǎn)載請注明出處。中文評析僅代表作者個(gè)人觀點(diǎn),僅供參考。如有不妥之處,歡迎指正。