張培基英譯散文賞析之《狗》

狗

The Dog

老舍

Lao She

| 譯文摘自張培基《英譯中國散文選二》

中國狗恐怕是世界上最可憐最難看的狗。此處之“難看”并不指狗種而言，而是與“可憐”密切相關(guān)。無論狗的模樣身材如何，只要喂養(yǎng)得好，它便會長得肥肥胖胖的，看著順眼。中國人窮。人且吃不飽，狗就更提不到了。因此，中國狗最難看；不是因為它長得不體面，而是因為它骨瘦如柴，終年夾著尾巴。

Of all dogs in the world, those in China are perhaps the most pitiful and ugly-looking. But it is their wretched life rather than their breed that is to blame for their ugliness. All dogs, if well-fed, will be plump and nice-looking irrespective of their bodily form. In poverty-striken China, people don’t even have enough to feed themselves, let alone dogs. Chinese dogs are ugly-looking not because they are born like that, but because they’ve been reduced to skin and bones by hunger, with tails between their legs all the year round.

要點：

1， plump表示“胖乎乎的”，之前說過這種小詞在文學(xué)翻譯中灰常常用，比如“各種走”“各種跑”“各種哭”“各種笑”都是需要積累的~

2， “中國人窮。人且吃不飽，狗就更提不到了”即“在貧窮的中國，人尚且吃不飽，更別提狗了”譯為In poverty-striken China, people don’t even have enough to feed themselves, let alone dogs. let alone 作“更別提”“更不必說”解，之前我們也有過總結(jié)，表相同意思的還有much less, still much, not to mention

3， “而是因為它骨瘦如柴，終年夾著尾巴“譯為but because they’ve been reduced to skin and bones by hunger, with tails between their legs all the year round.其中by hunger 是增益成分。”夾著尾巴“譯為with tails between their legs all

綜述：從上一段可以看出，老舍這篇雜文語言簡潔質(zhì)樸，句式較為簡單，童鞋們注意選詞依舊要體現(xiàn)文學(xué)性~

每逢我看見被遺棄的小野狗在街上尋找糞吃，我便要落淚。我并非是愛作傷感的人，動不動就要哭一鼻子。我看見小狗的可憐，也就是感到人民的貧窮。民富而后貓狗肥。

I always feel like crying whenever I see a homeless little dog roaming about the street in search of human excrement. It doesn’t mean that I’m a sentimental, lachrymose sort. It’s because I associate the misery of the little dog with the poverty of our people. Our cats and dogs will never get nice fat unless our people are well-off.

要點：

1，“我并非是愛作傷感的人，動不動就要哭一鼻子“即”我并非是傷感愛哭的人“譯為It doesn’t mean that I’m a sentimental, lachrymose sort，lachrymose的意思為”愛哭的“，sort意為”某一種人“，等于sort of person.”愛哭的“譯為后置定語（which is）easily moved to tears也可

2，“我看見小狗的可憐，也就是感到人民的貧窮。”即“我將小狗的悲慘同人民大眾的貧窮聯(lián)系在了一起”譯為It’s because I associate the misery of the little dog with the poverty of our people

3，“民富而后貓狗肥。”即“只有人民富裕了，貓狗才會茁壯成長”，“只有…才”的譯法有很多種，此處譯者譯為Our cats and dogs will never get nice fat unless our people are well-off.較“only when…”更加簡潔~

中國人動不動就說：我們地大物博。那也就是說，我們不用著急呀，我們有的是東西，永遠吃不完喝不盡哪！

We are apt to declare that ours is a big country with rich natural resources, meaning that there is no need for us to worry because we have plenty of everything to last us forever and ever. Well, why not take a look at our dogs!

要點：

1，“動不動就說”即“經(jīng)常說”，譯為be apt to declare

2，“地大物博”譯為a big country with rich natural resources

3，“哼，請看看你們的狗吧！”譯為Well, why not take a look at our dogs!將感嘆句譯為反問句，可以增強語氣

綜述：以上兩段有很多口語化的表述，注意譯者是如何處理的

還有：狗雖那么摸不著吃，那么隨便就被人踢兩腳，打兩棍，可是它們還照舊的替人們服務(wù)。盡管它們餓成皮包著骨，盡管它們剛被主人踹了兩腳，它們還是極忠誠的去盡看門守夜的責任，狗永遠不嫌主人窮。這樣的動物理應(yīng)得到人們的贊美，而忠誠、義氣、安貧、勇敢，等等好字眼都該歸之于狗。可是，我不曉得為什么中國人不分黑白的把漢奸與小人叫作走狗，倒仿佛狗是不忠誠不義氣的動物。我為狗喊冤叫屈！貓才是好吃懶作，有肉即來，無食即去的東西。洋奴與小人理應(yīng)被叫作“走貓”。

Dogs always remain man’s faithful servants though they are underfed and kicked and beaten without any reason. A dog continues to perform with loyal devotion the duty of guarding the door and keeping watch at night though he has been starved to a skeleton and kicked at by his master. He never minds how poor his master is. Such an animal deserves our high praise. We should attribute to them such laudatory epithets as “devotion”, “l(fā)oyalty”, “content with poverty”, “courage”, etc. But I wonder why we have been undiscriminatingly calling traitors and villains “running dogs”, as if dogs were disloyal and unfaithful animals. I should voice grievances for them!Cats, however, are greedy and lazy. They come to you when you have meat to offer, but otherwise leave you. Flunkeys of imperialism and mean persons should have been called “running cats”.

要點：

1，“隨便”譯為without any reason

2,“餓成皮包著骨”譯為been starved to a skeleton，和前面的 reduced to skin and bones by hunger同義

3，“狗永遠不嫌主人窮”可譯為He never minds how poor his master is。“嫌棄”還可以根據(jù)語境譯為complain~

4,“這樣的動物理應(yīng)得到人們的贊美”譯為Such an animal deserves our high praise，或者earn out high commendation

5,” 我為狗喊冤叫屈”可譯為I should voice grievances for them，“喊冤叫屈”還可譯為cry out about one's grievances

6，“有肉即來，無食即去”即譯為They come to you when you have meat to offer, but otherwise leave you.用otherwise代替已知情況，是省略情況的一種~

或者是因為狗的脾氣好，不像貓那樣傲慢，所以中國人不說“走貓”而說“走狗”？假若真是那樣，我就又覺得人們未免有點“軟的欺，硬的怕”了！

不過，也許有一種狗，學(xué)名叫作“走狗”；那我還不大清楚。

Perhaps the reason why we prefer to say “running dogs” rather than “running cats” is that dogs are good-tempered while cats are supercilious. If so, I would think that people are perhaps inclined to bully the weak and fear the strong.Maybe there is a kind of dog whose scientific name is “running dog”. I’m not quite sure.

要點：

1，“欺軟的，怕硬的”即“欺軟怕硬”，采取分拆譯法譯為bully the weak and fear the strong

綜述：老舍的文章句式都不是很復(fù)雜，重點注意其口語化表達的翻譯方法。

狗

The Dog

老舍

Lao She

| 譯文摘自張培基《英譯中國散文選二》

中國狗恐怕是世界上最可憐最難看的狗。此處之“難看”并不指狗種而言，而是與“可憐”密切相關(guān)。無論狗的模樣身材如何，只要喂養(yǎng)得好，它便會長得肥肥胖胖的，看著順眼。中國人窮。人且吃不飽，狗就更提不到了。因此，中國狗最難看；不是因為它長得不體面，而是因為它骨瘦如柴，終年夾著尾巴。

Of all dogs in the world, those in China are perhaps the most pitiful and ugly-looking. But it is their wretched life rather than their breed that is to blame for their ugliness. All dogs, if well-fed, will be plump and nice-looking irrespective of their bodily form. In poverty-striken China, people don’t even have enough to feed themselves, let alone dogs. Chinese dogs are ugly-looking not because they are born like that, but because they’ve been reduced to skin and bones by hunger, with tails between their legs all the year round.

要點：

1， plump表示“胖乎乎的”，之前說過這種小詞在文學(xué)翻譯中灰常常用，比如“各種走”“各種跑”“各種哭”“各種笑”都是需要積累的~

2， “中國人窮。人且吃不飽，狗就更提不到了”即“在貧窮的中國，人尚且吃不飽，更別提狗了”譯為In poverty-striken China, people don’t even have enough to feed themselves, let alone dogs. let alone 作“更別提”“更不必說”解，之前我們也有過總結(jié)，表相同意思的還有much less, still much, not to mention

3， “而是因為它骨瘦如柴，終年夾著尾巴“譯為but because they’ve been reduced to skin and bones by hunger, with tails between their legs all the year round.其中by hunger 是增益成分。”夾著尾巴“譯為with tails between their legs all

綜述：從上一段可以看出，老舍這篇雜文語言簡潔質(zhì)樸，句式較為簡單，童鞋們注意選詞依舊要體現(xiàn)文學(xué)性~

每逢我看見被遺棄的小野狗在街上尋找糞吃，我便要落淚。我并非是愛作傷感的人，動不動就要哭一鼻子。我看見小狗的可憐，也就是感到人民的貧窮。民富而后貓狗肥。

I always feel like crying whenever I see a homeless little dog roaming about the street in search of human excrement. It doesn’t mean that I’m a sentimental, lachrymose sort. It’s because I associate the misery of the little dog with the poverty of our people. Our cats and dogs will never get nice fat unless our people are well-off.

要點：

1，“我并非是愛作傷感的人，動不動就要哭一鼻子“即”我并非是傷感愛哭的人“譯為It doesn’t mean that I’m a sentimental, lachrymose sort，lachrymose的意思為”愛哭的“，sort意為”某一種人“，等于sort of person.”愛哭的“譯為后置定語（which is）easily moved to tears也可

2，“我看見小狗的可憐，也就是感到人民的貧窮。”即“我將小狗的悲慘同人民大眾的貧窮聯(lián)系在了一起”譯為It’s because I associate the misery of the little dog with the poverty of our people

3，“民富而后貓狗肥。”即“只有人民富裕了，貓狗才會茁壯成長”，“只有…才”的譯法有很多種，此處譯者譯為Our cats and dogs will never get nice fat unless our people are well-off.較“only when…”更加簡潔~

中國人動不動就說：我們地大物博。那也就是說，我們不用著急呀，我們有的是東西，永遠吃不完喝不盡哪！

We are apt to declare that ours is a big country with rich natural resources, meaning that there is no need for us to worry because we have plenty of everything to last us forever and ever. Well, why not take a look at our dogs!

要點：

1，“動不動就說”即“經(jīng)常說”，譯為be apt to declare

2，“地大物博”譯為a big country with rich natural resources

3，“哼，請看看你們的狗吧！”譯為Well, why not take a look at our dogs!將感嘆句譯為反問句，可以增強語氣

綜述：以上兩段有很多口語化的表述，注意譯者是如何處理的

還有：狗雖那么摸不著吃，那么隨便就被人踢兩腳，打兩棍，可是它們還照舊的替人們服務(wù)。盡管它們餓成皮包著骨，盡管它們剛被主人踹了兩腳，它們還是極忠誠的去盡看門守夜的責任，狗永遠不嫌主人窮。這樣的動物理應(yīng)得到人們的贊美，而忠誠、義氣、安貧、勇敢，等等好字眼都該歸之于狗。可是，我不曉得為什么中國人不分黑白的把漢奸與小人叫作走狗，倒仿佛狗是不忠誠不義氣的動物。我為狗喊冤叫屈！貓才是好吃懶作，有肉即來，無食即去的東西。洋奴與小人理應(yīng)被叫作“走貓”。

Dogs always remain man’s faithful servants though they are underfed and kicked and beaten without any reason. A dog continues to perform with loyal devotion the duty of guarding the door and keeping watch at night though he has been starved to a skeleton and kicked at by his master. He never minds how poor his master is. Such an animal deserves our high praise. We should attribute to them such laudatory epithets as “devotion”, “l(fā)oyalty”, “content with poverty”, “courage”, etc. But I wonder why we have been undiscriminatingly calling traitors and villains “running dogs”, as if dogs were disloyal and unfaithful animals. I should voice grievances for them!Cats, however, are greedy and lazy. They come to you when you have meat to offer, but otherwise leave you. Flunkeys of imperialism and mean persons should have been called “running cats”.

要點：

1，“隨便”譯為without any reason

2,“餓成皮包著骨”譯為been starved to a skeleton，和前面的 reduced to skin and bones by hunger同義

3，“狗永遠不嫌主人窮”可譯為He never minds how poor his master is。“嫌棄”還可以根據(jù)語境譯為complain~

4,“這樣的動物理應(yīng)得到人們的贊美”譯為Such an animal deserves our high praise，或者earn out high commendation

5,” 我為狗喊冤叫屈”可譯為I should voice grievances for them，“喊冤叫屈”還可譯為cry out about one's grievances

6，“有肉即來，無食即去”即譯為They come to you when you have meat to offer, but otherwise leave you.用otherwise代替已知情況，是省略情況的一種~

或者是因為狗的脾氣好，不像貓那樣傲慢，所以中國人不說“走貓”而說“走狗”？假若真是那樣，我就又覺得人們未免有點“軟的欺，硬的怕”了！

不過，也許有一種狗，學(xué)名叫作“走狗”；那我還不大清楚。

Perhaps the reason why we prefer to say “running dogs” rather than “running cats” is that dogs are good-tempered while cats are supercilious. If so, I would think that people are perhaps inclined to bully the weak and fear the strong.Maybe there is a kind of dog whose scientific name is “running dog”. I’m not quite sure.

要點：

1，“欺軟的，怕硬的”即“欺軟怕硬”，采取分拆譯法譯為bully the weak and fear the strong

綜述：老舍的文章句式都不是很復(fù)雜，重點注意其口語化表達的翻譯方法。