中國文學(xué)英譯絮談

沙楓

《游子吟》的八種英譯

香港中文大學(xué)一九七四年出版了一本中詩英譯集“Sitting Up At Night And Other Chinese Poems”，選譯了李白、杜甫、白居易、李商隱、陸游以至龔自珍等人的詩四十六首。選譯者為劉德爵（Lau Tak Cheuk）。

這四十六首詩，除了孟郊的《游子吟》之外，從前都是很少英譯的?，F(xiàn)介紹一下這首比較多人熟悉的《游子吟》的翻譯。孟郊的原詩是這樣的：

慈母手中線，游子身上衣。
臨行密密縫，意恐遲遲歸。
誰言寸草心，報得三春暉？

英譯如下：

The thread in the good mother's hand
Makes clothing for the wandering son's back.
Before he goes, she stitches and stitches,
Fearing that he might delay and delay his return,
Who says the gratitude of the inch-long grass
Can repay the warmth of the spring sun?

“密密縫”譯作“she stitches and stitches”，“遲遲歸”譯作“delay and delay his return”，把兩對疊字都翻譯出來了。

在拙作《中詩英譯敘談》一書中，已介紹過 Fletcher，Lowell，Bynner，Kotewall 及吳經(jīng)熊等五人的英譯?，F(xiàn)再介紹劉師舜與 Graham 兩人的英譯于后。

劉師舜的英譯是這樣的：

The thread in the hand of the loving mother,
Is woven into the roving son's garments.
Before he leaves, she makes her stitches double,
Fearing he will be long in returning.
However deep his gratitude, how can he ever
Repay a debt that will bind him always.

Graham 的英譯如下：

The thread in the hand of a kind mother
Is the coat on the wanderer's back.
Before he left she stitched it close
In secret fear that he would be slow to return.
Who will say that the inch of grass in his heart
is gratitude enough for all the sunshine of spring?

由引用的英譯可見，“慈母”的“慈”，有人譯作“good”，有人譯作“l(fā)oving”，有人譯作“kind”。此外，還有人譯作“tender”，有人譯作“doting”，有人譯作“fond”，有人譯作“fond hearted”。

“游子”的“游”，有人譯作“wandering”，有人譯作“roving”，有人譯作“parting”，有人譯作“wayward”，有人譯作“absent”，有人譯作“far-journeying”，有人譯作“far-off journeying”。

簡簡單單的“慈母”、“游子”的譯法，就已經(jīng)如此的各個不同?？梢姺g之巧妙，是各個不同的。

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