[转载]“葬花吟”译评（1）

“葬花吟”译评 侯国金（发表于《新东方英语》2006年1月号） （作者注：您若引用请注名作者姓名和博客，如“侯国金（http://blog.sina.com.cn/alfredhou）”，或者说明上述刊物，否则沦为剽窃。您若喜欢鄙人的博客，请把http://blog.sina.com.cn/alfredhou告诉做学术的好友。欢迎评论。谢谢。） 正文如下： 一 经典章回小说《红楼梦》（曹雪芹、高鹗著）是我国文学宝库中的瑰宝。它不仅值得我们自己学习和欣赏，还值得向外国朋友推荐。当然这一文化交流活动离不开翻译。我们手头上有英国的Hawkes和他的女婿Mindford（翻译不同章回）的译本，有杨宪益和戴乃迭（合译）的译本。假如看原著是一种享受，看译著并比较不同的译著的优缺点更是有意义的文学鉴赏活动：我们可以洞察不同的译者对原文不同的解读，考察译者的翻译风格，译者的文化、心理、背景特征甚至其译文所表现的民族特点。我们还可以把译本当作注释，达到更准确、更深入或许是崭新的解读呢。也就是说外国人可以通过读译著来了解汉语文学，通过对比原著和译著来学习汉语文学，我们中国人也可以通过同一渠道达到同样的目的，同时还可以学英语，学翻译，学做人，等等。 第27回的“黛玉葬花”是感人至深的诗篇，下面我们先欣赏一下原诗和两个译本。 1） 花谢花飞飞满天，红消香断有谁怜？ 2） 游丝软系飘春榭，落絮轻沾扑绣帘。 3） 闺中女儿惜春暮，愁绪满怀无处诉。 4） 手把花锄出绣帘，忍踏落花来复去？ 5） 柳丝榆荚自芳菲，不管桃飘与李飞。 6） 桃李明年能再发，明年闺中知有谁？ 7） 三月香巢已垒成，梁间燕子太无情！ 8） 明年花发虽可啄，却不道人去梁空巢也倾。 9） 一年三百六十日，风刀霜剑严相逼。 10）明媚鲜妍能几时，一朝飘泊难寻觅。 11）花开易见落难寻，阶前闷杀葬花人。 12）独把花锄偷洒泪，洒上空枝见血痕。 13）杜鹃无语正黄昏，荷锄归去掩重门。 14）青灯照壁人初睡，冷雨敲窗被未温。 15）怪侬底事倍伤神？半为怜春半恼春。 16）怜春忽至恼忽去，至又无言去不闻。 17）昨宵庭外悲歌发，知是花魂与鸟魂？ 18）花魂鸟魂总难留，鸟自无言花自羞。 19）愿侬此日生双冀，随花飞到天尽头。 20）天尽头，何处有香丘？ 21）未若锦囊收艳骨，一净土掩风流。 22）质本洁来还洁去，强于污淖陷渠沟。 23） 尔今死去侬收葬，未卜侬身何日丧？ 24） 侬今葬花人笑痴，他年葬侬知是谁？ 25） 试看春残花渐落，便是红颜老死时。 26） 一朝春尽红颜老，花落人亡两不知！ 多愁善感的林黛玉“只因昨夜晴雯不开门一事，错疑在宝玉身上。至次日又可巧遇见饯花之期，正是一腔无明正未发泄，又勾起伤春愁思，因把些残花落瓣去掩埋，由不得感花伤己，哭了几声，便随口念了几句。”（第28回）黛玉“随口念”的几句话就是这么有诗意，这么惆怅，这么动人。当然，“不想宝玉在山坡上听见，先不过点头感叹，次后听到‘侬今葬花人笑痴，他年葬侬知是谁？’‘一朝春尽红颜老，花落人亡两不知’等句，不觉恸倒山坡之上，怀里兜的落花撒了一地。试想林黛玉的花颜月貌，将来亦到无可寻觅之时，宁不心碎肠断？”（同上）作者也说“真不知此时此际如何解释这段悲伤！”只能以“花影不离身左右，鸟声只有耳东西”（同上）来解释吧。 Hawkes译： 1) The blossoms fade and falling fill the air, Of fragrance and bright hues bereft and bare. 2) Floss drifts and flutters round the Maiden’s bower, Or softly strikes against her curtained door. 3) The Maid, grieved by these signs of spring’s decease, Seeking some means her sorrow to express, 4) Has rake in hand into the garden gone, Before the fallen flowers are trampled on. 5) Elm-pods and willow-floss are fragrant too; Why care, Maid, where the fallen flowers blew? 6) Next year, when peach and plum-tree bloom again, Which of your sweet companions will remain? 7) This spring the heartless swallow built his nest Beneath the eaves of mud with flowers compressed. 8) Next year the flowers will bloom as before, But swallow, nest, and Maid will be no more. 9) Three hundred and three-score the year’s full tale: From swords of frost and from the slaughtering gale 10) How can the lovely flowers long stay intact, Or, once loosed, from their drifting fate draw back? 11）Blooming so steadfast, fallen so hard to find! Beside the flowers’ grave, with sorrowing mind, 12） The solitary Maid sheds many a tear, Which on the boughs as bloody drops appear. 13） At twilight, when the cuckoo sings no more, The Maiden with her rake goes in at door 14） And lays her down between the lamplit walls, While a chill rain against the window falls. 15） I know not why my heart’s so strangely sad, Half grieving for the spring and half glad: 16） Glad that it came, grieved it so soon was spent. So soft it came, so silently it went! 17）Last night, outside, a mournful sound was heard: The spirits of the flowers and of the bird. 18）But neither bird nor flowers would long delay, Bird lacking speech, and flowers too shy to stay. 19）And then I wished that I had wings to fly After the drifting flowers across the sky; 20）Across the sky to the world’s farthest end, The flowers’ last fragrant resting-place to find. 21）But better their remains in silk lay And bury underneath the wholesome clay, 22）Pure substances the pure earth to enrich, Than leave to soak and stink in some foul ditch. 23）Can I, that these flowers’ obsequies attend, Divine how soon or late my life will end? 24）Let others laugh flower-burial to see: Another year who will be burying me? 25）As petals drop and spring begins to fail, The bloom of youth, too, sickens and turns pale. 26）One day, when spring has gone and youth has fled, The Maiden and the flowers will both be dead. 杨和戴译： 1） As blossoms fade and fly across the sky, Who pities the faded red, the scent that has been? 2） Softly the gossamer floats over spring pavilions, Gently the willow fluff wafts to the embroidered screen. 3） A girl in her chamber mourns the passing of spring, No relief from anxiety her poor heart knows; 4） Hoe in hand she steps through her portal, Loath to tread on the blossom as she comes and goes. 5） Willows and elms, fresh and verdant, Care not if peach and plum blossom drift away; 6） Next year the peach and plum blossom will bloom again, But her chamber may stand empty on that day. 7） By the third month the scented nests are built, But the swallows on the beam are heartless all; 8） Next year, though once again you may peck the buds, From the beam of an empty room your nest will fall. 9） Each year for three hundred and sixty days The cutting wind and biting frost contend. 10） How long can beauty flower fresh and fair? In a single day wind can whirl it to its end. 11） Fallen, the brightest blooms are hard to find; With aching heart their grave-digger comes now 12） Alone, her hoe in hand, her secret tears Falling like drops of blood on each bare bough. 13） Dusk falls and the cuckoo is silent; Her hoe brought back, the lodge is locked and still; 14） A green lamp lights the wall as sleep enfolds her, Cold rain pelts the casement and her quilt is chill. 15） What causes my two-fold anguish? Love for spring and resentment of spring; 16） For suddenly it comes and suddenly goes, Its arrival unheralded, noiseless its departing. 17） Last night from the courtyard floated a sad song-- Was it the soul of blossom, the soul of birds, 18） Hard to detain, the soul of blossom or birds? For blossoms have no assurance, birds no words. 19） I long to take wing and fly With the flowers to earth’s uttermost bound; 20） And yet at earth’s uttermost bound Where can a fragrant burial mound be found? 21） Better shroud the fair petals in silk With clean earth for their outer attire; 22） For pure you came and pure shall you go, Not sinking into some foul ditch or mire. 23） Now you are dead I come to bury you; None has divined the day when I shall die; 24） Men laugh at my folly in burying fallen flowers, But who will bury me when dead I lie? 25） See, when spring draws to a close and flowers fall, This is the season when beauty must ebb and fade; 26） The day that spring takes wing and beauty fades Who will care for the fallen blossom or dead maid?