姚景文《田水哗啦》 -英语翻译教程-中英双语赏析

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田水哗啦

The Irrigation Water Came Gurgling

姚景文

Yao Jinwen

三十守寡起，十多年了，“招白眼”。又一夜失眠。

Black-browed Zhao, widowed over ten years ago when she was thirty, was having another sleepless night.

🎈“招白眼”（是一个人的外号）的由来在后文有解释，根据意思译为black-browed,表示她从不微笑，总是皱着眉头，注意不可译为white-eyed。

自家种的“责任田”搁开了鸡爪裂，天还是晴得不肯挂一根云线线。

Her family’s contracted land had cracked because of drought, but there was still not a cloud in the bright sky.

🎈搁开了鸡爪裂：天气干旱而土地龟裂，译作…land had cracked because of drought。

要是减产，全家四张嘴巴，还不吊了起来？

If production dropped this year, what should her family of four do except go hungry?

🎈family of four：“a+名词+of+数词”结构是一固定搭配的短语，可充当主语、宾语或表语，表示某些方面的数额（如：面积、高度、速度、人员、金额等），用途相当广泛。

🎈本文语言风格不用细究，能理解猜测出大意即可。还不吊了起来？→还不全都挨饿（go hungry）？

唉，17岁的女儿到底不知深浅，

It was a pity that her seventeen-year-old daughter didn’t yet know what worry was.

🎈“唉”一字流露出遗憾无奈的情绪，现译作It was a pity that…

🎈yet在否定句中常译作“还、尚、迄今、那时”。

刚才还对娘嚷：“好愁勿愁!后半夜大水库放水，还怕那雪癞子不将水上足?”现在却挂着笑廣熟睡了。

Just a few minutes ago she was shouting to her mother, “Don’t you worry! Late at night the reservoir will let out water. Scabby-headed Xue will certainly give us our full share of water, won’t he?” But now she was asleep with a smile still on her lips.

🎈 Don’t you worry：Don’t you放在句首表示否定,不用、别之类的意思。

🎈还怕那雪癞子不将水上足：“雪癞子”同“招白眼”一样，是人的外号，译时处理方式相同（外号+姓氏）；雪癞子负责放水，“把水/上足”即把水放足，译作give us our full share of water（让每个人都领到水）。

对推广“责任田”，“招白眼”是白着眼睛反对的。因为她小时候亲眼看到爷爷跟雪癞子的大爹，争田水打得血肉横飞，田缺流红。

Black-browed Zhao didn’t see eye to eye with the implementation of contracted land policy, because she had seen with her own eyes when she was still very young how her grandfather and Scabby-headed Xue’s uncle had fought tooth and nail over irrigation water.

🎈see eye to eye是固定表达，意为“看法一致、有相同观点”，后可接with sb指“和某人观点一致”。

例句

I’m glad we see eye to eye.

很高兴我们的看法一致。

🎈推广“责任田”译时要注意对“推广”一词的理解，“推广”译作implementation（落实、执行），而不是popularize（普及）等，责任田是一种政策，用implementation似更加准确。

🎈拼尽/竭尽全力tooth and nail

厮打fight tooth and nail

如今回想起来，还寒毛碜碜，心惊肉跳呢。

She would shudder even at the thought of it.

🎈一看到……at the sight of

一想到……at the thought of

例句

He boggled at the thought of swimming in winter.

他想到要在冬天游泳就有些犹豫。

🎈“寒毛碜碜，心惊肉跳”意思相似，译出核心意即可，shudder一词指“(因担忧、恐惧、厌恶或寒冷)发抖，打颤，颤栗”。

雪癞子当了队里的管水员，能担保他不包藏祸心？

Now Scabby-headed Xue was in charge of the irrigation water in the brigade; who could say for sure that he bore no grudge against her?

🎈take charge of与in charge of区别：

一、含义不同

take charge of照管；监理；担任

in charge of负责；主管二、侧重不同

take charge of 是“开始 管理，接管”的意思，侧重动作。

in charge of表示“某人负责或照管某人/物”，侧重状态。

🎈无疑；肯定 for sure

例句

No one knows for sure what happened.

没有人确切地知道发生了什么事。

“招白眼”心神不宁，翻身起床，就提着锄头出门去。

Black-browed Zhao became so agitated at the thought that she got off the bed, took a hoe and went out to the field.

🎈became so agitated at the thought that she got off the bed包含so…that结构。

“招白眼”叫阿招，自从死了男人，脸上从未挂笑，逢人见众，老是翻着白眼,惹得那老光棍雪癞子心里痒痒，有口难张。

Black-browed Zhao used to be called Ah Zhao. After her husband’s death, she never smiled and always scowled at others. The old bachelor Scabby-headed Xue could only bury his longings for her in his heart.

🎈这一长句分译成三句，以使意思更清楚。第三个分句的主语变成了雪癞子，更有理由独立译成一句。

🎈过去(常常)…… used to do

习惯于…… be used to doing

被用来、将用于 be used to do

🎈“心里痒痒，有口难张”即“心意表达不出来，只能在心里藏着”，现译作bury his longings for her in his heart。

于是村里留着一个“话把”：“雪癞子”不哭，“招白眼”不笑。

Thus there spread in the village a popular saying: “Scabby-headed Xue never wept; Black-browed Zhao never smiled.”

🎈表示地点的here和 there位于句首时，其后用完全倒装形式。这类倒装句的谓语通常是动词be和come, go等表示移动或动态的不及物动词：

There’s Jim. 吉姆在那儿。

Here comes the bus. 公共汽车来了。

🎈“‘雪癞子’不哭，‘招白眼’不笑”的译文较好地保留了和原文形式上的对应。

“招白眼”转过岙口，隐隐传来吱呀吱呀的水车声，圆月下，车着池塘水的雪癞子，那铜勺样的后脑和起油的光背,在闪着银光。

As she approached the field, Black-browed Zhao heard the faint creaking of a waterwheel and saw Scabby-headed Xue pedalling water under the full moon. His bald head and his greasy bare back were glistening like silver.

🎈注意动词heard和saw，“吱呀吱呀”只能听见，而“雪癞子车着池塘水”则是所见。

他雪癞子要不是当了管水员，还不一样要等后半夜灌水?

Wouldn’t he have to wait for the water to come late at night like the rest of us if he had not been in charge of the irrigation water?

🎈if he had not been是虚拟条件句，也可省写为had it not been。另，此句按陈述句译出也可。

早一铺水，多一捧米，谁不望自家的饭碗满？

The earlier one got water, the more rice one would reap—who wouldn’t like to see his own bowl full of rice?

🎈前半句是“the+比较级，the+比较级结构”。

然而，“招白眼”傻了！她来到自家的“责任田”边，破天荒开了笑颜：怎么，田水哗啦哗啦地跳跃着，喧笑着，闪着粼粼的银光。

However, when she came to her own contracted land, she got such a pleasant surprise that for the first time she beamed with joy. Why, water came gurgling happily over her land, glittering like silver.

🎈此句描写女主人公看到田水流到自家田里时的惊喜心情，译文用pleasant surprise, beamed with joy简洁生动地表达出来。后半句断开成独立句，以why开头，表达惊讶的语气。gurgling happily，简洁地描绘出水流的形态。

这“甜水”像是流进了她的心窝。

The sweet water seemed to be flowing into her heart.

🎈大家可以暂时附身“招白眼”，想象自己的眼前正在看到同样的场景：“雪癞子”正在不停地放着水……，是一种正在进行的动作，所以招白眼的心情也是一种持续性的、正在进行中的，故该处译时处理为seemed to be flowing into…

而她上坎雪癞子的“责任田”里，依然唇焦口燥。

Yet Scabby-headed Xue’s own land above hers was still parched with thirst.

🎈“唇焦口燥（意即因干旱而土地龟裂）”译作was still parched with thirst，保留了原文的拟人手法。

她不解地瞧着雪癞子，眼里唸着泪，终于鼓足了勇气,第一遭喊了声:“阿雪哥!”

She looked at Scabby-headed Xue with incomprehension. Tears welled up in her eyes. She plucked up her courage to call him “Brother Ah Xue” for the first time.

🎈涌出well up，这个短语中well是动词。well1词性丰富，不同语境中注意甄别。

🎈pluck

①本身可作不可数名词，意为勇气、胆量、决心

②动词，意为“鼓起勇气”，常用搭配为pluck up courage to

水车“吱格”地停住，雪癞子转过身来，只见“招白眼”傻乎乎地笑。

The waterwheel came to a stop with a creak and Scabby-headed Xue saw Black-browed Zhao gazing at him with a foolish smile.

🎈此句也可将“转过身来”译出：turned （half） around。

雪癞子也懵了，好像眼前不是日日开门相见的“招白眼”，而是从月亮上飘下来的嫦娥。

He felt dazed as if she were not the Black-browed Zhao he met day in and day out, but rather Chang Er, the Moon Fairy coming down from the moon.

🎈每天、日复一日 day in and day out

🎈“从月亮上飘下来的嫦娥”译作Chang Er, the Moon Fairy coming down from the moon，逗号后成分是同位语，对Chang Er进一步说明，Fairy是增译成分，使这一人物形象更为具体。（得益于中国的航天事业发展，“嫦娥”在外的知名度还是相当阔以的）

瞧那一双乌黑的眸子，真还有点儿含情脉脉哩！

Those black eyes of Black-browed Zhao seemed to be exuding tenderness and love.

🎈“乌黑的眸子”译作black eyes。大家译时有没有反过来想一下：black eyes可以翻成多少种英文？黑眼睛、眼睛淤青、两个黑眼珠、两只黑洞洞的眼睛？学习要精粗结合。

“嘿呀，是你，阿招妹妹，我，我是想，你的责任田，裂，裂得厉害，怕，怕后半夜灌水，来不及……”雪癞子有点语无伦次了。

“Why, it’s you, Sister Ah Zhao! I, I thought your contracted land must have become parched and I was afraid it would be too late if water came at midnight Scabby-headed Xue became tongue-tied.

🎈“我，我是想”按“猜想、估摸”之意理解，译作must have become…，表示对情况的一种猜测。

🎈“语无伦次”指说话没有条理，但看说的内容，其实挺有条理的，索性干脆追求和说这句话断断续续的状态相吻合，按“结结巴巴”之意理解译作tongue-tied。

“招白眼”觉得耳热，她也慌难择辞:“你的责任田也……”

Black-browed Zhao blushed to her ears and was lost for words, “Your own contracted land also…”

🎈blush侧重因羞愧或尴尬而突然脸红；flush强调因愤怒、高兴、羞愧、发烧或酗酒等引起的脸红。

🎈（惊讶、困惑等而）不知说什么才好be lost for words

“我是负责田水的，谁的田受旱，都是我的责任。你，你不要放在心上……”

“Never mind, I’m in charge of the irrigation water. It would be my fault if anyone’s land got ruined because of drought. It’s my pleasure to do my job well.”

🎈都是……的错/过失 it’s (all) sb’s fault

🎈“你，你不要放在心上……”→你不要过意不去，（因为）这本来就是我的份内之事，现译作It’s my pleasure to do my job well。

雪癞子也感到浑身火热，连忙又回过头去，踩动水车。田水又哗啦地笑了。

Xue felt hot all over his body and hastily resumed pedalling. Irrigation water came gurgling again.

🎈 resumed pedalling可替换为started to pedal again

🎈“田水又哗啦地笑了”中的“哗啦”亦或“笑”都指田水又开始汩汩流淌，译作came gurgling即可，也和文章标题保持一致。

“招白眼”悄悄地捡起田坡边的一件白小布衫，走过去披在雪癞子的身上，一面也登上水车。

Black-browed Zhao gently picked up the white shirt at the ridge of the field and put it on Xue’s bare back, while joining him in the pedalling.

🎈“披在雪癞子的身上”实则是将小布衫披在肩上/背上，现译作put it on Xue’s bare back。

🎈while joining him in the pedalling：while引导的从句中主语和主句主语一致，可省略主语和be动词。

雪癞子投过感激的一瞥。

Xue threw her a glance of gratitude.

🎈“一瞥”译作a glance。见到“瞥”字就用glance，基本没错。

“招白眼”温存而体贴地说:“半夜露重，当心着凉。”

Black-browed Zhao said with affection and consideration, “It’s midnight, take care not to catch cold.”

🎈当心（不）做某事take care (not) to do

例句

But they took care to prevent me from learning their name.

可他们提防着不让我知道他们的名字。

🎈“半夜露重，当心着凉”读起来朗朗上口，这是lost in translation的，要承认翻译中的“不可译”现象。

月光下，他俩挨得很近，她见白小布衫的领口破了，她想：“明天该给他补一补。”

In the moonlight, the two kept close to each other. She saw the collar of his white shirt was worn out and said to herself, “I must mend it for him tomorrow.”

🎈“想”直译，或按参考译文中的“自言自语said to herself”理解即可；“明天该给他补一补”透露出二人心意的相通，按“我可得给他补一补衣服”理解，用must较为合理。

🔥必背词汇

share        cn.(应得或应承担的)一份

英义

If something is divided or distributed among a number of different people or things, each of them has, or is responsible for, a share of it.

例句

Sara also pays a share of the gas, electricity and phone bills.

萨拉也分摊燃气费、电费和电话费。

widow          v.使丧偶，使成为寡妇（或鳏夫）

英义

be widowed if sb is widowed, their husband or wife has died.

例句

She was widowed when she was 35.

她 35 岁时就守了寡。

drought        n.久旱，旱灾

英义

A drought is a long period of time during which no rain falls.

例句

Drought and famines have killed up to two million people here.

旱灾和饥荒夺去了这里200万人的生命。

reservoir        cn.水库，蓄水池

英义

A reservoir is a lake that is used for storing water before it is supplied to people.

例句

The big storms in August refilled the reservoirs.

八月的暴雨又使水库积满了水。

🔥重点表达

又一夜失眠was having another sleepless night

熟睡了was asleep

全家四张嘴巴/一家四口her family of four

挨饿go hungry

不用、别Don’t you…

后半夜Late at night

半夜midnight

放水let out water

看法一致、有相同观点see eye to eye

责任田contracted land

厮打fight tooth and nail

一想到……at the thought of

负责；主管in charge of

无疑；肯定 for sure

心神不宁agitated

隐隐传来吱呀吱呀的水车声the faint creaking of a waterwheel

闪着银光were glistening like silver

闪着粼粼的银光glittering like silver

开了笑颜beamed with joy

唇焦口燥was still parched with thirst

鼓足了勇气pluck up courage to…

傻乎乎地笑with a foolish smile

每天、日复一日 day in and day out

含情脉脉be exuding tenderness and love

结结巴巴tongue-tied

（惊讶、困惑等而）不知说什么才好be lost for words

都是……的错/过失 it’s (all) sb’s fault

投过感激的一瞥threw her a glance of gratitude

温存而体贴地with affection and consideration

当心（不）做某事take care (not) to do

着凉catch cold

破了was worn out

🔥复盘测试

又一夜失眠

熟睡了

全家四张嘴巴/一家四口

挨饿

不用、别

后半夜

半夜

放水

看法一致、有相同观点

责任田

厮打

一想到……

负责；主管

无疑；肯定

心神不宁

隐隐传来吱呀吱呀的水车声

闪着银光

闪着粼粼的银光

开了笑颜

唇焦口燥

鼓足了勇气

傻乎乎地笑

每天、日复一日

含情脉脉

结结巴巴

（惊讶、困惑等而）不知说什么才好

都是……的错/过失

投过感激的一瞥

温存而体贴地

当心（不）做某事

着凉

破了

🔥表达对比

「降低、减少」有几种表达？

If production dropped this year, what should her family of four do except go hungry?

要是（减）产，全家四张嘴巴，还不吊了起来？

Population growth is decreasing by 1.4% each year.

人口增长率正在以每年 1.4% 的速度（下降）。

Make sure that your immunisations are up to date to lessen the risk of serious illness.

要确保接种最新的疫苗，以（降低）患上严重疾病的危险。

The reduced consumer demand is also affecting company profits.

消费需求的（降低）也影响到了公司的利润。

未经允许不得转载：帕布莉卡 » 姚景文《田水哗啦》 -英语翻译教程-中英双语赏析