A Little Sparrow 老舍Lao She🔥提示：是老舍先生的散文名篇，文章生动地描写了人的心理活动和猫、鸟的动作细节及神态，翻译时应力求选词具体、准确、形象，尽量再现原文的风格。雨后，院里来了个麻雀，刚长全了羽毛。As soon as the rain stopped, a little sparrow, almost full-fledged, flew into the courtyard.🎈“雨后”这一状语译 成After the rain是可以的，但作为文章的开头听起来略感突然。若译作As soon as the rain stopped可以制造一点悬念，而且所指的时间概念也较前者确切。它在院里跳，有时飞一下，不过是由地上飞到花盆沿上，或由花盆上飞下来。It hopped, fluttered, darting up to the edge of flower pots and back to the ground again.🎈词义辨析：“跳”jump: 是普通用词，指用双脚向上跳，向下跳，或在同一平面上跳到有一定距离的某一点上，或跳过。leap: 常可与jump换用，但侧重身体猛力向上升起并朝前急冲的动作，有时含突然的意味。spring: 更强调有力和弹跳的运动。hop: 指单脚短跳或双足猛力的动作。也指小鸟、青蛙等的跳。bound: 多指向前向上或向下跳跃、奔跳。skip: 指两脚交替轻地跳或跨的动作。🎈“有时飞一下，由地上飞到花盆沿上，或由花盆上飞下来”：后半部分两个动作是对“飞一下”的具体阐释，这两个动作都是由同一只麻雀发起的，可以将这两个动作看成接续的动作，把“或”字译成and或or都是可以的。又，“飞”（一下）只是小飞一下，幅度没有很大，译作flutter（英义：to moves through the air with small quick movements），选词值得学习。看它这么飞了两三次，我看出来：它并不会飞得再高一些，它的左翅的几根长翎拧在一处，有一根特别的长，似乎要脱落下来。Watching it move up and down a couple of times, I realized that it could not fly any higher as the plumes on its left wing had got twisted with one sticking out as if about to come off.🎈到此为止文章里出现了五个“飞”字，但飞的动作并不完全相同，若都译成fly意思不够准确，且听起来也觉重复，故选择不同的译法。“这么飞了两三次”中的“飞”即指上句中的在花盆边缘和地面间往返（跳上又跳下），译作move up and down是合适的。🎈could not fly any higher：any修饰比较级，暗含对否定意义的强调。🎈增译连词as，点明“羽毛不整”和“不会飞得更高”之间的因果逻辑关系，将句子串起来。🎈with one sticking out as if about to come off涉及as if的省略结构。as if about to come off意同as if it’s about to come off，省略了逻辑主语和be动词，旨在使句子更加简洁和生动。我试着往前凑，它跳一跳，可是又停住，看着我，小黑豆眼带出点要亲近我又不完全信任的神气。When I made an attempt to move closer, it jumped off a bit and stopped again, staring back at me with its small, black and bean-like eyes that had a mixed look of wanting to be friends with me and not being certain that I was trustworthy.🎈“要亲近我又不完全信任的神气”译作a mixed look of wanting to be friends with me and not being certain that I was trustworthy。类似这种同时出现两种现象的情况，可以根据具体情况考虑while、mix、concurrent等词。此处的a mixed look值得学习。🎈“心情复杂”可以说was seized with mixed feelings我想到了：这是个熟鸟，也许是自幼便养在笼中的。It occurred to me that this must be a tame bird, having been caged since it was hatched perhaps.🎈在第一眼看到“熟鸟”的时候，可能并不清楚这个词的具体意思，但通过后半部分的说明，我们能猜到“熟鸟”指驯养的家鸟，现译作a tame bird。在考试中，很多人碰见一个不确定的词就会去翻词典，其实完全没必要，很浪费时间，大部分单词或者中文表达，结合上下文，我们基本能断定其含义，再不济也能paraphrase出来，或者干脆省去不译。所以它不十分怕人。No wonder it was not much scared of my presence.🎈“所以它不十分怕人”按“也难怪它不十分怕人”之意理解，译作No wonder…🎈“不十分怕人”译作not much scared of my presence，如果有人未译作my presence，而是译成了man、me之类的，不算错。但my presence和故事的叙述联系更紧密，指代上文出现的“我往小鸟跟前凑”。可是它的左翅也许是被养着它的或别个孩子给扯坏，所以它爱人，又不完全信任。Its left wing might have been impaired by some kid and that was why there was distrust in its look though it showed some intimacy with man.🎈这里的“爱人”不是love men或love people,而是“喜欢 和人在一起”。想到这个，我忽然的很难过。Suddenly I was seized with sadness.🎈被…（情绪）包围/笼罩be seized with…一个飞禽失去翅膀是多么可怜。How miserable it was for a bird to lose its wings!🎈“可怜”译作miserable，使“我”怜惜这只麻雀的感情色彩更为浓重。这个小鸟离了人恐怕不会活，可是人又那么狠心，伤了它的翎羽。Without someone taking care of it this small thing could not survive. But man had injured its wing. How cruel he was!🎈“这个小鸟”译作了this small thing（这个小家伙），个人更倾向于把small换成little。又，此处thing指“家伙，东西（用以提及人或动物的某一特点，通常表示喜爱之情）”，如：Oh you lucky thing!你这个走运的家伙！🎈man的用法：其前无冠词，表示区别于其他动物的“人类”。🎈How cruel he was!中的he是泛指，指伤害小鸟的人。它被人毁坏了，而还想依靠人，多么可怜！Injured as it was, it still wanted to rely on man. How pitiable!🎈Injured as it was ：as引导让步状语从句时，句子要倒装，通常是把从句中的表语、状语或谓语动词放在句首。例句Much as I like English, I’m going to choose civil engineering as my major.虽然我很喜欢英语，但我还是打算选土木工程作为自己的专业。它的眼带出进退为难的神情，虽然只是那么个小而不美的小鸟，它的举动与表情可露出极大的委屈与为难。The look in its eyes showed that the little creature was of two minds. It was small and by no means pretty, yet its gestures and expressions revealed that it had been wronged and landed in a difficult situation.🎈本文出现的“小家伙、小东西”：this small thing/little bird/little creature。🎈摇摆不定、持中立态度 of two minds一点也不by no means🎈wrong熟词僻义，意为“虐待、不公正地对待”。例句She felt she’d been wronged…她觉得受委屈了。它是要保全它那点生命，而不晓得如何是好。It was anxious to keep its delicate life out of danger, but it did not know what to do.🎈keep its delicate life out of danger中的out of指“脱离某种状态或情况”，而不是我们之前讲的“出于、由于”。对它自己与人都没有信心，而又愿找到些倚靠。It had little confidence in itself and less trust in man, but it needed someone to rely on.🎈这里的“信心”译成英语时应分析，对自己是“信心”，对人是“信任”。🎈“又愿找到些倚靠”译作was willing to rely on someone也可以。它跳一跳，停一停，看着我，又不敢过来。It hopped and stopped, looking at me but too shy to come over.🎈太…而不能…too…to…我想拿几个饭粒诱它前来，又不敢离开，我怕小猫来扑它。I thought of fetching some cooked rice to attract it, but I dared not leave it alone lest it should be attacked by the kitten. 🎈lest, in case, for fear that“以防，万一，唯恐”引导目的状语从句常用虚拟语气，谓语动词用“should+动词原形”。lest, for fear that从句中的should可以省去，in case从句中的should通常不省略，但是in case引导的从句也可用陈述语气。例句He took the raincoat with him lest it (should) rain.他带上了雨衣，以防下雨。I obeyed her for fear that she (should) be angry.我得顺着她，免得她生气。In case he comes, let me know. 万一他来了，告诉我一声。🎈猫 cat 小猫kitten狗dog 小狗puppy兔子rabbit 小兔子bunny可是小猫并没在院里，我很快地跑进厨房，抓来了几个饭粒。及至我回来，小鸟已不见了。As the kitten was not around at the moment, I hurried to the kitchen and came back with a few grains only to find the bird missing.🎈be around指“在某处”。例如：Just having lots of people around that you can talk to is important.有许多能交谈的人在身边很重要。🎈only to表示和本来意思相反的意思 only to do 的意思是“不料（却）……，结果（却）……”, 表示一个没有料到的结果。I hurried to the supermarket, only to find it was closed. 我匆忙赶到超市,不料它已经关门了。我向外院跑去，小猫在影壁前的花盆旁蹲着呢。I ran to the outer yard and saw the kitten crouching by a flower pot in front of the screen wall.🎈影壁，也称照壁，古称萧墙，是中国、朝鲜半岛、越南传统建筑中用于遮挡视线的墙壁。在农村，很多房屋前都有一面额外的墙，就是所谓的影壁（the screen wall）我忙去驱逐它，它只一扑，把小鸟擒住！I hastened to drive her away but, with a quick jump, she caught hold of the bird.🎈译文drive her away、she caught hold of the bird中虽然用了her和she，但并不表示猫是只小母猫（当然也有这种可能性，但文中并未明确交代，所以我们无从得知）。这是英语的一种习惯用法：一旦用人称代词he和she来表示时，是将动物赋予人性化了，再加上文化因素，在英语成语中，dog经常被用来指男性，而猫则常与女性相关，所以此处使用了her和she，当然，也可以用it相关用词来指代。🎈抓住catch/get/grab/take/…+hold of sth被人养惯的小麻雀，连挣扎都不会，尾与爪在猫嘴旁搭拉着，和死去差不多。The tame sparrow, with its tail and claws dangling from the kitten’s mouth, did not even know how to struggle. It looked more dead than alive.🎈It looked more dead than alive: more…than…后跟形容词、副词、动词、名词等，一般情况下，要求more后部分和than后部分词性相同（偶尔也有例外），表示“与其说……不如说……”瞧着小鸟，猫一头跑进厨房，又一头跑到西屋。With my eyes fixed on the bird, I watched the kitten run first to the kitchen and then to the room at the west end.🎈“瞧着小鸟”译作With my eyes fixed/feasted on the bird均可。feast/fix one’s eyes on sth表示“凝视，盯着，聚精会神看”。我不敢紧追，怕它更咬紧了可又不能不追。I was afraid to press hard after her, but I had to follow her in case she should tighten her jaws.🎈注意in case的用法，前文提过了。虽然看不见小鸟的头部，我还没忘了那个眼神。那个预知生命危险的眼神。Though the bird’s head was not visible to me, the look of anticipated danger in its eyes was vivid in my mind.🎈积累词汇vivid，指“记忆清晰、描述生动、栩栩如生”等。那个眼神与我的好心中间隔着一只小白猫。Between its look and my sympathy stood that small white cat.🎈“我的好心”即指“我对麻雀的怜悯”，译作my sympathy。来回跑了几次，我不追了。追上也没用了，我想，小鸟至少已半死了。Having run a few rounds after her I quit, thinking it was pointless to chase her like that because, by the time I caught her, the bird would have been half dead.🎈译时注意对一个意群内句子之间衔接，可以处理为从句、状语、加破折号等。🎈“没用了”译作pointless或meaningless均可。猫又进了厨房，我愣了一会儿，赶紧的又追了去；When the cat slipped back to the kitchen again, I hesitated for a second and then hurried over there too.🎈在/到那儿over there例句Who is the man in tweeds over there?那儿穿花呢衣服的男子是谁?那两个黑豆眼仿佛在我心内睁着呢。It seemed, in my mind’s eye, the little bird were pleading for help with its two black bean-like eyes.🎈“心中”这里译作“in my mind’s eye”，是一种惯用表达。🎈It seemed… the little bird were…：were是虚拟语气，此时I用was，he/she/they都用were。进了厨房，猫在一条铁筒——冬天升火通烟用的，春天拆下来便放在厨房的墙角——旁蹲着呢。小鸟已不见了。In the kitchen I noticed the cat was crouching by a tin pipe which was installed as smoke duct in winter and dismantled in spring, at the corner, but the bird was not with her.🎈“冬天升火通烟用的，春天拆下来”处理成了“冬天装上install通烟、春天拆dismantle下来”，形式上较为对应。铁筒的下端未完全扣在地上，开着一个不小的缝儿，小猫用脚往里探。The pipe leaned against the corner and, between its lower end and the floor, there was an opening through which the cat was probing with her paws.🎈“开着一个不小的缝儿，小猫用脚往里探”也可译为with an opening between its lower end and the floor, through which the cat…。probe一词选用巧妙，除了伸进去，还有“探究”的意思，十分符合猫爪爪扒拉的场景。我的希望回来了，小鸟没死。My hope revived: the bird was not dead.🎈“我的希望回来了”译作My hope revived，表明“‘我’重新燃起了希望”,描述很vivid。小猫本来才四个来月大，还没捉住过老鼠，或者还不会杀生，只是叼着小鸟玩一玩。As the kitten was less than four months old, it had not learned how to catch mice, or how to kill for that matter. It was merely holding the bird in its mouth and having fun with it.🎈mice是mouse的复数形式，这类型不规则变化的名词需要额外记忆。再比如：data（数据）是datum的复数形式。🎈就此而，在这方面for that matter例句I didn’t like it much. Nor did the kids, for that matter.我不怎么喜欢它。孩子们也同样不喜欢。正在这么想，小鸟忽然出来了，猫倒像吓了一跳，往后躲了躲。While I was thinking along these lines the little bird suddenly emerged and the kitten, taken aback, bolted backward.🎈thinking along these lines表示“顺着这些想法/思路想下去”。🎈吃惊、吓一跳 be taken aback例句But leaders here in South Korea were taken aback.但是最近韩国领导人感到震惊.小鸟的样子，我一眼便看清了，登时使我要闭上了眼。The way the little bird looked was so registered to me at the first glance that I felt like shutting my eyes immediately.🎈the way sb looked要连起来理解，不能死抠住way这一个词不放。这个表达意思是“某人的样子（看起来）”🎈register可以表示神情的流露，was so registered to me at the first glance也就是原文中的“小鸟的样子，我一眼便看清了”。小鸟几乎是蹲着，胸离地很近，像人害肚痛蹲在地上那样。It was virtually crouching, with its chest close to the floor, like a man suffering from a stomachache.🎈 like a man suffering from a stomachache作方式状语。它身上并没血。身子可似乎是拳在一块，非常的短。There was no stain of blood on its body, but it seemed to be shrinking up into itself.🎈血迹 stain of blood🎈身子拳在一块、缩成一团shrinking up into oneself头低着，小嘴指着地。Its head dropped low, its small beak pointing to the floor.🎈 its small beak pointing to the floor是独立主格结构。那两个黑眼珠！非常的黑，非常的大，不看什么，就那么顶黑顶大的愣着。Its two black eyes, unseeing, were very black and large, looking lost.🎈unseeing修饰black eyes；looking lost作伴随状语。它只有那么一点活气，都在眼里，像是等着猫再扑它，它没力量反抗或逃避；又像是等着猫赦免了它，或是来个救星。The little life left in it was all in the eyes. It seemed to be expecting the cat to charge again, with no strength to resist or run; or wishing that the cat would be kind enough to pardon it or that some saviour would come along to its rescue.🎈charge熟词僻义，指“向……冲去”。🎈some saviour：some+单数名词 指“某个、某一”。生与死都在这俩眼里，而并不是清醒的。它是胡涂了，昏迷了；不然为什么由铁筒中出来呢？Life and death coexisted in its eyes. I thought the bird must be confused or stunned, or else why should it have come out from the pipe?🎈”而并不是清醒的”，将此句放在下面一句里一起译，避免意思重复。 🎈要不然；否则or else例句They can’t be coming or else they’d have called.他们不会来，不然他们就打电话了。🎈should have looked up at it：should have done用于谈论过去的情况时，主要有两个用法，一是用于推测过去已经发生的情况（也就是此处的用法）；二是用于指本该发生而实际上未发生的情况。可是，虽然昏迷，到底有那么一点说不清的，生命根源的，希望。Stunned as it was, it still cherished some hope which, though hard to define, was the source of life.Q：为什么“到底有那么一点说不清的”中的“有”不翻译为“have”，而选择“cherish”呢？🎈“有”汉译英很容易条件反射“have”，我们可以有其他选择。此处cherish比have更准确，cherish比have包含的感情更多。新概念3的第34课《a happy discovery》里面有一句: He must cherish the hope that one day he will be amply rewarded. 中文意思是：他必须抱有这样的希望，终有一天，他的努力会取得丰硕的成果。🎈中文的“有”很多情况下不直接翻译成“have”，经济学人中经常用boast，比如说：“深圳有大量高速增长的科技公司”英文可以说：Shenzhen boasts a large number of fast growing technology companies. 根据boast的本意“吹嘘”可以知道，一般情况下这种“有”是好的东西，boast的英英解释有一条是：(a person, place, or thing) possess (a feature that is a source of pride)。政府工作报告中夸中国地大物博、物产丰富之类的也常用boast。这个希望使它注视着地上，等着，等着生或死。With that hope it gazed at the floor, expecting either to survive or die.🎈either to survive or (to) die：either…or…连接句子中两个并列的成分。它怕得非常的忠诚，完全把自己交给了一线的希望，一点也不动。It was so really scared that it became completely motionless, leaving itself all to the precarious hope.🎈“它怕得非常的忠诚”意思是“它真的很害怕”、确实很害怕。🎈“一点也不动”译作still、stiff（吓得全身僵硬）或者motionless都可以。像把生命要从两眼中流出，它不叫也不动。It kept quiet and still as if waiting for its life to flow out of its eyes.🎈as if waiting for its life …：as if的省略句——在某些状语从句中，当其主语跟主句的主语一致，而且含有be动词时，可以把主语（一般是代词充当）以及be动词一起省略。又，await和wait的区别是一个是及物动词，一个是不及物动词。小猫没再扑它，只试着用小脚碰它。The kitten made no more attempts to attack it. She only tried to touch it with her little paws.🎈猫的脚叫“猫爪”，译作paws，不译feet。它随着击碰倾侧，头不动，眼不动，还呆呆地注视着地上。As the kitten touched it, it tilted from side to side, its head undisturbed and its eyes looking blank at the floor.🎈As the kitten touched it作伴随状语；its head undisturbed and its eyes looking blank at the floor是独立主格结构。但求它能活着，它就决不反抗。It would not fight back so long as there was a chance of survival.🎈“但求它能活着”按“只要有一线生机/一线希望”理解都行。可是并非全无勇气，它是在猫的面前不动！But the bird had not lost all of its courage; it acted this way only with the cat.🎈acted this way：this way指前文提到的小鸟呆住的表现。我轻轻地过去，把猫抓住。将猫放在门外，小鸟还没动。I went over light-footed, picked up the cat and put her outside the door, the sparrow remaining where it was.🎈从一处到（另一出）go over (to +地点)例句He went over and shook hands with his guests.他走过去与客人们握手。🎈light-footed属于“形容词+名词-ed”构成的合成形容词。E.g. noble-minded高尚的；good-tempered脾气好的。我双手把它捧起来。它确是没受了多大的伤，虽然胸上落了点毛。它看了我一眼！When I took it up in my hands and looked, it was not seriously injured, though some fluff had come off its chest. It was looking at me.🎈掉落、除掉come off例句That mark won’t come off.那污点去不掉。我没主意：把它放了吧，它准是死；养着它吧，家中没有笼子。I had no idea what to do. If I let it go, it was sure to die; if I kept it with me, I did not have a cage for it.🎈 had no idea：have no 用另一种方式来说就是don’t have,在这里 have是实义动词，表示“有”。至于have no后是idea还是ideas，常用idea，强调一个主意/一点办法都没有。当然，have no后也有加复数的时候，比如，树上的叶子必然是很多的，飞蚂蚁的翼翅必然是成双的，人的牙齿也有三十个以上，所以当然都要用复数名词，译作That tree has no leaves.//The ant has no wings.//My grandmother has no teeth.在另外一些情况下，have no后接复数还是单数，就全凭说话人当时的感触了。我捧着它，好像世上一切生命都在我的掌中似的，我不知怎样好。I held it in my hands as if holding all the lives in the world, not knowing what to do.🎈不知怎样好not knowing what to do/ be at a complete loss小鸟不动，拳着身，两眼还那么黑，等着！The sparrow huddled up, motionless, its eyes as black as ever, still expectant.🎈蜷缩在一起、蜷缩成一团huddle up🎈一直、依旧 as ever🎈“等着”：等着那一线升级，也就是期待着，现译作still expectant。愣了好久，我把它捧到卧室里，放在桌子上，看着它，它又愣了半天，忽然头向左右歪了歪用它的黑眼睁了一下；又不动了，可是身子长出来一些，还低头看着，似乎明白了点什么。It remained that way for a long while. I took it to my bedroom, put it on the desk and watched it for a few moments. Suddenly it tilted its head left and then right, winking its black eyes once or twice, and became still again. By now its body seemed to have stretched a bit, but it still kept its head low as if it had understood something.🎈bedroom卧室bathroom浴室、洗澡间the waiting room of XX station指候车厅。the changing room更衣室the fitting room试衣间the dining room餐厅the guest room客厅🎈这一小段注意断句，至“看着它”为止均是对“我”的描写，而“看着它”又能和“愣了半天（即小鸟半天没动）”合到一起，故第一个断句点在“…它又愣了半天”。第二个断句点比较好判断，不过多分析。🔥必背词汇motionless adj.不动的，静止的英义Someone or something that is motionless is not moving at all.例句Her hands were motionless.她双手静止不动。register v.表情流露，显露，显出英义If a feeling registers on someone’s face, their expression shows clearly that they have that feeling.例句Surprise again registered on Rodney’s face.罗德尼的脸上再次露出诧异的神情。bolt v.常指人或动物因受惊吓迅速逃跑，逃窜英义If a person or animal bolts, they suddenly start to run very fast, often because something has frightened them.例句The pig rose squealing and bolted.那头猪突然嗷嗷叫着狂奔起来。🔥重点表达花盆沿the edge of flower pots两三次a couple of times脱落come off小黑豆眼small, black and bean-like eyes要亲近我又不完全信任的神气a mixed look of wanting to be friends with me and not being certain that I was trustworthy熟鸟a tame bird被…（情绪）包围/笼罩be seized with…摇摆不定、持中立态度 of two minds一点也不by no means小猫kitten影壁the screen wall外院the outer yard抓住catch/get/grab/take/…+hold of sth和死去差不多more dead than alive西屋the room at the west end在/到那儿over there心中in my mind’s eye就此而论；在这方面for that matter吃惊、吓一跳 be taken aback某人的样子（看起来）the way sb looked血迹 stain of blood要不然；否则or else身子拳在一块、缩成一团shrinking up into oneself说不清的hard to define蜷缩在一起、蜷缩成一团huddle up一直、依旧 as ever🔥复盘测试花盆沿两三次脱落小黑豆眼要亲近我又不完全信任的神气熟鸟被…（情绪）包围/笼罩摇摆不定、持中立态度一点也不小猫影壁外院抓住和死去差不多西屋在/到那儿心中就此而论；在这方面吃惊、吓一跳某人的样子（看起来）血迹要不然；否则身子拳在一块、缩成一团说不清的蜷缩在一起、蜷缩成一团一直、依旧🔥表达对比「一线、渺茫的」有几种表达？但求它能活着，它就决不反抗。It would not fight back so long as there was a chance of survival.它怕得非常的忠诚，完全把自己交给了（一线的）希望，一点也不动。It was so really scared that it became completely motionless, leaving itself all to the precarious hope.她真的很想见，而是一个非常（渺茫的）希望！She really wanted to see but a very slim hope!对于年轻人来说，工作市场的前景，即使对大学毕业生来说也是几乎（渺茫的）。For young adults, the prospects in the workplace, even for the college-educated, have rarely been so bleak.
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老舍《狗》 
爱是一颗心遇到另一颗心（出处+配图） 
