回复: 逐渐适应大温生活
看来有兴趣从事翻译工作的同学不少。我搜索的主要方向是出版公司,现在有一些出版公司正在把中国图书翻译成英文介绍到国外。中国政府基于提升软实力的考虑也会在这方面有一些扶持。
跟出版公司取得联系之后他们通常会要求试译。 我试译了下面这一段,中译英,原文看似来自文学作品,出处不详。也许论坛里的朋友有人看过。
Chinese Original
“含含做梦都不会想到,她竟然在这三天里从了三个男人。幸亏那时她的爹和娘已经死了,要是人死了真的有灵魂,他们非得从土里拱出来再死一次不可。
若干年后,含含临终闭上眼睛的那一刻,她并没有看到小鬼们来索拿她的命,她看到的全是昔时家里的富丽。要过年了啊,后院儿里挂满了剥得赤条条的猪和羊,就像它们是从地底下一丛丛地长出来似的,一串串的鱼儿成群结队地挂在瓦檐下,吃惊地看着陆地上袖着手游动的人们。含含听下人说,光礼花和炮仗,就得花去几百个大洋,张灯结彩的铺张更不知要花去多少金银。新油漆过的门上,窗棂上,树上,都结着花灯,就连院子里每个防火用的大缸都系上了大红的丝带。”
Peizhong's Translation
It was beyond Hanhan's wildest dreams that over the last three days she had gotten laid with three men. She was lucky that her mom and dad had died. Had people indeed possessed souls after death, her parents would have crawled out of their tombs, just to die again.
Some years later, when Hanhan was finally closing her eyes to the world, she did not see little demons coming to take her life. She saw nothing but her family's past riches and splendor. The New Year was just around the corner. Cleanly skinned pigs and sheep dangled all around the backyard, as if they had grown out of the earth in clusters. Strings of fish hang under the eaves of the house, watching in bewilderment the people strolling around with their hands hidden in sleeves. Hanhan heard from the servants that the fireworks and crackers alone had cost hundreds of silver coins. Who knows how much more the extravagance of lanterns and decorations had cost? Festive lanterns were attached to newly painted doors, lattices of windows and in the trees. Even the water vat for fire prevention in the yard had a scarlet silky ribbon tied to it.
原文“从了三个男人”让我颇费心思。这话直译是“she submitted herself to three men.....”但这样翻译听上去文绉绉的,并非出于村姑渔妇,贩夫走卒之口。我最终译成"got laid with three guys,"话虽然粗糙了些,但与上下文还算相符。
我想萨布拉同学会有更精准的译文。我看他用词蛮准的。