中译英｜长安三万里，何以长安

2023-08-07 01:08

【原文】

长安三万里，何以长安

“文学是时代的背景，是民族的表征，是一切社会活动留在纸上的影子”。唐诗更是如此。唐朝是中国文化的鼎盛时期，唐诗代表了当时社会的精神风貌和文化面貌。电影中，李白自传般的故事由高适娓娓道来，穿插着长安城的繁华气派、曲江宴的风俗、胡姬旋转不停歇的胡旋舞……再次激发我们对大唐的无尽想象。当我们看到历史上、教科书上的诗人通过动画的形式呈现在大荧幕上，当我们再次在心里跟随他们默念这些唐诗经典时，我们能够感受到自己的文化渊源和历史底蕴，了解他们的悲喜与我们相通，“我们每个人的一生都是长安三万里，也是五千年的沧桑和骄傲”。在唐诗里，我们见自己，见天地，见众生，找到来处，看到去处，对传统文化的认同感和自豪感油然而生。

【参考译文】

Chang’an, a Vibrant Cultural Pageant

“Literature serves as a mirror of its times, an epitome of a nation, and a paper record of all social activities.” This is especially true for poetry in the Tang Dynasty (618-907), which embodies the spirit and culture of the golden era of Chinese history. In the movie Chang’an, the biographical tales of Li Bai, a famous poet in the Tang Dynasty, are related by his friend, Gao Shi, interweaving the splendor of the Chang’an city, the customs of the Qujiang banquet (a banquet held by emperors at the Qujiang Pavilion in the Tang Dynasty for successful candidates in the imperial examination), and the mesmerizing Huxuan dance (a dance popular in the Tang Dynasty featuring spinning movements)—all this fires once again our imagination about the great empire. Seeing poets who once lived and whom we have read about in textbooks come to life on the big screen through animation, and reading along with them literary classics we know by heart, we can’t help but feel a strong connection to our historical and cultural heritage. As we immerse ourselves in the characters’ joys and sorrows, we come to understand that “The life of each of us is Chang’an in miniature, as well as part of the Chinese history that spans 5,000 years with vicissitudes and glory.” In Tang poetry, we find a reflection of ourselves, of the world, and of all human beings, with a glimpse into where we have come from and where we are going. Thus a strong sense of identity and pride in our rich traditional culture grow in our mind.

翻译组：

Alfredo，小小少年，很多烦恼

校对组：

Iris，博物馆小可爱

Humi，在躺平、侧卧和睡梦中寻找诗和远方

解析组：

Alfredo，小小少年，很多烦恼

【翻译解析】

1. “文学是时代的背景，是民族的表征，是一切社会活动留在纸上的影子。”

这句话的中文表述比较抽象，在翻译时可以转换角度。“是...的背景”即“反映了...”；“是...的表征”即“是...的一种体现”；“是...留在纸上的影子”即“...被书写在了纸上”。因此译文可以是：Literature serves as a mirror of its times, an epitome of a nation, and a paper record of all social activities.

2. “李白自传般的故事由高适娓娓道来”

“自传般的故事”和“由...娓娓道来”其实是相矛盾的，因为“自传”本身不可能由其他人来叙述，因此译者在这里可以仅将其理解成“传记”，即biography而非autobiography。所以整句话可以处理成：the biographical tales of Li Bai, a famous poet in the Tang Dynasty, are related by his friend, Gao Shi.

3. “穿插着长安城的繁华气派、曲江宴的风俗、胡姬旋转不停歇的胡旋舞”

①“穿插”一词可以翻成interweave；②在翻译“曲江宴”“胡旋舞”这类特色词汇时不妨在括号内作一些补充，如Huxuan Dance (a dance popular in the Tang Dynasty featuring spinning movements)，更方便外国读者理解。

4. “我们能够感受到自己的文化渊源和历史底蕴”

翻这句话时，不必去找“渊源”“底蕴”的英语对应词，不妨直接paraphrase一下，让译文更自然简练，所以可以译成：we can’t help but feel a strong connection to our historical and cultural heritage。

5. “我们每个人的一生都是长安三万里，也是五千年的沧桑和骄傲”

这句话其实可以理解成“我们每个人的一生都如《长安三万里》这部电影，而这部电影浓缩了五千年的沧桑和骄傲”，所以译为The life of each of us is Chang’an in miniature, as well as part of the Chinese history that spans 5,000 years with vicissitudes and glory。

vicissitudes: one of the many changes and problems in a situation or in your life, that you have to deal with.

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