中国古典文化英译——感觉、幻觉、错觉

Translation of Classic Chinese Culture: perception, hallucination and illusion

上海师范大学外国语学院李照国

上海师范大学外国语学院李照国

悟 感悟

领悟 觉悟

史家之释Perception of historians

学人之辨Command of scholars

政家之见Ideas of politicians

圣贤之教Sage’s instruction

知乎？道乎？知道乎？

说来是笑话，听来是闲话；满书见胡话，神仙则无话说来是笑话，听来是闲话；满书见胡话，神仙则无话

你我俗尘，悟得几何？How much do you and me have understood?

你我俗尘，悟得几何？How much do you and me have understood?

TitleAdd your text

译者笔度Renderer’s

reproduction

作者内阅Author’s perception

译者观阅

Renderer’s R&U

作者外观Author’s observation

作者曰圣解者曰悟

述者曰明

观者曰望

传者曰达

对象object

苦不可怖，失最为悲The tragedy of life is not so much what men suffer, but what they miss——Thomas Carlyle)

苦不可怖，失最为悲The tragedy of life is not so much what men suffer, but what they miss——Thomas Carlyle)

满街皆正宗，必然无正宗，正宗不正宗，谁也说不清满街皆正宗，必然无正宗，正宗不正宗，谁也说不清

作者重构

Author’s description

作者重构

Author’s description

何以行此地，何以知其学？何以行此地，何以知其学？Where shall we start when we try to Where shall we start when we try to learn and interpret what were learn and interpret what were conceived, developed and cherished conceived, developed and cherished in this great land?in this great land?

省级Provincial hospital

地级Prefectural hospital

县级County hospital

南沙群岛

雄关漫道如铁 迈步从何而越？Great Lands, Great Sages, Great Ideas

雄关漫道如铁 迈步从何而越？Great Lands, Great Sages, Great Ideas

译事千古事 得失两不知Great Course, Great Error

Life can only be understood backwards, but it must be lived forwards － Kierkergaard

明故知今，法之法也！学而时习之，不亦悦乎？有朋自远方来，不亦乐乎？人不知而

不愠，不亦君子乎？Arthur Waley 的译文是：The Master said, To learn and at due times to repeat what one

has learnt, is that not after all a pleasure? That friends should come to one from aftar, is this not after all delightful? To remain unsoured even though one’s merits are unrecognized by others, is that not after all what is expected of a gentleman?

辜鸿铭先生的译文是：Confucius remarked, “It is indeed a pleasure to acquire

knowledge and, as you go on acquiring, to put into practice what you have acquired. A greater pleasure still it is when friends of congenial minds come from afar to seek you because of your attainments. But he is truly a wise and good man who feels no discomposure even when he is not noticed of men.”

形神兼备 道之道也！Nothing in life is to be feared. It is only to be

understood－ Marie Curie两位大师之译，色彩不同，文体各异，此亦自然之理，无可

厚非。但对“学而时习之”之“习”，其解则大为相左。 Arthur Waley 释为 to repeat what one has learnt （即复习），而辜鸿铭先生却诠为 to put into practice what you have acquired （即实践）。究竟谁之释义更接近原文之意呢？要判断这个问题，自然，须得明了“习”的古时之语义和用法，而不可一味按今时之内涵相解。

关于这个问题，我们曾在《学而时习》一文中，作了如下分解，转录于此，以作旁证：

何谓“学而时习之”？所谓“学而时习之”，非谓“时时复习所学之技”也。“习”者，操练也。古人造“习”字，乃取雏鸟试翅之意。“习”之构形，上羽下日，即取雏鸟日练其翅以图高飞之意。

似是而非 是非非是！To take everything for granted is to be ignorant of all.

子曰：自行束脩以上，吾未尝无诲焉。孔子的意思是说，带上一束干肉来拜他为师的人，他没有

不教的道理。按古语的意思，这句话中的“束脩”指的是一束干肉。这是古代拜师的最低礼物。孔子虽然贵为圣人，但毕竟不是不食人间烟火的神仙，因此办学也是要收取学费的。

国内某译本：Confucius said, “I never refuse to teach

those fifteen-year old children who are reaching adolescence.”

在这个译文中，译者将“束脩”理解成“束发修饰”，因为“古代男子十五岁左右则束发为髻，开始接受教育。”

考之较之，比之量之Comparison makes difference.

Arthur Waley 之译：The Master said, From the very poorest

upwards-beginning even with the man who could bring up no better present than a bundle of dried flesh-none has ever come to me without receiving instruction.

辜鸿鸣之译：Confucius remarked, “In teaching men, I

make no difference between the rich and the poor. I have taught men who could just afford to bring me the barest presentation gift in the same way as I have taught others.”

道听途说，学之弃也！Hearsay is the mother of rumor, not the root of truth.

子曰：《诗》三百，一言以蔽之，曰：“思无邪”。Arthur Waley 将其译作：The Master said, If out of the three hundred Songs I had

to take one phrase to cover all my teaching, I would say “Let there be no evil in your thoughts”.

孔子的这句话翻译成白话文，即《诗经》的三百多首诗，如果用一句话对其加以概括的话，那就是“没有邪念”。

若将 Arthur Waley 的翻译再回译成汉语，与原文之意就显得有些风马牛了：

如果从《诗经》的三百首诗中选择一句来概括我的学说或教育，那就是“杜绝一切邪念”。

孔子用“思无邪”概括的是《诗经》的基本精神，而不是他自己的学说或教育。这一点，略微通一点典籍的人，大约都能够辨别得出。

辜丘之译，述之明矣Better understanding, better translation.

辜鸿铭之译：Confucius remarked, “The Book of Ballads,

Songs and Psalms contains three hundred pieces. The moral of them all may be summed up in one sentence: ‘Have no evil thoughts.’”

菲律宾丘氏兄弟之译： The Master said, “The Book of Songs

contains (some) three hundred pieces. Their subject matter may be covered in one saying, ‘Think no evil!’”

字里行间 神机自现 Grammar and logic, Invisible but self-evident.

子曰：朝闻道，夕死可矣。Arthur Waley 将其译为：The Master said, In the morning, hear the

Way; in the evening, die content.与原文相较，译文似乎尚为对应。但仔细推敲其

实，则不免似是而非。将“道”译作 Way ，很值推敲。“道”在中国古藉及诸子论著中涉及颇多，其内涵极为丰富，其外延亦极为宽广，译作way显然过于轻浅。而“闻道”译作 hear the Way ，则更觉虚无飘渺。这里的“闻”实际上是“懂得”了的意思。

英雄回眸 征尘在目Great works, small errors

辜鸿铭之译：Confucius remarked, “When a man has learnt

wisdom in the morning, he may be content to die in the evening before th sun sets.”

辜氏译文，似乎亦有商榷之处。其实孔子所说的“朝闻道，夕死可矣”是自我激励之辞，并非是对他人的说教。所以，将其译作 When a man has learnt wisdom云云，听起来似乎是教主训导信众的强调，而非圣人自勉之辞。

另外， to die in the evening before the sun sets ，即有怪异之处。既是 in the evening ，又加上 before the sun sets ，似有画蛇添足之嫌。因为 evening 就是指从日落至就寝这段时间。

典型一例 颇有教益Typical example, typical lesson!

老子的《道德经》：知不知上不知知病 Carus 断为：知不知，上。不知知，病。故译为： To know the unknowable, that is elevating. Not to know the knowable, that is sickness. Arthus Waley 断为：知不知，上。不知，知，病。故译为： To know when one does not know is best. To think one knows when one does not know is a dire disease. Lionel Giles 则断句为： 知 , 不知 , 上。不知，知，病。故译为： To know, but to be as though not knowing, is the height of

wisdom. Not to know, and yet to affect knowledge, is a vice. 吴经雄断为 : ( 以 ) 知 ( 为 ) 不知，上。 ( 以 ) 不知 ( 为 ) 知，病。故译

为： To regard knowledge as no-knowledge is best. To regard no-knowledge as knowledge is sickness.

三点一线 轻轻浅浅A preliminary study and an brief explanation

信息Original information

熵化entropification

耗散dissipation

重构reconstruction

漫游Free evolution

理解interpretation

表达reproduction

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