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【摘要】唐诗是中国文学史上的瑰宝,唐诗翻译具有很高的研究价值。本文通过对比杨氏夫妇和许渊冲的译文,具体阐述许渊冲教授的“三美“理论在唐诗中的实践,并探讨其理论对中国古代文学翻译的指导意义。
【关键词】三美理论 意美 音美 形美 古代文学翻译
一、引言
唐诗在中国文学史上具有很高的地位,现今,随着国际学术交流的加深,越来越多的中外学者开始转向对中国唐诗的翻译研究,中国唐诗逐渐走向世界。其中,许渊冲教授和杨氏夫妇是国内比较系统地对唐诗进行翻译的两大家,各自分别出了《唐宋诗一百五十首》、《唐诗》等书。许渊冲教授更是提出了“三美”、“三化”、“三之”理论。笔者将通过对比许渊冲和杨氏夫妇的译文,详细阐述许的“三美”论在唐诗翻译中的实践,并探讨其理论对中国唐诗翻译的指导意义。
二、“三美”論:意美、音美、形美
在不同时代,人们对翻译活动的认识和理解不同,从而形成了不同的翻译审美观念。在相当长的历史时期内,人们把翻译看作是译语对原作的同化过程,所以在确立翻译的标准和原则时,往往把求同作为立足点,追求同而排斥异。20世纪西方兴起的语言学美学,破除了语言仅仅是传达意义的工具这一观念,转向了语言创造并构成意义的新立场,从而使人们不得不重新考虑翻译的本质和审美原则。许教授的“三美”翻译理论,就是在这种诗学潮流的背景下提出的。
“三美”是指意美、音美和形美,来源于鲁迅在《自文字至文章》中所说的“意美以感心,一也;音美以感耳,二也;形美以感目,三也”;许渊冲将其运用到唐诗翻译中,认为译作应该首先准确无误地传达原诗的意思,其次才力求保持译文的音美和形美,将三者完美地结合。
1.意美:准确传达原诗的意思和意境。笔者认为“意美”中的“意”指“意思”,“美”指“意境”。即译作不光要翻译出原诗句的字面意思,还要深究其深层韵味,以达到传神的境界。这一原则是由中文语言本身的特点决定的。唐诗多为五言或七言,短短几十余字言简意赅,却足以以小见大。例如王勃的《送杜少府之任蜀州》。
送杜少府之任蜀州 王勃
“城阙辅三秦,风烟望五津。与君离别意,同时宦游人。
海内存知己,天涯若比邻,无为在歧路,儿女共沾巾。”
Farewell to Vice-prefect Du (许)
You’ll leave the town walled far and wide,
For mist-veiled land by riverside.
I feel on parting sad and drear,
For both of us are strangers here.
If you’ve a friend who knows your heart,
He’s near to you though at world’s end.
At crossroads where we bid adieu,
Do not shed tears as women do!
Bidding Deputy Magistrate Du Farewell (杨)
The capital and palace are guarded by the land of three Qin kingdoms*,
In the distance the Five Ferries** are screened by wind and mist.
Now comes the time for us bid farewell to each other,
And we will both be officials away from home on duty.
So long as we remain bosom friends in our heart of hearts,
We’ll still feel like neighbors despite the distance apart.
So don’t let us shed silly tears like youngsters,
At that last moment when we both wave goodbye.
Notes:
* Three Qin kingdoms: in the central part of present-day Shanxi Province.
* Five Ferries: alluding to Sichuan Province because of the five big ferries along the Mingjiang River in the west of the region.
許渊冲结合中文特点,在他的译文中对于意美的表达使用了三种方法,即“浅化”、“等化”和“深化”。“浅化”是指将字面意思一般化,主要用于唐诗中特殊地名、人名等的翻译。如原诗中的“三秦”、“五津”分别指代古时的长安和五个著名的渡口,具有浓厚的中国文化色彩,许渊冲将其分别翻成了“town walled”(石城)、“riverside”(河边),便于西方读者的理解。反之,“深化”是指将字面意思深层化,特殊化。这一点就如刚才所提到的源于中文以小见大的简洁特点。原诗中“与君离别意”的一个“意”字极其抽象化,仅一字就饱含了诗人与友人分别时的种种情感,亦或悲伤,亦或不舍。在许渊冲看来,要达到准确传达原诗的意思就必须理解并翻译出诗句背后的意境。因此,他将其翻译成“I feel on parting sad and drear”(分别在即,我感到悲伤和忧郁),将原诗中的“意”字所包含的感情形象化了。“等化”最为简单,即对等翻译。如原诗中的“天涯”,既不是特殊名词,也非包含深层意思的抽象名词,采取等而化之即可,许将其译成“at world’s end”(天的尽头)。对应地,杨氏夫妇对这三处采取的则是直译法。最为明显的是对前两句中的“三秦”(three Qin Kingdoms)和“五津”(Five Ferries)进行了逐字翻译;第二处的“与君离别意”(Now comes the time for us bid farewell to each other)与许渊冲的译文也有很大不同。笔者认为杨氏夫妇只译出了前四字“与君离别”,仅描述了与友人分别在即的事件,译文与原诗相比,显得比较直白,与友人分别时的不舍之情也略显苍白。第三处“天涯”没有明显差异,杨将其译为“distance”(远方)。 2.音美:押韵,译作的韵脚尽可能音似于原诗。“三美”的第二条标准是“音美”。许渊冲对“音美”的创新点在于,他提出了译作不仅要押韵,而且韵脚应尽可能的音似于原诗的韵脚,这样的译作才算是上乘之作。许渊冲在他的《翻译的艺术》论文集中谈到过他的得意之作——李白《静夜思》的两种译本,最能体现其韵脚相似的标准。不过,现有《静夜思》的十二种英译中没有找到杨氏夫妇的翻译,所以无法在此列举以体现许译的特点。但是,笔者将以李商隐的《锦瑟》为例,虽然许渊冲的这首译作的音美效果较《静夜思》相比要稍逊一筹。
锦瑟 李商隐
“锦瑟无端五十弦,一弦一柱思华年。庄生晓梦迷蝴蝶,望帝春心托杜鹃。
沧海月明珠有泪,蓝田日暖玉生烟。此情可待成追忆,只是当时已惘然。”
The Sad Zither (许)
Why should the zither sad have fifty strings?
Each string, each strain evokes but vanished springs:
Dim morning dream to be a butterfly;
Amorous heart poured out in cuckoo’s cry.
In moonlit pearls see tears in mermaid’s eyes;
From sunburnt emerald watch vapor rise!
Such feeling cannot be recalled again;
It seemed long lost e’en when it was felt then.
The Gorgeous Zither (杨)
For no reason the gorgeous zither has fifty strings,
Each string, each fret, racalls a youthful year.
Master Zhuang woke from a dream puzzled by a butterfly,*
Emperor Wang reposed his amorous heart to the cuckoo.**
The moon shines on the sea, pearls look like tears,
The sun is warm at Lantian,*** the jade emits mist.
This feeling might have become a memory to recall,
But, even then, it was already suggestive of sorrows.
Notes:
*According to a fabled story, Zhuang Zi(c.369-286BC), a famous philosopher of the Warring States Period, dreamt of being a butterfly and when he woke up, he was so confused that he could not tell whether it was him that had dreamt of being a butterfly or it was a butterfly that was then dreaming of being him.
** A legendary king who had affair with his prime minister’s wife and after his death his spirit changed into the cuckoo.
*** A hill famous for its jade in present-day Lantian Country, Shanxi Province.
對比譯文和原诗,许译中的韵脚分别为/i?/,/ai/,/aiz/,/en/,原诗中的韵脚为“弦”、“年”、“鹃”、“烟”、“然”和“泪”、“蝶”以及第七句的末尾词“忆”,发音上有相近之处。而杨译的韵脚为/i?/,/?u/,音似程度较远。并且许译的押韵更工整,为aabbccdd,读起来朗朗上口,颇有一番吟诗的感觉。而杨译则没有这一特点,比较随意,缺少了一丝音律的美感。通过对比,我们不难发现,许的“音美”原则更适合唐诗翻译。
3.形美:长短、音节、对仗。“三美”论的第三个标准是“形美”,主要指译文每句诗句的长短和音节要大致相当。如果原诗对仗工整,译作也应尽可能对仗。鉴于在同一首诗中观察形美的几个要求,以下便选用唐诗中对仗最为工整的名作《登高》为进行两者译文的对比,观察许的“形美”原则在翻译中的实践。
登高 杜甫
“风急天高猿啸哀,渚清沙白鸟飞回。无边落木萧萧下,不尽长江滚滚来。
万里悲秋常作客,百年多病独登台,艰难苦恨繁霜鬓,潦倒新停浊酒杯。”
On The Heights (许)
The wind so swift and sky so wide, apes wail and cry;
Water so clear and beach so white, birds wheel and fly.
The boundless forest sheds its leaves shower by shower;
【关键词】三美理论 意美 音美 形美 古代文学翻译
一、引言
唐诗在中国文学史上具有很高的地位,现今,随着国际学术交流的加深,越来越多的中外学者开始转向对中国唐诗的翻译研究,中国唐诗逐渐走向世界。其中,许渊冲教授和杨氏夫妇是国内比较系统地对唐诗进行翻译的两大家,各自分别出了《唐宋诗一百五十首》、《唐诗》等书。许渊冲教授更是提出了“三美”、“三化”、“三之”理论。笔者将通过对比许渊冲和杨氏夫妇的译文,详细阐述许的“三美”论在唐诗翻译中的实践,并探讨其理论对中国唐诗翻译的指导意义。
二、“三美”論:意美、音美、形美
在不同时代,人们对翻译活动的认识和理解不同,从而形成了不同的翻译审美观念。在相当长的历史时期内,人们把翻译看作是译语对原作的同化过程,所以在确立翻译的标准和原则时,往往把求同作为立足点,追求同而排斥异。20世纪西方兴起的语言学美学,破除了语言仅仅是传达意义的工具这一观念,转向了语言创造并构成意义的新立场,从而使人们不得不重新考虑翻译的本质和审美原则。许教授的“三美”翻译理论,就是在这种诗学潮流的背景下提出的。
“三美”是指意美、音美和形美,来源于鲁迅在《自文字至文章》中所说的“意美以感心,一也;音美以感耳,二也;形美以感目,三也”;许渊冲将其运用到唐诗翻译中,认为译作应该首先准确无误地传达原诗的意思,其次才力求保持译文的音美和形美,将三者完美地结合。
1.意美:准确传达原诗的意思和意境。笔者认为“意美”中的“意”指“意思”,“美”指“意境”。即译作不光要翻译出原诗句的字面意思,还要深究其深层韵味,以达到传神的境界。这一原则是由中文语言本身的特点决定的。唐诗多为五言或七言,短短几十余字言简意赅,却足以以小见大。例如王勃的《送杜少府之任蜀州》。
送杜少府之任蜀州 王勃
“城阙辅三秦,风烟望五津。与君离别意,同时宦游人。
海内存知己,天涯若比邻,无为在歧路,儿女共沾巾。”
Farewell to Vice-prefect Du (许)
You’ll leave the town walled far and wide,
For mist-veiled land by riverside.
I feel on parting sad and drear,
For both of us are strangers here.
If you’ve a friend who knows your heart,
He’s near to you though at world’s end.
At crossroads where we bid adieu,
Do not shed tears as women do!
Bidding Deputy Magistrate Du Farewell (杨)
The capital and palace are guarded by the land of three Qin kingdoms*,
In the distance the Five Ferries** are screened by wind and mist.
Now comes the time for us bid farewell to each other,
And we will both be officials away from home on duty.
So long as we remain bosom friends in our heart of hearts,
We’ll still feel like neighbors despite the distance apart.
So don’t let us shed silly tears like youngsters,
At that last moment when we both wave goodbye.
Notes:
* Three Qin kingdoms: in the central part of present-day Shanxi Province.
* Five Ferries: alluding to Sichuan Province because of the five big ferries along the Mingjiang River in the west of the region.
許渊冲结合中文特点,在他的译文中对于意美的表达使用了三种方法,即“浅化”、“等化”和“深化”。“浅化”是指将字面意思一般化,主要用于唐诗中特殊地名、人名等的翻译。如原诗中的“三秦”、“五津”分别指代古时的长安和五个著名的渡口,具有浓厚的中国文化色彩,许渊冲将其分别翻成了“town walled”(石城)、“riverside”(河边),便于西方读者的理解。反之,“深化”是指将字面意思深层化,特殊化。这一点就如刚才所提到的源于中文以小见大的简洁特点。原诗中“与君离别意”的一个“意”字极其抽象化,仅一字就饱含了诗人与友人分别时的种种情感,亦或悲伤,亦或不舍。在许渊冲看来,要达到准确传达原诗的意思就必须理解并翻译出诗句背后的意境。因此,他将其翻译成“I feel on parting sad and drear”(分别在即,我感到悲伤和忧郁),将原诗中的“意”字所包含的感情形象化了。“等化”最为简单,即对等翻译。如原诗中的“天涯”,既不是特殊名词,也非包含深层意思的抽象名词,采取等而化之即可,许将其译成“at world’s end”(天的尽头)。对应地,杨氏夫妇对这三处采取的则是直译法。最为明显的是对前两句中的“三秦”(three Qin Kingdoms)和“五津”(Five Ferries)进行了逐字翻译;第二处的“与君离别意”(Now comes the time for us bid farewell to each other)与许渊冲的译文也有很大不同。笔者认为杨氏夫妇只译出了前四字“与君离别”,仅描述了与友人分别在即的事件,译文与原诗相比,显得比较直白,与友人分别时的不舍之情也略显苍白。第三处“天涯”没有明显差异,杨将其译为“distance”(远方)。 2.音美:押韵,译作的韵脚尽可能音似于原诗。“三美”的第二条标准是“音美”。许渊冲对“音美”的创新点在于,他提出了译作不仅要押韵,而且韵脚应尽可能的音似于原诗的韵脚,这样的译作才算是上乘之作。许渊冲在他的《翻译的艺术》论文集中谈到过他的得意之作——李白《静夜思》的两种译本,最能体现其韵脚相似的标准。不过,现有《静夜思》的十二种英译中没有找到杨氏夫妇的翻译,所以无法在此列举以体现许译的特点。但是,笔者将以李商隐的《锦瑟》为例,虽然许渊冲的这首译作的音美效果较《静夜思》相比要稍逊一筹。
锦瑟 李商隐
“锦瑟无端五十弦,一弦一柱思华年。庄生晓梦迷蝴蝶,望帝春心托杜鹃。
沧海月明珠有泪,蓝田日暖玉生烟。此情可待成追忆,只是当时已惘然。”
The Sad Zither (许)
Why should the zither sad have fifty strings?
Each string, each strain evokes but vanished springs:
Dim morning dream to be a butterfly;
Amorous heart poured out in cuckoo’s cry.
In moonlit pearls see tears in mermaid’s eyes;
From sunburnt emerald watch vapor rise!
Such feeling cannot be recalled again;
It seemed long lost e’en when it was felt then.
The Gorgeous Zither (杨)
For no reason the gorgeous zither has fifty strings,
Each string, each fret, racalls a youthful year.
Master Zhuang woke from a dream puzzled by a butterfly,*
Emperor Wang reposed his amorous heart to the cuckoo.**
The moon shines on the sea, pearls look like tears,
The sun is warm at Lantian,*** the jade emits mist.
This feeling might have become a memory to recall,
But, even then, it was already suggestive of sorrows.
Notes:
*According to a fabled story, Zhuang Zi(c.369-286BC), a famous philosopher of the Warring States Period, dreamt of being a butterfly and when he woke up, he was so confused that he could not tell whether it was him that had dreamt of being a butterfly or it was a butterfly that was then dreaming of being him.
** A legendary king who had affair with his prime minister’s wife and after his death his spirit changed into the cuckoo.
*** A hill famous for its jade in present-day Lantian Country, Shanxi Province.
對比譯文和原诗,许译中的韵脚分别为/i?/,/ai/,/aiz/,/en/,原诗中的韵脚为“弦”、“年”、“鹃”、“烟”、“然”和“泪”、“蝶”以及第七句的末尾词“忆”,发音上有相近之处。而杨译的韵脚为/i?/,/?u/,音似程度较远。并且许译的押韵更工整,为aabbccdd,读起来朗朗上口,颇有一番吟诗的感觉。而杨译则没有这一特点,比较随意,缺少了一丝音律的美感。通过对比,我们不难发现,许的“音美”原则更适合唐诗翻译。
3.形美:长短、音节、对仗。“三美”论的第三个标准是“形美”,主要指译文每句诗句的长短和音节要大致相当。如果原诗对仗工整,译作也应尽可能对仗。鉴于在同一首诗中观察形美的几个要求,以下便选用唐诗中对仗最为工整的名作《登高》为进行两者译文的对比,观察许的“形美”原则在翻译中的实践。
登高 杜甫
“风急天高猿啸哀,渚清沙白鸟飞回。无边落木萧萧下,不尽长江滚滚来。
万里悲秋常作客,百年多病独登台,艰难苦恨繁霜鬓,潦倒新停浊酒杯。”
On The Heights (许)
The wind so swift and sky so wide, apes wail and cry;
Water so clear and beach so white, birds wheel and fly.
The boundless forest sheds its leaves shower by shower;