散文汉译英佳作赏析：贾平凹《丑石》

 　　丑石

　　An Ugly Stone

　　贾平凹

　　By Jia Pingwa

　　我常常遗憾我家门前的那块丑石呢：它黑黝黝地卧在那里，牛似的模样；谁也不知道是什么时候留在这里的.谁也不去理会它。只是麦收时节，门前摊了麦子，奶奶总是要说：这块丑石，多碍地面哟，多时把它搬走吧。

　　I used to feel sorry for that ugly black piece of stone lying like an ox in front of our door; none knew when it was left there and none paid any attention to it, except at the time when wheat was harvested and my grandma, seeing the grains of wheat spread all over the ground in the front yard of the house, would grumble¹: "This ugly stone takes so much space. Move it away someday.

　　"于是，伯父家盖房，想以它垒山墙，但苦于它极不规则，没棱角儿，也没平面儿；用赘破开吧，又懒得花那么大气力，因为河滩并不甚远.随便去掬一块回来，哪一块也比它强。

　　Thus my uncle had wanted to use it for the gable when he was building a house, but he was troubled to find it of very irregular shape, with no edges nor corners, nor a flat plane on it. And he wouldn't bother to break it in half with a chisel² because the river bank was nearby, where he could have easily fetched a much better stone instead.

　　房盖起来，压铺台阶，伯父也没有看上它。有一年，来了一个石匠，为我家洗一台石磨，奶奶又说：用这块五石吧，省得从远处搬动。石匠看了看，摇着头，嫌它石质太细，也不采用。

　　Even when my uncle was busy with the flight of steps leading to the new house he didn't take a fancy to the ugly stone. One year when a mason came by, we asked him to snake us a stone mill with it. As my grandma put it: "Why net take this one, so you worst have to fetch one from afar." But the arson³ took a look and shook his head; he wouldn't take it for it was of too fine a quality.

　　它不像汉白玉那样的细腻，可以凿下刻字雕花，也不像大青石那样的光滑，可以供来院纱捶布;它静静地卧在那里，院边的槐荫没有庇孤它，花儿也不再在它身边生长。荒草便繁衍出来，枝蔓上下，慢慢地，竟锈上了绿苔、黑斑。我们这些做孩子的，也讨庆起它来，曾合伙要搬走它，但力气又不足；虽时时咒骂它，嫌弃它，也无可奈何，只好任它留在那里去了。

　　It was not like a fine piece of white marble on which words or flowers could be carved, nor like a smooth big bluish stone people used to wash their clothes on. The stone just lay there in silence, enjoying no shading front the pagoda⁴ trees by the yard, nor flowers growing around it. As a result weeds multiplied and stretched ail⁵ over it, their stems⁶ and tendrils gradually covered with dark green spots of moss⁷. We children began to dislike the stone too, and would have taken it away if we had been strong enough; all we could do for the present was to leave it alone, despite our disgust or even curses.

　　稍稍能安慰我们的，是在那石上有一个不大不小的坑凹儿，雨天就盛满了水。常常雨过三天了.地上已经于燥，那石凹里水儿还有，鸡儿便去那里渴饮。每每到了十五的夜晚，我们盼着满月出来，就爬到其上，翘望天边；奶奶总是要骂的，害怕我们摔下来。果然那一次就摔了下来，磕破了我的膝盖呢。

　　The only thing that had interested us in the ugly stone was a little pit on top of it, which was filled with water on rainy days. Three days after a rainfall, usually, when the ground had become dry, there was still water in the pit, where chickens went to drink. And every month when it came to the evening of the 15th of lunar calendar, we would climb onto the stone, looking up at the sky, hoping to see the full moon come out from far away. And Granny would give us a scolding, afraid lest we should fall down--and sure enough, I fell down once to have my knee broken.

　　人都骂它是丑石，它真是丑得不能再丑的丑石了。

　　So everybody condemned⁸ the stone: an ugly stone, as ugly as it could be.

　　终有一日，村子里来了一个天文学家。他在我家门前路过，突然发现了这块石头，眼光立即就拉直了。他再没有走去，就住了下来；以后又来了好些人，说这是一块陨石，从天上落下来己经有二三百年了，是一件了不起的东西。不久便来了车，小心翼翼地将它运走了。

　　Then one day an astronomer⁹ came to the village. He looked the stone square in the eye the moment he came across it. He didn't take his leave but decided¹⁰ to stay in our village. Quite a number of people came afterwards, saying the stone was a piece of aerolite which had fallen down from the sky two or three hundred years ago-what a wonder indeed! Pretty soon a truck carne, and carried it away carefully.

　　这使我们都很惊奇!这又怪又丑的石头，原来是天上的呢！它补过天，在天上发过热，闪过光，我们的先祖或许仰望过它，它给了他们光明、向往、憧憬:而它落下来了，在污土里，荒草里，一躺就是几百年了?!

　　It gave us a great surprise! We had never expected that such a strange and ugly stone should have come from the sky! So it had once mended the sky, given out its heat and light there, and our ancestors should have looked up at it. It hard given them light, brought there hopes and expectations, and then it had fallen down to the earth, in the mud and among the weeds, lying there for hundreds of years!

　　奶奶说: “真看不出:它那么不一般，却怎么连墙也垒不成，台阶也垒不成呢?”

　　My grandma said: "I never expected it should be so great! But why can't people build a wall or pave¹¹ steps with it?"

　　“它是太丑了。”天文学家说。

　　"It's too ugly, the astronomer said.

　　“真的，是太丑了。”

　　"Sure, it's really so ugly.”

　　“可这正是它的美!”天文学家说，“它是以丑为美的。”

　　"But that's just where its beauty lies! " the astronomer said, "its beauty comes from its ugliness. "

　　“以丑为美?”

　　"Beauty from ugliness?"

　　“是的，丑到极处，便是美到极处。正因为它不是一般的顽石，当然不能去做墙，做台阶，不能去雕刻，捶布。它不是做这些小玩意儿的，所以常常就遭到一般世俗的讥讽。”

　　"Yes. When something becomes the ugliest, it turns out the most beautiful indeed. The stone is not an ordinary piece of insensate stone, it shouldn't be used to build a wall or pave the steps, to carve words or flowers or to wash clothes on. It's not the material for those petty¹² common things, and no wonder it's ridiculed¹³ often by people with petty common views.

　　奶奶脸红了，我也脸红了。

　　My grandma became blushed¹⁴, and so did l.

　　我感到自己的可耻，也感到了丑石的伟大；我甚至怨恨它这么多年竟会默默地忍受着这一切，而找又立即深深地感到它那种不属于误解、寂寞的生存的伟大。

　　I feel shame while I feel the greatness of the ugly stone; I have even complained about it having pocketed silently all it had experienced for so many years, but again I am struck by the greatness that lies in its lonely unyielding existence of being misunderstood by people.

1 grumble   

vi.抱怨；咕哝；n.抱怨，牢骚；咕哝，隆隆声

参考例句：

• I don't want to hear another grumble from you.我不愿再听到你的抱怨。
• He could do nothing but grumble over the situation.他除了埋怨局势之外别无他法。

2 chisel   

n.凿子；v.用凿子刻，雕，凿

参考例句：

• This chisel is useful for getting into awkward spaces.这凿子在要伸入到犄角儿里时十分有用。
• Camille used a hammer and chisel to carve out a figure from the marble.卡米尔用锤子和凿子将大理石雕刻出一个人像。

3 arson   

n.纵火，放火

参考例句：

• He was serving a ten spot for arson.他因纵火罪在服十年徒刑。
• He was arraigned on a charge of arson.他因被指控犯纵火罪而被传讯。

4 pagoda   

n.宝塔（尤指印度和远东的多层宝塔），（印度教或佛教的）塔式庙宇

参考例句：

• The ancient pagoda is undergoing repairs.那座古塔正在修缮中。
• The pagoda is reflected upside down in the water.宝塔影子倒立在水里。

5 ail   

v.生病，折磨，苦恼

参考例句：

• It may provide answers to some of the problems that ail America.这一点可能解答困扰美国的某些问题。
• Seek your sauce where you get your ail.心痛还须心药治。

6 stems   

n.（花草的）茎( stem的名词复数 )；词干；（高脚酒杯的）脚；烟斗柄v.遏制[阻止]（液体的流动等）( stem的第三人称单数 )；封堵；遏止

参考例句：

• The present wave of strikes stems from discontent among the lower-paid. 当前的罢工浪潮起因于低工资雇员们的不满情绪。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Her interest in flowers stems from her childhood in the country. 她对花卉的兴趣产生于她在乡下度过的童年时代。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 moss   

n.苔，藓，地衣

参考例句：

• Moss grows on a rock.苔藓生在石头上。
• He was found asleep on a pillow of leaves and moss.有人看见他枕着树叶和苔藓睡着了。

8 condemned   

adj. 被责难的, 被宣告有罪的 动词condemn的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• He condemned the hypocrisy of those politicians who do one thing and say another. 他谴责了那些说一套做一套的政客的虚伪。
• The policy has been condemned as a regressive step. 这项政策被认为是一种倒退而受到谴责。

9 astronomer   

n.天文学家

参考例句：

• A new star attracted the notice of the astronomer.新发现的一颗星引起了那位天文学家的注意。
• He is reputed to have been a good astronomer.他以一个优秀的天文学者闻名于世。

10 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

11 pave   

vt.给（道路路面）铺上石板或砖

参考例句：

• The town council decided to pave the square before the Hall.市议会决定把市政厅前的广场铺上石板。
• I believe this treaty will pave the way to peace in Europe.我相信这个条约将为欧洲的和平铺平道路。

12 petty   

adj.小的，琐碎的，不重要的，心胸狭窄的

参考例句：

• The removal of petty restrictions has made life easier.对一些琐碎规定的取消使生活更自在了。
• It was petty of her not to accept the apology.她气量太小，连道歉也不接受。

13 ridiculed   

v.嘲笑，嘲弄，奚落( ridicule的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Biosphere 2 was ultimately ridiculed as a research debade, as exfravagant pseudoscience. 生物圈2号最终被讥讽为科研上的大失败，代价是昂贵的伪科学。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• She ridiculed his insatiable greed. 她嘲笑他的贪得无厌。 来自《简明英汉词典》

14 Blushed   

n. 脸红，外观 vi. 泛红，羞愧

参考例句：

• She blushed at the mention of her lover's name. 她因说到她情人的名字而脸红。
• He blushed when the pretty girl gave him the eye. 那位漂亮的女孩向他抛媚眼时，他脸红了。