2.小说翻译鉴赏

（一）

常胜的歌手

有一位歌手，有一次她唱完歌，竟没有一个人鼓掌。于是她在开会的时候说道：“（1）掌声究竟能说明什么问题呢？难道掌声是美？是艺术？是黄金？（2）掌声到底卖几分钱一斤？（3）被观众鼓了几声掌就飘飘然，就忘乎所以，就选成了歌星，就坐飞机，就灌唱片，这简直是胡闹！是对灵魂的腐蚀！（4）你信不信，如果我扭起屁股唱黄歌儿，比她得到的掌声还多！”

她还建议，对观众进行一次调查分析，分类排队，以证明掌声的无价值或反价值。

（5） 后来她又唱了一次歌，全场掌声雷动。（6）她在会上又说开了：

“歌曲是让人听的，如果人家不爱听，内容再好，曲调再好又有什么用？（7）群众的眼睛是雪亮的，群众的心里是有一杆秤的，（8）离开了群众的喜闻乐见，就是不搞大众化，只搞小众化，就是出了方向性差错，就是孤家寡人，自我欣赏。我听到的不只是掌声，而且是一颗颗火热的心在跳动！”

过了一阵子，音乐工作者开会，谈到歌曲演唱中的一种不健康的倾向和群众的趣味需要疏导，欣赏水平需要提高。（9）她便举出了那一次唱歌无人鼓掌作为例子，她宣称：

“我顶住了！我顶住了！我顶住了！”

（10）又过了一阵子，音乐工作者又开会，谈到受欢迎的群众歌曲还是创作、演唱得太少。她又举出了另一次唱歌掌声如雷的例子，宣称：

“我早就做了！我早就做了！我早就做了！”

——王蒙

译文A

An Infallible Singer

One day，a singer sang for the audience.After she finished，nobody applauded.Thereupon，she said at a meeting，“What possibly can applause mean? Does it mean beauty? Art? Or gold? How much is one burst of clapping worth? If on account of some sporadic clapping，a singer should become smug and starts to forget herself，and people around her start to vote her a star，qualified to travel by air and cut discs，this would be sheer folly，and an attempt to corrupt the souls of the people.Believe me，I can get much louder applause if I should sing those smutty songs and swing my hips all the while.” She also suggested that the audiences be polled and classified so that the non-value or anti-value of applause could be established.

On a later occasion her singing was greeted with thunderous applause.At a meeting convened after the performance，she declared，“Songs are composed for the audience.If the audience don’t like your songs，what’s the use of their good content and melody? The audience know what is good for them and they have their own criteria.If we don’t give them what they like，we are meeting the needs of only a few people，instead of the broad masses.We’ll be committing a mistake in political direction.We’ll be acting like Narcissus，admiring our own images and isolating ourselves from the outside world.What I heard at the concert was not just the clapping of hands，but the beatings of a multitude of fervent hearts.”

Sometime later，musicians met for another meeting，at which they criticized the unhealthy tendency in vocal concerts and suggested that the musical taste of the masses be properly guided and their level of appreciation be raised.Citing as an example that occasion when her songs received no applause，she declared，“I resisted that tendency! I did that long，long ago!”

At still another gathering held later，musicians deplored that songs the people really liked were still too few in number and that too few singers sang such songs.Citing as an example the other occasion when her songs were warmly applauded，she exulted，“I sang such songs long ago! Long，long ago!”

——居祖纯译

译文B

A Singer Who Always Wins

Once a singer finished her performance without receiving any applause from the audience.Afterwards she remarked at a meeting，“What does applause mean? Is it beauty，art，or gold? How much is it worth after all? Once one gets some applause，one’s head will swell.And one will be treated like a star，given free plane trips and invited to have one’s voice recorded everywhere.It’s ridiculous! It is nothing but corruption of the mind! Believe it or not，if I had swayed my hips and sung obscene songs，I would’ve got more applause than the stars.”

Then the singer came up with a suggestion that the audience should be investigated，analysed，and classified in order to prove their applause being worthless or even worse for its negative effects.

Later，she gave another performance which won thunderous applause from the audience.She spoke at another meeting，“Songs are to be appreciated by the audience.What’s the use of songs with good content and nice melody if no one likes them? The audience is the best judge who knows how to strike a balance in the heart.Without the masses’ appreciation，one will only be serving the few instead of many.And one will be taking the wrong direction by keeping aloof from the masses and indulging in self-admiration.What I heard from the audience was not only warm applause，but the beatings of their warm hearts!”

Some time later，members of the musical circles held a symposium and suggested that an unhealthy tendency should be stopped in singing performances，that appreciation levels be raised and good taste be cultivated.

The singer then cited her first performance that had drawn no applause from the audience and claimed，“See，I dared it! The unhealthy tendency! I dared it indeed!”

After a period of time，there was another symposium among the musical circles.This time it was proposed that more popular songs be composed and sung.And the singer took her second performance as an example to prove her claim，“ee，I did it! The popular songs! I did it indeed!”

——朱柏桐译

译析

《常胜的歌手》是王蒙的一篇微型小说，生活中这种以“常胜”自居的人也不少见。作者仅用了几百字活现其灵魂，令人折服。其高明之处就在于准确地抓住了这类人能言善辩而又大言不惭、翻云覆雨的性格特点，选取两次演出和四个会议场面，用人物自己的四次高论，把一幅强词夺理，恬不知耻的嘴脸刻画得神形毕肖。那么，以上两篇译文是否也达到了原文的讽刺效果呢？请看下面的分析：

（1） 掌声究竟能说明什么问题呢？难道掌声是美？是艺术？是黄金？

译文A　What possibly can applause mean? Does it mean beauty? Art? Or gold?

译文B　What does applause mean? Is it beauty，art，or gold?

分析　汉语反问与英语Erotema，都属于修辞格范畴，并且基本对应，都是指用疑问的形式表达肯定的意思，不需要回答，答案寓于问语的反面。原文连续运用了四个反问，把“掌声什么问题都不能说明”的意思表达得非常透彻。从两个译文表达的效果来看，译文A更接近原文的处理，但似乎也可更完善一些。

改译　What does applause mean? Does it mean beauty? Art? Or gold?

（2） 掌声到底卖几分钱一斤？

译文A　How much is one burst of clapping worth?

译文B　How much is it worth after all?

分析 “掌声到底卖几分钱一斤”是一种比喻性用法，虽然“分”和“斤”已经被英语分别借用为fen和jin，但是如果直译原文显然是行不通的。有学者称原语这种无法在目的语中取得对应或平行转换的语言现象为“语言障碍”，而类似“白描式”的意译的虽然不是一种理想的意义转移手段，但也是克服语言障碍的应变对策。（刘宓庆，1999：184）所以，译文A、B都不得不舍弃原文比喻形象而作“白描式”意译处理。

（7） 被观众鼓了几声掌就飘飘然，就忘乎所以，就选成了歌星，就坐飞机，就灌唱片，这简直是胡闹！是对灵魂的腐蚀！

译文A　If on account of some sporadic clapping，a singer should become smug and starts to forget herself，and people around her start to vote her a star，qualified to travel by air and cut discs，this would be sheer folly，and an attempt to corrupt the souls of the people.

译文B　Once one gets some applause，one’s head will swell.And one will be treated like a star，given free plane trips and invited to have one’s voice recorded everywhere.It’s ridiculous! It is nothing but corruption of the mind!

分析　原文中除“这”为代词主语外，其它分句都是无主语句，而译文需要对这些无主语句适当增补主语来保持句子结构的完整。虽然原文中多数的主语省略了，但是被省略的主语有它们内在的、符合语法要求及语义表现的一致性。从译文A、B所增补主语的效果来看，译文B的整体效果要好一些，而译文A的主语由于缺乏一致性，所以影响了译文的流畅。比如：a singer should become smug与starts to forget herself缺乏一致，因为前句的谓语动词结构为should become，后句为starts; a singer should become与people around her start to vote her a star缺乏一致，因为前句主语为这个句群的统领主语，而后句主语的变换，破坏了句群主语的一致性。

改译　If on account of some sporadic clapping，a singer should become smug and have a swelled head，and be voted a star，qualified to travel by air and cut her discs，—this would not only be sheer folly，but also an attempt to corrupt the souls of the people !

（2） 你信不信，如果我扭起屁股唱黄歌儿，比她得到的掌声还多！

译文A　Believe me，I can get much louder applause if I should sing those smutty songs and swing my hips all the while.

译文B　Believe it or not，if I had swayed my hips and sung obscene songs，I would’ve got more applause than the stars.

分析　原句“黄歌儿”中的“黄”字，是一个具有汉文化象征意义的颜色字，《现代汉语词典》释义：象征腐化堕落，特指色情。翻译时要注意“黄”的文化内涵，切不可按字面照搬。译文A、B分别意译为smutty songs 和obscene songs，意思是morally improper songs。需要意译的颜色词有不少，以下仅举几例：

● 黄色书刊filthy books/黄色音乐vulgar music/黄色录象pornographic record/黄色电影blue films or obscene movies/黄毛丫头a chit of a girl/a witless younger girl/an ignorant little girl

● 红眼病be green-eyed/红人a favorite with sb.in power/a fair-haired boy

● 带绿帽子be cuckolded

● 白菜Chinese cabbage/白开水boiled water/白痴idiot

（3） 后来她又唱了一次歌，全场掌声雷动。

译文A　On a later occasion her singing was greeted with thunderous applause.

译文B　Later，she gave another performance which won thunderous applause from the audience.

分析　原文是一个并列复合句，在英语中通常被译成简单句，正如译文A；译文B将其转换为一个含定语从句的主从复合句。这两个译文都可以接受，但从语言的经济性或简约性来看，译文A更合适。

（6） 她在会上又说开了：

译文A　At a meeting convened after the performance，she declared，

译文B　She spoke at another meeting，

分析　原句的“说”字，是汉语中最具有广义的引述动词，但是”V+开”结构，可以“表示开始并继续下去”的意思。（《现代汉语词典》）因此，“说开”这个动词结构，无论本身的语义还是根据其语境的提示，都不仅仅是广义上的“用话来表达意思”。原文整个语篇中共使用了四个引述动词，即“说道”、“说开”、“宣称”、“宣称”。这四个引述动词所引述的四个语段构成了这个语篇的主要内容，情节发展的高潮落在“说开”这个语段上，——之前是铺垫，之后是结语。译文A、B分别以declared或spoke对应“说开”，似乎还没有把说话人那种隐性的“正人君子”的心态暗示出来。因为speak这个动词太过于一般，表现力有限；而declare这个动词又表现得太“唐突”，带有“做作”的意味，而原文“说开”所表现的是那种“似乎很自信地慢慢说来”的语气。由于“说开”一词在语用上还暗示着言外之意的讽刺意义，故可以用voice来对应“说”，给人以遐想。

改译　At another meeting she started and kept voicing，

（7） 群众的眼睛是雪亮的，群众的心里是有一杆秤的。

译文A　The audience know what is good for them and they have their own criteria.

译文B　The audience is the best judge who knows how to strike a balance in the heart.

分析　原句中有两个比喻：“雪亮”和“秤”。“雪亮”的本意就是指象雪那样明亮；“秤”或“杆秤”的本意句是指测定物体重量的器具。（《现代汉语词典》）两个译文都采取了“白描式”的意译，是因为英语中没有对应或相尽的比喻。

⑥ 离开了群众的喜闻乐见，就是不搞大众化，只搞小众化，就是出了方向性差错，就是孤家寡人，自我欣赏。

译文A　If we don’t give them what they like，we are meeting the needs of only a few people，instead of the broad masses.We’ll be committing a mistake in political direction.We’ll be acting like Narcissus，admiring our own images and isolating ourselves from the outside world.

译文B　Without the masses’ appreciation，one will only be serving the few instead of many.And one will be taking the wrong direction by keeping aloof from the masses and indulging in self-admiration.

分析　在汉语社会文化背景下，原文中的“方向性差错”隐含的是“政治方向性的差错”。这种隐含对任何一个汉语读者来说都是明白无误的，而对于英语读者来说却未必。所以译文A根据这样一个社会文化背景，以a mistake in political direction对应，增补了一个political，便于英语读者对原文真实信息的了解；而译文B the wrong direction一语，难以体现出原文的文化背景信息。

此外，原文“孤家寡人，自我欣赏”是两个意义相同的成语，连用在一起以示强调。译文A在套用英语成语be acting like Narcissus的基础上，又追加意译 admiring our own images and isolating ourselves from the outside world，使得译文表意效果相当贴切。译文B采用直译法，虽然也传达了原文意义，但是由于丢失了原文的形象而不如译文A生动。

（9） 她便举出了那一次唱歌无人鼓掌作为例子，她宣称：

译文A　Citing as an example that occasion when her songs received no applause，she declared，

译文B　The singer then cited her first performance that had drawn no applause from the audience and claimed，

分析　汉语的意合特征在于靠以词汇手段表示概念意义及语法意义，而英语的形合特征就在于靠词的形态变化来表示概念意义及语法意义；其中的变化又是集中在动词的形态变化上，形成以动词形态变化为主轴的句法结构模式，意义紧紧与句法形态相结合。（刘宓庆，1999：63）原文是一个含有“举出”、“鼓掌”、“宣称”三个动词的复句，译文A比较好地利用了动词的形态变化转达了原文，将原文中的三个动词作了精心处理：“举出”被处理为一个现在分词作状语，“鼓掌”被安排在定语从句里作谓语动词，“宣称”承当起主句谓语动词的任务。相比之下，译文B对这三个动词的处理基本上是与原文一一对应的，虽然也能够达意，但是行文不如译文A灵活、多样、流畅。

（10）又过了一阵子，音乐工作者又开会，谈到受欢迎的群众歌曲还是创作、演唱得太少。

译文A　At still another gathering held later，musicians deplored that songs the people really liked were still too few in number and that too few singers sang such songs.

译文B　After a period of time，there was another symposium among the musical circles.This time it was proposed that more popular songs be composed and sung.

分析　原文“受欢迎的群众歌曲”是一个词组，译文A转换为一个含有定语从句的词组 songs the people really liked；而译文B将这个词组对等为“通俗或流行歌曲”，并以 popular songs对译，因为popular的意思就是favoured by many people。译文A、B对这个词组之所以有不同的处理，是因为对这个词语产生了不同的价值判断。原文语篇是一个讽刺性短篇小说，围绕“什么是受欢迎的群众歌曲”这样一个深层主题而展开。20世纪80年代以来，中国的改革开放使得中国的文化处于一个转型期，音乐界的“正统歌曲”和“流行歌曲”（或“通俗歌曲”）变成了不同文化价值的体现或代表。虽然从现在的情况来看，源于西方的“流行歌曲”（或“通俗歌曲”）已经有了广阔的市场，但是在那个时候，popular songs或popular music 被赋予了“黄歌”或“黄色音乐”的色彩，是一种庸俗的文化形态，因此流行音乐被认为是与正统音乐或古典音乐对立的、水火不相容的。译文B将“受欢迎的群众歌曲”处理为popular songs，显然比译文A的 songs the people really liked，更显示出一种文化的开放心态。

（二）

太　阳　雨

雨点砸在黄土地，亦不见水星儿弹起，噗噗的声音，像天的牙齿嚼咬着不很硬实的东西。闪电抽出一把锋利的刀，直捅开老天爷的肚子，掏出个响雷，扔给人世间，“咔——”一声轰响，把别的声音都暂时淹没。

烟雨中，冲出辆绿色的自行车，车梁架栓着个绿布袋，雨披把车上人塑成个暗绿色的三角。甭问，一准儿是“邮局的”。无论是风是雨，他们一准儿会出现在辖区内。

那暗绿色的三角，拐进一条悠长、铺满碎石的窄街。行不多时，便在一座院落前停稳，扭过半个脸，朝墙上贴的被雨淋湿的大字报觑了一眼。纸上，墨写的字被雨戏弄成花花脸，红笔写的大“×”像流血一样往下滴着红水。

院落的门牌不见了，原先的信箱亦无。许是阴天的缘故，楼的廊道光线暗淡。廊道口的上端探出一雨厦，一位老人伫立在台阶，有只墨黑色的猫，卧在老人脚下。望着天……

“邮局的”迈上台阶。老人那张近似呆板的脸毫无表情，如铜铸一般。

“信，您的。”声音很轻。

信？老人依然毫无表情。

“信，您的。”“邮局的”重复一遍，声依然轻。

老人像被叫醒一般，脸微仰，答道：“噢，哦。”

“邮局的”摆了下头，将信郑重递过，遂消失于烟雨中。

今日很清闲。信？简直不敢相信。谁给我写信？老人用手捏了捏，凭手的触感，似乎很厚实。

廊道内光线暗淡。老人将信与投进来的散光，对成一定角度才看清信上的字——卢舒清收。他心底微微一颤，额头泛起涟漪，迅速将信放进衣袋。

这是两年来，他接到的惟一的一封信。谁还有闲心给他写信呢？老人颤巍巍地挨进家门，借窗户透进来的一片柔光，将信封扯开，一行行隽秀的字跳进眼帘。

……

信，写得平淡无奇，老人过去见得多了。而今却连读三遍，激动不已。突然，屋门大开。老人下意识地忙将信团在手里。

并无人来，原来是阵风将门吹开。老人锁好门，又将信抚平。

入夜。雨停。别的声亦被洗静。老人躺在床上又失眠。索性披衣坐起，打着手电又看那信。

屋子里空荡荡的，老鼠又在嗑东西，墨黑色的猫亦不闲着。屋角发出窸窸窣窣声，冷寂时，这声亦觉亲切。而今，许是有那信的缘故，他又很烦那窸窸窣窣的声音。

老人拿出一支铅笔，在那信的尾处写字。又将老伴唤醒：“你先睡，我去趟后院。”墨黑色的猫亦“哧溜”一下随后钻出门缝。

她又怎能睡得下……

仅两星期后，老人便落湖自沉。

若干年过去，出版社准备将卢舒清的文稿结集出版，编辑部在整理他的遗作时发现，在那段时间里，老人竟无只字。

作家夫人忽然忆起，让老人逝世前两个星期的一件奇事。遂领人们来到后院。

后院里，有一排葡萄架，架上藤枝交错，葡萄静静地悬着，尚未熟透，晶莹透明。叶儿将阳光筛成碎片，散落地上，为周围平添几分幽静。

“嗖——”那只墨黑色的猫，突然扑到架下。用前爪吃力地刨着土。片刻，它也许是累了，鼻与嘴同时翕动着，向女主人“喵——喵——”地叫。

人们没有理会它，只有作家夫人缓缓上前，在那刨开的黄土里，发现一件用塑料薄膜包着的东西，打开来，里面竟是文稿和信，信上有老人的铅笔字，上写：

若可能，请这后生为我的书写序，以补我

末能复信与他之过。

卢舒清此嘱

人们感慨不已，齐把目光投向那猫，生发出许多关于猫的传说与联想。

作家夫人遂将猫抱起，眼睛里滚出一颗泪珠，先是掉在猫的背上，又滑落地上，摔碎。

而那猫，墨黑色的身躯如煤一股，眼睛眯成道缝儿，看着地，亦无神采，比先前，很显得苍老。

编辑部速派两名责任编辑，连夜赶到T市，按照信上注明的通讯处，终于在一幢旧楼顶层的小屋里，找到一位看上去四十岁左右的汉子。

那汉子正在饮酒，直勾勾地望着两个人进来，一副醉眼朦胧。

“您是孔雅学同志？”

醉汉抄起酒瓶，又往碗里冲了一下。酒，漾了一桌，他又用手将浮在桌面的酒一抹，这才点了下头。

酒顺着桌的边沿儿，滴在地板上，亦谈不起星儿来。那酒很醇。

两位责任编辑说明来意。

那汉子猛站起身，退至窗前，又扭转身子向窗外望去，一股强阳光刺疼他的眼。俄顷，他又旋至桌前，坐定，拿起碗，盯了来人半晌，只道一句：“本人对此无兴趣。”说着，扬脖把酒一饮而尽，歪斜着站起身，向上挥了下手，对来人下了逐客令。

屋外。又下起雨。

奇的是，老天竟以这幢楼为界标——老楼淋在雨中，楼的不远处，却袒露在阳光下。远处。是一片拔地而起的楼架，那一层一层新砌起的红砖，正烘托着一个湿漉漉的太阳。

哦，太阳雨。

——王筠

译文

The Sun in the Rain

The rain hammered on the yellow soil without splashing.The sound it made was like the teeth of heaven sinking into something not too hard.The lightning drew a blade that poked at heaven’s stomach，unleashing thunder，tossing it loudly to the world.Kahh-kahh...it drowned all other noises.

Through the smoky rain rushed a green bicycle with a post bag slung over the cross bar.The rider in his raincloak resembled a dark green triangle.No need to wonder，this one had to be from the post office.In this postal district they were certain，to appear，come wind or come rain.

The green triangle veered into a long and narrow pebbled lane.It stopped before a courtyard，and turned towards the rainwashed dazibao plastered on the wall.The black ink characters were smeared and the red X dripped like blood.

The house number plate had disappeared，as had the letter box.The building’s corridor was very dim，perhaps because of rainy weather.An old man stood on a step beneath a narrow shelter.The coal black cat at his feet looked up at the sky.

The man from the post office stepped up close，but the old man’s face bore no expression，as if he had been cast in bronze.

“Letter，yours，” the one from the post office said in a very light voice.

Letter? The old man’s face remained impassive.

“Letter，yours，” repeated the one from the post office in the identical tone.

As if awakened from sleep，the old man lifted his face vaguely.“Oh，ah，” he answered.

The man from the post office shook his head a little and formally handed the letter over.Then he disappeared into the misty rain.

Today he was at liberty.Letter? Unbelievable.Who had written to him? He pressed it with his fingers，feeling that it was thick.

The light in the corridor was dim.The old man held the letter at the proper angle，and he clearly saw the words:

To Lu Shuqing

His heart gave a small quiver，and he frowned，and slid the letter into his pocket.

It was the single letter he’d received within two years.Whoever could have had the notion to have written to him? The old man moved unsteadily inside，and in the soft light filtered through the window he opened the letter.Before his eyes unfolded row upon row of careful handwriting.

The letter was simple，written in plain language.Such letters he had had many of before.The door opened suddenly.Without thinking，he crumpled the letter in his hands.

Nobody was coming.A gust of wind had blown it open.The old man locked the door and pressed the letter smooth again.

Night.The rain stopped.All other sounds were washed out.The old man lay in bed，unable to go to sleep.He sat up with his coat over his back and read the letter again with a flashlight.

The room was hollow.Mice were chewing.The black cat was not sitting idle，either.Something rustled in the corner.When he was lonely，the noises were companionable.But tonight，perhaps because of the letter，the rustling was annoying.

The old man took out a pencil and scratched some words at the foot of the letter.He murmured to his wife:

“You go on sleeping.I’m going to the backyard.” The black cat slipped out behind him through the crack of the door，Wshhh...

How could she go to sleep?

He walked into the lake two weeks later and drowned.

Several years passed.The publishing house decided to issue his manuscripts in a collection.As the editorial staff went through his works posthumously，they discovered that he had written not a single word during that period.

The writer’s wife suddenly remembered something very strange had occurred about two weeks before his death.She led the visitors to the backyard.

Grapevines grew in a tangle over an arbor in the backyard，transparent grapes hanging still，unripe.Leaves broke the sunlight into pieces and scattered them on the ground，exaggerating the stillness of the air.

Sooo...the black cat pounced suddenly under the arbor and began pawing at the ground，presently the cat began to open and close its mouth，miaow-miaowing to its mistress.It was probably tired.

No one took much notice of it.Only the writer’s wife stepped forward slowly，and saw something wrapped up in plastic where the cat had dug.When the package was opened，there were manuscripts and a letter.On the letter were the old man’s pencilled words:

If it is possible，ask this young man to write a preface for my book，to make up for my failure to write back to him.

Lu Shuqing (Signature)

The group was moved.They all cast looks at the cat，reminded of many legends and myths about cats.

The writer’s wife picked the cat up.A large tear rolled out of her eye and dropped first on the cat’s back，then slipped to the ground and broke.

But the cat with its fur as black as coal just narrowed its eyes into slits and gazed at the ground without spirit.Obviously it had aged.

The editorial department sent the two editors in charge to the city of T overnight.Eventually they located a man who looked about forty years old，in the attic of a building according to the address on the letter.

The man was drinking.He stared at his visitors with bleary eyes.Obviously，he was drunk.

“Are you Comrade Kong Yaxue?”

The drunkard lifted the bottle and poured some wine into the bowl.The wine brimmed over and flowed onto the table.He scraped the wine from the tabletop with his hand，then nodded.

The wine dripped to the floor along the table edge without splashing.The wine was mellow.

The editors explained why they had come.

The man stood up abruptly and retreated to the window.But the strong sunlight hurt his eyes.He swung back to the table，sat down and picked up the bowl.He stared at the two visitors a long moment，and spoke one sentence:

“This man is not interested in that.”

So saying，he tripped back his head and drank up the wine.He rose unsteadily and waved his hand upward to show his visitors out.

Outside，it was raining again.

Strangely，the heavens had made this building a landmark.The old building was shrouded in rain，but not far from there the area was bathed in sunlight.In the distance，a group of new building frames were filling with layer after layer of red brick.Against them the wet sun shone through the rain.

Ah! Sunny rain.

——刘士聪、柯力诗合译

译析

刘士聪提出，“翻译文学作品的最高境界是译出原文韵味”。在翻译过程中，译者通过阅读原文，透彻理解作品的艺术内涵，然后用另一种语言将其完整地传达给读者，而读者在阅读过程中也间接地了解到原文的艺术内涵。《太阳雨》的英译文就是一篇得原文韵味的好译文，值得反复品味。

1.传译原文字词之美

《太阳雨》一个突出的特征，就是恰当地使用动词创造出生动的形象。在字词之美方面，译文也很好地再现了原文词语的韵味，请看下面的例句：

原文　闪电抽出一把锋利的刀，直捅开老天爷的肚子，掏出个响雷，扔给人世间，“咔——”一声轰响，把别的声音都暂时淹没。

译文　The lightning drew a blade that poked at heaven’s stomach，unleashing thunder，tossing it loudly to the world.Kahh-kahh...it drowned all other noises.

分析　原文很有气势，“抽出”、“捅开”、“掏出”、“扔给”、“淹没”等几个词语绘声绘色地描摹出雷雨交加的情形，而译文中相应的动词draw，poke，unleash，toss，drown也成功地描摹了这一生动形象。

原文　……老楼淋在雨中，楼的不远处，却袒露在阳光下。

译文　The old building was shrouded in rain，but not far from there，the area was bathed in sunlight.

分析　shroud一词用在这里很恰当，形象地再现了当时烟雨濛濛的场景，而bathe一词将楼寓在阳光里的坦然姿态描画得极为传神。文学翻译是一种再创作，“淋”和“袒露”的传译正体现了这一点。

2.译出原文的简约之美

人们在讨论翻译时常说，每一种语言都有各自的特点。如果运用得法，充分发挥译入语的优势，译文可以得到与原文相近的效果。《太阳雨》的语言特别简练，而译文的有些地方也同样简练。例如：

原文　纸上墨写的字被雨戏弄成花花脸，红笔写的大“X”像流血一样往下滴着红水。(www.daowen.com)

译文　The black ink characters were smeared and the red X dripped like blood.

分析　译文只用smear一词便将墨写的字被雨“戏弄成花花脸”的意境表达得淋漓尽致，如果按照字面直译，译文效果反而会减色。Dripped like blood比原文“像流血一样往下滴着红水”还要简洁。

原文　后院里，有一排葡萄架，架上藤枝交错，葡萄静静地悬着，尚未熟透，晶莹透明。

译文　Grapevines grew in a tangle over an arbor in the backyard，transparent grapes hanging still，unripe.

分析　汉语属于意合语言，英语属于形合语言，这句原文和译文明显地体现了这一区别。这句话分为两个部分：一是后院有一排枝藤交错的葡萄架，二是架上的葡萄晶莹透明。译者将原文的顺序作了调整，前者是整体，用主句表达；后者是部分，用短语表达以便分清层次。译文不仅没有丢失原文的含义，而且语言地道、简练，有意境。

值得一提的是，在传译原文的简约之美的同时，译者也考虑到了译文读者的需要。原文为求简练而有意隐含的一些信息在英译文里予以显现，有利于行文的连贯和译文读者的理解。例如：

原文　酒，漾了一桌，他又用手将浮在桌面的酒一抹，这才点了下头。

译文　The wine brimmed over and flowed onto the table.He scraped the wine from the tabletop with his hand，then nodded.

分析 “酒漾了一桌”的隐含信息是酒杯满了，而不是由于其它原因。译文中添加的brimmed over一词组传达了这一信息，使之符合上下文的逻辑，避免了行文的突兀。

3.巧妙翻译重复性短语

英汉两种语言的又一差别是，英语忌重复，而汉语并非如此。如果汉语里重复使用某个词语，在译成英语时，要么使用代词，要么用其它手段来避免重复。翻译文学作品时注意到这一点很重要，可以为译文增色。

原文　老人那张近似呆板的脸毫无表情，如铜铸一般。

“信，您的。”声音很轻。

信？老人依然毫无表情。

“信，您的。”“邮局的”重复一遍，声依然轻。

译文　...but the old man’s face bore no expression，as if he had been cast in bronze.

“Letter，yours，” the one from the post office said in a very light voice.

Letter? The old man’s face remained impassive.

“Letter，yours，” repeated the one from the post office in the identical tone.

分析　在上文这一简短的叙述中，连续出现了两个“毫无表情”和两次声音很“轻”。如果使用同样的对应词语来译，读来势必乏味。而译者将“毫无表情”分别译成bear no expression和remain impassive，不仅表现了老人收到信后感到突然，也因变换表达方式而使行文更为活泼；“声音很轻”和“声依然轻”，被分别译成in a very light voice和in the identical tone，使文章富有节奏感。

老舍先生曾说过，文学作品的妙处不仅在于它说了什么，而且在于它是怎么说的。同样，一篇好的译文，不仅在于达意，更重要的是要译出原文的韵味。从这个意义上讲，《太阳雨》的译文是成功的，值得细细揣摩。

（三）

Indian Camp

At the lake shore there was another rowboat drawn up.The two Indians stood waiting.

Nick and his father got in the stern of the boat and the Indians shoved it off and one of them got in to row.Uncle George sat in the stern of the camp rowboat.The young Indian shoved the camp boat off and got in to row Uncle George.

The two boats started off in the dark.Nick heard the oarlocks of the other boat quite a way ahead of them in the mist.The Indians rowed with quick choppy strokes.Nick lay back with his father’s arm around him.It was cold on the water.The Indian who was rowing them was working very hard，but the other boat moved further ahead in the mist all the time.

“Where are we going，Dad?” Nick asked.

“Over to the Indian camp.There is an Indian lady very sick.”

“Oh，” said Nick.

Across the bay they found the other boat beached.Uncle George was smoking a cigar in the dark.The young Indian pulled the boat way up the beach.Uncle George gave both the Indians cigars.

They walked up from the beach through a meadow that was soaking wet with dew，following the young Indian who carried a lantern.Then they went into the woods and followed a trail that led to the logging road that ran back into the hills.It was much lighter on the logging road as the timber was cut away on both sides.The young Indian stopped and blew out his lantern and they all walked on along the road.

They came around a bend and a dog came out barking.Ahead were the lights of the　shanties where the Indian bark-peelers lived.More dogs rushed out at them.The two Indians sent them back to the shanties.In the shanty nearest the road there was a light in the window.An old woman stood in the doorway holding a lamp.

Inside on a wooden bunk lay a young Indian woman.She had been trying to have her baby for two days.All the old women in the camp had been helping her.The men had moved off up the road to sit in the dark and smoke out of range of the noise she made.She screamed just as Nick and the two Indians followed his father and Uncle George into the shanty.She lay in the lower bunk，very big under a quilt.Her head was turned to one side.In the upper bunk was her husband.He had cut his foot very badly with an ax three days before.He was smoking a pipe.The room smelled very bad.

Nick’s father ordered some water to be put on the stove，and while it was heating he spoke to Nick.

“This lady is going to have a baby，Nick，” he said.

“I know，” said Nick.

“You don’t know，” said his father.“Listen to me.What she is going through is called being in labor.The baby wants to be born and she wants it to be born.All her muscles are trying to get the baby born.That is what is happening when she screams.”

“I see，” Nick said.

Just then the woman cried out.

“Oh Daddy，can’t you give her something to make her stop screaming?” asked Nick.

“No.I haven’t any anesthetic，” his father said.“But her screams are not important.I don’t hear them because they are not important.”

The husband in the upper bunk rolled over against the wall.

The woman in the kitchen motioned to the doctor that the water was hot.Nick’s father went into the kitchen and poured about half of the water out of the big kettle into a basin.Into the water left in the kettle he put several things he unwrapped from a handkerchief.

“Those must boil，” he said，and began to scrub his hands in the basin of hot water with a cake of soap he had brought from the camp.Nick watched his father’s hands scrubbing each other with the soap.While his father washed his hands very carefully and thoroughly，he talked.

“You see，Nick，babies are supposed to be born head first but sometimes they’re not.When they’re not they make a lot of trouble for everybody.Maybe I’ll have to operate on this lady.We’ll know in a little while.”

When he was satisfied with his hands he went in and went to work.

“Pull back that quilt，will you，George?” he said.“I’d rather not touch it.”

Later when he started to operate Uncle George and three Indian men held the woman still.She bit Uncle George on the arm and Uncle George said，“Damn squaw bitch!” and the young Indian who had rowed Uncle George over laughed at him.Nick held the basin for his father.It all took a long time.

His father picked the baby up and slapped it to make it breathe and handed it to the old woman.

“See，it’s a boy，Nick，” he said.“How do you like being an interne?”

Nick said，“All right.” He was looking away so as not to see what his father was doing.

“There.That gets it，” said his father and put something into the basin.

Nick didn’t look at it.

“Now，” his father said，“there’s some stitches to put in.You can watch this or not，Nick，just as you like.I’m going to sew up the incision I made.”

Nick did not watch.His curiosity had been gone for a long time.

His father finished and stood up.Uncle George and the three Indian men stood up.Nick put the basin out in the kitchen.

Uncle George looked at his arm.The young Indian smiled reminiscently.

“I’ll put some peroxide on that，George，” the doctor said.

He bent over the Indian woman.She was quiet now and her eyes were closed.She looked very pale.She did not know what had become of the baby or anything.

“I’ll be back in the morning，” the doctor said，standing up.“The nurse should be here from St.Ignace by noon and she’ll bring everything we need.”

He was feeling exalted and talkative as football players are in the dressing room after a game.

“That’s one for the medical journal，George，” he said.“Doing a Caesarian with a jack-knife and sewing it up with nine-foot，tapered gut leaders.”

Uncle George was standing against the wall，looking at his arm.

“Oh，you’re a great man，all right，” he said.

“Ought to have a look at the proud father.They’re usually the worst sufferers in these little affairs，” the doctor said.“I must say he took it all pretty quietly.”

He pulled back the blanket from the Indian’s head.His hand came away wet.He mounted on the edge of the lower bunk with the lamp in one hand and looked in.The Indian lay with his face toward the wall.His throat had been cut from ear to ear.The blood had flowed down into a pool where his body sagged the bunk.His head rested on his left arm.The open razor lay，edge up，in the blankets.

“Take Nick out of the shanty，George，” the doctor said.

There was no need of that.Nick standing in the door of the kitchen，had a good view of the upper bunk when his father，the lamp in one hand，tipped the Indian’s head back.

It was just beginning to be daylight when they walked along the logging road back toward the lake.

“I’m terribly sorry I brought you along，Nickie，” said his father，all his post-operative exhilaration gone.“It was an awful mess to put you through.

“Do ladies always have such a hard time having babies?” Nick asked.

“No，that was very，very exceptional.”

“Why did he kill himself，Daddy?”

“I don’t know，Nick.He couldn’t stand things，I guess.”

Do many men kill themselves，Daddy?”

“Not very many，Nick.”

“Do many women?”

“Hardly ever.”

Don’t they ever?”

“Oh，yes.They do sometimes.”

“Daddy?”

“Yes.”

“Where did Uncle George go?”

“He’ll turn up all right.”

“Is dying hard，Daddy?”

“No，I think it’s pretty easy.Nick.It all depends.”

They were seated in the boat，Nick in the stern，his father rowing.The sun was coming up over the hills.A bass jumped，making a circle in the water.Nick trailed his hand in the water.It felt warm in the sharp chill of the morning.

In the early morning on the lake sitting in the stern of the boat with his father rowing，he felt quite sure that he would never die.

——Ernest Hemingway

译文

印第安寨子

湖畔还有一只小船停泊着。两个印第安人站在那里等候。

尼克和他的父亲登上船尾后，两个印第安人把船往水里一推，其中一个人就上船去摇桨。乔治大叔坐在寨子那只小船的船尾上。那个年轻的印第安人将船推开后就跳上去为乔治大叔划起船来。

两只小船在苍茫夜色中出发了。寨子的那只小船远远地冲在前面，暮霭中尼克可以听到那船桨和桨架的撞击声。两个印第安人手摇船桨轻快地拍打着水面。尼克躺着，父亲用一只胳膊搂着他。水面上很凉。虽然划船的印第安人拼命追赶，前面的小船在夜雾中却越划越远。

“我们上哪儿去呀，爸爸？”尼克问。

“到对面印第安人的寨子里。那儿有个印第安妇女病得很厉害。”

“噢，”尼克答道。

从湖湾的水面远远望去，他们看见前面的那只船已经停泊在湖滩上。乔治大叔正摸着黑吸雪茄烟。那个年轻的印第安人将船拉到远离水面的沙滩上。乔治大叔给两个印第安人各递了一支雪茄。

他们一行跟着提灯笼的印第安小伙子离开湖滩，走进一片露水打湿的草地，然后进了一个小树林，再沿着一条小路朝通往山里的运木材的大路走去。路两旁的树木都已被砍伐，大路显得亮堂多了。年轻的印第安人停了一下，吹灭了灯笼，然后大家沿着大路继续向前走去。

他们刚拐了一个弯，一条狗忽然跳出来，朝他们汪汪乱叫。再往前就看见从剥树皮的印第安工人居住的小棚屋里透出来的灯光了。又有几条狗朝他们冲过来。两个印第安人把它们赶了回去。紧靠近大路有一间小屋，窗子里透出闪闪发亮的灯光。一个老妇人正站在门口，手里端着一盏灯。

屋里的一张双层床上躺着年轻的印第安产妇。已经两天了，孩子还没生下来。寨子里的老年妇女们都在帮她。男人们则躲到远远地大路旁边，抹黑坐着吸烟，在那里他们听不见她的呻吟。尼克和两个印第安人跟着他父亲和乔治大叔走进小屋，产妇就尖着嗓子叫起来了。她躺在下层床上，身上盖着被子，肚子显得格外大。她的头歪在一边。上层床上躺着她的丈夫。三天前他被一把斧头砍伤了脚，伤势很重。他正吸着烟斗，屋里的气味非常难闻。

尼克的父亲叫人在炉子上烧点水，趁煮水的时候，他对尼克说：

“尼克，这个妇女要生娃娃了。”

“我知道，”尼克说。

“你并不知道，”父亲说，“听我说，你看她现在折腾得很痛苦吧，这就叫做分娩。娃娃想出生，她也想把娃娃生出来。她全身的肌肉都在使劲，要把娃娃生出来。她尖着嗓子喊叫的时候，就是因为这个。”

“噢，是这样！”尼克说。

正在这时，产妇又叫了起来。

“啊，爸爸，你不能给她点药，让她别叫吗？”尼克问道。

“唉，我一点麻药也没有。”他的父亲说。“她叫喊几声不要紧，正因为不要紧我才不理会呢。”

躺在上床的丈夫翻了一个身儿，身子紧靠着墙躺着。

厨房里的那个妇女向医生做手势告诉他水已经烧热了。尼克的父亲走进厨房将大水壶中约一半的水倒进水盆里，又打开手帕拿出几样东西放进壶中剩下的水里。

“这几样东西得煮开，”他说，然后便用从寨里带来的肥皂在热水盆里洗手。尼克目不转睛地盯着父亲用肥皂揉搓着双手。他父亲一边仔细地、一丝不苟地洗手，一边说：

“你知道，尼克，婴儿出生时应该是头先出来，可有时也不一定。要不是头先出来，那就给大家找麻烦啦。说不定我得给这位妇人做手术呢，等一会儿就知道了。”

他洗好了收，就进屋开始工作了。

“乔治，把她的被子拉开好吗？”他说。“我可不想碰上被子。”

过了一会儿，他开始做手术时，乔治大叔和三个印第安男人一齐按住产妇，不让她动。她朝乔治大叔的胳膊咬了一口。乔治大叔骂道：“该死的印第安母狗！”给乔治大叔划船的那个印第安小伙子在一旁笑。尼克给父亲端着水盆。手术进行很长时间。

尼克的父亲将婴儿拾起来，用手拍打着叫他呼吸。然后把他递给了那个老妇人。

“瞧，尼克，还是个男孩，”他说。“原意当见习医生吗？”

“行，”尼克说，可是他的眼睛却往别处瞅，不想看见父亲在干什么。

“啊，好了，”他父亲说着将些什么东西放进盆里。尼克没有看。

“瞧，”他父亲说，“还得缝上几针。尼克，你想看就看，不想看就别看，随便吧，我要把刚才划的切口缝上。”

尼克没有看。他的好奇心早已烟消云散了。

父亲缝好了，直起身子来。乔治大叔和那三个印第安男人也直起了身子。尼克把水盆端进厨房里。

乔治大叔看了看自己的胳膊。那个印第安人青年想起刚才他被咬的情景，会意地笑了。

“乔治，来，我给你的伤口涂点过氧化氢吧，”医生说。

他弯下腰看了看印第安产妇。她现在安静了，眼睛紧闭着，脸色苍白。她不知道新生儿怎样了，什么也不知道了。

“我早晨再来吧，”医生说着站起来。“从圣伊格纳斯来的护士应该中午以前到这儿，她会把我们需要的东西她带来的。”

此时他很兴奋，也很健谈，就像刚踢完一场球赛到更衣室去换衣服的足球运动员似的。

“乔治，这个手术可以上医药杂志了，”他说。“瞧，只用一把折刀就做剖宫产，又用九英尺长的一头粗一头细的钓鱼线就缝合了切口！”

乔治大叔正背靠墙站着，还在看他的胳膊。

“嗬，你真了不起，了不起！”他说。

“应该看看自豪的父亲啦！遇到这种事儿，做父亲的往往最受罪了，”医生说。“应该说，他表现够沉着的。”

他一掀开这个印第安人头上的毯子，立刻把手缩了回来，满手湿漉漉的。他登上下层的床沿，端着灯朝里瞧。印第安人面对着墙壁躺着。他已经从耳根到耳根把喉咙割断了。在他身体把床板压低的地方，流满了血。他的头枕在左臂上。一把打开的剃刀，刀刃朝上裹在毯子里。

“乔治，快把尼克带到外面去，”医生说。

没有必要了，尼克正站在厨房门口；他父亲一手端着灯一手把那个印第安人的头扳过来时，床上的一切，他早已看得一清二楚了。

他们沿着运木材的大路走回湖边时，天已破晓。

“尼克，真后悔把你也带来了！”父亲说，这时他做完手术后的兴奋情绪已经无影无踪。“刚才你看到的情况太糟糕了！”

“女人生孩子总是这么受罪吗？”尼克问。

“不，这是一个非常非常特殊的病例。”

“他为什么要自杀呢，爸爸？”

“不知道，尼克，我想他是忍受不了了。”

“很多男人都自杀吗，爸爸？”

“不是很多，尼克。”

“很多女人都自杀吗？”

“几乎没有。”

“她们从来不自杀吗？”

“噢，不。她们有时也自杀。”

“爸爸？”

“是嗯？”

“乔治大叔到哪儿去了？”

“他会回来的。”

“死很难吗？爸爸？”

“不，我想很容易，尼克。那要看情况。”

他们已经坐在小船里了：尼克在船尾，他父亲摇着桨。太阳已经爬上小山。一条鲈鱼跳起来，水面上泛起一圈圈波纹。尼克把一只手伸到水里让它随船漂流。在料峭的晨寒里，湖水是温暖的。

在清晨的湖面上，尼克坐在船尾，他父亲为他摇着桨，他心里很有把握，他是永远不会死的。

——刘士聪译

译析

对于海明威的小说，译者自然是不乏其人。本篇的译者在1981年翻译的《印第安寨子》，则是其中十分出色的一篇。这个短篇讲的是这样一个故事：一个白人医生带着儿子尼克去印第安寨子里为一位难产的印第安妇女接生，孩子生下来了，她的丈夫却不堪其苦而自杀了。提起海明威的写作风格，简洁含蓄自然是译文要传达的第一要领。除此之外，这篇译文还有以下几点值得注意。

1.以动词求生动

动词能使译文生动，在形容词和副词特别少见的海明威式文体中，动词的使用特别重要。同时，汉语动词出现频率高也使得译文的动词多于原文动词。这不是加词减词的翻译技巧在起作用，而是带有某种修辞性质的文学翻译的必然要求。对照下列一段文字，即可看出有些动词是原文所有的，有的是转化而来的，有的则是译文自己带出来的：

原文　Inside on a wooden bunk lay a young Indian woman.She had been trying to have her baby for two days.All the old women in the camp had been helping her.The men had moved off up the road to sit in the dark and smoke out of range of the noise she made.She screamed just as Nick and the two Indians followed his father and Uncle George into the shanty.She lay in the lower bunk，very big under a quilt.Her head was turned to one side.In the upper bunk was her husband.

译文　屋里的一张双层床上躺着年轻的印第安产妇。已经两天了，孩子还没生下来。寨子里的老年妇女们都在帮她。男人们则躲到远远的大路旁边，摸黑坐着吸烟，在那里他们听不见她的呻吟。尼克和两个印第安人跟着他父亲和乔治大叔刚走进小屋，产妇就尖着嗓子叫起来了。她躺在下层床上，身上盖着被子，肚子显得格外大。她的头歪在一边。上层床上躺着她的丈夫。

2.巧妙操纵语义场

特定语境中的语义场构成人际交往双方能够沟通的语言学基础。在文学作品中，由于作者和读者的关系通过文本的中介作用间接化了，语义场的作用就显得愈加重要了。作品中有一个段落，围绕生孩子的说法，有专业术语“分娩”，有方言“生娃娃”的各种变体“娃娃想出生”，产妇“想把娃娃生出来”，“要把娃娃生出来”等等。译文一方面系参照英文说法，如being in labor，the baby wants to be born，she wants it to be born，to get the baby born等而寻找到的相应的汉语表达，一方面也是对汉语“生孩子”的方言化处理“生娃娃”的各种变体的灵活构成和恰当应用。一个值得注意的现象是：在围绕中心词语构思译文的时候，靠近边缘的说法也是参照这一中心话语进行构建的。例如，“折腾”，“使劲”，在英文中是很难找到直接对应的说法的。“Listen to me.What she is going through is called being in labor.”（听我说，你看她现在折腾得很痛苦吧，这就叫做分娩。）“All her muscles are trying to get the baby born.”（她全身的肌肉都在使劲，要把娃娃生出来。）这样，当尼克的父亲给他讲述眼前发生的事情的时候，读者听到的就不仅是英文词句的机械翻译，而是汉语说话的真实演示了。

3.变通以达意

变通译法在文学翻译中运用甚广，其作用也是各种各样。下面列出一些例句，并给出若干提示，以见其功能：

原文　She had been trying to have her baby for two days.

译文　已经两天了，孩子还没生下来。（反译）

原文　You can watch this or not，Nick，just as you like.

译文　尼克，你想看就看，不想看就别看。（重复）

原文　He bent over the India woman.

译文　他弯下腰看了看印第安产妇。（引申）

原文　The young Indian smiled reminiscently.

译文　那个印第安青年想起刚才他被咬的情景，会意地笑了。（加词）

原文　While his father washed his hands very carefully and thoroughly，he talked.

译文　他父亲一边仔细地、一丝不苟地洗手，一边说。（链接）

原文　Later when he started to operate Uncle George and three Indian men held the woman still.

译文　过了一会儿，他开始做手术时，乔治大叔和三个印第安男人一齐按住产妇，不让她动。（归化）

4.谋求篇章的连贯

流畅是一切翻译的共同要求，但是达到流畅的途径却是多重的。一个重要的途径是连贯。通过连贯达到流畅，其中必然还有其他方面的因素，例如，语序的调整，词义的变通，指称的匹配，句子的连接等。下面一段文字，需要仔细地比较，才能看出多种手法的综合运用是谋求连贯的译文的必由之路。而连贯，就是流畅——除了流畅本身的效果而外。

原文　They walked up from the beach through a meadow that was soaking wet with dew，following the young Indian who carried a lantern.Then they went into the woods and followed a trail that led to the logging road that ran back into the hills.It was much lighter on the logging road as the timber was cut away on both sides.The young Indian stopped and blew out his lantern and they all walked on along the road.

译文　他们一行跟着提灯笼的印第安小伙子离开湖滩，走进一片被露水打湿的草地，然后进了一个小树林，再沿着一条小路朝通往山里的运木材的大路走去。路两旁的树木已被砍伐，大路显得亮堂多了。年轻的印第安人停了下来，吹灭灯笼，然后大家沿着大路继续向前走去。

然而，英文有英文的连贯和流畅，中文有中文的连贯和流畅。虽然二者都要服从一种更加根本的事物的顺序和叙事的逻辑，毕竟译文有的地方还是不能够像读英文原文和汉语原作一样一目十行，气韵通畅。其中一个十分重要的因素常常被人们忽略，那就是人称指代（尤其是第三人称单数）关系在叙述中所起的作用。即便是一成不变地照翻不误，有时也难免有迷失的感觉。例如，在《印第安寨子》的开头，大概只读一遍是不大容易弄清楚，尼克和他父亲坐一只船，乔治大叔另坐一只船，两只船（其中有一只是寨子里的船）各由一个印第安人（其中一个是年轻人）划着向印第安寨子驶去的。而在全篇小说的结尾，当我们读到“在清晨的湖面上，尼克坐在船尾，他父亲为他摇着桨”，要是不仔细琢磨，也许会迷惑，下一句究竟是谁“心里很有把握”，又是谁“永远不会死的”。也许，按照英文句子主语是语义中心的语法概念来理解，最后一句英文本来是不应有什么歧义的；而汉语的语法并没有这样的约定，于是产生歧义，就是不可避免的了吧。