2012年7月6日 星期五

我自己做的翻譯「一鳴驚人」

一鳴驚人從前有一個叫淳于髨的人,人很幽默,口才又好, 常會用有趣的暗話來勸告君王,使君王樂於接受勸諫而不生氣。

There once was a man named Chun Yu-Kun, a quite humorous and eloquent man, who often used interesting words with hidden meanings to exhort noblemen, enabling them to take delight in accepting the advice without incurring their anger.

齊威王是一位有才智的君王,但即位後卻沉迷於酒色,不管國家大事,弄得朝中官吏們懶散又不負責任,各國諸侯也來侵犯。

Qi Wei-Wang was a wise and able king. However, after taking the throne, he nonetheless became absorbed in wine and women, neglecting to manage the important affairs of the kingdom—so much so that his officers became indolent and shirked their responsibilities. Even the feudal princes of nearby countries began to encroach upon the kingdom.

威王喜歡用間接的比喻來說名事物,藉以表現他的聰明才智。淳于髨知道這點,就打算用這個方法來勸諫他。

Wei-Wang liked to use indirect metaphors when explaining matters so as to demonstrate his intelligence and wit. Chen Yu-Kun knew this about Wei-Wang, and thus planned to use this method to counsel him.

有一天,淳于髨去見威王,對他說。。「大王, 有個謎語想請您猜猜看。。都城中有隻大鳥,住在宮廷理已足足三年,既不振翅飛翔,也不鳴叫。請問大王您知不知道這是什麼鳥呢?」

One day Chen Yu-Kun went to see Wei-Wang, telling him, "Great King, here is a riddle that I would like you to try to guess: In the midst of the city walls there was a great bird. This bird had lived at the palace for 3 years, but had not as yet flapped it wings to take flight, nor had it ever chirped. Please tell me, Your Majesty, do you know what bird this is?"

威王聽了,知道這番話是在諷刺自己,於是對淳于髨說。。「這隻鳥不飛便罷,一飛就衝上雲霄。。不叫則已,一叫就使眾人驚異。」

Wei-Wang listened, discerning that he himself was being satirized by the riddle. Therefore, he said to Chun Yu-Kun, "This bird did not fly then stop; as soon as it began to fly, it then soared to the heavens. This bird did not chirp then cease; as soon as it began to sing it amazed everyone."

從比,威王便開始整頓齊國,不久,國家果然強盛了起來。

From then on, Wei-Wang started to rectify the situation in the Kingdom. Indeed, not long thereafter the country came to grow mighty and prosperous.