美文赏析:读书

这里是一段关于读书的短文,英文句子简洁,内容丰富。汉语译文基本将原文的意思表达出来了,无论是从短文的风格,还是句式的使用以及选词上都很恰当。无论是英文还是中文都值得我们欣赏、学习。

A book is like a big family--a family of ideas. And reading books, like visiting relatives and friends,can enlarge our ideological circle. Generally,a book embodies a perfect blend of the objective and subjective worlds. It also forges a strong link between the past,the present and future. Therefore, reading enables us to find out about the world and ourselves. Unfortunately,we have become more habituated to watching TV than to reading books. With more picture than point, TV diverts to recreation, a screening out any real thinking. People used to dress themselves in aesthetic costumes of a good reader. But now, many would easily turn up their noses. As height lends the view breadth, so reading gives our thought depth. To be frank,we don't have to improve our reading as a way of life; rather,we should have it as a way to improve our life.

一本书就像一个大家庭,思想内容汇聚一堂。看书就像走亲访友,认识圈子不断增强。每本书都是物与我的交融;每本书都是过去、现在和未来的纽带。看书不仅能洞察世界,而且能洞察自己。现在看电视的人多了,看书的人少了。随着节目越来越娱乐化,电视屏蔽了严肃的思考。过去的人即便看书不多,也会修饰得不乏品味。现在的人却常常对书籍不屑一顾。登高利于远望,看书利于深思。其实,看书并不一定要看成我们的生活方式,但是看书却一定有助于改变我们的生活方式。

短语a family of ideas翻译成“思想内容汇聚一堂”。blend of objective and subjective worlds可以翻译成“客观世界和主观世界的融合”,但引申译成“物与我的交融”更好。forge的词典意思是“锻造”,直译会造成汉语语句不通,翻译成“是”字很合适。

第五句reading enables us to find out about the world and ourselves增加了连词“不仅……而且”,译成“看书不仅能洞察世界,而且能洞察自己”要比翻译成“看书能让我们发现世界和我们自己”更生动。

在翻译原句With more picture than point,TV diverts to recreation, a screening out any real thinking时,省译介词短语with more picture than point,并将real thinking 译成“严肃思考”。

原句People used to dress themselves in aesthetic costumes of a good reader翻译成“过去的人即便看书不多,也会修饰的不乏品味”,是非常好的译文,一方面把英语句子真正要表达的意思完完全全地表达出来了,另一方面从选词上也很出色。

在翻译As height lends the view breadth, so reading gives our thought depth时,汉语译文中省掉了原文中的连接词as和so,这样很符合汉语意合的表达习惯。动词lend和give都译成了“利于”。

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