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Interpretation is not Easy
2008-10-20 09:48  Department of Foreign Affairs

　　口译不容易，在非英语环境生活的译员做汉英口译尤其如此，总担心自己的译文不够清楚地道，外国人听不明白，要把汉语的语气表达出来那就难上加难了。怎么办呢？只有靠不断积累，平时遇到各种翻译问题，记在心里，然后带着疑问大量阅读英语报纸悉心钻研英语为母语的人士的演讲稿（有行家建议每周研读两篇），这比泛泛地阅读效果好得多。日积月累坚持下去，一定会有提高的。否则，日复一日，年复一年，口译水平一直原地踏步。曾经就听到某外办老翻译将“经济建设”还是译为economic construction。对某些固定的译法进行反思推陈出新是必要的。

　　这里举一个例子，08年政府工作报告结尾部分有一句话，前景无限美好。查英文译文译为the future holds even brighter prospects。估计译者在翻译这句话的时候没动脑子，抄了过去的译法。这个译法其实不好，软绵绵的/没有力度。中国人在文章或演讲结尾部分经常会有类似的话，表达对未来的信心。可能中国人觉得这话有点陈词滥调，但英文译得好还是很出彩的。例如，佐立克在接受布什总统提名担任世行行长的演讲中就说I believe that the World Bank's best days are still to come。借鉴这种说法，政府工作报告里那句话（或者其它场合类似的话）可以译为：The best days of China are still/yet to come。至少笔者觉得这句话比原来的译文好很多。

　　网上查了一下，发现best days这种说法相当普遍。例如克林顿在他的告别演说结尾处就说As for me, I'll leave the presidency more idealistic, more full of hope than the day I arrived and more confident than ever that America's best days lie ahead. 里根总统在1984年的国情咨文演说中也说I've never felt more strongly that America's best days and democracy's best days lie ahead. 和lie ahead对应的是behind。看到《外交》杂志上Fareed Zakaria一篇文章中有这样一句话：In fact, by 1897, Britain's best years were already behind it。

　　再联想到邱吉尔的著名演说Their Finest Hour，上句话的译文可以更进一步，译为：The finest hour of China is still/yet to come。Finest hour这种说法至今还在用，比如英国自行车队在北京奥运会狂揽8金之后，Time一篇文章的标题就是Finest hour? Britain's wide ride in Beijing。

　　啰里啰嗦这么多，一句话，口笔译需要结合起来。整天闷在屋子里翻稿子，不了解实际场合语言的使用情况，翻译出来的文字难免会是干巴巴的。为了抛砖引玉，再举几个最近收集的老话新译的例子，欢迎大家指正：

清醒地认识到
旧译：be fully aware that/fully recognize that
新译：do not blind us to the fact that

团结
旧译：united/act as one
新译：come together
例：Starting this weekend and over the next 16 days, the world will have another reason to come together to share common emotions.

奠定基础
旧译：lay a foundation for
新译：anchor
例1：This restoration of democracy in Pakistan creates an opportunity for us to build the lasting and broad-based partnership that we have never achieved with this nation, thereby enhancing our security and anchoring the success of our values in a troubled region.
例2：But the United States believed that only a democratic Germany could ultimately anchor a lasting peace in Europe.

剑清

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