Summer in Western Europe
Summer in Western Europe
Wu Guanzhong
Yu Guangzhong
| Translated from Zhang Peiji's " "Selected Chinese Prose in English Translation 2"
Passengers seem to be very relaxed people, but in fact they are quite hard-working. Passengers don't have to go to work, but they must be constrained by time; they can do whatever they want, but they must be limited by their wallets; they can go wherever they want, but they must carry a few pieces of luggage with them like snail shells. A traveler's worst nightmare is to lose his money and documents together and become a beggar of unknown origin. The most difficult thing for tourists to grasp is the weather.
Light-hearted as he seems
a traveler is in fact under great stress. Though on vacation
he is nevertheless subject to the restraint of time. He can do whatever he likes on the trip
but he has to keep the expenditure within the limits of his pocket. Wherever he goes
he has to take with him his cumbersome hand luggage. He faces the most horrible possibility of losing his money and credentials
which will reduce himself to a pauper of unknown background. And
besides
he can never be sure of the weather.
Key points:
1. "Travellers seem to be very relaxed people, but in fact they are quite hard-working." Translated as Light-hearted as he seems
a traveler is in fact under great stress. Among them, "relaxed" can also be translated as jyous joyful cheerful, etc., but light-hearted has the meaning of carefree (carefree), which is more suitable for the context. "hard-hearted" "Here is "in a state of tension" is translated as under great stress. It is in contrast to the previous Light-hearted. Also note that this sentence uses the third person pronoun "he" to refer to the "passenger", which shortens the distance with the reader.
2. "Tourists don't have to go to work" means "Travellers are on vacation" or "Even on vacation" is translated as Though on vacation/vacationing. It is more accurate than the literal translation of though he doesn’t go to work.
3
"You can do whatever you like, but you must be limited by your wallet" is translated as He can do whatever he likes on the trip
but he has to keep the expenditure within the limits of his pocket, "limited by..." = within the limitation of...
4
"Snail shell general" The translator only takes its essence The meaning is translated as cumbersome, which is concise and vivid.
5. "Become a beggar of unknown origin" is translated as which will reduce himself to a pauper of unknown background. Among them, reduce to has been seen countless times in "I took a wooden boat" and other articles. This is Let’s focus on the translation of “unknown background”. In addition to being translated as…of unknown background, it can also be translated as unidentifiable…
Summary: What is worth noting in this paragraph is that the original text uses three consecutive parallel sentences to explain Restrictions travelers will encounter while traveling. The translation did not completely follow the same parallelism structure, but translated the three parallel sentences into three single sentences, all with "he" as the subject. Avoiding repetition of sentence patterns also ensures that the translation and the original text have a basic correspondence in structure and content.
I am such a traveler now. Traveling from the southern tip of Spain to the northern tip of the UK, I have experienced various climates and have reached a state where the cold and heat are not intrusive. At the moment, I am sitting in a hotel converted from a medieval castle, writing for readers. It has just dawned, and under the wet gray clouds are the wild forests of central Scotland, and beyond the forests are the faint green mountains. It was cold at dawn, so I sat in a stone wall that was about a foot thick, wearing a sweater. If I wanted to walk down the long spiral staircase like walking down the bowels of an old castle, and go for a stroll on the wild path down the slope, I would have to go for a walk. Put on a thick enough coat.
That's what I'm like now. I've traveled all the way from the southern tip of Spain to the northern tip of England
experiencing a variety of climates until I've bee apathetic to the elements. I'm now sitting in a medieval castle turned hotel
writing an article for my readers. The day is just dawning. In Central Scotland
there lies under the gray wet clouds a wild wooded region
beyond which a green mountain stands faintly visible. In the chilly air of the early morning
I have to be dressed in a woolen sweater while sitting on a stone wall one foot on thickness. But I need
in addition
an outer garment to keep me warm in case I e down the spiral staircase—the intestines of the castle— to take a stroll along an unfrequented path down the mountain slope in search of secluded places of quiet beauty.
Key points:
1. "The cold and heat will not invade" that is, it is suitable for all kinds of weather "Don't care anymore" or "adapted to all kinds of weather", translated as I've bee apathetic to the elements or be indifferent to the change of weather.
2
"A medieval castle turned hotel" is translated as a medieval castle turned hotel
turned is the past participle of the intransitive verb turn, used as adj.
3. "Just Dawn" is translated as The day is just dawning. Dawn can also be used as a verb.
It means "beginning; dawn, dawn" such as: The morning dawn fresh and clear after the storm.
The next day dawn somber and gloomy
4. "Wet gray clouds" "Below are the wild forests of central Scotland, and beyond are the faint green hills" translated as In Central Scotland
there lies under the gray wet clouds a wild wooded region
beyond which a green mountain stands faintly visible. There are two subjects in these two clauses, and there are many modifying elements. It seems confusing at first glance, but after a brief analysis, it can be understood that "forest" is the core word and should be the subject; "under the wet gray clouds" ""Central Scotland" is used as an adverbial, which is translated as In Central Scotland and under the gray wet clouds respectively, and is placed at the beginning and middle of the sentence; "Beyond the forest are the faint green mountains" is translated as Dingcong, postposition, that is, beyond which a green mountain stands faintly visible.
5. One foot on thickness = one foot on thickness
In the chilly air of the morning early morning
6. "Going down the long spiral staircase is like walking down the intestines of an ancient castle". It is a bit cumbersome to directly translate "as or like" into "the intestines of the ancient castle". The translator directly translated "the intestines of the ancient castle" into "the long spiral staircase". The appositive of "ladder" simplifies the sentence structure and also conveys the meaning of the original text.
7. "Wild path" generally means "a sparsely traveled path" or "a deserted path", which is translated as an unfrequented path.
"Xunyou" means "looking for quiet beauty" is translated as in search of secluded places of quiet beauty.
Summary:
In this paragraph, please pay attention to "The dawn cold is coming, I am sitting in a stone wall about a foot thick, wearing a sweater" can easily be translated into prose , the translator translated it as In the chilly air of the early morning
I have to be dressed in a woolen sweater while sitting on a stone wall one foot on thickness. Avoid this.
From the definition of Taiwan, there is almost no summer in Western Europe. Cicadas in the day and frogs in the night, sweating profusely, this is summer in Taiwan. In big cities in Western Europe, such as Paris and London, walking under the sun in mid-July will only make you feel warm and comfortable without sweating. Hotels and cars in Western Europe are generally not equipped with air conditioning, because even if it is hot, it will be over in a few days, and it is not worth the trouble to escape the heat. I have rented cars for long-distance travel in Spain, France, the UK and other places, but the cars have no air conditioning and can only be fanned.
By Taiwan standards
Western Europe has practically no summer at all. Summer in Taiwan is characterized by man's copious perspiration as well as daytime chirping of cicadas and nighty croaking of frogs while in big European cities
like Paris and London
the mid-July temperature is so moderate and fortable that none sweat even in the sun. Hotels and cars in Western Europe are usually not air-conditioned because hot days are so few that people don't bother about having a cooler. The cars I hired for long-distance driving in Spain
France and England had fans
but no air -conditioning.
Key points:
1. "From the definition of Taiwan," that is, "by Taiwan's standards" is translated as By Taiwan standards.
2. "Sweat profusely" = copious perspiration (a lot of sweat beads)
3
"Day cicada and night frog" means "can hear cicadas during the day" "Crying, you can hear frogs croaking at night." In order to keep the sentence structure consistent, the translator here translated it as "the cicadas chirping during the day and the frogs croaking at night" = daytime chirping (chirping) of cicadas and nightly croaking (wow wow) sound) of frogs, making the sentence structure more concise, and the use of onomatopoeia also adds a lot of color to the translation.
4. "I only feel warm and comfortable, but don't sweat" causal relationship.
5. "They are usually not air-conditioned" means "are not equipped with air-conditioning", so the translation is "are usually not air-conditioned", in which the translator of "not equipped with air-conditioning" flexibly changed "to be equipped with air-conditioning" It is converted into the form of be done, and the word "no air-conditioning" that appears later is translated as no air-conditioning. Air-conditioning here is used as a noun "air-conditioning system" or "air-conditioning equipment".
Summary: Pay attention to the fifth point of omitting verbs in translation.
The so-called summer in Paris is like the late night in Taipei. When you go out on the street in the morning and evening, the cool breeze blows on your elbows, and a sweater is not enough to keep out the cold. If you walk along the Seine River, the wind and moisture will make you need a windbreaker. It's warm in the afternoon, so a single layer of clothing is enough, but once I step into the shadow of a building or in the shade of a tree, I feel like a single layer of clothing is too thin. The ground is like this, but the underground is different. The underground trains in Paris are better than those in New York, London, and Madrid, but they are so hot and stuffy that you can hardly wear a sweater. Therefore, it is quite troublesome to put on and take off clothes on and off the ground.
The climate of Paris in summer is like that of Taipei at night. When you go out on an early morning or late evening
your woolen sweater will be hardly warm enough to keep out the nip in the air. When you walk along the Seine
where it is even chillier due to the strong wind coupled with the cold waters
you have to wear a windcheater. Then< /p>
all you need is just an unlined garment in the afternoon when it is warm
but you'll feel like putting on more when you are under the shade of buildings or trees. That's all for things aboveground. Now things underground. The subway of Paris is better than that of New York
London or Madrid
but it is so hot and stuffy that you feel like taking off your woolen sweater. Consequently you'll be annoyed by having to don or doff your clothes now and then
depending on whether you're aboveground or underground.
Key Points:
1. "If you walk along the Seine, the wind and moisture will make you need a windbreaker." Translated as When you walk along the Seine
where it is even chillier due to the strong wind coupled with the cold waters
you have to wear a windcheater. Among them, "wind plus water vapor" is the state of "beside the Seine River", so it is modified with a clause introducing where, and "more "Need to wear" is translated according to the meaning of "not allowed to wear", which can be regarded as consistent with the original meaning.
2. then connects the previous and the following, with no actual meaning
3. "The ground is like this, but the underground is different." Translated as That's all for things aboveground. Now things underground. Agree... is one thing and…is another.
4. "You feel like putting on more" and "You feel like taking off your woolen sweater" and "You'll feel like putting on more" and "You feel like taking off your woolen sweater" respectively. "Thin" means "want to wear more", and "cannot wear" means "want to take it off". These two words are difficult to translate, but the translator grasped their essential meaning and accurately expressed the meaning of the original text with a feel like .
5. “So it’s quite troublesome to put on and take off clothes on and off the ground.
"Translated as Consequently you'll be annoyed by having to don or doff your clothes now and then
depending on whether you're aboveground or underground. where now and then and depending on whether you're aboveground or Underground is a part that is added in order to fully express the meaning of the original text.
Summary: Pay attention to the co-translation of this paragraph. The feature of this article lies in the co-translation and the translation of four-character words. 7 On the streets of Paris, the clothes of pedestrians vary from girls' vests and shorts to old women's thick coats. In July in Paris, it is sunny almost every day. Sometimes the sky is cloudless for several days, and it is not dark after dark. When it came down, it only turned into a deep dark blue. There are no mountains near Paris, and there are few high-rise buildings in the city. Montmartre in the north of the city is just a low hill. The sun does not set on the horizon until half past nine, making the days even longer and the nights short. There are endless afternoons, but sunny days can also bring thunderbolts: On the morning of July 14, France’s Bastille Day, President Mitterrand hosted a military parade on the Avenue de Champagne, when a heavy rain suddenly hit the president and the military band. It was unbearable. The TV audience could see that in the rain, the band leader's baton dropped to the ground, and they hurriedly bent down to pick it up.
In July
Parisians in the open are seen dressed in the clothes of all seasons
ranging from young girls' vests and short skirt to elderly women's thick overcoats . In July
Paris has sunny weather almost every day. Sometimes the sky is blue and cloudless for days on end and
when night es
it never turns pitch dark
but remains a deep blue. There are no mountains in its vicinity and few high-rises in the city proper. Montmartre in the north of the city is a mere hillock. As the sun never sinks below the horizon until 9:30 pm
the days seem even longer and the nights even shorter. And the afternoons seem to last endlessly. Nevertheless
sometimes a thunderbolt also es from the clear sky . On the morning of July14
French National Day
when President Mitterrand was presiding over the review of a massive military parade on Champs Elysées
it suddenly started raining in torrents. The President and the military band
caught in the downpour
found themselves in a very awkward situation. TV viewers even saw the bandmaster bend down quickly to pick up the baton he had dropped onto the ground in a flurry.
Key points:
1. "On the streets of Paris in July" is a typical Chinese expression. The translator here only translates "In July"
The expression "Parisians in the open" below is used to express "on the streets of Paris", which is faithful to the meaning of the original text and does not stick to the original form.
2. "for days on end" = for days on end
Among them, on end means "continuously", and its synonyms include successfully, consecutively, continuously, continuously, without end , running, on the run, on the trot
3. Proper here means the adverb "completely, thoroughly".
4. In torrents means "(heavy rain) pouring into the basin".
5. "The TV audience could see that in the rain, the band leader's baton dropped to the ground, and they quickly leaned over to pick it up.
” is translated as TV viewers even saw the bandmaster bend down quickly to pick up the baton he had dropped onto the ground in a flurry. There are many multi-verb sentences in this paragraph, which can generally be resolved using the method we talked about before (i.e. “find the master”) Verbs are predicates, the less important ones are translated as non-predicates or clauses, and the less important ones are translated as prepositional phrases.") However, the verbs in this sentence can be connected into one, so the translator adjusted the order of the verbs and translated it as "can" Actions that are connected in series.
Summary: There are many clauses in this paragraph that need to be broken up and combined. It is a good material for practice.
The terrain in northern and central France is flat and endless, but the climate is varied. Change. One hour's drive north from Paris to Rouen, it feels colder; two hours' walk southwest to the middle of the Loire River, the climate is much warmer. It's quite hot in the afternoon, but it cools down at night, and the stars and moon are exceptionally bright.
In Northern and Central France lie boundless level plains with varying climates. Rouen
which is a one-hour ride to the north of Paris
is cooler while the central reaches of the Loire River
which is a o-hour ride to the southwest of Paris
is much warmer. The latter bees very hot in the afternoon
but cooler at night with the bright moon and stars in the sky.
Key points:
1. “It takes one hour to travel north from Paris to Rouen”, that is, “Rouen is located in the north of Paris. "One-hour ride to the north of Paris" is translated as Rouen
which is a one-hour ride to the north of Paris
and "two hours southwest to the middle of the Roix River" The same sentence pattern was adopted.
2. “It was quite hot in the afternoon, but it cooled down at night, and the stars and moon were extremely bright. "Translated as The latter bees very hot in the afternoon
but cooler at night with the bright moon and stars in the sky. Using the latter to simplify the length of the sentence is also worth learning from. We are in "Friends"
Summary: Pay attention to the expression "to travel (east, west, south) + time + to a certain place" in this paragraph.
Then go south into Spain. The climate has become dry and warm. Madrid is in the middle of a high plateau, and it is not muggy at noon in July. I even have to wear a sweater at night when I drive in the southern Andalusia region and the Costa del Sol. It is dry and hot all the way. , withered grassland, dry piles of stones, the earth is like a pancake, spread out under the cool blue sky, the grass on the roadside often catches fire due to dryness, but it is very dry and hot, and it does not make people sweat. , which is different from the humidity in Taiwan.
Down in Spain
the climate is arid and warm. Madrid is located in the center of plateau. Its noontime temperature in July is not sultry
and you have to wear a woolen sweater towards the evening. In Southern Spain
when driving in the Andalucia region and along the Costa del Sol
I found everything dry and hot. The grass was turning yellow and the rocks were dry. The earth was like a pancake roasting under the deep blue firmament. Alarmingly
the roadside grass often started burning by itself. Unlike Taiwan which is humid
Southern Spain is hot and dry and so people there don't sweat at all.
Key points:
1. "Go south and enter Spain" means "go south and enter Spain" "Down in Spain can be seen as the abbreviated form of driving down the south
we entered in Spain
in here is a preposition instead of a verb.
2. "Spread under..." means "roasting under..." so it is translated as roasting under.
3. "The intensity is quite astonishing" means "the intensity of the fire is quite astonishing". Usually we use the form of a clause, but the translator here uses an adverb to be more concise.
The UK tends to the other extreme, appearing damp and with low temperatures. I stayed in London's embankment district for three days, and it was always cloudy with intermittent drizzle. Even if there was a glimpse of morning light at dawn, the sky would become gloomy after breakfast. Walking across Waterloo Bridge with Wo Cun, the July river breeze blew and the water mist made me shiver, and I pulled up Mao's lapel.
England is at the other extreme
being overcast and wet with a low temperature. It was gloomy all the time and kept drizzling intermittently during the three days when I stayed in the River Embankment area of ??London. Sometimes the morning sun made its brief appearance at daybreak
but the sky turned overcast soon after breakfast. While crossing Waterloo Bridge with Wocun against the July wind blowing from the River Thames
< p> a nip in the air sent shivers down my spineforcing me to turn up my fur collar.
Key points:
1. "Intermittently drizzle" = kept drizzling intermittently
2. "I lived in the Embankment District of London for three days" is easily reminiscent of the use of spend on
However, according to the context we find that, This clause is not the main clause, but an adverbial, that is, "I stayed in... for three days, at that time/those days...", so it is translated as during the three days when I stayed in the River Embankment area of ??London.< /p>
3. "I walked across Waterloo Bridge with Wo Cun. The river wind blew in July and the water was cloudy. It made me shiver. I pulled up Mao's lapels. "That is," I walked with... When I was crossing the bridge, I was braved by the river wind in July. The cold air made me shiver, forcing me to stand up my fur collar. "It is related to "I walked against the river wind", and against is still a preposition that can replace a verb
Summary: Pay attention to the joint translation of this paragraph. Find relationships, find relationships.
We drove north, passing through Oxford with its dreamlike spiers, Ludlow with its phantom-like towers, and Chester with its ancient bridges and wild crossings. Rain clouds always shrouded the car. Yes, the raindrops haven't even dried on the car windows. After entering the lake area of ????Bubria, the rivers and lakes are everywhere, and the sky is full of clouds and rain. Occasionally, a thin blue corner appears on the horizon, and immediately more gray clouds cover it with rain. I really have to blame Wordsworth's stingy poetic soul for refusing to let me have a glimpse of the beautiful lake in his poems. I looked out the window of the shop in Hawkshead where I stayed overnight. Along the lake, the trees were covered with rain and the mountains were covered with clouds. I really wanted to tell the poet in the graveyard of Grasmeet Church that there was a land in ancient my country. Yunmeng Daze also produced a poet who was extremely watery.
We drove up north through Oxford with its dreamy spires
Ludlow with its illusory old castles and Chester with its ancient bridge and solitary ferry crossing. Rain clouds continued to hang over our car and raindrops remained intact on its windows. After entering the Lake District
Cumbria
we found rivers and lakes everywhere and the sky full of rain clouds. Occasionally a speck of light blue would appear over the horizon only to be soon blotted out by dark gray rain clouds. I could not help plaining against Wordworth for grudging me a sunny scene of the beautiful Lakeland as described in his poems. In Hawkshead
I put up for one night at a *** all inn. Looking out of its window
I saw all trees around the lakes wet with rain and all mountains shrouded by clouds. How I longed to tell the great poet lying in Gra *** ere Churchyard that in ancient China there was also a great poet domiciled in a region of rivers and lakes!
Key points:
1. "Going north" in this paragraph "Translated as drive up north, up north means "to the north".
2. Oxford with its dreamy spires
Ludlow with its illusory old castles
Ancient Chester with its ancient bridge and solitary ferry crossing
These sentences can all be understood as "There is... in a certain place." The sentence structure is consistent and the language is beautiful.
3. "I really have to blame Wordsworth for being stingy in his poetry and refusing to let me have a glimpse of the beautiful lake in his poems." Translated as I could not help plaining against Wordworth for grudging me a sunny scene of the beautiful Lakeland as described in his poems. Where grudge means "to do reluctantly; to give reluctantly; to be stingy".
4. "The trees contain rain, and the mountains carry clouds" = all trees around the lakes wet with rain and all mountains shrouded by clouds
5. "Yunmeng Daze" is the general name of the ancient lakes on the Jianghan Plain in Hubei Province, China. It generally refers to lakes and rivers, translated as in a region of rivers and lakes!
6. "The water vapor is overwhelming" is understood as "great" according to the context, and is translated as great.
Summary: As a scene-writing prose, this article is beautifully written and difficult to translate. In addition to paying attention to the joint translation of loose sentences, the word selection of this article is also worth noting. Many expressions are worth accumulating.