張培基英譯散文賞析之《搪瓷茶缸 》大綱

搪瓷茶缸
The Enamel Mug
萬全
Wan Quan
| 譯文摘自張培基《英譯中國散文選二》

每走進百貨公司，看到那些潔白的、柔和的、米黃色的和彩色誘人的搪瓷茶缸，總感到一種愉快。
Whenever I visit a department store, I always take delight in seeing the enamel mugs which, pure white or creamy, are graceful in pattern and color.
要點：
1，“看到…很愉快”譯爲take delight in seeing…使得句式更加簡潔。
2，積累顏色方面的詞彙。

上中學的時候，由於少女的潔癖，喜歡使用白色的搪瓷器皿。記得那時候要買一隻瑞典貨的純白大茶缸，要花五塊多銀元，得進“惠羅公司”之類外國鋪子。一九三九 年在重慶，某商店從滇緬路運進來一批搪瓷茶缸，價錢當然比戰前更貴。我湊足了錢，託朋友進城捎了一隻；我的朋友也許過於緊張，一出商店門就將茶缸掉在地 上，摔脫了一塊瓷。
In my middle school days, I preferred to use white enamelware because, like most young girls, I was very particular about cleanliness. In those days, I remember, a Swede-made pure white mug would cost five silver dollars, and it was obtainable only at a foreign firm. In 1939, a certain store in Chongqing offered for sale, at a price of course higher than in prewar days, a stock of enamel mugs they had laid in through the Yunnan-Burma highway. With the money I had raised. I asked a friend leaving for town to buy an enamel mug for me. Unfortunately, probably due to nervousness, he dropped it onto the ground the moment he stepped out of the store and had it chipped.
要點：
1，“潔癖”本意是指“過分講究清潔的怪癖”，這裏只是講作者特別愛好清潔，因此意譯爲was very particular about cleanliness，其中particular 也可換爲fastidious。
2,“瑞典貨的”即“瑞典出產的”，譯爲Swede-made，Swede意爲“瑞典人”。
3，“從滇緬路運進來一批搪瓷茶缸”譯爲a stock of enamel mugs they had laid in through the Yunnan-Burma laid in 意爲“存儲”，to lay in a stock of 作“進一批…貨”。
4，“過於緊張”譯爲nervousness,也可按“過分小心”譯爲over cautiousness。
5,“摔脫了一塊瓷”即“使杯子缺了一塊”，用have sth done的形式，chip譯爲“打破，弄缺”。

綜述：注意本段譯者對於句式的轉換，如“得進‘惠羅公司’之類外國鋪子”轉爲“只有在外國商鋪才能得到”，沒有譯“惠羅公司”也是爲了照顧讀者的理解。

以後，我帶着這隻有疤痕的茶缸進了抗日根據地。它的用途倒意外地多起來了——喝水、盛飯、熱菜，給生病的同志煮粥，必要時還可以代行“面盆”、“浴缸”的職能。從此，茶缸和我有了進一步的“戰鬥友情”。
Afterwards I went to the anti-Japanese base area carrying with me the enamel mug with a chip in it. Unexpectedly, over there it turned out to be a multipurpose utensil. It was used for carrying water or cooked rice, for heating up food, cooking congee for sick comrade, and when necessary, as a substitute for a basin or bathtub. Thenceforth, the militant friendship between it and me became even more profound.
要點：
1，“有疤痕的茶缸”譯爲the enamel mug with a chip in it，此處chip意爲“缺口”，與前文的have it chipped相照應，也可譯爲the enamel mug with a scar或the scarred mug。
2,“代行…的職能”即“取代，代替”，譯爲 as a substitute for…
3,“茶缸和我有了進一步的‘戰鬥友情’”即“茶缸和我的戰鬥友情進一步加深”譯爲the militant friendship between it and me became even more profound。

一九四六年來到北平。很想買一隻新的茶缸，代替那隻爲我鞠躬盡瘁的舊茶缸。可是當時的北平還不易買到這玩意。有一次，在東單小市上，在一個只有幾件售品的地攤上，我發現了 一隻純白的瑞典茶缸。這正是我所需要的。可是地攤女主人的索價超過我的購買力。我希望她降低售價，她竟眼淚盈眶；這時我才發現她是一個知識分子模樣的青年婦女。她解釋說家人等錢吃藥，所賣的是自己家用的東西。我馬上盡我所有付了價款。她勸說我再買一件什麼，我雖然心情沉重，很想幫她的忙，但也實在沒有錢了。以後，離開了北平，這隻茶缸又陪伴我經歷瞭解放戰爭中的幾年，而且，它常常使我清晰地回憶起那位青年婦女的含淚的眼神——在窮困與內戰中經歷着痛苦的北平人民的眼神。
In 1946, when I came to Peiping, I was eager to buy a new enamel mug to replace the old one which had given me years of devoted service. But a new one was hard to come by in the then Peiping. Once, while roaming about a small market in Dongdan, I came across a pure white Swedish enamel mug at a roadside stall displaying only a handful of articles for sale. That was just what I needed. But the price asked by the woman owner of the stall was too high for me. When I bargained, I noticed tears brimming in her eyes. And then I also realized that she was sort of an educated young woman. She said what she had for sale was her personal belongings because she was badly in need of money to pay for the medical care of someone at home. Thereupon, I gave her all the money I had with me for the mug. She hoped that I would buy one more article from her. But, sympathetic as I was with her, I couldn’t buy anything else because I really had no money left in my pocket. Later, after leaving Peiping, I went through several years of the War of Liberation in company with the mug which often reminded me vividly of the tearful eyes of the young woman – tearful eyes typical of the common people of Peiping in the throes of hunger and civil war.
要點：
1，“爲我鞠躬盡瘁的舊茶缸”譯爲the old one which had given me years of devoted service，其中years of 是增益成分，雖無其詞而有其意。“鞠躬盡瘁”的說法也有很多，如：devote oneself entirely to ...; devote one's life to ...; give oneself entirely to public duties; spare no effort in the performance of one's duty。
2，“當時的北平還不易買到這玩意”譯爲But a new one was hard to come by in the then Peiping，come by 意爲“得到，弄到”用以表達原文的“買到”。
3，“索價超過我的購買力”即“女攤主出的價錢對我來說太高了”譯爲But the price asked by the woman owner of the stall was too high for me.
4，“我才發現她是一個知識分子模樣的青年婦女” 譯爲then I also realized that she was sort of an educated young woman. sort of 意爲“有幾分，有那麼點，近似”。
5，“我馬上盡我所有付了價款”即“我馬上用身上所有的錢買下了這個杯子”譯爲Thereupon, I gave her all the money I had with me for the mug。
6，“在窮困與內戰中經歷着痛苦的”譯爲in the throes of hunger and civil war其中in the throes of ,意爲“經受…的痛苦”。

綜述：以上幾點都很有借鑑價值，拿起本本來。

一九四九又進入城市。我的丈夫以他的全部零用錢買了一隻米黃色茶缸贈我，作爲勝利的紀念品。這一隻是美國貨，當時百貨店的人說：“這種米色搪瓷只有美國 貨。”可惜，它對於我並不重要了。一來因爲年歲增加，已經失去對於某些生活小節的執着；二來和平的城市生活中，茶缸的用途已經回覆正常。可是，至今我碰到各種搪瓷茶缸，仍不免要看它們一眼。因爲象瑞典貨一樣純白的也好，“只有美國貨”的米黃色的也好，都已經是我們中國的出品了；而且品種花色常在增加，價錢也便宜得多了。
In 1949, I again came to live in Peiping. My husband used all his pocket money to buy me a creamy mug in commemoration of the victory of the War of Liberation. It was of US make. “All creamy ones are US products,” declared the salesman. But the mug isn’t so important to me now because firstly, at my age, I’m no longer so particular about trivial matters in my personal life, and secondly it has resumed its normal uses in peaceful urban life. Nevertheless, up to now, whenever I come across enamel mugs of any kind, I still cannot help taking a look at them. It’s because both pure white Swede-made and creamy US-made mugs have now given way in the market to Chinese products of ever increasing variety of colors and designs and much lower prices.
當年東單地攤上那位出賣了自用茶缸的主婦，想必早已添置了我國自制的新的茶缸吧。
The woman owner of the roadside stall at Dongdan who sold me her personal mug must have long ago bought a new one of Chinese make for her own use.
要點：
1，“年歲增加”即“到了我這個年紀”，譯爲at my age。
2，“象瑞典貨一樣純白的也好，‘只有美國貨’的米黃色的也好…”理解爲“瑞典出產的純白馬克杯和美國產的米黃色的馬克杯”譯爲both pure white Swede-made and creamy US-made mugs。
3，“都已經是我們中國的出品了”按“都被國貨代替了”譯爲have now given way in the market to Chinese products，give way to 意爲“讓位於…”。
4，of ever increasing variety of colors and designs and much lower prices.
其中of後面是同位語，表products 的屬性，特點，使用介詞，句子更加簡潔。

綜述：最後幾段，篇幅不短，主要注意說法的轉換，以及最後介詞的用法~實踐證明，多做這種說法轉換的練習對於英譯漢和漢譯英都是很有好處的。