[時事英文] 各國如何面對新冠疫情?
讓我最有感觸的一句:
"The rise of populism has exacerbated the problem by reducing the incentives of countries to cooperate. "
「民粹主義的興起減少了各國合作的意願,使問題更加嚴重。」
—NY Times
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In Frankfurt, the president of the European Central Bank warned that the coronavirus could trigger an economic crash as dire as that of 2008. In Berlin, the German chancellor warned the virus could infect two-thirds of her country’s population. In London, the British prime minister rolled out a nearly $40 billion rescue package to cushion his economy from the shock.
1. trigger an economic crash 引發經濟崩潰
2. dire 嚴重的;危急的
3. roll out 推出
4. rescue package 救助計劃
5. to cushion sth from… 對(某事物的影響或力量)起緩衝作用
在法蘭克福,歐洲央行行長警告說,冠狀病毒可能引發與2008年一樣嚴重的經濟崩潰。在柏林,德國總理警告說,病毒可能導致該國三分之二的人口感染。在倫敦,英國首相推出了將近400億美元的一系列救助計劃,以緩解經濟受到的衝擊。
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As the toll of those afflicted by the virus continued to soar and financial markets from Tokyo to New York continued to swoon, world leaders are finally starting to find their voices about the gravity of what is now officially a pandemic.
6. the toll of… 的傷亡;損失;破壞
7. the death toll 死亡人數
8. afflict 使痛苦;使苦惱;折磨
9. swoon 低迷*
10. find their voices about 願意開口談及
11. the gravity of …的嚴重性
隨著感染者的死亡人數持續飆升,從東京到紐約的金融市場持續低迷,世界各國領導人終於開始談及這場已正式定性為大流行病的疫情的嚴重性。
*http://bit.ly/3b7PZK8
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Yet it remains less a choir than a cacophony — a dissonant babble of politicians all struggling, in their own way, to cope with the manifold challenges posed by the virus, from its crushing burden on hospitals and health care workers to its economic devastation and rising death toll.
12. cacophony 刺耳嘈雜的聲音;雜音
13. a dissonant babble of... 七嘴八舌的...
14. manifold challenges 多種多樣的挑戰
15. economic devastation 經濟崩解
然而,與其說是合唱,這更像一種刺耳的喧囂——一群七嘴八舌的政客用各自的方式努力應對這種病毒所帶來的各種挑戰,從超負荷的醫院和醫護人員到崩潰的經濟和與日俱增的死亡人數。
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The choir also lacks a conductor, a role played through most of the post-World War II era by the United States.
這個合唱團還欠缺指揮,在二戰戰後的大部分時間裡,這個角色是由美國扮演的。
President Trump has failed to work with other leaders to fashion a common response, preferring to promote travel bans and his border wall over the scientific advice of his own medical experts. Mr. Trump’s secretary of state, Mike Pompeo, has taken to calling it the “Wuhan virus,” vilifying the country where it originated and complicating efforts to coordinate a global response.
16. lack (v.) 缺少,缺乏*
17. to fashion a common response 形成一致的回應
18. travel ban 旅行禁令
19. take to sth 開始從事;形成…的習慣
20. vilify 詆毀,誣衊;醜化;貶低
21. complicate 使複雜化;使更難懂;使更麻煩
川普總統未能與其他領導人合作形成一致的回應,他寧願推動旅行禁令和他的邊境牆,而不是他自己的醫學專家的科學建議。川普的國務卿邁克·龐皮歐(Mike Pompeo)把它叫做「武漢病毒」,醜化其發源國,使協調全球響應的工作更加艱難。
*lack, lack of, lacking: http://bit.ly/33LrOhw
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週三,川普總統在白宮會見了銀行家,討論如何應對冠狀病毒。
The same denigration of science and urge to block outsiders has characterized leaders from China to Iran, as well as right-wing populists in Europe, which is sowing cynicism and leaving people uncertain of who to believe. Far from trying to stamp out the virus, strongmen like President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman of Saudi Arabia have seized on the upheaval it is causing as cover for steps to consolidate their power.
22. the denigration of science 對科學的詆毀
23. characterize (v.) 是…的特徵;為…所特有
24. right-wing populists 右翼民粹主義者
25. sow a seed of 播下了…的種子
26. cynicism 犬儒主義;憤世嫉俗
27. stamp sth out 消除,消滅
28. upheaval 動盪
29. consolidate their power 鞏固自己的力量
從中國到伊朗的領導人,乃至歐洲的右翼民粹主義者,都有同樣的對科學的詆毀和對外人的排斥,這播下了疑神疑鬼的種子,讓人們不知道該相信誰。俄羅斯總統弗拉基米爾·V·普丁(Vladimir V. Putin)和沙烏地阿拉伯王儲穆罕默德·本·薩勒曼(Mohammed bin Salman)等強人領袖並沒有去試圖消滅病毒,而是趁機以其引發的動盪為掩護,鞏固自己的力量。
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Yet it is too simple to lay all this at Mr. Trump’s door, or on world leaders collectively. Part of the problem is simply the fiendish nature of the pathogen.
30. lay sth at sb's door 將…歸咎於(某人)
31. fiendish 惡魔般的;殘忍的
32. pathogen 病原體
然而,將一切推到川普身上,或一股腦推到各國領導人身上,都過於簡單了。部分問題實際上源於病原體的殘忍特性。
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Coronavirus has resisted the tools that countries have brought to bear against previous global scourges. Mysterious in its transmission and relentless in its spread, it has led countries to try wildly divergent responses. The lack of common standards on testing, on the cancellation of public gatherings and on quarantines have deepened the anxiety of people and eroded confidence in their leaders.
33. to bear against 抵禦
34. global scourges 全球災禍
35. wildly divergent responses 截然不同的應對方式
36. quarantine 隔離
37. eroded confidence 削弱對…的信心
各國為抵禦先前的全球災禍而使用的工具,被冠狀病毒一一擊敗。詭異的感染方式,持續不懈的傳播,已經導致各國不得不嘗試各種截然不同的應對方式。在病毒測試、取消公共聚會和隔離方法上缺乏一致的標準,這加劇了人們的焦慮,並削弱了他們對領導者的信心。
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The simultaneous shocks to supply and demand — shuttered iPhone factories in China; empty gondolas in Venice; and passengers abandoning cruises, hotels and airlines everywhere else — is a new phenomenon that may not respond to the weapons government wielded against the dislocation that followed the September 2001 terrorist attacks and the financial crisis of 2008.
38. simultaneous shocks 同時衝擊
39. supply and demand 供需
40. the weapons wielded against... 為抵禦...所鍛造的武器
供給和需求在同一時刻受到衝擊——被關閉的中國iPhone工廠;威尼斯空無一人的貢多拉;以及其他地方旅客放棄前往的郵輪、旅館和航班——政府在2001年9月的恐怖襲擊以及2008年金融危機後為抵禦混亂所鍛造的武器,恐怕難以用來對付這種新的現象。
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“The nature of this crisis is qualitatively different than the one in 2008 because the traditional tools are not as effective,” said Richard N. Haass, president of the Council on Foreign Relations. “Even if the U.S. took a leadership role, the traditional playbook would not be all that relevant here.”
41. the nature of …的性質
42. be qualitatively different 有本質區別
43. playbook 方案
「這次危機的性質,與2008年危機有本質區別,因為傳統手段的效果不佳,」外交關係委員會(Council on Foreign Relations)主席理查德·N·哈斯(Richard N. Haass)說。「即使美國發揮領導作用,傳統方案用在現在的情況沒有多大意義。」
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Britain, for example, won praise for its robust economic response, which, in addition to billions of pounds for hospitals and workers sidelined by illness, included a sharp interest rate cut by the Bank of England.
44. won praise for 贏得讚譽
45. robust economic response 強勁的經濟反應
46. in addition to 此外
47. be sidelined by illness 因疾病而停工
48. a sharp interest rate cut大幅降息
例如,英國因其強勁的經濟應對而贏得讚譽,他們不僅為醫院和因疾病而停工的工人提供了數十億英鎊撥款,還包括英格蘭銀行的大幅降息。
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Yet stocks in London still tumbled, if not as steeply as on Wall Street, where investors brushed off Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin’s proposal to allow Americans to delay paying their income taxes, which he claimed would pump $200 billion into the economy.
49. tumbled (價值)暴跌,驟降
50. steeply 徒峭地;險峻地
51. brush off 漠視,不理睬
然而,倫敦股市仍然下跌,儘管跌幅不及華爾街。面對財政部長史蒂芬·馬努欽(Steven Mnuchin)提出的允許美國人緩交所得稅的提議,華爾街投資人不為所動,馬努欽聲稱此舉將為經濟注入2000億美元。
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Mr. Trump’s other big idea, a cut in the payroll tax, was pronounced a “non-starter” by House Democrats, who scrambled instead to introduce legislation to provide financial help to patients, workers and families affected by the fast-moving epidemic and speed it to a House vote on Thursday.
52. payroll tax 薪金稅
53. non-starter 無成功希望的人(或想法、計劃)
54. House Democrats 眾議院民主黨議員
55. scramble to 爭搶(去做)
川普先生的另一個大想法是削減薪金稅,眾議院民主黨議員宣布這「不可能」,他們慌忙提出立法,在財務上幫助受迅速傳播的流行病影響的患者、工人和家庭,並且快速提交至週四的眾議院投票。
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To Mr. Haass, the intense focus on limiting the economic blow was understandable, given the carnage in the markets, but premature. He said countries needed to put their energy into slowing and mitigating the spread of the virus before they embarked on fiscal programs to repair the economic damage.
56. carnage (尤指戰爭中的)大屠殺,殘殺
57. carnage in the markets 市場的慘狀
58. premature 過早的;不成熟的;倉促的
59. mitigate 減緩
60. embarked on sth 開始,著手做(新的或重要的事情)
61. fiscal programs 財政計劃
哈斯認為,考慮到市場的慘狀,集中精力抑制經濟衝擊是可以理解的,但為時過早。他說,各國在開始實施財政計劃以修復經濟損失之前,需要投入精力以減慢並緩和病毒的傳播。
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The trouble is that, with few exceptions, their efforts have been hapless. In the United States, the delay in developing coronavirus test kits and the scarcity of tests has made it impossible for officials, even weeks after the first cases appeared in the country, to get a true picture of the scale of the outbreak.
62. hapless幸運的;不愉快的
63. the scarcity of …的缺乏
64. the scale of the outbreak 疫情的真實規模
問題是,除了少數例外,他們的努力都沒有什麼好結果。在美國,由於開發冠狀病毒檢測工具的進度遲緩,以及檢測手段的缺乏,官員們甚至在出現本國第一例病例數週後仍無法了解疫情的真實規模。
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In hard-hit Italy, quarrels broke out between politicians and medical experts over whether the authorities were testing too many people in Lombardy, inflating the infection figures and fueling panic in the public. Italy’s response could be weakened further by the anti-vaccination movement that was once embraced by the populist Five Star Movement, which took power in the last government.
65. hard-hit 受災嚴重的
66. inflate 抬高;誇大
67. fueling panic加劇恐慌
68. anti-vaccination movement 反疫苗運動
69. populist 民粹主義政黨
70. took power 執政
在受災嚴重的義大利,政界人士和醫學專家爭論當局是否在倫巴第對太多人進行測試,誇大感染人數,加劇公眾恐慌。義大利的反應可能會遭到反疫苗運動的進一步削弱。該運動曾受上屆執政的民粹主義政黨五星運動(Five Star Movement)的支持。
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義大利倫巴第地區是世界上受災最嚴重的地區之一,人們戴著口罩。
Even comparing one country’s case count to another’s is almost impossible, given the different testing procedures and diagnostic criteria around the world, said Dr. Chris Smith, a specialist in virology at the University of Cambridge.
71. testing procedures 檢測程序
72. diagnostic criteria 診斷標準
劍橋大學(University of Cambridge)病毒學專家克里斯·史密斯(Chris Smith)博士表示,考慮到世界各地不同的檢測程序和診斷標準,連對兩個國家的病例數進行比較幾乎都是不可能的。
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In the most extreme example, China’s case count skyrocketed when it began recording positives based on people’s symptoms, rather than a lab test, the method most countries are still using. But even lab tests might yield different results in different places, depending on the targets labs are using and the ways health workers collect and process specimens.
73. based on people’s symptom 根據某人癥狀
74. case count skyrocketed 病例數大幅飆升
75. yield different results 產生不同的結果
最極端的例子是,當中國開始根據癥狀而不是大多數國家仍在使用的實驗室檢測來計算確診病例時,病例數出現了大幅飆升。但即使是實驗室測試,不同的地方也可能產生不同的結果,這取決於實驗室使用的對象以及醫務人員收集和處理標本的方式。
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“Different countries are doing different things,” Dr. Smith said of the testing programs. “You’re not comparing apples to apples.”
「不同的國家正在做不同的事情,」史密斯談到測試項目時說。「這不是蘋果和蘋果之間的對比。」
The rise of populism has exacerbated the problem by reducing the incentives of countries to cooperate. European leaders, in a three-hour teleconference on Tuesday night, agreed to set up a 25 billion euro investment fund, or $28.1 billion, and to relax rules governing airlines to curb the economic fallout.
76. exacerbated the problem 使問題更加嚴重
77. the incentives of 誘因
78. teleconference 電話會議
79. curb the economic fallout 遏制經濟危機的影響
民粹主義的興起減少了各國合作的意願,使問題更加嚴重。歐洲領導人週二晚間舉行了三小時的電話會議,同意設立一個250億歐元(合1930億元人民幣)的投資基金,並放鬆對航空公司的監管,以遏制經濟危機的影響。
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But they failed to overcome national objections to sharing medical equipment like face masks and respirators, given that health issues are the responsibility of national governments. Germany, the Czech Republic and other countries have tightened export restrictions on this gear to keep it for their own citizens.
80. failed to overcome 未能克服
81. respirator 呼吸器
82. tightened export restrictions on… 加強了…的出口限制
83. gear (從事某活動的)裝備,用具,衣服
但他們未能克服各國對分享口罩和呼吸器等醫療器械的反對,因為健康問題是國家政府的責任。德國、捷克共和國等國家已經加強了對這些設備的出口限制,以便將其留給本國公民。
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Chancellor Angela Merkel’s warning that the virus would infect 60 percent to 70 percent of people in Germany — a figure she attributed to the “consensus among experts” — was the most forthright admission of the scale of the problem by any world leader. It was fully in character for a physicist-turned-politician, reinforcing her status as the liberal West’s foil to Mr. Trump.
84. attributed to 歸於
85. consensus among experts 專家共識
86. forthright (過於)坦誠的,直率的;直截了當的
87. reinforce 強化,加深,進一步證實(觀點、看法等)
88. the liberal West’s foil 自由主義西方世界中的對比
89. foil 陪襯物*
德國總理安哥拉·梅克爾(Angela Merkel)警告說,這種病毒將感染德國60%到70%的人——她稱這一數字來自「專家共識」——這是世界各國領導人對該問題嚴重性最坦率的承認態度。這完全符合從物理學家轉型為政治家的梅克爾的性格,令她進一步成為自由主義西方世界中川普的一個鮮明對比。
*http://bit.ly/3deYyVe
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“We will do whatever is needed,” she said. “We won’t ask every day, ‘What does this mean for our deficit?’”
90. deficit 赤字
「我們會竭盡所能,」她說。「我們不會每天都問,『這對我們的赤字有什麼影響?』」
Yet even Ms. Merkel’s position has been weakened by the resurgence of the far right in Germany. Germany rebuffed a request for medical equipment from Italy, only to see China offer the Italians an aid package that includes two million face masks and 100,000 respirators.
91. a resurgence of 復甦;復興;再次興起
92. far right 極右翼勢力
93. rebuff 斷然拒絕
94. only to do sth 不料卻,沒想到卻
然而,就連梅克爾的地位也被德國極右翼勢力的復甦削弱了。德國拒絕了義大利提供醫療器械的請求,中國卻向義大利提供了包括200萬隻口罩和10萬隻呼吸器在內的援助。
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In Britain, which left the European Union in January, there are already fears that the country will not have access to a vaccine, or will have to pay more for it than other European countries. Mr. Johnson’s government, which won its recent election on a populist-inflected platform of “Get Brexit Done,” is now struggling with how to communicate the risks of the outbreak to its public.
95. a vaccine 疫苗
96. platform 綱領,政綱,宣言
在今年1月脫離歐盟的英國,已經有人擔心該國將無法獲得疫苗,或者將不得不支付比其他歐洲國家更多的費用。強生的政府在最近的選舉中獲勝,憑藉的是受民粹主義影響的「完成脫歐」(Get Brexit Done)宣言。如今這個政府正在吃力地向民眾宣講疫情暴發的風險。
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The Johnson government has put a lot of stock in a so-called nudge unit in Downing Street that specializes in behavioral psychology. But in trying to calibrate its response to what it deemed people capable of processing, the government risked condescending to Britons, said John Ashton, a former regional director of public health for the northwest of England.
97. put a lot of stock in 投入了大量資金
98. so-called 所謂
99. nudge unit 哄勸部門
100. behavioral psychology 行為心理學
101. calibrate 判斷;劃分刻度,標定
102. deem 認為,視為;覺得
103. condescending 表現出高…一等的姿態的,帶有優越感地對待…的
強生政府在唐寧街設立了一個擅長行為心理學的所謂「哄勸」部門,為此投入了大量資金。但前英格蘭西北部地區公共衛生主任約翰·阿什頓(John Ashton)說,政府在判斷人們的接受限度,並以這個限度為依據來制定自己的應對措施,這可能是在用一種假惺惺的屈就方式對待英國人民。
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Britain has only recently started publishing broad breakdowns of where people are contracting the virus. Mr. Ashton said they should be giving much more detailed information, as in Hong Kong, which has published building-level maps of patients who have gotten sick, when they were there and how they contracted the virus.
英國直到最近才開始公布感染髮生的具體地點。阿什頓說,他們應該提供更詳細的信息,就像香港一樣。香港公布了具體到建築的患者地圖,並提供他們在那裡的時間和感染病毒的方式。
“I think it’s patronizing — they need to keep the public fully in the picture,” Mr. Ashton said. “You have to treat the public as adults, instead of keeping them in the dark. That’s where you get rumor and hysteria. They actually create panic by not being open with people.”
104. patronizing 屈尊俯就的;自以為高人一等的
105. keep sb in the picture 使(某人)了解情況
106. keeping sb in the dark 蒙在鼓裡
107. rumor and hysteria 謠言和歇斯底里
「我認為這是一種哄人的姿態——他們需要讓公眾充分了解情況,」阿什頓說。「你必須像對待成年人一樣對待公眾,而不是把他們蒙在鼓裡。謠言和歇斯底里就是這麼來的。他們不向人民開誠布公,實際上是在製造恐慌。」
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完整報導: https://nyti.ms/2J070dm
圖片來源: http://bit.ly/2U1tgJS
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這篇文章你最喜歡哪一句? 辛苦的小編把所有的關鍵片語都列出來了! 同學會持續的看到這些關鍵詞彙和句型出現在我們所有的時事英文喔!
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台灣的應對: http://bit.ly/3a6NSGu
保健心智圖: https://goo.gl/seqt5k
保健相關單字: https://wp.me/p44l9b-Tt (+mp3)
時事英文大全: http://bit.ly/2WtAqop
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這一週的「時事英文」講義和使用方式: https://bit.ly/3a9rr38
現象英文symptom 在 翻譯這檔事 Facebook 的最讚貼文
《基因:人類最親密的歷史》,莊安祺譯:翻譯問題續探(二)
上一篇po出後有網友希望具體指出問題所在。另外,也得知出版社見文立即商議修改所提段落的翻譯問題:
//昨天與合作夥伴討論了原文翻譯與專業知識 ( 謝謝嘉儀與小安子 ),修正了譯文。覺得身在資訊流通的年代也有很大的好處,量產時代就算我們找盡資源還是力有未逮之處,尤其編輯不是專業人士,更是汗顏,而各路專業人士願意幫我們指出錯誤,讓我很感激,書能有不停修正至更臻完善的機會。//
在一本新書的熱銷期,樂見如此積極的作爲。本文:
一、討論上一篇指出的翻譯問題細節,供出版社參考;
二、討論網友一頁截圖中發現的新問題;
三、再加「博客來」試讀內容第一頁(此書前言的開頭)發現的誤譯。
//Once genes had been implicated in the development of sexual preference, the gay child was instantly transformed to normal. His 【hateful】 enemies were the abnormal monsters.
一旦性偏好的發展牽扯到基因,同性戀的孩子瞬間就變為正常,他【可惡的】敵人才是異常的怪物。//
說明:hateful 有兩個相反的意思,要從語境去弄清楚,這句話看了前文,加上末句有「才是」的對照語氣,意思非常清楚,是「懷著恨、充滿惡意的敵人」倒過來變成異常的怪物,而不是「可惡的敵人」。如果作者意指「可惡的敵人」,就不可能有 His hateful enemies were the abnormal monsters. 這句當中的「反而變成」、「才是」的含意。
hateful + 事物,意思通常很明白,是「可恨的」;hateful + 人,就要小心思考理解了,兩種意思都可能出現,光查字典幫不了你。
//It was boredom, more than activism, that prompted the search for the gay gene. Dean Hamer, a researcher at the National Cancer Institute, was not looking for controversy. He was 【not even looking for himself】. Although openly gay, Hamer had never been particularly intrigued by 【the genetics of any form of identity, sexual or otherwise.】
美國國家癌症研究所(National Cancer Institute)的研究員狄恩・哈默(Dean Hamer)並無意找碴,他甚至【也並不在乎自己的身分】,雖然他已出櫃,但對【任何形式的身分認同、性或其他遺傳學】並無特別興趣。//
說明:
1. not even looking for himself 的 looking 呼應同一段第一句 search for the gay gene(探尋是否有同性戀基因)的 search,兩個字都是「尋找」之意,所以這句意為「他甚至也不是爲了自己去探尋」,因爲下一句便說明原因:原來,他對很多東西根本不太感興趣,會發現同性戀基因,只不過因爲無聊、無意間發現。不懂這英文怎會理解成「不在乎自己的性向/身分」?根本瞎掰!
2. 下一句也很糟糕:Hamer 對「任何形式的身分認同、性或其他遺傳學」三件事不感興趣,中譯意思顯然是三種東西平行並列,但原文怎麼寫?the genetics of any form of identity, sexual or otherwise 這串字所指的,只有一件事,這是一個樹狀結構:of any form of identity 修飾 genetics,而 sexual or otherwise 又修飾 identity,整個合起來理解,就是「性(sexual)或其他方面的任何一種身分認同的遺傳成因」,也就是說,Hamer 對同性戀是否有遺傳成因並不太感興趣。
//He had tried, unsuccessfully, to study medicine at Edinburgh—but, horrified by the “screams of a strapped-down child 【amid the blood and sawdust】 of the . . . 【operating theater】,” had fled medicine to study theology at Christ’s College in Cambridge.
他本在愛丁堡習醫,卻因「【手術劇場】裡被綁縛的兒童【在血汙和鋸屑中】的尖叫」而驚悸,棄醫轉到劍橋大學基督學院研習神學。//
(中譯來自網友提供的截圖)
說明:
1.「手術劇場」真是個荒謬的譯法,operating theater 是醫院的手術示範室、手術觀摩室,像樣的字典會另立條目指出這個意思,不會跟「劇場」的意思混淆。在這樣一個空間,一邊進行手術、一邊讓見習醫師或訪問者居高觀摩,處理的是人命關天的真人真事,怎麼變成虛構故事的「劇場」了?在戰爭語境下,theater 是「戰場」,theater 同時也是「電影院」,也是「戲劇表演」,也可指「看表演的觀衆」(比較古老的用法)。最近有本出版熱烈宣傳的書,書名竟然就叫《手術劇場》,這是一種譁衆取寵的取名手段,不是原書名的直譯,但畢竟那是出版社爲了賣書、吸睛所擁有的權利和自由。在普通的文章裡,不同意義的 theater 就該有合適的譯法,否則要叫讀者如何理解?中國的中文譯法經常大而化之,電腦程式的 macro,和 macroeconomics 的 macro,一律是「宏」字;餐廳的 menu 和應用軟體的 menu 一律稱「菜單」,台灣請不要新創如「手術劇場」、「(二次大戰)歐洲劇場」這種沒水準的糟糕詞彙,中文沒有貧瘠到需要一詞用到底。
話說,香港有個動物醫院,網站有中英雙語介紹文,中文看來像是拙劣的半人工半機器翻譯的內容:
// 他們還接受靜脈輸液的利益,在手術過程中,包括絕育成本。手術是在無菌的方式和手術劇場。//
極爲可笑,不知所云,英文則是:
// They also receive the benefit of intravenous fluids during the surgery inclusive in the neutering cost. The surgery is carried out in a sterile manner and operative theater.//
這段英文拿去餵給 Google Translate 或 Bing 的機器翻譯,出來的結果都還勝過人工,機器都懂得把「operative theater」正確譯為「手術室」。難道現在一些譯者連查一查字典確認字義,或拜現代科技之賜、參考一下機譯結果這兩件事都懶得做了?
2. 同一句中譯裡,「在血汙和鋸屑中的尖叫」太過直譯 amid 這字,尖叫如何能在「鋸屑中」?這 blood and sawdust 指的是從手術臺流到地上的一灘血水,以及傾倒在地上用來吸收血水的木屑,可不是「人體鋸屑」,而木屑並沒有在空氣中亂飄,譯者寫出「在鋸屑中的尖叫」時,腦子不知浮現什麼奇異的「劇場」景象?我好像看到了譯者心中想像著,是不是那小孩的腿被鋸斷時,有「鋸屑」噴飛出來?
以下這一長段落,來自出版社提供的博客來試讀第一頁:
//Jagu—the fourth-born of my father’s siblings—came to live with us in Delhi in 1975, when I was five years old. His mind was also crumbling. Tall and rail thin, with a slightly feral look in his eyes and a shock of matted, overgrown hair, he resembled a Bengali Jim Morrison. Unlike Rajesh, whose illness had surfaced in his twenties, Jagu had been troubled from childhood. Socially awkward, withdrawn to everyone except my grandmother, he was unable to hold a job or live by himself. By 1975, deeper cognitive problems had emerged: he had visions, phantasms, and voices in his head that told him what to do. 【He made up conspiracy theories by the dozens: a banana vendor who sold fruit outside our house was secretly recording Jagu’s behavior. He often spoke to himself, with a particular obsession of reciting made-up train schedules】 (“Shimla to Howrah by Kalka mail, then transfer at Howrah to Shri Jagannath Express to Puri”). He was still capable of extraordinary bursts of tenderness—when I mistakenly smashed a beloved Venetian vase at home, he hid me in his bedclothes and informed my mother that he had “mounds of cash” stashed away that would buy “a thousand” vases in replacement. But 【this episode was symptomatic:】 【even his love for me involved extending the fabric of his psychosis and confabulation.】
一九七五年,當時我五歲,父親的四哥賈古搬來德里與我們同住。他也有精神崩潰的現象。賈古生得又高又瘦,帶著略顯凶悍的眼神和一頭糾結的亂髮,長得就像孟加拉版的美國歌手吉姆.莫理森(Jim Morrison)。和二十歲才發病的拉結什不同的是,他自幼就有精神問題。賈古生性內向畏縮,除了祖母之外,他對任何人都退避三舍,無法工作,生活也不能自理。到了一九七五年,他出現更嚴重的認知問題:幻象、幻覺,聽到腦裡有人指揮他要怎麼做。【他捏造了數十個陰謀:我家門外賣香蕉的小販偷偷記錄了賈古的言行舉止,說他自言自語,特別迷戀自訂的火車行程】 (「由西姆拉搭卡爾卡特郵車到豪拉,然後在豪拉轉札格納斯快車到浦里」)。他依舊會有溫情流露的時刻──有一次我不小心打破了家裡珍藏的威尼斯花瓶,他把我藏在他的被子裡,還告訴我媽他有「成堆的現金」可以買「上千個」花瓶賠償。不過,【這件事其實也說明了】【連他對我的愛都含有思覺失調和虛談症(confabulation)】//
說明:
1. He made up conspiracy theories by the dozens 後接一個冒號,這告訴我們,接下來的那句應該是要舉例陰謀,的確也是。不過,譯者卻誤解了英文,把再下一句的「自言自語」誤認為作者還在講述那陰謀,意思變成小販在無端指控賈古(「說他會自言自語、特別迷戀自訂的火車行程」),因此不是事實,但其實作者僅用一個短句舉例陰謀(a banana vendor who sold fruit outside our house was secretly recording Jagu’s behavior),接著便把主題拉回賈古身上,不再提陰謀,所以賈古的自言自語和覆誦火車行程,都是事實。
改:他捏造了數十個陰謀,例如:指控我們家門外賣香蕉的小販偷偷記錄了他的言行舉止。賈古也經常自言自語,特別執迷於覆誦他捏造的火車行程。
2. this episode was symptomatic 的翻譯頗敷衍,連醫學基本字彙都掌握不好,很令人不放心。symptomatic 是基本義「表現為某疾病的symptom」,不是引申義「某某事物即將發生的徵兆、跡象、預示」(sign, omen, portent),原譯「說明」,似乎把 symptomatic 理解爲後者而脫離了「病徵、症狀」之意。
symptomatic 後接冒號,表示下一句的內容在解釋、釐清前一句。什麼病的symptom?psychosis 和 confabulation。psychosis 還不能譯為思覺失調,因爲作者到了下一段才交代賈古被醫生正式診斷有思覺失調,這一段,作者對賈古的病症只是稱之為較籠統的 psychosis,譯者不要隨便「劇透」,辜負作者細心的鋪陳。
改:不過,這個小插曲是病徵的展現,連他對我的愛也攙進他的精神錯亂和虛談症(confabulation)。
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順便介紹一下,此書除了譯者以外,還有好棒棒的專家「掛名」審訂、導讀,以及一堆名人「掛名」推薦:
臺灣大學生命科學系教授 于宏燦 審訂/導讀
朱雪萍、吳青錫、呂俊毅、李文雄、李家維、阮雪芬、洪蘭、孫以瀚、徐建國、陳沛隆、陳嘉祥、超級歪、董桂書、劉炯朗、鍾明怡、顏擇雅、蘇文慧 各界學者/名人好評推薦
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讀不了原文、必須靠翻譯書吸收知識的讀者,請多多運用你批判思考的本能,不要對翻譯照單全收,或誤以爲你自己腦袋有問題。譯文的品質不太可能改善,我們必須反求諸己。
現象英文symptom 在 护士教你:描述症状的20个英文单词- YouTube 的推薦與評價
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