江西省第十三届笔译大赛决赛试题

一、英译汉 （50分）

I had a dream about the ninth year of my age as follows: I saw the moon rise near the west, and run a regular course eastward, so swift that in about a quarter of an hour, she reached our meridian, when there descended from her a small cloud on a direct line to the earth, which lighted on a pleasant green about twenty yards from the door of my father’s house (in which I thought I stood) and was immediately turned into a beautiful green tree. The moon appeared to run on with equal swiftness, and soon set in the east, at which time the sun arose at the place where it commonly does in the summer, and shining with full radiance in a serene air, it appeared as pleasant a morning as I ever saw.

All this time I stood still in the door, in an awful frame of mind, and I observed that as heat increased by the rising sun, it wrought so powerfully on the little green tree, that the leaves gradually withered, and before noon it appeared dry and dead.

Though I was a child, this dream was instructive to me.

Another thing remarkable in my childhood was, that once, as I went to a neighbor’s house, I saw, on the way, a robin sitting on her nest; and as I came near she went off, but having young ones, flew about, and with many cries expressed her concern for them. I stood and threw stones at her, till one striking her, she fell down dead. At first I was pleased with the exploit, but after a few minutes was seized with horror, as having in a sportive way killed an innocent creature while she was careful for her young. I beheld her lying dead, and thought those young ones for which she was so careful must now perish for want of their dam to nourish them; and after some painful consideration on the subject, I climbed up the tree, took all the young birds, and killed them—supposing that better than to leave them to pine away and die miserably; and believed in this case, that scripture proverb was fulfilled. “The tender mercies of the wicked are cruel.” I then went on my errand, but, for some hours, could think of little else but the cruelties I had committed, and was much troubled.

Time passed on, my heart was replenished with mirth and wantonness, while pleasing scenes of vanity were presented to my imagination, till I attained the age of eighteen years, near which time I felt the judgments of God in my soul like a consuming fire, and looking over my past life, the prospect was moving. I was often sad, and longed to be delivered from those vanities; then again my heart was strongly inclined to them, and there was in me a sore conflict. At times I turned to folly, and then again sorrow and confusion took hold of me. In a while, I resolved totally to leave off some of my vanities, but there was a secret reserve in my heart, of the more refined part of them, and I was not low enough to find true peace.

二、汉译英 （50分）

我过去常想，要是我多见广识、世事洞明，我终会获得快乐。我好像总是在阅读,希望借此洞悉终极快乐的秘诀。有的时候，我获得了片刻的欢愉，这是一种充满激情的喜悦；但不久之后，我的情绪又突然变得低落，不知如何应对那可怕的现实。或许，这就是我的困惑。我一直生活在一个梦想和理想的小世界里，除我之外，无人能够抵达。纵然我知道这是事实，但我仍在不断努力，且一直相信，并满怀希望，追随那一道微光，那似真似幻的梦想之光，那虚幻的、似有似无的信仰之光。它是什么？为什么它是这样的？

我应该尝试为它写点什么吗？我应该去记录发现它、信任它并使它成为现实的努力吗？我写的东西对他人有用吗？帮助他人是我热爱写作的原因吗？为何我会因不写而感到内疚呢？倘若我写作不是为了金钱，不是为了名望，我就无需感到愧疚。然而，倘若我不写，是为拒斥某种东西——知识、启示或对人有用有益的东西，那我才该感到愧疚。

我认为，我写的东西都是我亲身经历过的，我无需说明,“这是我经历过的”， “我是这样被塑造的”，我无需展示这个“我”。或许，我最好忘记自我，忘记去尝试讲述自我，有关我的各种经历，而是不停地写，写，写。我会一如既往、坚持不懈地去描写这个世界，描写我身边的人。