英译汉练习短文

·英译汉练习短文·

Passage1

SatiricLiterature1

Perhapsthemoststrikingqualityofsatiricliteratureisitsfreshness,,,harmful,;BraveNewWorldridiculesthepretensionsofscience ;,humanistsobjectedtotheclaimsofpuresciencebeforeAldousHuxley3,，thesatiricmethod,thatmadetheminterestingandentertaining.Satiresarereadbecausetheyareaestheticallysatisfyingworksofart, ,satirerearrangesperspectives,scramblesfamiliarobjectsintoincongruousjuxtaposition,andspeaksinapersonalidiominsteadof abstractplatitude.

Satireexistsbecausethereisneedforit.Ithaslivedbecausereadersappreciatearefreshingstimulus,anirreverentreminderthattheyl iveinaworldofplatitudinousthinking,cheapmoralizing7,andfoolishphilosophy.Satireservestoprodpeopleintoanawarenessoft ruth,thoughrarelytoanyactiononbehalfoftruth.Satiretendstoremindpeoplethatmuchofwhattheysee,hear,andreadinpopularm ediaissanctimonious,sentimental,,notdoordinarycitizensdevotetheirlivestounselfishserviceofhumanity.Intelligentpeoplekn owthesethingsbuttendtoforgetthemwhentheydonothearthemexpressed8.

Notes

1．这篇文章用词正式，句式严谨、周密、冗长，文风较为华丽。翻译时选词要正式，可多用四字结构和铺排形式。

2．Cervantes:塞万提斯（1754-1616），西班牙伟大的作家、诗人、戏剧家。

3．AldousHuxley:奥尔德斯·赫胥黎（1825-1895），英国生物学家，作家。

4．Swift:斯威夫特（1667-1745），英国作家，擅长用讽刺和幽默揭露社会黑暗现象。

5．briskness：brisk意为keenorsharpinspeechormanner。

6．secondhandopinions：不可翻译为“二手的观点”，应该是“人云亦云的的观点”。

7．cheapmoralizing：这里cheap意思不是“便宜的”，而是vulgar,contemptible;moralizing不是“道德”，而是“说教”。

8．whentheydonothearthemexpressed：当直译不方便时，我们可用视点转移法：但是当周围人不谈起时Key

讽刺文学

或许讽刺文学最突出的特点是它耳目一新、视角独创。讽刺文学很少给人以原创的思想,但是它却将人们熟悉的事情以全新的形式展现出来。讽刺作家并不给人以新的哲学理念。他们所做的只是从某一视角来看待一些为人熟知的事情，在这一视角下，这些事情显得愚蠢不堪、充满危害而又矫揉造作。讽刺作品将我们从自鸣得意中

震醒，让我们既愉快又惊诧地看到，我们从未质疑、全盘接受的价值观中，有很多都是错误的。《唐吉珂德》使得骑士精神显得荒谬可笑；《挑战新世界》嘲笑了科学的自诩；《一个小小的建议》则建议食用人肉，使饥饿问题戏剧化。这些思想中没有一条是原创的：在塞万提斯之前就有人怀疑骑士精神；在赫胥黎之前人文主义者就反对宣称纯科学的至高无上；在斯威夫特之前人们就已经意识到饥荒问题。并不是思想的独创而使得讽刺文学受人欢迎，而是它的表述方式、嘲讽方法使得它趣味横生、有娱乐性。人们阅读讽刺文学只是因为在美学上它是让人心满意足的艺术品，而不是因为它在道德上有益或伦理上的教益。它激人兴奋、爽人身心，因为它只是运用常理通识、辛言辣语，便将各种幻想和人云亦云的观点一扫而光。讽刺文学自心而来不拘谦恭，它重新调整视角，将熟悉的事物紊杂地放置在一起，用个性化的语言而不是抽象的陈词滥语表述出来。

讽刺作品之所以存在是因为人们需要它。它存续至今，是因为读者欣赏爽身怡心的刺激和不拘谦恭的告诫，它提醒读者，他们生活的世界里充满了陈腐的思想意识、低俗的道德说教和愚蠢的哲学理念。讽刺作品虽然很少代表真理促成行动，但它却能使人们感悟到真理。讽刺作品常常告诉人们，他们在大众媒体中所看到的、听到的、读到的大多是伪装善良、多愁善感或只有部分真实。生活只在很小的程度上与大众对它的印象相符。士兵们很少拥有电影赋予他们的理想，而普通老百姓也决不会把自己的生命无私地奉献给人道主义服务。聪明人知道这些事实，但是当周围人不谈起时，他们常常会忘记掉。

Passage2

AmericanFolkArt

WhatwetodaycallAmericanfolkartwas,artof,by,andforordinary,everyday1“folks”who,withincreasingprosperityandleisure,createdamarketforartofallkinds,andespeciallyforportraits.Citizensofprosperous,e ssentiallymiddle-classrepublics—whetherancientRomans,seventeenth-centuryDutchburghers,ornineteenth-centuryAmericans—havealwaysshownamarkedt asteforportraiture.Startinginthelateeighteenthcentury,theUnitedStatescontainedincreasingnumberofsuchpeople,andofthear tistswhocouldmeettheirdemands.

TheearliestAmericanfolkartportraitscome,notsurprisingly,fromNewEngland—especiallyConnecticutandMassachusetts—forthiswasawealthyandpopulousregionandthecenterofastrongcrafttradition.WithinafewdecadesafterthesigningoftheDeclar ationofIndependencein1776,thepopulationwaspushingwestward,andtheportraitpainterscouldbefoundatworkinwesternNew York,Ohio,Kentucky,Illinois,andMissouri.Midwaythroughitsfirstcentury2asanation,theUnitedStates’populationhadincreas edroughlyfivetimes,andelevennewstateshadbeenaddedtooriginalthirteen.Duringtheseyears,thedemandforportraitsgrewand grew,eventuallytobesatisfiedbycamera.In1839thedaguerreotypewasintroducedtoAmerica,usheringintheageofphotography, andwithinagenerationthenewinventionputanendtothepopularityofpaintedportraits.Onceagainanoriginalportraitbecamealux ury,commissionedbythewealthyandexecutedbytheprofessional.

Butintheheydayofportraitpainting—fromthelateeighteenthcenturyuntilthe1850’s—anyonewithamodicumofartisticabilitycouldbecomealimner,assuchaportraitist3wascalled.Localcraftspeople—sign,coach,andhousepainters—begantopaintportraitsasaprofitablesideline;sometimesatalentedmanorwomanwhobeganbysketchingfamilymembersgained alocalreputationandwasbesiegedwithrequestsforportraits;artistsfounditworththeirwhiletopacktheirpaints,canvasses,andbru shesandtotravelthecountryside,oftencombininghousedecoratingwithportraitpainting.

Notes

everyday:意为commonplace,ordinary