五柳先生传: The Story of the Man of Five Willows

欣赏我国著名翻译家方重 (1902-1991)倾力翻译的《陶渊明诗文选译》(Gleanings from Tao Yuanming)。1944年以来,方先生把陶渊明的大部分诗文译成英文,并撰写了这方面的学术论文多篇。《陶渊明诗文选译》(Gleanings from Tao Yuanming),是他“ 一生努力之成果”。

五柳先生传 the Man of Five Willows

先生不知何许人也,亦不详其姓字,宅边有五柳树,因以为号焉。
The man cannot be identified. No one knows his name. As there are five willows grown beside his hut, he has come to be known as ” the Man of Five Willows.”

闲静少言,不慕荣利。好读书,不求甚解;每有会意,便欣然忘食。性嗜[shì] 酒,家贫不能常得;亲旧知其如此,或置酒而招之。造饮辄[zhé] 尽,期在必醉。即醉而退,曾不吝[lìn] 情去留。
Tranquil and sparing of speech, he covets neither fame or profit. He takes delight in books, but he is not concerned with the details. Whenever an idea flashes upon him he becomes so overjoyed as to forget his meals. Drinking is his natural weakness, but, being poor, he cannot afford to buy wine. His relatives and friends, knowing it well, are wont to provide some for him to share. Then he finishes every drop and does not stop till quite drunk. While tipsy, he leaves them without any ado.

环堵萧然,不蔽风日;短褐穿结,箪瓢 [dān piáo]屡[lǚ] 空,晏[yàn] 如也。常著文章自娱,颇示己志。忘怀得失,以此自终。
Bare walls enclose his abode; the wind and sun finds free access through the roof and chinks. His clothes are ragged, his dishes are usually empty. But he takes it perfectly at ease. Sometimes he writes to amuse himself, to express what is in his mind. He cares little for worldly gain or loss. It is thus he passes his allotted span of life.

赞曰:黔娄有言:“不戚戚于贫贱,不汲汲于富贵。” 味其言兹若人俦[chóu] 乎?衔觞[shāng] 赋诗,以乐其志。无怀氏之民欤[yú] ?葛天氏之民欤?
Wise old Qian-lou once remarked:”Not to be dejected though poor and humble, nor eager for riches and honour”. Is this a fitting epithet for a man like him?He drinks deep, chants his poems and finds happiness in himself. Is he not one of those who have lived in the spacious days of yore?

重点单词和词组

sparing:meager, bare
the map is sparing of information

covet : yearn to possess or have (something).

wont: (of a person) in the habit of doing something; accustomed.

tipsy : slightly drunk.

ado /əˈduː/
1 : heightened fuss or concern : to-do much ado about the need for reform
2 : time-wasting bother over trivial details: wrote the paper without further ado

chink /tʃɪŋk/ a narrow opening or crack, typically one that admits light

allotted span of life : The lifespan of a person or animal, especially as considered to be determined by God, fate, etc.; specifically seventy years.

epithet /ˈep.ə.θet/: an adjective or descriptive phrase expressing a quality characteristic of the person or thing mentioned

spacious days : prolonged, a more leisurely, more relaxed lifestyle

Of yore /jɔːr/ (literary): of long ago or former times (used in nostalgic or mock-nostalgic recollection).
Of yore 这里指传说中的“无怀氏” 和葛天氏” (传说中的上古帝王)时代;据说在那个时代,人民生活安乐,恬淡自足,社会风气淳厚朴实。

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