宋美齡的英文造詣

36. 宋美齡的英文造詣 (Madame Chiang’s     English)- (2)

本文- “We Do Beschrei It”『不要說它』- 但是我們要說-

At this time I wish to take exception with certain news reports that we, the people of the Republic of China, are “deflated” presumably because some individuals voiced their personal opinion that they did not like the goings on- the seven visits of the U.S. Secretary of State to the mainland or impressions gathered upon interviewing two young students- one girl and one boy- who evinced no more than indifference other than their personal anxieties. For the benefit of all here now and for the future, I wish to say to those of their ilk that we do not inflate nor do we deflate.  

We are not volatile.  Inflation and deflation connote mercurial volatility.  We deplore such characteristics in people. Furthermore, the observation that the seat of the Chinese Communist regime is so-called Peiping (Northern peace北平) rather than Peking (Northern capital) originated with us is entirely erroneous for the appellation.  Peiping was given to locale in the Ming Dynasty. I regret it is this kind of distortion and misinformation with tenuous implications that is most misleading.  I should think that in journalism veracity is a most important requirement.

此時我要由於某些新聞報導認為我們中華民國人民『洩了氣』的說法，表示不讚同。作此種報導的記者由於有人對於美國國國務卿七度訪問中國大陸，表示不滿，以及該記者和兩位年青男女學生所作膚淺的訪問談話，在訪問中他們除了表示一些屬於個人焦慮之外，對其他事務顯然漠不關心。為了大家利益和將來著想，我們願說明，我們既不會自滿也不容洩氣。

因為我們不是氣體，洩氣與自滿表示游移不定，人們有此信念實屬可悲，還有我們的記者朋友提出了一項小小的事實觀察，來作他所要寫的論題，即指出我們起先稱中共政權所在地為北平(Northern Peace-北方的和平) 而非北京，並認為這是完全錯誤的命名。其實這個地名是遠在明朝初葉時所取，並非我們所命名，這些自許為專家的人們，對於問題未深究之前，就漫不經心作了論斷，且發表失實或歪曲的言論，實可能導致擴張的誤解。我認為反應出新聞的真實性，才是新聞事業非常重要的準繩。

【簡註】：

1.     人+ take exceptions to + sth…指反對 (某事)/ 對不事不爽，蔣夫人為何用with，不知其因?

2.     deflated 可以指傲氣受挫，如~ politicians，但似乎英文沒有人用inflated scholars, 若有, 可用boastful或exaggerating，台語則有用『膨風』，表示自我膨漲，其出處為『膨風水蛙』

3.     voiced, = uttered 說出，如~ one’s feelings，很正式的說法

4.     evinced = showed 表現出，也是很正式的說法

5.     從At this time,…. 到 …personal anxieties. 為一長句，其中 that we the people.. 與前面的reports為appositive (同位格) ….. 另一that they did not like the goings-on…與前面的opinion亦為appositive (同位格) 。這兩個同位格的子句是使本句拉長之因

6.     又在本句中用：one girl and one boy-who evinced no more than indifference other than their personal anxieties. No more than = nothing but= only, other than = except…(一男一女所表現的只是冷漠，除了個人焦慮外) ，在正式英文用法上我們可以分開用，很少如此混用： 

They showed no more than indifference.  They showed no feelings other than their personal anxieties. (other than前應有否定詞- he is none other than a beggar. 他不過是位乞丐) 。不過我們只有自嘆不如蔣夫人的英文，何況在1970年威權時代，有誰敢做此批評?

7.     Ilk = sort= kind前常須一個determiner, 如this, that, his, her…etc.

8.     connote, 與denote之分別，前者指本義外另含他義，有convey(傳達) 之義，後者表示indicate (指出), signify (具…之意思) 。此處用字謹慎 

9.     volatile= easily change into gas or vapor原指液體易揮發的，此次則指善變的(easily change)

10.  “We deplore such characteristics in people.” 本句簡潔有力。作者不用people with (such)characteristics. 而用characteristics in people更佳 

11.  erroneous錯誤的 = mistaken；appellation = naming命名

12.  本段最後兩句措辭強烈，misinformation (filled) with tenuous….. 修飾，其內又用that is misleading修飾implications. 全句用了三個否定詞, distortion, misinformation, 與misleading

13.  veracity= truth= honesty真實

Many of our countrymen overseas around the world are naturally concerned with détente and the prevention of the thermonuclear war but our compatriots on the mainland are even more concerned.  Let me tell you what they think as I have surmised from various sources.

世界上許多華僑同胞均關切低盪 (冷戰) 與防止熱核子戰爭的問題，但我們大陸同胞甚至更關切。讓我陳述我從各方面所猜測到他們的想法。

【簡註】：

1)     此處應接about, 因為be concerned with +事, 為涉及某事。作者原意應為關心。

2)     surmise= guess猜測

3)     同一句前後用了兩次concerned，似乎表達關心的字詞有限? 她為何不選用他字如，worried, troubled, anxious?

I shall bypass the concerns and shades of concern of our overseas compatriots, since you can gauge their thinking easily enough from the news media or through contacts with friends and acquaintances.   You can also well know what their fears are without my expatiating on them, except to say that their sympathy for the mainlanders is motivated by emotions of kin and kith, remote as it may be in consanguinity, plus the commonly shared innate desire for freedom of the person.  And it is in this manner that they feel spiritual kinship to our mainland brethren.

對於我海外同胞所關切的問題及關切程度，自然你們隨時可在新聞媒體或朋友之間，以及其所認識的人們接觸之中，瞭解他們的想法，因此我自不必在此費詞敘述。你們也能清楚地瞭解得到，他們的恐懼和關切是到了怎樣的程度。但我瞭解的是，他們對大陸同胞的同情是，由於所屬的高張情緒和因有的個人自由意識所激起的。因為他們與我們大陸同胞具有精神上血肉相連的關係。

【簡註】：

1.     bypass v. 繞道，略而不提

2.     shades of concern 關心的程度，shade 原指原色或亮度，指肉眼可見，但此處指抽象名詞concern，用的很好

3.     gauge v. = measure原義是量測，此處有figure….out之意

4.     expatiate v. 詳述=speak…at length

5.     except to say…. ；except 介系詞，其後應接say or saying，為何如此用，不得而知。except常與否定句法連用，如He did nothing except crying(cry)。合理的解釋為前有一without

6.     kin and kith: 親友關係，是慣用法

7.     remote as it may be= though it may be remote

8.     consanguinity  n. related by blood血緣關係

9.     it is…. that +子句=乃加強語氣(emphasis) 之一種句法

Justin Lai  選

09/25/2015