第十四届沪江杯翻译竞赛英语组原文及优秀译文.pdfVIP

第十四届“沪江”杯翻译竞赛英语组原文

JaneAusten:Gallopinggirl(excerpt)

FreyaJohnson

JaneAustenwrotefastanddiedyoung.Herlifeonpapermayhavespanned

threedecades,butallsixofhercelebratednovelsmadetheirpublicappearance

between1811and1817.Thephrase“tell-talecompression”,self-consciouslyapplied

bythenarratortowardstheendofNorthangerAbbey(1817),capturessomethingof

Austen’sauthorialcareer,too.Indeed,inhercaseitisappropriatethattheword

“career”canmeanashortgallopatfullspeed,aswellasthepotentiallyslower

progressofanindividual’sworkinglife.Novelistsaremoreusuallyseenas

long-distancerunnersthanassprinters,andAusten’smaturefictionhasbeen

cherishedforthegradualemergenceintoconsciousnessofitsheroines’thoughtsand

feelings.Yetspeedyprogress—describedinEmma(1815)asthe“felicitiesofrapid

motion”—remainedcentraltothiswriter’scraftfromstarttofinish.

Twohundredyearsago,onStSwithun’sDayin1817,Austen,neardeath,

dictatedanoddpoemabouthorseracingtohersisterCassandra.Fromhersickbedin

Winchester,sheimaginedhowthefestivitiesoutsideherwindowhadcomeintobeing.

Thepoemopenslikethis:

WhenWinchesterracesfirsttooktheirbeginning

ItissaidthegoodpeopleforgottheiroldSaint

NotapplyingatallfortheleaveofSaintSwithin

AndthatWilliamofWykeham’sapprovalwasfaint.

Theraceshoweverwerefixedanddetermined

ThecompanycameandtheWeatherwascharming

TheLordsandtheLadiesweresatine’dandermined

Andnobodysawanyfuturealarming.

Austendiedthreedayslater,on18thJuly1817.Imagining,inherlastknown

literarycomposition,theoriginsofahorseraceandthefatalallureofthe“charming”,

shewasalsoexcavatingtheoriginsofherwritinglife.ThatherWinchesterpoe