仙枰杂谈:莎言莎语

Column:Shakespeare by Words&Lines

《哈姆雷特》里有这么一个片段:大臣波洛纽斯前去刺探哈姆雷特“疯了”的原因,见后者正手捧书册,在房间里边边读。波洛纽斯上前问道:“敢问殿下所读何物?”哈姆雷特答道:“Words,words,words.”朱生豪译作“空话、空话、空话”,梁实秋译作“字、字、字”,各有道理。这里姑且译作“字啊,字啊,(就是)字啊”,可能更适合演员发声吐气念台词。当然,无论word在这个语境中可以理解为什么,莎士比亚的精妙,在字词语句中得以隽永,应该是不争的事实。恍然悟出:十四行诗第18首结尾的两行中的“你”“只要人依然目明依旧一息尚存,/此诗便不会消亡,更赐予你永生”(“So long can men breathe,or eyes can see,/So long lives this,and thisgives life to thee”,此处自译),原来很可能说的是他自己的戏和诗啊。亦或许是巧合。“莎言莎语”的出发点正是如此:在浩瀚的莎翁言语中留取几滴水,或细读,或品味,或以译为释,或聊发感悟体会,将莎士比亚的片言只语与当下和自我关联。一时挣脱“学术规范”的困索,或可为艰苦的原典深读提供一二轻松欢快的乐趣。本栏文字多取自文学公众号“仙杂弹”,作者为“路人”,除非另有注明。

When he goes to Hamlet,in Act 2 Scene 2 of the tragedy,to attempt a discovery of the cause of the prince's madness,Polonius finds the prince holding a book in both hands,reading."What do you read,my lord?"he asks."Words,words,words,"comes the answer.Even though the"words"could and have been interpreted in many different ways,Shakespeare does live,if"live"means"his plays are still alive and active through over 400 years",in his words and lines,where always lie the quintessence of his drama and poetry.It suddenly dawns upon me that the"thee"in the ending couplets of Shakespeare's Sonnet 18,which reads"So long can men breathe,or eyes can see,/So long lives this,and this gives life to thee",might just as well refer to his own works,dramatic and poetic.Or sheer coincidence.This is just what this column hopes to offer and share:for each session,we would pick up words or lines from one of Shakespeare's individual play,to discover the nuances of the words,to read the lines and find fun,to interpret through translation,or to relate Shakespeare to the present context or us.The ultimate aim:to struggle free temporarily from the shackles of"scholarly writing",and enjoy Shakespeare as he was enjoyed over four centuries ago.