The sweetness and bitterness behind the literary translation

A reader praised my book printed with a slightly larger font, which is conducive to the reading of middle -aged and elderly readers. In contrast to some books, I am very happy, because I also start to flower eyes, afraid of small characters, and I hope I can be able to be able Reading without wearing glasses -of course, it is not like the book version of the book "Reference News" -this can allow many readers who have just started to flower eye to extend the "mirrorless" reading period. The book is thicker, the cost is higher, but it feels better. However, the translator relies on the number of translated words to get a low manuscript. No matter how expensive the book is, it has nothing to do with the translator's income. Therefore, I praise the big word book to my income, and the income is not worth mentioning. I am happy for the good deeds of the publisher and I am also happy for readers.

Tell this news that people laugh at me: You have published so many books, one or one less book is so happy, so funny. I wrote back and said: We are self -cultivated farmers and pen -cultivated farmers. It is essentially no different from farmers working in Da Tian. The difference is just not being exposed to the wind. In this sense, we farmers are sowing and farming every year. Of course, we hope to plant it. Why is it unhappy? What is the price of harvesting foods sells after happiness? It ’s naturally happier to sell well. Do n’t be happy if you do n’t sell well. You ca n’t eat it yourself. Translation of a book is equivalent to leaving yourself a small granary. It may be time to eat it, and this granary does not need to be guarded, does not need to prevent mice, and you don’t have to be afraid of expiry. (Pirate) I found that I went to hit the mouse and let it spit it out. Every time I found the piracy, I felt that I became a member of the Discipline Inspection Commission, and I could check it upright. Why are I unhappy, I must be happy, one more book is one.

Seeing that a translator on the Internet questioned that the young translator Sun Zhongxu, who left us from depression, was caused by the translation of the world. I also felt the same. The translation itself will never cause unhappiness. It is the happiest thing to translate and publish books. The little grandson must not be depressed due to the gloom of some works of the translation. After all, the translator is a mother -in -law. Essence It is not entirely caused by low manuscript remuneration, because low manuscript remuneration is the market price agreed by the nation's publishing house. No one will pay too high, unless it is the kind of work that can make a big money that can make a big money immediately, and the general literary works. It is such a range price, which is the same for anyone. If you encounter a tricky number, pay the number of words according to the computer statistics, so that you can pay a quarter of the cheaper than the order number. We can't edit it in detail. They are also executors and are not good at talking to leaders.

Xiaosun's trouble is that as a pen -cultivated farmer, he attaches too much attention to his translation achievements. Publishing houses like his translations, smooth, beautiful, a lot of schedules, but the price is so low. Tired, but the sense of honor of a pen -cultivated farmer made him want to stop. This is his favorite cause. Of course, like me, every book will be happy and inexplicable, because this is our spiritual sustenance. However, such a large workload cannot support him to do literary translation. He has to rely on ship transport companies as employees to support his family and himself. This makes him tired of dealing with two major events in his life. In the state. If you say nothing morally, if he translates so well and does not have so many appointments, he will not be so psychological. But he translates well. Everyone is looking for him. He has to be able to afford his spiritual sustenance, and he must be worthy of his family. He is busy during the day and even go to Africa for a business trip. Essence It is estimated that this experience and spiritual division leads to his slow depression. In the final analysis, the self -esteem and pride of writing farmers made him want to stop, but he was tired of dealing with overload translation. He followed the road of traditional old translators, but most of the traditional translators worked in cultural units such as universities and research institutes in the planned economy. Most of them were also engaged in foreign language teaching and research work The work of translation and family members is basically the same. If the professor translates, it is basically a professional translator, so their mentality is not divided, but our era cannot provide Sun Zhongxu with the conditions for professional translation. He had to work hard to support his family, pay for the high house prices in Guangzhou, and condemn his liberal arts at all. This split life will definitely cause great harm to his body and mind. The point is that he is willing to give him a literary work that he is willing to dedicate himself. It is estimated that this is the most unbearable.

When I translated a novel, I encountered a comment saying that it was Lawrence's quoting Lang Fero's poem. I was interested and went to check the original poems and read it. , I have the heart of my heart, and I translated it down: "The boats passing by at night greet each other/ only the signals in the darkness and the distant sound/ on the sea of ​​life, we greeted each other and just a look. Gels up, and then dark and silence. " What this poem reminds me is that people in the vast Internet universe today, WeChat, Weibo, blogs, anonymous or real names, but even if you can't see it, greeting or echoing is basically the sense of soul. Send a signal to like one, and you are unable to think about the conscience, and then fall into darkness and silence. So I was very happy, because I met Lang Fero through Lawrence, and I translated the words of two masters, and I could convey such translation text to the reader. All. How can such a small plowing farmer life unhappy?

Of course, I know that such a brush farmer is irreversible, and it is very disconnected from this era, so occasionally happy is just sullen.

I read the end of the preface written by college and translator Liu Mingjiu for a set of "World Famous Translation Library". I am quite sighed:

What are the prospects of our library? I think a large socialist country with a population of 1.3 billion, a Chinese country that claims to inherit the world's excellent cultural heritage, and has established Confucius Institutes around the world. A society where urbanization is developing vigorously. A middle class is growing. A society of development and growth requires such a huge cultural accumulation of "library". This is my sincere belief. If there are great news media to promote some excellent cultures and elegant interests; if the government has slightly a little more money from the wealth library to build more libraries across the country, adding more funds for book purchase; If our middle class is spacious and luxurious home houses (even for decoration); if our citizens do not hold "golden moon cakes" and high -end cigarettes, they will be given a gift. For relatives and friends, don't say a huge "library", even if there are ten or eight huge "liberal libraries", Luoyang is expensive and in short supply. This is my vision, a vision that is not extravagant.

Strictly speaking, such paragraphs should not appear in the preface of academic works (Liu Lao please forgive me, it is best that you did not see my article), it should be the post -editor after the book publishing Essay in the newspaper supplement. But the cultural environment of our world made the old master helpless, and couldn't help but feel at the end of the preface. Liu Lao was basically speechless about the current cultural context, and he could only write this way. Careful people to chew slowly. Fortunately, in the past years, China has accumulated a group of highly professional translators of foreign literature. Liu Lao can also launch a set of "library", and most of them are classic masterpieces. In a few years, if the young and young translators like Sun Zhongxu are slowly green and yellow, what is the prospect?

The little grandson has been depressed in Guangzhou's strangeness. He represented a trend of young and middle -aged translators, that is, translating foreign contemporary works, and contemporary will gradually become classics, although not yet. But if no one does now, why is it classic in the future? How many of us are living Sun Zhongxu? There is almost no, everyone is playing part -time. I remember Mr. Qian Chunqi in the 1950s benefited from the relatively high manuscript pay at the time, and resolutely gave up the doctor's profession to devote himself to German literature translation. After the "Cultural Revolution", the draft remuneration rose as slow as a snail. Later, the other wages increased by 100 times, and the manuscript remuneration had risen by more than three times. This industry became a complete sunset. It's late.

Of course, we can also say that "the revolutionary team is more pure", and when the "revolutionary low tide" is dedicated to dedication to doing this, it is really love. As for whether there is a climax in the future, don't think about it, you just think about those street shop owners on the street. They will never have a climax, but they will always open the door to open the door and make small money. Each bottle of soy sauce is sold is a festival. We are a plowing farmer. Writing with the "orgasm" of my brush farming farmers has become a "high laughter" of myself, and I can only be included in the column of my blog's "Mocker".

Source: Selected from "Babel Tower"

Author: Dark Horse

- END -