误译与漏译

The Long and Reluctant Stasis of Wan-li This is a curious book, fascinating and enlightening yet also a bit enigmatically bland, like the members of the Ming bureaucracy who constitute its essential subject. The copyright page reveals that 1587, A Year of No Signicance is to be also published in China, under the title Wan-li shih-wu nien (“The fifteenth year of Wan-li”) by “Chunghua shu-chü, Peking”—or, if you prefer the new (and grotesque) style of transliteration approved by the cultural directors of the People’s Republic, Wanli Shiwunian, by “Zhonghua Shuju, Beijing.” （John Updike的书评，New Yorker 杂志，1981年10月） 本书提供的译文：

最后一句：本书的版权页显示，它也已经被冠以《万历十五年》的书名，由中华书局（北京）在中国出版。这句让人觉得《万历十五年》已经在中国出版了。可是原文说的是”也将会在中国出版“（is to be also published in China）。译者为啥把这个意思当成”已经在中国出版了“？ 原文的bland确实有温和的意思，也就是mild amiable(https://www.thefreedictionary.com/bland)。假设作者真是这意思，那么他也想说“明代的官僚是‘温和的’”。这大概不可能，因为读者往后看就会发现作者说“帝国的官僚们一意保持传统与稳定”，实际可能说明他们“枯燥乏味”（dull）。这个意思恰好是bland的另一个意思。(https://www.thefreedictionary.com/bland；https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/bland）。再说了，书中的海瑞、李贽怎么也算不上温和吧？ 另外，译者为啥漏译了原文的最后一句？【—or, if you prefer the new (and grotesque) style of transliteration approved by the cultural directors of the People’s Republic, Wanli Shiwunian, by “Zhonghua Shuju, Beijing.”】 The Long and Reluctant Stasis of Wan-li的译文是“万历：漫长的怠政时代”。译者为啥不翻译“Reluctant”？

癞疤狗 死亡之角 2022年9月30日