第四冊第15篇：抒情歌謠
During the first year that Mr. Wordsworth and I were neighbours, our conversations turns frequently on the two cardinal points of poetry, the power of exciting the sympathy of the reader by a faithful adherence to the truth of nature, and the power of giving the interest of novelty by the modifying colours of imagination. The sudden charm which accidents of light and shade, which moonlight or sunset, diffused over a known and familiar landscape, appeared to represent the practicability of combining both. These are the poetry of nature. The thought suggested itself (to which of us I do not recollect) that a series of poems might be composed of two sorts. In the one, the poems might be composed of two sorts. In the one, the incidents and agents were to be, in part at least, supernatural; and the excellence aimed at was to consist in the interesting of the affections by the dramatic truth of such emotions, as would naturally accompany such situations, supposing them real. And real in this sense they have been to every human being who, from whatever source of delusion, has at any time believed himself under supernatural agency. For the second class, subjects were to be chosen form ordinary life; the characters and incidents were to be such as will be found in every village and its vicinity where there is a meditative and feeling mind to seek after them, or tot notice them when they present themselves.
我與華茲華斯先生結(jié)鄰而居的第一年，我們的談話常常轉(zhuǎn) 向詩歌中兩個根本問題:一是信守自然的真實(shí)以激發(fā)讀著共鳴的力量，一是發(fā)揮想象，改變事物的原有色彩，賦予事物新奇趣昧的力量。月光與落日的余輝，變幻莫側(cè)的光與影，慢射在 你一向熟悉的景物上，卻呈現(xiàn)出意想不到的魅力，這現(xiàn)象似乎可以表明，使上述兩種力量互相結(jié)合是可行的。這些都是大自然的詩歌，因此我們產(chǎn)生了一種想法(我已記不起是他還是我想到的)，可以合兩類詩歌為一集。一類，其事件和人物至少將是部分地超自然的。如此情境自然會觸發(fā)種種情感，將超自然的情境設(shè)想為其實(shí)情境，這種情感戲劇性的真實(shí)使情感饒有趣味，正是這類詩歌所企求的特色。在這個意義上，任何一個出于形形色色的幻覺隨時都相信自己處于超自然的力量支配之下的人，都曾以為這種超自然情景是真實(shí)的。另一類，題材選自日常生活，人物和事件是每一個村莊或你近地區(qū)都可發(fā)現(xiàn)的，只須一顆易感善思的心靈去尋找，或者當(dāng)其出現(xiàn)時能夠發(fā)覺。
In this idea originated the plan of the “Lyrical Ballads”; in which it was agreed that my endeavours should be directed to persons and characters supernatural, or at least romantic; yet so as to transfer from our inward nature a human interest and a semblance of truth sufficient to procure for these shadows of imagination that willing suspension of disbelief for the moment, which constitutes poetic faith. Mr. Wordsworth, on the other hand, was to propose to himself s his object, to give the charm of novelty to things of every day, and to excite a feeling analogous to the supernatural, by awakening the mind’s attention from the lethargy of custom, and directing it to the loveliness and the wonders of the world before us; an inexhaustible treasure, but for which, in consequence of the film of familiarity and selfish solicitude, we have eyes, yet see not, ears that hear not, and hearts that neither fell nor understand.
抒情歌謠集》的計劃即產(chǎn)生于上述現(xiàn)點(diǎn)。經(jīng)商定:我的努力方向是寫超身然的或至少是傳奇式的人物和性格，但須從我們的內(nèi)心世界引出人類的情趣和類似的真實(shí)，以充分促使讀者于一時之間相信想象的幻影，即構(gòu)成詩的信念。另一方面，華茲華斯先生為自己提出的目標(biāo)是:賦于日常生活以新的魅力， 并從習(xí)慣性的冷漠中喚醒心靈的注意力，引導(dǎo)心靈注意現(xiàn)實(shí)世界可愛之處和奇跡，以激發(fā)一種類似超自然的感情。現(xiàn)實(shí)世界本來是取之不盡的寶藏，只是由于我們對它過分熟悉，并且只關(guān)心個人利害，因此形成隔膜，結(jié)果對它視而不見，聽而不聞， 心里既無感覺也不理解。
With this view I wrote the “Ancient Mariner”, and was preparing among other poems, the “Dark Ladie”, and the “Christabel”, in which I should have more nearly realized my ideal than I had done in my first attempt. But Mr. Wordsworth’s industry had proved so much more successful, and the number of his poems so much greater, that my compositions, instead of forming a balance, appeared rather an interpolation of heterogeneous matter. Mr. Wordsworth added two or three poems written in his own character, in the impassioned, lofty, and sustained diction which is characteristic of his genius. In this form the “Lyrical Ballads” were published; and were presented by him as an experiment, whether subjects, which from their nature rejected the usual ornaments and extracolloquial style fo poems in general, might not be so managed in the language of ordinary life as to produce the pleasurable interest which it is the peculiar business of poetry to impart.
本著這種觀點(diǎn)我寫了《老船夫》并準(zhǔn)備寫另一些詩，其甲包括《黑夫人》和《克里司塔貝爾》，在后一篇詩里，我本應(yīng)比第一次嘗試更能接近實(shí)硯我的理想。而華茲華斯先生的勤奮證明遠(yuǎn)比我成功，他的詩比我的多得多，因此我的作品不僅不能與之保持平衡，且頗似憑空抽入的異類。華茲華斯先生還添進(jìn)兩三首體現(xiàn)他本人風(fēng)格的詩，措詞熱情、崇高，耐人尋味，最足以代表其天才的特色，《抒情歌謠集》就是以這樣的面目出版的—那些由于本身的性質(zhì)通常不宜運(yùn)用一般的藻飾和過于通俗的風(fēng)格來處理的題材，現(xiàn)在卻用日常生活中的語言來表達(dá)，以求產(chǎn)生一種淮獨(dú)詩歌所能給予的情趣。先論這一嘗試是否成功， 他已把它作為一種試驗(yàn)獻(xiàn)給讀者了。
