英譯現(xiàn)代散文●我的書齋生活（節(jié)錄） ◎ 邵洵美

我的書齋生活(節(jié)錄)

My Private Library(Excerpt)

◎　邵洵美

◎　Shao Xunmei

你們簡直可以說，洵美是生活在書齋里的：會客室里是書，臥房里是書，樓梯邊上也是書，連三層樓上的洗澡間里也是書。所以一定要我指出哪一間是書齋，那可不容易。也許在我臥房隔壁的一間最像，中間有只書桌，可是書桌上又堆滿了書，沒有地方擺稿紙，也沒有地方擺硯臺，我又不會用鋼筆寫文章。用鋼筆寫，我總嫌太滑，太快;它幾乎不容你思想。我喜歡毛筆，它總伴著你，有時也許比你快一步，可是你總追得到。這個小房間里還有兩只安樂椅;一個書架，里面是我最心愛的書籍，不肯借人的。墻上只有一張水仙畫，淺淡的筆姿給你一種清高的空氣;偶然在看書的時候想到自己不久要窮得不成個樣子，它就會顯示你一個最偉大的希望，所以有幾個晚上，我簡直就呆對著這張畫。

You may as well call me a bookworm. I have books everywhere in my home — in the drawing room and the bedroom, on either side of the staircase, and even in the bathroom on the third floor. So it's next to impossible for me to point out exactly where my study is. Maybe it's the room next to my bedroom. In the middle of it stands nothing but a desk piled high with lots of books so that there is practically no room for me to place my writing paper and the inkstone. The inkstone is indispensable to me because I always use a writing brush instead of a pen in doing my writing. I find the pen too slippery and moving a bit too fast, thus leaving little time for me to do more thinking. I prefer the writing brush because I can always keep pace with it. Though it sometimes may also move along a bit too fast, yet I can always catch up. There are only two armchairs in the room plus a bookcase holding my most favorite books, which are not to be borrowed by anybody. Hanging on the wall is a painting of narcissi done with light touches of ink imparting an air of moral superiority. Occasionally, while I am reading, I suddenly realize I'll soon face penury. Then the painting will cheer me up with bright hopes. On several nights, I just sat in this room staring at it blankly.

這個小房間，長不滿十五尺，寬不滿十尺，關(guān)于現(xiàn)代詩的書籍，我都放在里面：書架里放不下，便放在桌子上;桌子上放不下，便堆在椅子里;椅子里放不下，便疊在地上。理由是我從不整理我的書籍，買到了新書就隨便放，看過了又隨便丟;假使為了寫一篇文章，需要參考時，每每費半個一個鐘頭去尋覓。

The little room is about 5 meters in length and 3 meters in width. I keep all books on modern poetry there. When the bookcase is full, I put them on the desk. When the desk is full, I pile them up on the chairs. When the chairs are full, I pile them up on the floor. I never sort them out. I lay aside casually new acquisitions as well as books I've just finished reading. Consequently, it often takes me couple of hours to hunt down a book for reference when I am writing.

通常一個人有了這許多放書的房間，他便總會為它們?nèi)≡S多雅致的名字：什么室，什么齋，什么樓之類。一半當然為了借這個機會可以寫些大字，叫一做匾的人刻好了掛起來;一半也是為自己或是家人找書的時候容易辨別。我卻懶得花這種心思，所以像上面所說的那個房間，我們便叫作“樓上書房”。樓下的叫作“樓下書房”;三層樓的叫作“三層樓書房”。

Generally speaking, with so many rooms for storing books, one will assign to each an elegant name, to be inscribed on a horizontal board hung above the door, partly for show and partly for convenience. I, nevertheless, have never been in a mood for doing the same. I just call the abovementioned room“Upstairs Study”, the room downstairs“Downstairs Study”and the bathroom on the third floor“Third-floor Study”.

我平時讀書寫文章，都在夜間，所以坐在“樓上書房”的機會多，因為它最近我的臥室，倦了，跨幾步便到床上。但是當我準備要全夜寫文章的時候，便只能待在“樓下書房”了。那時候兩個大房間里只有我一個人，咳嗽，刮洋火，便不會鬧醒人家;天亮了，自己燉杯牛奶，或是走到對面弄堂里買些油豆腐，誰都不會覺得討厭。白天總是不在家的時候多，一回家便得尋了書讀;書拿到手，電話又來了。朋友又喜歡要我寫文章，因為我最明白編輯的痛苦，要二三千字我總肯為他趕寫。

Since I usually read and write at night, you'll often find me sitting in the“Upstairs Study”because it is close to my bedroom. When I feel drowsy, I can easily reach my bed only a few steps away. But you'll find me in the spacious“Downstairs Study”instead when I'm to spend the whole night writing. There I can cough or strike a match without disturbing my folks in their sleep. At daybreak, I will heat up milk for myself or walk to an alley on the opposite side of the street to buy some fried bean curd for breakfast — all done without making a nuisance of myself. I'm seldom at home in the daytime. But, I'll start reading soon after I come back. Then I'll be suddenly interrupted by phone calls from editor-friends asking for my contributions. They know that I, out of compassion for editors, will never decline to dash off an article of two to three thousand words.

我是無論如何脫離不了我的書齋的了。但是除非在我讀書或是寫文章到了出神的時候，我總會感覺到這幾間書齋沒有一間是舒服的。我理想的書齋是一個極大的房間，里面要能容下二十個書架，冬天有熱書汀;夏天有冷氣。我希望有一只最大的書桌，上面可以盡我把書籍紙張亂堆，中間還可以留一些地方安置筆硯稿紙之類。這個當然是我的奢望：我既沒有財力去得到那樣大的書齋，我也沒有才力去寫出什么大文章來，不過希望也是一種安慰，同時還是一種鼓勵。

At any rate, I'm inseparable from my library. But none of my three studies makes me feel comfortable except when I'm completely absorbed in reading or writing. My ideal study should be roomy enough for holding twenty bookcases and have air-conditioning. And there should be a large desk there with enough space for books and writing paper to be jumbled up in piles on either side and for writing brush, inkstone, writing paper and so on to be placed in the middle. This is of course nothing but my wishful thinking. I have neither money to own such a roomy study, nor talent for creating masterpieces. Nevertheless, the extravagant hope brings me consolation all the same. It's sort of encouragement too.

但是，無論如何，我白天是寫不出文章的。“樓上書房”的光線太大，多呆了會頭痛，用了太厚的窗幃又會悶氣。“樓下書房”事實上又是會客間，我的客人又多，文章寫到一半，來了幾個朋友，反而大家不舒服。我寫文章還有一個壞習慣，和吃飯一樣不能停，一停了就吃不下。有一次寫一篇關(guān)于現(xiàn)代詩的文章，中間來了一個朋友，到現(xiàn)在還沒有把它續(xù)完。所以假使有什么副刊編輯要我寫那種分期登載的長篇小說，他一定會受累。但是夜里寫文章，一忽便會天亮;一天不睡，三天都不能使精神恢復，我于是時常頭痛。去找醫(yī)生，他們總是皺緊了眉頭嘆口氣。“三層樓書房”現(xiàn)在已放了一個床，我的表弟睡在里面，所以我除了尋書便不常去了。

But, anyway I can't work efficiently in the daytime. The“Upstairs Study”is too much lit up by the sun, so that I get a headache after staying there a bit too long. And a thick window curtain would only make the room stuffy. The“Downstairs Study”is in fact a drawing room-cum-study. I have frequent visitors. When they call, I have to break off writing to the discomfort of both parties. I'm in the bad habit of finishing my article at one go like when I eat a meal. Once interrupted, I just can't resume eating. Once, while writing an article on modern poetry, I was interrupted by a friend visiting. As a result, the article remains unfinished even today. Therefore, a newspaper editor would inevitably end up in trouble if he should entrust me with the job of writing a serialized novel for his supplement. But, when I write at night, the day seems to break sooner than I think. And one sleepless night will make me feel tired for three days on end and often suffer from a headache. When I go to see a doctor, he will just sigh with a frown. As to the“Third-floor Study”, a bed has now been placed there for my younger male cousin. So I seldom go there unless when I need a book.

事實上，我已不應當對我的書齋發(fā)什么牢騷，雖然不大，可是究竟容得下我。況且它們也不算對不起我，自從去年秋天搬到此地，真名假名的文章，將近十五萬字了。

In fact, I shouldn't have complaints about my studies. Small as they are, they are tolerable. Since I moved to the present lodgings in the autumn of last year, I've produced writings, under my real name or a pseudonym, totaling about 150,000 words.

邵洵美(1906—1968)，浙江余姚人，20世紀30年代上海文化界名人，為人熱情豪爽，是中國現(xiàn)代文學史上卓有影響的詩人、作家、評論家、翻譯家、出版家。1968年，他在“文化大革命”中不幸去世，后雖徹底平反，其名字和作品當今仍知者寥寥。所著《我的書齋生活》一文原載1935年6月20日《時代圖書半月刊》第8卷第1期，現(xiàn)欣然將其譯成英語(略有刪節(jié))，以志緬懷。譯者1945年住在上海，大學剛畢業(yè)，由同學介紹而認識邵先生，結(jié)為忘年之交，1946年夏出國前，曾多次隨許國璋等兩三位同齡人到淮海中路邵府作客，應是邵府豐富藏書的見證人。