翻译练习0514参考答案

E-C:Menhavesolittlereflectedonthehigherfunctionsofliteratureastofinditaparadoxifoneshoulddescribeitasameanorsubordinatepurposeofbookstogiveinformation.Butthisisaparadoxonlyinthesensewhichmakesithonorabletobeparadoxical.Wheneverwetalkinordinarylanguageofseekinginformationorgainingknowledge,weunderstandthewordsasconnectedwithsomethingofabsolutenovelty.Butitisthegrandeurofalltruthwhichcanoccupyaveryhighplaceinhumanintereststhatitisneverabsolutelynoveltothemeanestofminds:itexistseternallybywayofgermorlatentprincipleinthelowestasinthehighest,needingtobedeveloped,butnevertobeplanted.Tobecapableoftransplantationistheimmediatecriterionofatruththatrangesonalowerscale,besidewhich,thereisararerthingthantruth–namely,power,ordeepsympathywithtruth.Whatistheeffect,forinstance,uponsociety,ofchildren?Bythepity,bythetenderness,andbythepeculiarmodesofadmiration,whichconnectthemselveswiththehelplessness,withtheinnocence,andwiththesimplicityofchildren,notonlyaretheprimalaffectionsstrengthenedandcontinuallyrenewed,butthequalitieswhicharedearestinthesightofheaven–thefrailty,forinstance,whichappealstoforbearance,theinnocencewhichsymbolizestheheavenly,thesimplicitywhichismostalienfromtheworldly–arekeptupinperpetualremembrance,andtheiridealsarecontinuallyrefreshed.Apurposeofthesamenatureisansweredbythehigherliterature,viz.theliteratureofpower.WhatdoyoulearnfromParadiseLost?Nothingatall.Whatdoyoulearnfromacookerybook?Somethingnew,somethingthatyoudidnotknowbefore,ineveryparagraph.Butwouldyouthereforeputthewretchedcookerybookonahigherlevelofestimationthanthedivinepoem?WhatyouowetoMiltonisnotanyknowledge,ofwhichamillionseparateitemsarestillbutamillionofadvancingstepsonthesameearthlylevel;whatyouoweispower–thatis,exerciseandexpansiontoyourownlatentcapacityofsympathywiththeinfinite,whereeverypulseandeachseparateinfluxisastepupwards,astepascendingasuponaJacob’sladderfromearthtomysteriousaltitudesabovetheearth.Allthestepsofknowledge,fromfirsttolast,carryyoufurtheronthesameplane,butcouldneverraiseyouonefootaboveyourancientlevelofearth;whereastheveryfirststepinpowerisaflight–isanascendingmovementintoanotherelementwhereearthisforgotten.人们很少对文学具有的更高层次的功能深入思索，以至于要是有人把提供信息说成是书籍的一种低劣的或次要的目的就觉得困惑不解，认为这话是一种悖论。但仅仅从使似乎矛盾的说法变得受人尊重这个意义上来说，这是一种似是而非的悖论。每当我们用一般语言谈论寻求信息或获取知识的时候，我们的理解总会与某种绝对新鲜的事物联络在一起。但所有真理能在人类所关怀的事务中占据崇高的地位，其伟大之处便在于：即便是对于最平庸的人来说，它也历来不是绝对新鲜的东西。真理总是以萌芽状态或潜伏规则的形式存在着，对崇高者如此，对卑微者亦如此，需要培育，但从不需要植入。可以移植是衡量低级真理的直接原则。除此之外，尚有一种比真理更稀罕的东西，那就是力量，或者说是对真理的深切认同。举例来说，孩子对于社会有什么用呢？孩童的无助、无辜和单纯唤起怜悯、疼爱和特殊的赞赏，不仅使人类与生俱来的情感得到强化和不停升华，并且就连那些在上帝看来也是最宝贵的品质—例如，唤起人们宽容之心的柔弱，象征圣洁的无辜，以及与世俗格格不入的单纯等等—也得到了永久的铭记，而对这些品质的憧憬也历久弥新。更高层次的文学，即力量文学，所实现的正式与此相似的目的。你从《失乐园》这部史诗中能学到什么知识呢？什么也没学到。你从一本烹饪书中能学到什么呢？从每一段落里你都能学到一点新东西—你此前从不懂得的东西。但你会因此对这本微局限性道的烹饪书作出比那部神圣诗作更高的评价吗？你要归功于弥尔顿的不是你学到了什么知识，一百万条零零碎散的知识也不过是在尘世间向前迈了一百万步。你要感谢他的是他给了你力量—让你锻炼并拓展了与无限世界产生共鸣的潜力。在无限世界中，每一次脉动，每一次心跳，均是向上迈出的一步，如同踏着雅各梦中见到的天梯，从人间迈向远离地面的神秘高处。获取知识的脚步，自始至终只能让你在同一种平面上渐行渐远，但无法令你向上离开这个古老的人间。然而获取力量的第一步就是一种飞跃—一种上升到另一种境界的飞跃，在那种崇高的境界里浑然忘却了尘世的存在。C-E尽管古人把书说成“浩如烟海”，书的世界却真正的“天涯若比邻”，这话绝不是唯心的比拟。世界再大也没有阻隔。佛说“三千大千世界”，可算大极了。书的境界呢，“目前界”还加上“过去界”，也带上“未来界”，实在是包罗万象，贯穿三界。而我们却可以足不出户，在这里随意阅历，随时拜师讨教。谁说读书人目光短浅，不通人情，不关怀世事呢！这里可得到丰富的经历，可认识各时各地、多种多样的人。常常在书里“串门儿”，至少可以脱去几分愚昧，多长几种心眼儿吧？可惜我们“串门”时“隐”而犹存的“身”，毕竟只是凡胎俗骨。我们没有如来佛的慧眼，把人世间几千年积累的智慧一览无余，只好时时刻刻记住庄子“生也有涯而知也无涯”的名言。我们只是朝生暮死的虫豸（还不是孙大圣毫毛变成的虫儿），钻入书中世界，这边爬爬，那边停停，有时碰到心仪的人，听到惬意的话，或者对心上悬挂的问题偶有所得，就好比开了心窍，乐以忘言。这个“乐”和追求“享有”该不是一回事吧？Thoughancientpeoplecomparedbookstoavastocean,yettheworldofbooksaboutdistantpeopleandthingscanbeactuallydeemedascloseasanext-doorneighbor,whichdefinitelyisnotanidealisticmetaphoricalassertion.Nomatterhowvasttheworldofbooksmaybe,thereexistnobarriersatall.Buddhistsregardthisworldofoursas“oneBuddha-world,”whichisextremelyvast.Buttheworldofbooksissovastthatitextendsacrossthreeworlds,namely“thepastworld,thepresentworldandthefutureworld,”encompassingeverything,acrosswhoseborderswecangobackandforthwithgreatease.Withoutsteppingoutoftheroom,wecanreadandexperienceallthatwecaretoandlearnfromgreatmastersandaskthemforadvicewheneverwewishto.Whoclaimsthatbook-loversareshort-sighted,ignorantofhumanfeelings,andindifferenttoworldaffairs?Hereintheworldofbookswecanacquireabundantexperienceandbecomeacquaintedwithvariouskindsofpeoplefromdifferentagesandplaces.Byfrequentlyvisitingthisworld,atleastwecanridourselvesofsomeignoranceandgainacertaindegreeofwisdom.Whatapityitisthatourphysicalbodies,“invisible”aswevisittheworldofbooks,areafterallconfinedtothismundaneworld.AswearenotendowedwithBuddha’sdiscerningeyes,which,ataglance,takeinallthehumanwisdomaccumulatedovermillenniums,wehavetocomfortourselvesbyalwaysbearinginmindZhuangZi’sfamoussayingthat“Humanlife-spanisfinitewhileknowledgeisinfinite.”Beingmerelyinsects(surelynotinsectsMonkeyKingturnedintobychanginghissofthairs),whoselifelastsonlyashorttime,wecrawlourwayintotheworldofbooks,pausinghitherandthither.Wheneverweaccident