new knowledge
-spective
cxcdavid 发表于 2007-07-07 20:48:52
perspective = view; viewpoint; vista
respective = separate; corresponding
irrespective = regardless of; unconnected to
introspective = inward-looking; self-examining
retrospective = retroactive, taking effect on an earlier date; of retrospection, of contemplation of past events
don't confuse these words
cxcdavid 发表于 2007-07-07 17:44:57
pa'role n. 假释 on parole (宣誓后)获假释 (cf. bail: 保释)
ob'lique a. 斜的；拐弯抹角的
o'paque a. 不透明的; 难懂的
Freud (Sigmund Freud) 弗洛伊德
feud n.世仇 夙怨 长期不和 v. 长期斗争 结世仇 (=enmity; vendetta)
feudal adj. 封建的 -> feudalism 封建制度
pore over v. 钻研 研读
pour v. 倒
per'petuate v. 使持续、永存
'perpetrate v. 犯下(罪行 过失)
statue n. 塑像
stature n. 高度 名声
statute n. 成文法律 规章
oblique
cxcdavid 发表于 2007-07-07 17:39:12
neither parallel nor at right angles; slanting.
not explicit or direct: an oblique threat.
Geometry (of a line, plane figure, or surface) inclined at other than a right angle. ▶(of an angle) acute or obtuse. ▶(of a cone, cylinder, etc.) with an axis not perpendicular to the plane of its base.
Anatomy (especially of a muscle) neither parallel nor perpendicular to the long axis of a body or limb.
Grammar denoting any case other than the nominative or vocative.
■ noun
Brit. another term for slash (in sense 3).
an oblique muscle.
obliquely adverb
obliqueness noun
obliquity ə'blɪkwɪti noun
not horizontal or vertical; sloping; slanting 斜的; 倾斜的; 歪斜的: an oblique line 斜线.
[usu attrib 通常作定语] (fig 比喻) not going straight to the point; indirect 拐弯抹角的; 间接的: He made oblique references to her lack of experience. 他拐弯抹角地说她缺乏经验.
> oblique n (also oblique stroke, slash) mark (/) used in maths or punctuation to separate numbers, words, etc 用于数学或分隔数字、文字等的符号（/）, 如 4/5 people, male/female, 25/7/1949.
obliquely adv.
obliquity (also obliqueness)[C, U] (instance of the) state of being oblique 倾斜; 歪斜; 间接.
# oblique angle any angle that is not a right angle (ie not 90); acute or obtuse angle 斜角（非90的角, 即锐角或钝角）.
oblique [ADJ-GRADED]
If you describe a statement as oblique, you mean that is not expressed directly or openly, making it difficult to understand.
It was an oblique reference to his mother.
Mr Golding delivered an oblique warning, talking of the danger of sudden action.
=indirect
→obliquely[ADV: ADV with v]
He obliquely referred to the US, Britain and Saudi Arabia.
=indirectly
oblique [ADJ: usu ADJ n]
An oblique line is a straight line that is not horizontal or vertical. An oblique angle is any angle other than a right angle.
It lies between the plain and the sea at an oblique angle to the coastline.
→obliquely[ADV: ADV after v]
This muscle runs obliquely downwards inside the abdominal cavity.
Curiosity killed the cat
cxcdavid 发表于 2007-07-07 09:45:44
Curiosity killed the cat (from http://www.phrases.org.uk/meanings/curiosity-killed-the-cat.html)
Meaning
Inquisitiveness can lead one into dangerous situations.
Origin
Everyone knows that, despite its supposed nine lives, curiosity killed the cat. Well, not quite. The 'killed the cat' proverb originated as 'care killed the cat'. By 'care' the coiner of the expression meant 'worry/sorrow' rather than our more usual contemporary 'look after/provide for' meaning.
That form of the expression is first recorded in the English playwright Ben Jonson's play Every Man in His Humour, 1598:
"Helter skelter, hang sorrow, care'll kill a Cat, up-tails all, and a Louse for the Hangman."
The play was one of the Tudor humours comedies, in which each major character is assigned a particular 'humour' or trait. The play is thought to have been performed in 1598 by The Lord Chamberlain's Men, a troupe of actors including William Shakespeare and William Kempe. Shakespeare was no slouch when it came to appropriating a memorable line and it crops up the following year in Much Ado About Nothing:
"What, courage man! what though care killed a cat, thou hast mettle enough in thee to kill care."
The proverbial expression 'curiosity killed the cat', which is usually used when attempting to stop someone asking unwanted questions, is much more recent. The earlier form was still in use in 1898, when it was defined in Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase and Fable:
"Care killed the Cat. It is said that a cat has nine lives, but care would wear them all out."
Curiosity hasn't received a good press over the centuries. Saint Augustine wrote in Confessions, AD 397, that, in the eons before creating heaven and earth, God "fashioned hell for the inquisitive". John Clarke, in Paroemiologia, 1639 suggested that "He that pryeth into every cloud may be struck with a thunderbolt". In Don Juan, Lord Byron called curiosity "that low vice". That bad opinion, and the fact that cats are notoriously inquisitive, lead to the source of their demise being changed from 'care' to 'curiosity'.
The earliest known printed reference that uses the 'curiosity' form is O. Henry's Schools and Schools, 1909:
"Curiosity can do more things than kill a cat; and if emotions, well recognized as feminine, are inimical to feline life, then jealousy would soon leave the whole world catless."
The earliest version that I have found of the precise current form of the proverb in print is from The Portsmouth Daily Times, March 1915, in a piece headed The Height of Curiosity:
Mother - "Don't ask so many questions, child. Curiosity killed the cat."
Willie - "What did the cat want to know, Mom?"
The frequent rejounder(rejoinder) to 'curiosity killed the cat' is 'satisfaction brought it back'. I've not been able to trace the source of this odd reply. The first citation of it that I've found in print is from an Iowan college magazine The Coe College Cosmos, in February 1933.
NOTES:
troupe /truːp/ (group; traveling band of performers )
A troupe is a group of actors, singers, or dancers who work together and often travel around together, performing in different places.
...troupes of travelling actors.
=company
If you say that someone is no slouch at a particular activity, you mean that they are skilful at it or are willing to work hard at it.
The Welsh are no slouches at cooking.
be no slouch at sth (infml 口) be very good at sth 善于做某事: She's no slouch at tennis. 她网球打得不赖.
aeon (AM) eon[N-COUNT] /'iːən/
An aeon is an extremely long period of time.
Aeons ago, there were deserts where there is now fertile land.
=age
demise [N-SING: usu with poss]
The demise of something or someone is their end or death. (FORMAL)
...the demise of the reform movement...
Smoking, rather than genetics, was the cause of his early demise.
inimical (hostile, unfriendly; harmful )
Conditions that are inimical to something make it difficult for that thing to exist or do well. (FORMAL)
...a false morality that is inimical to human happiness.
...goals inimical to Western interests.
rejoinder (answer, response, reply 反驳)
A rejoinder is a reply, especially a quick, witty, or critical one, to a question or remark. (FORMAL)
=retort
Health food maker promotes "China-Free" products
cxcdavid 发表于 2007-07-07 09:12:44
(From Reuters)
By Bob Tourtellotte Fri Jul 6, 3:53 PM ET
It's bound to go down the wrong way in Beijing: A U.S. health food company will label its products "China-Free" to ease concerns about contamination.
Food for Health International, based in Orem, Utah, makes whole food nutritional supplements for people and pets, and President Frank Davis said the company will begin trumpeting the fact none of its ingredients come from China.
Plans call for a "China-Free" sticker on products such as Food for Health's "9 a Day-Plus" capsules, "Active Adults" whole food shakes and "Healthy Dog" supplements. The company also will use "China-Free" in advertisements and promotions.
"It is a response to the (headlines) coming out, and we are taking a position that we are not the only ones reading them," Davis told Reuters, referring to news stories detailing contaminated products linked to Chinese manufacturing.
Food for Health's products are made from organically grown foods processed and packaged in the United States without chemical additives, company executives said.
Consumer awareness that products from China may be tainted has greatly increased in recent months since contaminated pet food made by Canadian-based Menu Foods Income Fund and other manufacturers made its way onto U.S. retail shelves.
The food, tainted by the industrial chemical melamine(三聚氰胺) from China, was sold in more than 100 brands and is being probed as the possible cause of illness and death in thousands of pets.
The scare has put a spotlight on food items and chemicals from China, ranging from fruits and vegetables to toothpaste and phone batteries, and it has heightened global scrutiny of products with ingredients from that country.
China has tried to rein in substandard food and drug makers, and just last month a government agency said it shut down 152,000 food processors in 2006 alone.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration requires seafood to be labeled showing its origin, but not meats and produce. While government officials, manufacturers and consumers are all discussing ways to better label products, no group yet appears to have come up with a "China-Free" promotion.
NOTES:
go down the wrong way
(of food) enter the windpipe instead of the gullet.
If someone trumpets something that they are proud of or that they think is important, they speak about it publicly in very forceful way.
The Conservative government has been trumpeting tourism as a growth industry.
...Mark Morris, who is trumpeted as the dance talent of his generation...
Nobody should be trumpeting about chemical weapons.
It was trumpeted that the nation's health was improving.
...the much trumpeted `tax cuts' in the 1980s.
taint
If an unpleasant substance taints food or medicine, the food or medicine is spoiled or damaged by it.
Rancid oil will taint the flavour.
...blood tainted with the AIDS and hepatitis viruses.
rein in
To rein in something means to control it.
His administration's economic policy would focus on reining in inflation and reducing the budget deficit.
Mary spoiled both her children, then tried too late to rein them in.
produce
things that have been produced, esp by farming
农产品
Expressions:
... put a spotlight on ... = spotlight (v.)
... make its way onto ...
成语新得
cxcdavid 发表于 2007-07-06 09:20:47
【解释】：谓无缘相见。 郭沫若 《蒐苗的检阅》：“的确，我自己很抱歉，我和 茅盾 先生虽然相识，和我们 鲁迅 先生竟缘悭一面。”
悭
qiān
①吝啬。
②缺欠：缘～一面（缺少一面之缘）。
功败垂成
【近义】功亏一篑、前功尽弃
【释义】垂：接近，快要。事情在将要成功的时候遭到了失败。
【出处】《晋书·谢玄传论》：“庙算有余，良图不果；降龄何促，功败垂成。”
【用例】况且十二道金牌，他未必不知道是假的，何必就班师回去，以致～。（清·吴趼人《二十年目睹之怪现状》第六十一回）
少安毋躁 （且安勿躁 少安无躁）
【释义】少：稍微，暂时；安：徐缓，不急；毋：不要；躁：急躁。暂且安心等一会儿，不要急躁。
【出处】《左传·襄公七年》：“吾子其少安。”唐·韩愈《答吕毉山人书》：“方将坐足下三浴而三熏之，听仆之所为，少安无躁。”
【用例】乙校不自心虚，怎能给恐吓呢？然而，～罢。（鲁迅《华盖集续编·无花的蔷薇之三》）
野人献曝
【释义】比喻贡献的不是珍贵的东西。（向人建议时的客套话）。
【出处】《列子·杨朱》：“自曝于日，不知天下之有广厦隩室，绵纩狐貉。” （一个山野之人，既没有避寒的高堂广厦，也没有取暖的丝绵狐貉(hao2 或 he2)，只是觉得晒太阳很是温暖，就把晒太阳的一点心得奉献给大家）
野人献芹
【释义】把不值钱的芹菜当好东西献给别人。比喻贡献的不是有多大价值的东西（多用作送人礼物或建议时的客套话）。
【出处】《列子·杨朱》：“昔人有美戎菽、甘台茎、芹萍子者，对乡豪称之，乡豪取而尝之，蜇于口，惨于腹。众哂而怨之，其人大惭。”
question of the day
cxcdavid 发表于 2007-07-05 21:40:55
1. A fused
2. B eroded
3. C cradled
4. D perpetuated
5. E consolidated
key: B
notes:
流动性使得家庭分散了，也使得曾经维系忠于本地之感情的纽带松懈了。
Continuity is the fact that something continues to happen or exist, with no great changes or interruptions. 连续性；持续性；连贯性
An historical awareness also imparts a sense of continuity.
...a tank designed to ensure continuity of fuel supply during aerobatics.
...the problems of trying to maintain continuity between your youthful past and your middle-aged present...
He said he stood for continuity rather than change.
≠discontinuity
[N-UNCOUNT]
In film making, continuity is the way that things filmed at different times are made to look as if they were filmed at the same time or in the right sequence. (TECHNICAL) 串联, 衔接
Walt and I referred to a video cassette of the original footage to check continuity and lighting.
A continuity announcer is someone who introduces the next programme on a radio or television station. 插白广播员
A loyalty card is a plastic card that some shops give to regular customers. Each time the customer buys something from the shop, points are electronically stored on their card and can be exchanged later for goods or services.
fuse:
His music of that period fused the rhythms of jazz with classical forms.
What they have done is fuse two different types of entertainment, the circus and the rock concert.
Past and present fuse.
cradle:
If you cradle someone or something in your arms or hands, you hold them carefully and gently.
hold and fondle lovingly or protectively; lay in cradle; rock soothingly
hold gently and protectively.
place in a cradle.
I cradled her head in my arms.
He was sitting at the big table cradling a large bowl of milky coffee.
cradle a child in one's arms ( ie hold it gently, esp rocking it from side to side )
to hold a telephone receiver by putting it between your ear and your shoulder
She hunched over the desk, telephone cradled at her neck.
perpetuate:
If someone or something perpetuates a situation, system, or belief, especially a bad one, they cause it to continue.
We must not perpetuate the religious divisions of the past.
This image is a myth perpetuated by the media.
consolidate:
(a)make stronger or more solid.
The question is: will the junta consolidate its power by force?.
Brydon's team-mate Martin Williamson consolidated his lead in the National League when he won the latest round.
→consolidation[N-UNCOUNT: oft N of n]
But change brought about the growth and consolidation of the working class.
Even if not total, the Romans' hold was sufficient for them to begin the task of consolidation.
(b)combine into a single unit.
Judge Charles Schwartz is giving the state 60 days to disband and consolidate Louisiana's four higher education boards.
IBM, which consolidated some operations last summer, has made clear that it needs to continue to streamline them.
→consolidation consolidations [N-VAR]
This consolidation meant having to reduce the numerical strength of the Army.
Further consolidations in the industry could follow.
**other meanings of cradle as noun:
1. cat's cradle
a child's game in which patterns are constructed in a loop of string held between the fingers of each hand.
2.
(a) framework that looks like or is used like a cradle, eg the structure on which a ship rests while it is being repaired or built
形状或用途近似摇篮的框架（如修造船舶时用以支承的托架）.
(b) platform that can be moved up and down an outside wall by means of ropes and pulles, used by window-cleaners, painters, etc
3.
（擦窗工人、油漆工人等使用的依靠绳索及滑轮可沿外墙上下移动的）吊架, 吊篮.
part of a telephone on which the receiver rests
（电话机的）听筒架, 叉簧.
**
Do not confuse the words perpetrate/'pə:pɪtreɪt/ and perpetuate/pə'pɛtʃʊeɪt/. Perpetrate means ‘commit a harmful, illegal, or immoral action’, as in a crime has been perpetrated against a sovereign state, whereas perpetuate means ‘make something continue indefinitely’, as in a monument to perpetuate the memory of those killed in the war.
thoughts about translation
cxcdavid 发表于 2007-07-04 22:37:53
When dealing with clichés, we may encounter two situations. First, the author employs a metaphor which is vivid and innovative in the original language, but if literally translated it becomes a cliché because it happens that there exists an equivalent of this metaphor which is very commonly used in the target language. Prof. Wang illustrated this phenomenon with the poem A Red, Red Rose, the lines of which "Till a' the seas gang dry" and "And the rocks melt wi' the sun" are a case in point if to be translated in to Chinese. In this case, the translator should avoid literal translation and try to create a new metaphor in the target language. Second, when the author used a cliché, whether intentionally or not, the translator should also find a cliché in the target language. The principle of dealing with clichés, as I observed from Prof. Wang's talk, is that the a good translation should convey both the meaning and style of the original work.
Prof. Wang also points out that translators should try hard to purify and sharpen their Chinese(使自己的漢語“純凈而銳利”). This particularly resonates with me, since I always want to present simplicity and forcefulness in my Chinese writings. And I think this can only be achieved by reading more Chinese works, from which I can find those elements that suits me and can be collected and reorganized to form my own style of writing in Chinese.
To talk about style, however, one's ideal style of Chinese cannot substitute that of the original work in English if one is going to translate well. Again, the criterion of good translation applies here: achieving a style in the target language that is closest to the original work, even if you don't appreciate that style.
If it is hard to form a writing style in one's mother language, it is even harder to do so in a foreign language. I think in order to gradually work towards this goal, one must accumulate as many language materials (words and set expressions, idioms and sentence structures, etc) as possible so that when s/he wants to convey a meaning in this language, s/he has several alternatives to pick up the most suitable from. The style influences this "pick-up", which is coherent with one's style and in return reinforce it. That's why before a sound foundation of language resourcefulness is laid, nothing can be said of "style", except a "style" that is featured by crudeness and limitedness.
国画老师
cxcdavid 发表于 2007-07-04 17:29:32
还记得老师姓卞，是一位带着眼镜和微笑、很和蔼的中年男子。每次上课，轮流有一位小朋友给他提供宣纸和颜料，下课了，那张他为我们演示而作的画，就留给那位小朋友。其实，当时我还不懂欣赏，只觉得老师怎么一笔画下就那么“正确”，而自己却掌握不好，有时画得连自己都看不下去。而老师还是以鼓励为主的，即使我画的不好，他也只是帮我再示范，而不太说不好的。那时的作业，我一般都得良或良上，偶尔得个优下，我就很开心了。
卞老师主要教我们画蔬菜、水果、竹子等植物，也教我们画飞翔的麻雀作为植物的点缀，还画过鱼和黄鹂。现在看来，都是一些简单而由自然气息浓厚的元素，正是自己所喜爱的风格。可能这种喜好也是受了当时学国画的影响吧。
3年学国画的经历在我的记忆中已经有些模糊，今天想起来，是因为看到了晚报上的一篇文章，正是介绍卞老师的，真是让我惊喜。回忆起那段时光，觉得卞老师是一位可敬可爱的老师。
《新民晚报》7月3日 夜光杯
溢出画外的美丽
作者：朱金晨
卞真的蔬果画，是在继承传统花鸟画的基础上，找到了自己的创作感觉、理念、方法。卞真曾师从的钱行健先生，是当代花鸟画大师江寒汀门下高足。如果我们只是以过去传统花鸟画模式来创作今天的花鸟画，那么作品的形式与内容必然是陈旧的，没有多大的生命力。卞真师出名门，但没有因循守旧，而是力图在寻常熟悉的题材中融进自己的情感和审美体验，于是那些遭遇别人轻视的上不得宣纸的蔬菜、瓜果，纷纷在他的笔下出彩生辉；还有那些早已让前人画烂了的枇杷、荔枝、石榴，也显出勃勃的生机；即使是从他笔端流露出的各种花鸟，也都有人格化意义与顽强生命力的存在。自然、亲切，在他的笔墨中，始终强调的是浓郁的生活气息。又加之他在艺术创作上“好学深思，善于融会贯通”，既能博采江门画派的花鸟画技艺，又将自己拜在书法家刘小晴门下钻研过的书法线条用在作画上……他的绘画艺术注入了新的血液和气象，形成很有个性的艺术表现力和内涵，用他的至交、画家张复兴的话来评价，那就是“墨青色秀，气韵生动，笔墨之间蕴含着一缕氤氲的书卷气，特别是用笔，显示其深厚的传统功力。”
一簇簇挂满枝蔓的红艳艳的扁豆荚，使人想起村风古朴的山里人家；一根根随风摇曳的绿油油的丝瓜，又使人憧憬夏日星空下的竹篱花墙……说真的，初读卞真的画作，很奇怪，就是那些看似寻常的东西、寻常的技法，却让我们领略到别样的诗情画意。后来与卞真接触了，并了解了他二十多年走过的艰辛历程，也就不足为怪了。在艺术世界中有所为，有所不为，在如今烟火气甚重的画坛上已很难有他这样的心态与境界了。与其说我欣赏卞真的丹青，不如说更欣赏他的为人。人们常说画如其人，人品不好的人又怎能绘出打动人心的画作。
忠厚、朴实、谦逊……质朴的色彩、质朴的线条、质朴的构图、质朴的内容，在卞真的笔下与身上，让我们发现在这世上，还有什么能比朴实更美呢？
正是枇杷艳黄时(中国画) 卞真
《荷塘月色》A great translation work
cxcdavid 发表于 2007-07-04 16:46:08
The last few days have found me very restless. This evening as I sat in the yard to enjoy the cool, it struck me how different the lotus pool I pass every day must look under a full moon. The moon was sailing higher and higher up the heavens, the sound of childish laughter had died away from the lane beyond our wall, and my wife was in the house patting Juner and humming a lullaby to him. I quietly slipped on a long gown, and walked out leaving the door on the latch.
这几天心里颇不宁静。今晚在院子里坐着乘凉，忽然想起日日走过的荷塘，在这满月的光里，总该另有一番样子吧。月亮渐渐地升高了，墙外马路上孩子们的欢笑，已经听不见了；妻在屋里拍着闰儿，迷迷糊糊地哼着眠歌。我悄悄地披了大衫，带上门出去。
A cinder - path winds along by the side of the pool. It is off the beaten track and few pass this way even by day, so at night it is still more quiet. Trees grow thick and bosky all around the pool, with willows and other trees I cannot name by the path. On nights when there is no moon the track is almost terrifyingly dark, but tonight it was quite clear, though the moonlight was pale.
沿着荷塘，是一条曲折的小煤屑路。这是一条幽僻的路；白天也少人走，夜晚更加寂寞。荷塘四面，长着许多树，蓊蓊郁郁的。路的一旁，是些杨柳，和一些不知道名字的树。没有月光的晚上，这路上阴森森的，有些怕人。今晚却很好，虽然月光也还是淡淡的。
Strolling alone down the path, hands behind my back, I felt as if the whole earth and sky were mine and I had stepped outside my usual self into another world. I like both excitement and stillness, under the full moon, I could think of whatever I pleased or of nothing at all, and that gave me a sense of freedom. All daytime duties could be disregarded. That was the advantage of solitude: I could savour to the full that expanse of fragrant lotus and the moonlight.
路上只我一个人，背着手踱着。这一片天地好像是我的；我也像超出了平常的自己，到了另一世界里。我爱热闹，也爱冷静；爱群居，也爱独处。像今晚上，一个人 在这苍茫的月下，什么都可以想，什么都可以不想，便觉是个自由的人。白天里一定要做的事，一定要说的话，现在都可不理。这是独处的妙处，我且受用这无边的荷香月色好了。
As far as eye could see, the pool with its winding margin was covered with trim leaves, which rose high out of the water like the flared skirts of dancing girls. And starring these tiers of leaves were white lotus flowers, alluringly open or bashfully in bud, like glimmering pearls, stars in an azure sky, or beauties fresh from the bath. The breeze carried past gusts of fragrance, like the strains of a song faintly heard from a far-off tower. And leaves and blossoms trembled slightly, while in a flash the scent was carried away. As the closely serried leaves bent, a tide of opaque emerald could be glimpsed. That was the softly running water beneath, hidden from sight, its colour invisible, though the leaves looked more graceful than ever.
曲曲折折的荷塘上面，弥望的是田田的叶子。叶子出水很高，像亭亭的舞女的裙。层层的叶子中间，零星地点缀着些白花，有袅娜地开着的，有羞涩地打着朵儿的； 正如一粒粒的明珠，又如碧天里的星星，又如刚出浴的美人。微风过处，送来缕缕清香，仿佛远处高楼上渺茫的歌声似的。这时候叶子与花也有一丝的颤动，像闪电般，霎时传过荷塘的那边去了。叶子本是肩并肩密密地挨着，这便宛然有了一道凝碧的波痕。叶子底下是脉脉的流水，遮住了，不能见一些颜色；而叶子却更见风致了。
Moonlight cascaded like water over the lotus leaves and flowers, and a light blue mist floating up from the pool made them seem washed in milk or caught in a gauzy dream. Though the moon was full, a film of pale clouds in the sky would not allow its rays to shine through brightly; but I felt this was all to the good - though refreshing sleep is indispensable, short naps have a charm all their own. As the moon shone from behind them, the dense trees on the hills threw checkered shadows, dark forms loomed like devils, and the sparse, graceful shadows of willows seemed painted on the lotus leaves. The moonlight on the pool was not uniform, but light and shadow made up a harmonious rhythm like a beautiful tune played on a violin.
月光如流水一般，静静地泻在这一片叶子和花上。薄薄的青雾浮起在荷塘里。叶子和花仿佛在牛乳中洗过一样；又像笼着轻纱的梦。虽然是满月，天上却有一层淡淡的云，所以不能朗照；但我以为这恰是到了好处——酣眠固不可少，小睡也别有风味的。月光是隔了树照过来的，高处丛生的灌木，落下参差的斑驳的黑影，峭楞楞如鬼一般；弯弯的杨柳的稀疏的倩影，却又像是画在荷叶上。塘中的月色并不均匀；但光与影有着和谐的旋律，如梵婀玲上奏着的名曲。
Far and near, high and low around the pool were trees, most of them willows. These trees had the pool entirely hemmed in, the only small clearings left being those by the path, apparently intended for the moon. All the trees were somber as dense smoke, but among them you could make out the luxuriant willows, while faintly above the tree-tops loomed distant hills - their general outline only. And between the trees appeared one or two street lamps, listless as the eyes of someone drowsy. The liveliest sounds at this hour were the cicadas chirruping on the trees and the frogs croaking in the pool; but this animation was theirs alone, I had no part in it.
荷塘的四面，远远近近，高高低低都是树，而杨柳最多。这些树将一片荷塘重重围住；只在小路一旁，漏着几段空隙，像是特为月光留下的。树色一例是阴阴的，乍看像一团烟雾；但杨柳的丰姿，便在烟雾里也辨得出。树梢上隐隐约约的是一带远山，只有些大意罢了。树缝里也漏着一两点路灯光，没精打采的，是渴睡人的眼。这时候最热闹的，要数树上的蝉声与水里的蛙声；但热闹是它们的，我什么也没有。
Then lotus-gathering flashed into my mind. This was an old custom south of the Yangtse, which apparently originated very early and was most popular in the period of the Six Kingdoms,* as we see from the songs of the time. The lotuses were picked by girls in small boats, who sang haunting songs as they padded. They turned out in force, we may be sure, and there were spectators too, for that was a cheerful festival and a romantic one. We have a good account of it in a poem by Emperor Yuan of the Liang dynasty called Lotus Gatherers:
忽然想起采莲的事情来了。采莲是江南的旧俗，似乎很早就有，而六朝时为盛；从诗歌里可以约略知道。采莲的是少年的女子，她们是荡着小船，唱着艳歌去的。采莲人不用说很多，还有看采莲的人。那是一个热闹的季节，也是一个风流的季节。梁元帝《采莲赋》里说得好：
Deft boys and pretty girls
Reach an understanding while boating;
Their prows veer slowly,
But the wine cups pass quickly;
Their oars are entangled,
As they cut through the duckweed,
And girls with slender waists
Turn to gaze behind them.
Now spring and summer meet,
Leaves are tender, flowers fresh;
With smiles they protect their silks,
Drawing in their skirts, afraid lest the boat upset.
于是妖童媛女，
荡舟心许；
鷁首徐回，
兼传羽杯；
欋将移而藻挂，
船欲动而萍开。
尔其纤腰束素，
迁延顾步；
夏始春余，
叶嫩花初，
恐沾裳而浅笑，
畏倾船而敛裾。
There we have a picture of these merry excursions. This must have been a delightful event, and it is a great pity we cannot enjoy it today.
可见当时嬉游的光景了。这真是有趣的事，可惜我们现在早已无福消受了。
I also remember some lines from the poem West Islet:
于是又记起《西洲曲》里的句子：
When they gather lotus at Nantang in autumn
The lotus blooms are higher than their heads;
They stoop to pick lotus seeds,
Seeds as translucent as water.
采莲南塘秋，莲花过人头；低头弄莲子，莲子清如水。
If any girls were here now to pick the lotus, the flowers would reach above their heads too -- ah, rippling shadows alone are not enough! I was feeling quite homesick for the south, when I suddenly looked up to discover I had reached my own door. Pushing it softly open and tiptoeing in, I found all quiet inside, and my wife fast asleep.
今晚若有采莲人，这儿的莲花也算得“过人头”了；只不见一些流水的影子，是不行的。这令我到底惦着江南了。——这样想着，猛一抬头，不觉已是自己的门前；轻轻地推门进去，什么声息也没有，妻已睡熟好久了。、