对我来说，上山下乡只是下乡，因为我去的地方无山可上。结果我接触的农民也大多具水乡特征，多阴柔，少刚阳。

When I was caught up in the sweeping campaign of settling urban youth in the countryside, called “up a mountain and down a farm”1“上山下乡”是特定历史时期的特定现象，在中文里不需要交代背景，一般人可以理解，年轻人凭借平常的阅读或前辈的回忆或许也略略知道一些。但如果用英语表达，就需要以尽可能少的笔墨说明一下这一现象发生的时代。介绍“上山下乡”的概念时，采用了按字面直译的手法（up a mountain and down a farm），这是为了保持“原汁原味”，而且在对背景有了说明（campaign of settling urban youth in the countryside）后，直译“上山下乡”是可行的。,in the midst of the “Cultural Revolution” upheaval, I was on the “down”2上文已经把“上山下乡”直译为up a mountain and down a farm，故此处可用down一词来表示“下乡”，但仍然需要用引号，因为这是照应前文而产生的效果，通常downside的意思不同。 side, because the place where I was sent had no mountains to climb. I was then introduced into the life of local farmers3原文里直接谈所接触到农民的情况。译文里减慢了这一节奏，先谈一下与农民的接触（I was then introduced into the life of local farmers），再谈接触的发现。中文很简练，过渡很快。如果仿照中文表达方式，恐怕过渡偏快，会显得唐突。造成过渡节奏不一致的主要原因之一是译文里对“上山下乡”的概念及背景做了解释，增加了开头的内容，所以此处有必要减缓节奏。, one that was as gentle as the currents of the waterways running through their neighborhoods.[2]都说一方水土养一方人，崇山峻岭中生活的人，少不了行路难的历练，背一捆柴，挑一担水，走上十几里路，走得脚底出泡，是每个山里人会有的经历。My observation seemed to bear out an old truth4虽然原文里没有an old truth的直接对应词，但“都说”一语已经包含这一意思。 that people’s dispositions were shaped by their environment. Mountain dwellers were able to develop the kind of toughness because they often had to walk many miles while carrying stacks of fi rewood or buckets of waterdespite the pain blisters on their feet were causing them.

[3]水乡不同。水乡虽不像城市那样有现代化的呵护，可是行在水乡，毕竟要比走在山里方便，因为有河组成交通的网线，有舟代挑肩上的担子。畏人的里程在乘舟欲行的人看来并不畏人，在摇啊摇的乌篷船里看外婆家也不山高水远5“看外婆家也不山高水远”只能根据内在含义翻译。这里硬译“外婆家”估计只能产生令人哭笑不得的效果。。但也因此，以舟代步的水乡人没有机会像山里人那样，走出艰难硬朗的人生。Living in a village by a river was different. Even though devoid of urban amenities, rural villages blessed with crisscrossing rivers had the bene fi t of water transport to relieve much of the burden of carrying stuff around. The network of rivers offered the possibility of turning a grueling trudge—a daily routine for a mountain dweller—into a joyful ride by transferring the load from our backs or shoulders to those little boats with black canopies that typically dotted Shaoxing’s waterways back then. And because of this convenience,farmers having easy access to waterways simply didn’t have to rough it6 rough it 是指过艰难日子，例如：We spent our vacation roughing it in a log cabin. as mountain folks did.

[4]当人体背负着生活的重担，走在山中小路上的人注视的范围便缩小了，因此山里人很少关注山坳外的乾坤。Besides, climbing a mountain with a heavy load on your back could limit your vision. Mountain living thus tended to insulate you from what was going on outside your small world.

[5]水乡人不同，即便摇橹推桨也得使出浑身的解数，但推拉之间，顺水前行的舟楫还是会借惯性，给你一息喘息的机会，更何况几个人轮番上阵，换下来的人便可稳坐在船头，看山阴道上的景致，暂且忘掉衣食住行的烦恼。于是在水软橹声柔的人生路上，水乡人也和水一样，阴柔是性格的特征，即便是男子汉也缺少大刀阔斧的胸襟。Unlike their mountain-dwelling peers, waterside residents had room to breathe and panoramic views to explore while in their boats. They did have to go all out rowing at times,but they often had the leisure to amuse themselves when they were going downstream, or especially when they had several people taking turns rowing. They could relax on the bow of their boat, enjoying the breath-

〔〕〔〕taking scenery along the banks, temporarily oblivious of more mundane worries of feeding their families7“衣食住行的烦恼”虽然提及四点，但最重要的应该是有饭吃。在译文把四点都说出，无疑会显得累赘。. Life marched on in gentle steps much like strokes of an oar in the water, instilling tenderness in men and women alike. No wonder qualities such as decisiveness8“大刀阔斧”一般意思是“办事果断而有魄力”，因此可译成decisiveness。 seemed elusive even in men. ■

文章来源：《农民致富之友》 网址: http://www.nmzfzyzz.cn/qikandaodu/2020/1005/476.html