習近平總書記講話樸實而生動,針對老百姓意見較大的有的地方反腐往往“只打蒼蠅不打老虎”的問題,習近平在講話中提出“要堅持‘老虎、‘蒼蠅一起打”。新華社報道將“‘老虎、‘蒼蠅一起打”譯為crack down on “tigers”and “flies” at the same time。筆者認為外國讀者未必能理解這一說法所表示的意思,而且crack down (on…) 的意思是“(對……)采取嚴厲的措施”,包括制裁、處罰乃至鎮(zhèn)壓,其賓語一般為某種非法活動或罪犯,對tiger實行crack down本身就不符合英語用法,而以flies做其賓語更會讓人感覺滑稽可笑。路透社的報道譯為uphold the fighting of tigers and flies at the same time稍微好一些??墒亲屑毞治鲆幌?,蒼蠅傳染疾病,所以該打(“打蒼蠅”一般用蒼蠅拍,是swap flies);而把“打老虎”(也許是hunting for/kill tigers,武松那樣赤手空拳打死老虎kill the tiger by striking/blowing一般人是做不到)和“打蒼蠅”放在一起就讓英美人不明白了。在中國傳統(tǒng)文化中,老虎常被用于指橫行霸道的人,解放后不久的“三反”運動也把貪污分子稱為“老虎”。 BBC的譯文比較地道:(It was just as important) to go after the “flies”, or lowly people, as it was to tackle the “tigers”, or top officials, in the battle against graft. Go after有“緝捕”的意思,特別是后面加上了lowly people和top officials的補充說明,意思更清楚。 習近平還談到體制在反腐中的重要性,指出要“把權力關進制度的籠子里”。新華社的譯文是:Power should be restricted by the cage of regulations. 基本譯出了其意思,但restrict一詞不夠確切,筆者認為外媒的譯法可能略勝一籌:Keep power reined within the cage of regulations. 當然這一段話后面的解釋部分“形成不敢腐的懲戒機制、不能腐的防范機制、不易腐的保障機制”。(A disciplinary, prevention and guarantee mechanism should be set up to ensure that people do not dare to, are not able to and can not easily commit corruption.)的補充說明使意思進一步明確?!? (本欄目供稿:陳德彰教授)