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  3. Whether work should be placed among the causes of happiness or among the causes of unhappiness may perhaps be regarded as a doub

Whether work should be placed among the causes of happiness or among the causes of unhappiness may perhaps be regarded as a doub

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问题     Whether work should be placed among the causes of happiness or among the causes of unhappiness may perhaps be regarded as a doubtful question. There is certainly much work which is exceedingly irksome, and an excess of work is always very painful. I think, however, that provided work is not excessive in amount, even the dullest work is to most people less painful than idleness-There are in work all grades, from mere relief of tedium up to the profoundest delights, according to the nature of the work and the abilities of the worker. Most of the work that most people have to do is not in itself interesting, but even such work has certain great advantages. To begin with, it fills a good many hours of the day without the need of deciding what one shall do. Most people, when they are left free to fill their own time according to their own choice, are at a loss to think of anything sufficiently pleasant to be worth doing. And whatever they decide on, they are troubled by the feeling that something else would have been pleasanter. To be able to fill leisure intelligently is the last product of civilization, and at present very few people have reached this level. Moreover the exercise of choice is in itself tiresome. Except to people with unusual initiative it is positively agreeable to be told what to do at each hour of the day, provided the orders are not too unpleasant. Most of the idle rich suffer unspeakable boredom as the price of their freedom from drudgery. At times, they may find relief by hunting big game in Africa, or by flying round the world, but the number of such sensations is limited, especially after youth is past. Accordingly the more intelligent rich men work nearly as hard as if they were poor, while rich women for the most part keep themselves busy with innumerable trifles of whose earth-shaking importance they are firmly persuaded.
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答案 工作究竟应算作幸福的原因，还是不幸的原因，这也许还是个疑问。当然有许多工作极其令人厌烦，工作负担过重也总是令人十分痛苦。但我认为，假如工作负担不是过重，对大多数人来说，即便是最乏味的工作也没有赋闲那么痛苦。根据工作的性质和工作者的能力，可以把工作分成各种层次，从单单是排遣烦闷一直到能带来最深层的快乐的工作。大多数人必须做的大多数工作本身并没有趣味，但即便是这样的工作也有某些极大的好处。首先，它占去了一天中好几个小时，使你不必拿主意自己该干什么。在可以自由选择如何消磨时间的时候，大多数人都茫然不知所措，想不出一件有意思的事情值得干。不管他们选定了什么，其他事情可能更有意思的感觉还是困扰着他们。明智地消遣闲暇的能力是文明的最后产物，迄今为止只有很少人才达到了这一境界。再说作出选择本身就是一件麻烦事。除了对极有主见的人以外，被指定每天的每个小时做什么完全是一件惬意的事情，只要任务不是太辛苦就可以了。多数有钱而有闲的人，作为摆脱艰辛工作的代价，忍受着难以形容的无聊。有时，他们去非洲猎取大型野生动物，或做环球飞行以消愁解闷，但这样的刺激数量有限，尤其在青春流逝以后。因此较明智的有钱男人几乎就像没钱那样勤奋工作，而有钱的女人通常忙于无数鸡毛蒜皮的小事，并对其惊天动地的重要性深信不疑。
解析     这段文字出自伯特兰.罗素(Bertrand Russell)的《工作》(Work)。他从一个全新的视角澄清了公众对工作的误解，使人们清醒地意识到工作并没有想象中那么令人厌烦。伯特兰.罗素，威尔士人，思想家、哲学家、数学家。毕生为世界和平事业奔走疾呼。三种激情主宰着他的生命：  “对爱的追求、对知识的探索、对人类苦难的难以承受的怜悯”。获一九五O年诺贝尔文学奖。
irksome：tiresome(令人厌烦的)。
to most people：翻译时要考虑中文的表达习惯，一般将“to somebody”提前译为“对……来说”，即“对大多数人来说”。
less…than…：比较级汉译时，可以灵活处理。如译成“即便是最乏味的工作也没有赋闲那么痛苦”。
mere relief of tedium：英文中以静表动，中文表达时宜转化成动态形式。译文“单单是排遣烦闷”似乎比“仅仅是烦闷的减轻”要高明。
There are in work all grades，from…up to…：(1)注意小词的翻译，“up to”强调层次之广，可译为“一直到”增强语气；(2)英文以存在句的形式出现，但译成中文时，不必拘泥于此，如译为“可以把工作分成各种层次，从……一直到……”。
according to：中文理解没有问题，关键是按照中文的表达习惯，  “根据……”常常放在修饰语之前而非之后。
without the need of：乍一看，可译为“没有必要……”，但读来总觉得意犹未尽。
转念一想，  “使你不必……”更符合汉语的行文流畅。
at a loss：文章突出说明人们真正有自由支配的时间时，又不知所措。高明的译者会尽量保留原文叙述的重点，此时可以使用两个类似的词表达同一含义，以起到强调的效果。如译为“茫然不知所措，想不出……”。
they are troubled by the feeling：英译汉时往往将被动转化为主动形式，译为“……感觉困扰着他们”。
intelligently：只有准确把握全句的意思，才能译出这个词。既然是文明的最后产物。应该抱着怎样的态度去消遣闲暇呢?自然是“明智地消遣闲暇的能力”。
the exercise of choice：  “exercise”指“an act of employing or putting into play；use(运用；使用)”。“the exercise of choice”译为“作出选择”。
people with unusual initiative：  “initiative”指“the power or ability to begin or to follow through energetically with a plan or task；enterprise and determination(首创精神，开始并精力充沛地执行一项计划、任务的力量或能力；进取心和决心)”。文中指出除了这些人以外，其他人只要工作不是太辛苦，他们完全愿意被指定每个小时做什么。联系这样的背景，我们可以将“initiative”译为“主见”，  “people with unusual initiative”译为“极有主见的人”。
the idle rich：中文讲究对称美，  “有闲的富人”似乎不如“有钱而又有闲的人”读来琅琅上口。
freedom from：源自短语“be free from”，译为“摆脱……”而非“享有……自由”。
drudgery：hard and fatiguing work(苦差事)。
find relief by…：  “by…”表示通过某种方法、途径，但完全直译显得过于死板。此处可以先将消愁解闷的两种方法译出：  “他们去非洲猎取大型野生动物，或作环球飞行以消愁解闷。”
game：wild animals haunted for sport(猎物)。这里指有钱又有闲的人在非洲捕捉大型猎物，来消磨时光。
sensation：a state of heightened interest or emotion(激动提高的兴趣或感情的状态)。
文中指“刺激”数量有限。
earth-shaking：momentous；having a devastating effect(重大的；产生毁灭性效果的)。  “earth—shaking importance”可译为“惊天动地的重要性”。
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