原文:
死掉老婆还是最经济的事,虽然丧葬要一笔费用,可是离婚不要赡养费么?重婚不要两处开销么?(钱钟书 - 围城 )
翻译关键词:经济的,一笔(费用),重婚
译文:
Having one's wife die is most economical. A
funeral does cost a certain
amount of money, but then doesn't a
divorce require alimony? And if he keeps a mistress, doesn't he have to support two households?(美 Jeanne Kelly, Nathan K.Mao <译> -Fortress Besieged)
翻译笔记:
经济的
这里所说"经济的"实际是要表达"节约的、合算的"。现在,economic作"经济(学)上的"解,economical作"节约的"解,如:
economic help(经济援助), economic point of view(经济观点), economic espionage(经济间谍), economic penetration(经济侵入)
economical use(节约的用法),
economical meal(节约的一餐), an
economical car(节能车)
一笔(费用)
在表示"数量、数额"时,amount只可用在不可数的东西,不可用在可数的东西,如可以说a large
amount of literature,不可说a large
amount of books,该把amount改作number。再如:
a large (small)
amount of money 一大(小)笔钱
a prescribed
amount of work 规定的工作量
use a certain
amount of
diplomacy 施展一些外交手腕
Quite a number of people have
applied for this job.
有相当多的人申请这一工作。
重婚
这里实际上指的是"包二奶"咯,"重婚"的另一种说法常常用bigamy来表达,重婚罪也可以直接说bigamy。而mistress有"情妇"之意,keep a mistress常作"养着一个情妇"解。