, to bring in –God shield us! –a lion among ladies, is a most dreadful thing,

for there is not a more fearful wild-fowl than your lion living;   III, i, 32

把一頭獅子 老天爺保佑咱們 帶到太太小姐們的中間，還有比這更荒唐得可怕的事嗎？在野獸中間，獅子是再兇惡不過的。

    A calendar, a calendar! Look in the almanac; find out moonshine,   III, i,

55

 拿日曆來，拿日曆來！看看曆書上有沒有月光，

    Bless thee, Bottom! Bless thee! thou art translated.   III, i, 124

天啊！波頓！天啊！你變啦！

Lord, what fools these mortals be!   III, ii,115

老天爺，這些人真傻，

        So we grew together,

Like to a double cherry, seeming parted,

But yet an union in partition;

Two lovely berries moulded on one stem;   III, ii, 208

我們就這樣一起長大，

好比並蒂的櫻桃，看似分開，

實為一體；

是結在同一莖上兩顆可愛的果實， seeming: apparently.  lovely: loving. We grew up together, like two cherries – which seem to be separate but are also joined together. Two loving cherries sharing one stem.

(And) though she be but little, she is fierce.   III, ii, 325

雖然她個子小，但是很兇猛。  She might be small in size, but she is strong and fierce.

I have a reasonable good ear in music. Let’s have the tongs and the bones.   IV,

i, 32

我有相當好的音感。咱們就聽一段鐵鉗響板組曲吧。 I have a pretty good ear for music. Let’s hear someone play the triangle and the sticks.  tones, bones: rustic musical instruments; the tongs were struck with a key (as a triangle), and the bones were rattled between the fingers (as clappers).

    Truly, a peck of provender: I could munch your good dry oats. Methinks I

have a great desire to a bottle of hay: good hay, sweet hay, hath no fellow.  

IV, i, 36

真的，來一堆芻秣吧；您要是有好的乾麥稈，也可以給我大嚼一頓。我想，我亂想吃那麼一綑乾草；好乾草，美味的乾草，甚麼也比不上它。

    I have an exposition of sleep come upon me.   IV, i, 44

我現在睡意上身。 I really want to sleep now.  exposition: blunder for disposition, i.e. desire, inclination.

My Oberon! what visions have I seen!

Methought I was enamoured of an ass.   IV, i, 82

我的奧伯朗！我夢見了怎樣的幻景！

我覺得 我愛上了一頭驢子。 Oberon, I’ve had such a strange dream! I dreamed I was in love with an ass.  enamoured of: fond of

        I never heard

So musical a discord, such sweet thunder.   IV, i, 123

我從來不曾聽過

如此優美的嘈雜，這麼悅耳的雷鳴。I’d never heard such raucous music, such pleasant thunder.

    I have had a dream, past the wit of man to say what dream it was. IV, i, 211

我做了一個夢，超出常人智慧所能述說那是怎樣的夢。What a weird dream I had, you can’t even describe such a weird dream.

    The eye of man hath not heard, the ear of man hath not seen, man’s hand is

not able to taste, his tongue to conceive, nor his heart to report, what my

dream was.   IV, i, 218

人們的眼睛從來沒有聽過，人們的耳朵從來沒有看過，人們的手也嘗不出來是甚麼味道，人們的舌頭也想不出來是甚麼道理，人們的心也說不出來究竟那是怎樣的一個夢。

(And most dear actors,) eat no onions nor garlic, for we are to utter sweet breath;   IV, ii, 44

（親愛的演員們）別吃洋蔥和大蒜，因為咱們說話吐氣要香噴噴的； please don’t eat onions or garlic, we must have sweet-smelling breath.

The lunatic, the lover, and the poet,

Are of imagination all compact:  V, i, 7

瘋子、情人和詩人，都是想像的產物： compact: formed, composed. Madmen, lovers, and poets are all formed by their imaginations:

One sees more devils than vast hell can hold,

That is, the madman; V, i, 9

眼中所見的魔鬼 多過廣大的地獄所能容納，

那是瘋子；

 the lover, all as frantic,

Sees Helen’s beauty in a brow of Egypt: V, i, 10

情人，同樣是瘋狂，

能從吉普賽人的黑臉上看見海倫的美貌； Helen: Helen of Troy, a paragon of beauty. brow of Egypt: gipsy’s face. Lovers are just as crazy, and think a dark-skinned gypsy is the most gorgeous woman in the world.

The poet’s eye, in a fine frenzy rolling,

Doth glance from heaven to earth, from earth to heaven;

And, as imagination bodies forth

The forms of things unknown, the poet’s pen

Turns them to shapes, and gives to airy nothing

A local habitation and a name.

Such tricks hath strong imagination,

詩人的眼睛在神奇狂放的一轉中，

便能從天上看到地下，從地下看到天上；

想像會把不知名的事物

用一種形式呈現出來，詩人的筆

再使它們具有如實的形象，空虛的無物

也會有了居處和名字。

強烈的想像往往具有這種本領，

That, if it would but apprehend some joy,

It comprehends some bringer of that joy;

Or in the night, imagining some fear,

How easy is a bush supposed a bear!   V, i, 19

只要領略到一些快樂，

就會相信那種快樂的背後有一個賜予的人；

夜裡一轉到恐懼的念頭，

一叢灌木是多麼容易被看成熊一頭。would but: merely wishes to. apprehend: to understand. comprehends…joy: has no trouble including or creating in his fantasy some source of the joy. some fear: something to be feared.

;very tragical mirth.   V, i, 57

非常哀感可喜。

For never anything can be amiss,

When simpleness and duty tender it.   V, i, 83

只要誠懇和忠心所獻出，

就不會錯到哪兒去。 simpleness: sincerity. Because nothing can be bad when it’s motivated by a sincerity to bring pleasure to a person’s betters.

        To show our simple skill,

That is the true beginning of our end.   V, i,110

我們的初心，

是秀我們的簡單演技。 the beginning of the end: the first clear sign of a final result. Our true goal is to show our simple skill.

    The best in this kind are but shadows;   V, i, 215

最好的演員也只不過是些相似的東西（影子）； in this kind: of this profession, i.e. actors. shadows: likenesses, representations.

    A very gentle beast, and of a good conscience.   V, i, 232

一頭很文雅的野獸，有一顆良心。 A very polite beast, with a good conscience.

    All that I have to say, is, to tell you that the lanthorn is the moon; I,

the man in the moon; this thorn-bush, my thorn-bush; and this dog, my dog.

    V, i, 263

我要表明的，是，告訴你們 這盞燈籠是一輪月亮；我，月亮裡的仙人；這叢荊棘，我的荊棘；這隻狗，我的狗。 lanthorn: lantern. thorn-bush: thorn bush.

    Well roared, Lion!

Well run, Thisbe!   V, i, 272

吼得好，獅子！

逃得好，西斯璧！ Nice roar, Lion! Nice running, Thisbe!

    This passion, and the death of a dear friend, would go near to make a man

look sad.   V, i, 295

這樣悲慟，再加上一個好朋友的死，幾乎可以使一個人臉帶愁容。

    With the help of a surgeon, he might yet recover, and prove an ass.   V, i,

318

請外科大夫來，或許可以把他恢復，現出一個「么點」。

    No epilogue, I pray you, for your play needs no excuse. Never excuse;   V,

i, 363

請把收場白免了吧，因為你們的戲劇毋需藉口。永遠毋需藉口； no excuse: no extenuation of faults.

The iron tongue of midnight hath told twelve.

Lovers, to bed, ‘tis almost fairy time.   V, i, 372

午夜的鐘已經敲了十二下。

戀人們，去睡吧，這差不多是小仙們出現的時候。 told: tolled. The clock has chimed midnight. Lovers, it’s time to go to bed, it’s almost fairy time.

If we shadows have offended,

Think but this, and all is mended,

That you have but slumbered here

While these visions did appear.   V, ii, 54

如果我們演員有冒犯之處，

做這樣想，便都得以彌補，

這些幻象出現的時光

你們只是在這裡睡了一場。 That … here: i.e. that it is but a “midsummer night’s dream.”  If we actors have offended you, just think of it this way and everything will be all right; you just slept here, and saw these visions in a dream.

1 June 2019