《羅克斯維爾火車站的貓》（節(jié)選六）

瓊·克雷格黑德·喬治

At dusk she awoke， ready to go First Home hunting. She looked toward the abandoned lot where mice abounded. Elizabeths First Home was there， and her Sunning Spot was on the nearby woodpile. Rachet wouldnt look there nor in the pile of brush in the field. Elizabeths Hunting Lookout. She had sprayed it with her personal odor to tell other cats it was hers. Rachet respected this. The Sunning Spot and Hunting Lookout were stations in a cats environment that it selected and regularly used.

Rachet inhaled deeply and smelled the two Roxville cat members at the faraway tollbooth in the station parking lot on the other side of the tracks. Tatters and Tachometer had left strong scents on it by rubbing their sides against the pilings as they exited and entered their home. The scents said， “This is Tatters and Tachometers property.” Rachet would stay away from their space also.

The woods were no good; they were claimed by Ringx. The raccoon lived in that large hole in the maple tree and protected it with ferocity. Lysol， the skunk， denned under a nearby slash pine. She did not want her First Home near him.

Rachet crawled out from under the tire and was stealing down her trail to check for a home near the houses when Shifty， the red fox， caught wind of her. Running low， then leaping high， he pounced with open jaws. Rachet sped through the withered thistle patch. Shifty at her heels. He was so close she heard his jaws slam closed. She leaped， aiming for a hole in a mesh fence， went through it， and alit in the yard of the big Victorian house where Queenella made her home. Shifty was too wary to follow through the hole and skidded to a halt. He sniffed the fence， then trotted away.

Old and run-down， the house had a large porch that wrapped around two sides of it. The porch stopped at a tower three stories high， then continued on the other side. Stained glass glowed in the living room windows. Elaborate leaves and flowers， moldy from neglect， were carved above the windows and doors. Rachet looked about the yard. In it were motorboats covered with blue tarps; weeds grew between them. Slender voluntary saplings cropped up here and there at the fence. Old sugar maple trees at the edge of the yard were riddled with holes， showing where woodpeckers and flickers had drilled. A sign in the yard read OCCUPIED， in case someone thought the run-down house was empty and decided to explore it.

Rachet took a deep sniff. The old house smelled of people—and Queenella！ Suddenly， Windy， the barn owl， flew at Rachet to harass; she was a predator. She dipped low overhead， then flew on as silently as the moonlight. Rachet ducked， then ran forward.

She heard the sound of a wind rushing through a hole. She followed the sound to the stone foundation of the house， found a large break in the wall， and wedged into it. She wiggled along the three-foot-deep crack in the foundation and looked into the basement of the house. She did not jump to the floor but crouched and sniffed.

黃昏時，拉齊特醒了，準備去尋找自己的“老家”。她望著那塊老鼠成群的荒地。伊麗莎白的“老家”在那里，她的曬太陽處在附近的木柴堆上。拉齊特不會去那里找，也不會去荒地里的那個灌木叢。那是伊麗莎白的狩獵瞭望處。伊麗莎白在灌木叢那里留下了自己的氣味，告訴其他貓咪那是她的領地。拉齊特不會去那里。曬太陽處和狩獵瞭望處是貓咪環(huán)境里的站點，是貓咪自己選好并且經(jīng)常使用的地方。

拉齊特深吸一口氣，聞到了羅克斯維爾火車站貓咪族群兩個成員的味道。它們在鐵道另一邊，火車站停車場遠端的過路收費亭那里。破布和轉(zhuǎn)速計進出家門的時候，總是用身子蹭門口的樁子，在那里留下了很強的氣味。那氣味說明，“這里是破布和轉(zhuǎn)速計的地盤?！崩R特也要離他們的地方遠一點。

樹林里不能安家。那是林克斯的地盤。浣熊就住在楓樹的那個大洞里，并且用武力守護著。萊索，那只臭鼬，家安在附近的一棵沼澤松底下。拉齊特可不想讓自己的“老家”靠近他。

拉齊特從輪胎下面爬出來，偷偷沿著自己的小路出行，想去人類的房子附近找一個家。這時，希夫蒂，那只紅狐，聞到了拉齊特。希夫蒂伏低身子跑過來，然后高高跳起，張開嘴巴撲下去。拉齊特飛速地跑過那片枯萎的薊草叢。希夫蒂緊跟不放。希夫蒂離拉齊特太近了，拉齊特聽到了他嘴巴咬合的聲音。拉齊特高高跳起，朝著籬笆網(wǎng)上的一個洞跳過去，恰好穿過，然后落到一所維多利亞式大房子的院子里。這里是女王艾拉的家。希夫蒂很謹慎，沒有跟著穿過那個洞，腳步打滑停了下來。他聞了聞籬笆，然后快速走開了。

這所房子老舊而且破敗不堪，兩側(cè)圍繞著一個巨大的門廊。門廊延伸到一個三層高的塔樓下面中斷，然后在塔樓的另一面又延伸下去?？蛷d窗戶的彩色玻璃熠熠生輝。門窗的上方雕刻有精美的葉子和花朵，因為沒人維護而發(fā)霉了。拉齊特看了看院子四周。院子里有幾艘蓋著藍色防水布的摩托艇;艇與艇之間長著野草?；h笆周圍到處竄出自發(fā)生長的細長樹苗。院子邊上，有古老的糖楓樹，樹上到處都是洞，看得出是啄木鳥和撲動 ? 鉆過孔的地方。院子里還有一個標志，寫著“有人居住”，以防人們認為這所破房子空空如也，決定進來探索一番。

拉齊特深吸一口氣嗅了嗅周圍。老房子里有人，還有女王艾拉。突然，如風，那只倉鸮，飛撲過來騷擾拉齊特。倉鸮是獵食動物。如風從頭頂?shù)惋w而過，然后繼續(xù)往前飛，像月光一樣悄然無聲。拉齊特躲開襲擊，然后往前跑。

她聽到了風兒穿洞的聲響。循著風聲，拉齊特來到老房子的石質(zhì)地基處，找到了墻上的一個大洞，擠了進去。她扭動身子沿著三英尺深的地基墻縫往前走，來探察老房子的地下室。她沒有直接跳到地面上，而是伏低身子嗅了嗅。

【背景知識】野外的貓咪都需要一個舒適安全的“老家”，還有附近的曬太陽處和狩獵瞭望處。拉齊特也不例外。她四處搜尋，想找一個安身之所。終于，誤打誤撞，她來到了那個男孩的家，一棟古舊的房子。

【第一段】英文詞組First Home值得譯者琢磨一番?！暗谝患摇币馑疾幻鞔_。中國的兒童游戲里經(jīng)常有“回老家”“找老家”的說法。這里的老家并非小時候的家，或者家人的故鄉(xiāng)，而是指“大本營”。這一段介紹了野外貓咪的習性，他們通常需要一個“老家”，還有“曬太陽處”以及“狩獵瞭望處”。

【第二段】原文第一句比較長，地點狀語置后。譯文切分為兩句，并且調(diào)整了語序。原文第二句也不能按照英文的語序翻譯，譯文也只能調(diào)整語序，把原文的時間狀語和方式狀語提前。

【第三段】拉齊特憑借自己的嗅覺勘察周圍的動物，發(fā)現(xiàn)自己可用的空間有限，危機四伏。

【第四段】第一句的譯文補充了一些信息，比如“自己的小路”“人類的房子”，使得譯文更明白易懂。即使是日常出行，拉齊特都要冒生命危險?？磥碚覍ば录覄菰诒匦?。原文的動作描寫很生動，譯文也要如此。

【第五段】這一段是繁復的景物描寫。第一句譯文的主語提前了，而且把原文的長句進行了切分。原文第三句的譯文也進行了語序調(diào)整，這些一般都是必要的，因為中英文語法習慣不同。

【第六段】老房子里的住戶出場了，一只倉鸮。這之后還有倉鸮的故事。新的環(huán)境需要適應，有敵人有朋友，拉齊特必須小心謹慎。

【第七段】拉齊特通過墻縫擠進了地下室，但她不敢一下子跳下去。里面已經(jīng)有貓咪居住了。

【小結(jié)】這一選段有精彩的動作描寫和繁復細致的景物描寫，譯文應當注意中文的流暢和通順。另外，這里出現(xiàn)了很多動物名稱。動物名稱一般有兩種翻譯方法：音譯或者意譯。譯者并沒有執(zhí)著于某一種譯法，而是根據(jù)情況進行選擇。意義恰當?shù)膭t意譯，意義不兼容的則音譯。像拉齊特、伊麗莎白、林克斯、萊索、希夫蒂等都是音譯，而破布、轉(zhuǎn)速計、如風等是意譯。Queenella是貓王，這個區(qū)域地位最高的貓咪，其譯名是意譯加音譯，女王+艾拉，表明她的身份和名稱。