惠特曼诗歌,歌唱自我(第一节-第二十六节)

On a bank lounged the trapper, he was drest mostly in skins, his luxuriant beard and curls

protected his neck, he held his bride by the hand,

那个设陷猎 手悠闲地站在河堤上，他全身裹满兽皮，茂密的腮须和浓浓的发卷护住

了他的颈项，他把 他的新娘牵在手中，

She had long eyelashes, her head was bare, her coarse straight locks descended upon her

voluptuous limbs and reach’d to her feet.

< br>她有长长的眼睫，

她的头上没有饰物，

她的发绺又粗又直 ，

垂过她撩人欲望的肢体，

垂到了她的脚旁。

< br>

The runaway slave came to my house and stopt outside,

一个逃亡的奴隶来到我的屋旁，停留在我的屋外，

I heard his motions crackling the twigs of the woodpile,

柴堆上细枝的噼啪声响让我听到了他的动静，

Through the swung half-door of the kitchen I saw him limpsy and weak,

透过厨房里摇晃着的半边门扇，我看到了筋疲力尽的他。

And went where he sat on a log and led him in and assured him,

我朝坐在一根圆木上的他走去，把他领进屋子并让他安心，

And brought water and fill’d a tub for his sweated body and bruis’d feet,

我拿来清水注满浴盆，让他清洗汗湿的身体和青肿的双脚，

And gave him a room that enter’d from my own, and gave him some coarse clean clothes,

我给他一个房间，那间房间必须穿过我的才 能进去，我还送给他几件衣裳，粗糙的

但却干净，

And remember perfectly well his revolving eyes and his awkwardness,

我清楚地记得他转动不定的双眼和局促不安的神态，

And remember putting piasters on the galls of his neck and ankles;

我还记得我为他脖颈和脚踝的伤口敷上了药膏，

He staid with me a week before he was recuperated and pass’d north,

他和我一起呆了一个星期，直到元气重生去往北方，

I had him sit next me at table, my fire-lock lean’d in the corner.

饭桌上我让他紧挨着我坐在一起，我的火枪就靠在桌子角上。

11

Twenty-eight young men bathe by the shore,

二十八个青年浴于此岸，

Twenty-eight young men and all so friendly;

二十八个青年都如此友善，

Twenty-eight years of womanly life and all so lonesome.

可二十八年女人般的生命啊，竟都如此地寂寞孤单。

She owns the fine house by the rise of the bank,

她有一套精美房舍，在峭立的堤岸之畔，

She hides handsome and richly drest aft the blinds of the window.

俊美秀俏穿着盛装华服啊，她藏在窗帘的后方。

Which of the young men does she like the best?

那一群小伙之中哪一个是她的最爱？

Ah the homeliest of them is beautiful to her.

哦，那最平常的一个也是她眼中的俊男。

Where are you off to, lady? for I see you,

小姐女士啊，你要移步何方？因为我看见了你啊，

You splash in the water there, yet stay stock still in your room.

在那方水中你踏波溅浪，可在你的房中你又静若枯干。

Dancing and laughing along the beach came the twenty-ninth bather,

边舞边笑啊，这第二十九个浴者沿着滩涂走来，

The rest did not see her, but she saw them and loved them.

其他的浴者没看见她呀，可是她已把他们看见并且爱上。

The beards of the young men glisten’d with wet, it ran from their long hair,

水在青年小伙的腮须里闪闪发光，水从他们的长发中流下，

Little streams pass’d all over their bodies.

水在他们的身上啊，流成了小溪条条。

An unseen hand also pass’d over their bodies,

一张无形手掌，也抚过了他们的身躯，

It descended tremblingly from their temples and ribs.

它战栗着向下抚去啊，从鬓角也从胸肋。

The young men float on their backs, their white bellies bulge to the sun, they do not ask

who seizes fast to them,

年青的小伙仰浮在水面，白色的肚皮隆起朝向太 阳，他们不去问啊，那抓紧他们的

是谁，

They do not know who puffs and declines with pendant and bending arch,

他们不知道啊，那喘着气儿弯下腰身俯垂着靠近过来的是谁，

They do not think whom they souse with spray.

他们不去想啊，他们拍起水花湿透了谁。

12

The butcher-boy puts off his killing- clothes, or sharpens his knife at the stall in the market,

屠夫的小伙计脱下他的屠宰服，屠夫的小伙 计在集市摊位上磨着他的刀，

I loiter enjoying his repartee and his shuffle and break- down.

我欣赏着他流连不去哟，因为他机智善辩，还因为 他会跳曳步和跺脚。

Blacksmiths with grimed and hairy chests environ the anvil,

长满毛的胸膛沾满了灰尘，铁匠们围聚在铁砧四周，

Each has his main-sledge, they are all out, there is a great heat in the fire.

每个人都抡着一个大锤，每一个都使尽了全力，炉火已经很旺了。

From the cinder-strew’d threshold I follow their movements,

在洒满炉渣的门槛上我用目光追随他们的动作，

The lithe sheer of their waists plays even with their massive arms,

他们柔软的腰身与他们粗壮的手臂协调配合，

Overhand the hammers swing, overhand so slow, overhand so sure,

锤子挥过头顶，那么慢地挥过了头顶，那么稳地挥过了头顶，

They do not hasten, each man hits in his place.

他们不急不忙，每个人都对准自己的位置砸下。

13

The negro holds firmly the reins of his four horses, the block swags underneath on its tied-

over chain,

这个驾着四匹马的黑人稳稳地抓着马缰，铁链缠裹的大块石料在他身下晃荡，

The negro that drives the long dray of the stone-yard, steady and tall he stands pois’d on

one leg on the,

< br>这个驾着石料场长马车的黑人用一条腿支撑，他又高又稳地立在纵梁之上，

His blue shirt exposes his ample neck and breast and loosens over his hip- band,

他的蓝色衬衫松松地罩住他的腰带，衬衫下露出他 宽厚的脖子和胸膛，

His glance is calm and commanding, he tosses the slouch of his hat away from his forehead,

他的眼神平静又威严啊，他用手把耷拉下来的帽檐从前额推开，

The sun falls on his crispy hair and mustache, falls on the black of his polish’d and perfect

limbs.

他卷 曲的头发和髭须上落满了阳光，他那光洁完美的黑色肢体上，也落满了阳光。

I behold the picturesque giant and love him, and I do not stop there,

我注视着这个如画般的巨人我爱上了他，但我不在那里停下，

I go with the team also.

我也伴着这队伍同行。

In me the caresser of life wherever moving, backward as well as forward sluing,

我身上有一个生命的关爱者，无论走到哪里， 它都会前旋与后转，

To niches aside and junior bending, not a person or object missing,

俯身朝向一旁细小的角落和稚嫩的新芽，不 漏过一个人和一个物件，

Absorbing all to myself and for this song.

它把这一切都吸收进我的身体，去唱出这首歌。

Oxen that rattle the yoke and chain or halt in the leafy shade, what is that you express in

your eyes?

< /p>

拉着轭牵着索嘎嘎行进的牛儿们和在茂叶的荫凉下歇息的牛儿们，你们在用眼神表

达着什么？

It seems to me more than all the print I have read in my life.

我好像觉得，我一生中读过的所有印刷品啊，都比 不上你们的表达。

My tread scares the wood-drake and wood-duck on my distant and day-long ramble,

我用整天的时间漫游到很远很远的地方，我的脚步惊动了林中的公鸭母鸭，

They rise together, they slowly circle around.

它们一齐飞起来啊，它们缓缓地盘旋。

I believe in those wing’d purposes,

我相信这些有翅膀的生命必有其意义，

And acknowledge red, yellow, white, playing within me,

我承认这红色、黄色和白色在我心中发出了奏鸣，

And consider green and violet and the tufted crown intentional,

我认为这绿的、紫的和这簇状的花冠，都有自己的意识，

And do not call the tortoise unworthy because she is not something else,

我不会因为乌龟仅仅是一只乌龟，就认为她不值一文，

And the

ja

y in the woods never studied the gamut, yet trills pretty well to me,

树林中的鹣鸟从不研究音律，却对我发出了非常美妙的鸣叫，

And the look of the bay mare shames silliness out of me.

而栗色母马用她的目光，使我羞愧于我的愚蠢无知。

14

The wild gander leads his flock through the cool night,

公野鹅领着鹅群穿越在清凉夜空，

Ya-honk he says, and sounds it down to me like an invitation,

他说，呀嗬，这声音落向我如同一份邀约，

The pert may suppose it meaningless, but I listening close,

爱出风头的漂亮人儿或许认为它全无意义，但我仔细谛听，

Find its purpose and place up there toward the wintry sky.

发现了它的目标，我把这目标高置于那儿呀，朝向冬日的天空。

The sharp-hoof’d moose of the north, the cat on the house-sill, the chickadee, the prairie-

dog,

四蹄敏捷的北方驼鹿，蹲伏在屋基上的猫，还有山雀、草原犬鼠，

The litter of the grunting sow as they tug at her teats,

使劲叼着奶头让母猪哼哼不已的那窝小猪，

The brood of the turkey-hen and she with her half-spread wings,

火鸡的一窝幼雏和半张着翅膀的火鸡妈妈，

I see in them and myself the same old law.

在它们和我自己身上啊，我看到了那同样的永恒法则。

The press of my foot to the earth springs a hundred affections,

我的脚踩压着大地，千百种情感如泉喷涌，

They scorn the best I can do to relate them.

这些情感轻蔑地看着我啊，看着我用尽了全力对它们的描述。

I am enamour’d of growing out-doors,

我痴迷于在户外成长的生活，

Of men that live among cattle or taste of the ocean or woods,

我痴迷与牛群生活在一起的人，我痴迷海洋和森林的味道，

Of the builders and steerers of ships and the wielders of axes and mauls, and the drivers of

horses,

< br>我痴迷造船的人、掌舵的人，我痴迷挥舞斧头挥舞木槌的人啊，我痴迷驾驶马车的

人，

I can eat and sleep with them week in and week out.

我可以与他们同食共眠啊，一个星期接着一星期。

What is commonest, cheapest, nearest, easiest, is Me,

什么最普通，最卑微，最亲密，最容易接近，什么就是我，

Me going in for my chances, spending for vast returns,

我走来，为了属于自己的机会，我付出，为了巨大的回报，

Adorning myself to bestow myself on the first that will take me,

我让自己容光焕发啊，为了把自己奉献给第一个接受我的人，

Not asking the sky to come down to my good will,

我展示善意啊，不是为了祈求苍天的垂青俯就，

Scattering it freely forever.

而是要把它不求回报地无休无止地播散。

15

The pure contralto sings in the organ loft,

声音纯净的女低音在风琴楼廊上唱起了歌，

The carpenter dresses his plank, the tongue of his foreplane whistles its wild ascending lisp,

修整手中板材的木匠，粗 刨的刨舌发出啸叫，声音粗野涩口，一点点升高，

The married and unmarried children ride home to their Thanksgiving dinner,

成了家和没成家 的孩子们，都骑着马儿往家里赶，去参加感恩节的晚餐，

The pilot seizes the king-pin, he heaves down with a strong arm,

舵手抓紧了转向梢，他用一只有力的臂膀，把它压了下来，

The mate stands braced in the whale- boat, lance and harpoon are ready,

大副站在捕鲸的小划船上，鼓足了精神，长矛和鱼叉都准备好了。

The duck-shooter walks by silent and cautious stretches,

射野鸭的猎手悄悄地走着，每一段路都小心翼翼，

The deacons are ordain’d with cross’d hands at the altar,

教会执事叉起双手，到祭坛前领受圣职，

The spinning-girl retreats and advances to the hum of the big wheel,

纺纱姑娘在大纺轮的嗡嗡声中时而前进，时而后退，

The farmer stops by the bars as he walks on a First-day loafe and looks at the oats and rye,

礼拜天里随意闲走的农夫在在栅栏面前停 下了脚步，他看着那些燕麦和黑麦，

The lunatic is carried at last to the asylum a confirm’d case,

那个被确定发了疯的人终于被送进了疯人院，

(He will never sleep any more as he did in the cot in his mother’s bed- room;)

（他再也不能像从前那样，睡在他母亲卧室里 的那张小床上了，

）

The jour printer with gray head and gaunt jaws works at his case,

那个头发花白下巴尖瘦的报刊杂志印刷工，在排字盘前工作着，

He turns his quid of tobacco while his eyes blurr with the manuscript;

盯着原稿的眼睛模糊了，于是他嚼起了烟草，

The malform’d limbs are tied to the surgeon’s table,

变形了的肢体被绑在了外科医生的工作台上，

What is removed drops horribly in a pail;

割下来的东西很恶心地被扔进了一只桶里，

The quadroon girl is sold at the auction-stand, the drunkard nods by the bar-room stove,

那个四分之一混血的女孩在拍卖台上被卖掉了， 醉鬼在酒吧间的炉子边打起了盹，

The machinist rolls up his sleeves, the policeman travels his beat, the gate-keeper marks

who pass,

那个机械工人 卷起了衣袖，那个警察在沿着路线巡逻，那个看门人记下了走过的每

一个人，