Author: Once a day
Before Yang Xianyi's mother became pregnant, she had a strange dream about a white tiger jumping into her stomach.
According to the fortune teller, this dream is both a good omen and a bad omen.
The boy will be the only male in the family
Ke father hurt son, after going through many tribulations
will achieve a brilliant career.
Yang Xianyi, the year of the weak crown.
His father, Yang Yuzhang, had received a new education, and when he heard these words, he didn't take them to heart.
On January 10, 1915, at No. 8 Huayuan Street, Japanese Concession, Tianjin, Yang Xianyi was born in the Yang Family Mansion surrounded by green trees. The Yang family has been an official for generations, and Yang Yuzhang's great-grandfather Yang Dianbang was a former official to the governor of Caoyun.
In the history of the Yang family, there were two five sons in the departmentThe power of the family was great until the late Qing Dynasty
The old and the young must pay tribute to Yang Yuzhang for three points.
Yang Yuzhang has a deep foundation in Confucianism, and later went to Japan to study, but did not work hard, and after returning to China, he spent all day drinking and smoking opium, and only at the age of 30 did he embark on the right path.
With family power, he became the president of the Bank of China, and earned millions of family properties by his personal ability, and had a close relationship with Yuan Shikai and Li Yuanhong.
From a small brocade clothes and food, go out to serve the carriage and horses,
The clothes on his body are all yellow coats given by Yuan Shikai himself.
Of course, he didn't have to go to school, so he was invited to his home and enlightened him.
During his childhood, Yang Xianyi read a lot, classic ancient texts and all kinds of original English books, and showed an amazing talent in language.
But when he was 5 years old, his father died of illness.
Yang Xianyi knew nothing about the world in which his father lived.
The affairs of the family were left to his two uncles.
After graduating from high school, he went to Oxford, which accepted only one Asian student a year, and learned that Yang Xianyi learned Xi Greek and Latin, and it took only five months to pass the exam.
The friends around him felt sorry for him, but Yang Xianyi was not at ease at all, just I wanted to look around, so it was better to have a good time this year. "
Yang Xianyi was arrogant and uninhibited when he was young, and he never took the rules seriously.
At that time, Yang Xianyi was generous and uninhibited.
Casinos, taverns....
He traveled all the way to the mountains and rivers, broadened his horizons, like a free knight, completely ignorant of the hardships of the world.
After returning to Oxford, I didn't read serious books well, picked up my favorite miscellaneous books, and my grades barely coped.
But he is talented and talented, and is sought after by many people.
Out of interest, he translated "Lisao" in one fell swoop, in the format of an 18th-century heroic double-line, when he was only 24 years old, but the words were so striking that the British people were surprised.
This translation is still standingOn the shelves of the libraries of universities in Europe.
After graduating from Oxford,Yang Xianyi declined Harvard's invitation
Penniless, he insisted on returning to China.
Seven years ago, he could never have imagined that when he returned to his homeland, he would have to rely on selling books and borrowing money to make money.
The uncle's speculation was short, coupled with the depreciation of the currency, the Tianjin family business was exhausted, and the servants were scattered.
From a son who spent a lot of money to a poor student who was destitute, Yang Xianyi behaved extremely calmly.
Maybe it's because of that time,
There was a girl who came into his life
Let him realize that there is something more important than money.
This girl is Dai Naidie.
In 1937, Dai Naidie enrolled in Oxford, and was introduced by his mentor to join the China Association, so he became acquainted with Yang Xianyi, the chairman of the association, and was immediately attracted by his talent and humor.
The charm of ancient culture is full of the other party
Let the Fantasia Dai Naidie be deeply fascinated.
In 1940, Yang Xianyi set off to return to China, and Dai Naidie accompanied him despite the opposition of his family.
Her mother knew a little about the situation in China, at that time, China was billowing in smoke and the people were in danger, but Dai Naidie had made up her mind, and she followed Yang Xianyi to Beijing, to this ancient country of oriental culture that she had been fascinated for a long time.
In Dai Naidie's imagination, China is colorful, sugar man, dragon dance, food...
But when you come to China, you can only see poverty and withering, and people are displaced.
But she has no regrets like Yang XianyiFrom this point on, the two of them became one
Swear to face everything in the world together.
In the past three years, the two have traveled around the southwest and lived extremely hard, Yang Xianyi has been teaching while using his spare time to translate manuscripts.
In the dead of night, Dai Naidie held an oil lamp in his hand and discussed classical Chinese literature with him.
The fit of the soul and the pursuit of beauty,
supported the two through the years of material scarcity
Dispelled the fear of war.
It wasn't until 1943 that a friend recommended Yang Xianyi to the National Compilation Hall led by Liang Shiqiu, and Yang Xianyi came into play.
At that time, the compilation hall could only translate from foreign to Chinese, and no one had yet translated from Chinese to foreign languages.
China's classical culture and classic works have never gone abroad, allowing foreigners to appreciate its splendor and profundity.
Liang Shiqiu knew that Yang Xianyi had profound Chinese studies and was fluent in English, so he said:
You might as well try translating the "Zizhi Tongjian", can you see the translation?"
Selected Miscellaneous Plays of Guan Hanqing
Can it be translated?In Yang Xianyi's view, this question is simply a false proposition.
In 1953, he was received by ***, and ** shook Yang Xianyi's hand and asked:
Do you think "Lisao" can be translated?"
Yang Xianyi knows the meaning of ***, the style and charm of "Lisao" cannot be expressed in EnglishBut Yang Xianyi thinks:"Anything can be translated"。
Subsequently, he worked day and night to translate the "Zizhi Tongjian", but unfortunately due to the war, the translation was unfortunately lost.
However, this was the first attempt by a Chinese scholar to translate Chinese classics into a foreign language and introduce them to the West, and it also marked the beginning of Yang Xianyi's translation career.
Lu Xun's "New Story" and "The Scream".
In Yang Xianyi's view, with the help of his wife Dai Naidie, no classic is untranslatable.
As long as you can read them, you can translate them into foreign languages. "
Even today's people read the "Chu Ci", and Yang Xianyi also translated it correctly.
In the following half century, Yang Xianyi and his wife Dai Naidiefu sang with their wivesHe has successively combined the prose of the pre-Qin period and the works of Qu Yuan
"Selected Legends of the Wei and Jin Dynasties and the Northern and Southern Dynasties", "Selected Legends of the Tang Dynasty".
"Song Mingping's Words ** Selection", "Liao Zhai Selection",
"The Travels of the Old Remnant", the whole "History of Confucianism",
"Lu Xun Anthology", "China's ** History", "The Palace of Eternal Life",
and a large number of national classics translated into foreign languages
He has made great contributions to the study of Sinology in the world
Let foreigners see it for the first time,
The charm of Chinese literary and historical classics.
In particular, in 1951, the husband and wife were invited to a foreign language publishing house to systematically introduce Chinese literature to the West, during which time the husband and wife exhausted their efforts to translate the pinnacle of Chinese literature, Dream of the Red Chamber, into a three-volume format.
This is the only one of its kind in the world so far
English translation of Dream of the Red Chamber. Another version,
It was translated by a British sinologist!
The authority and subtlety of Yang Xianyi's version have not been surpassed by anyone so far.
Since then, the stories of Rongguofu and Ningguofu have entered the list of classic texts in the world and are well known by more foreigners.
This accelerated the pace of Chinese classical ** translation, and in less than ten years, all the four famous works were available, and all English translations were available.
Pu Songlin's "Liao Zhai Selection".
However, after exhausting half of his life's efforts and translating so many literary and historical classics, civil strife struck, and the husband and wife were both imprisoned.
Because of Dai Naidie's foreign status, the two were designated"Espionage", was held in a prison on the outskirts of Beijing for 4 yearsMental and physical exhaustion**.
Not long after being imprisoned, Yang Xianyi had a slight mental **, often had auditory hallucinations, and had delusions.
Dai Naidie was held in solitary confinement, physically and mentally damaged, and her long-term loneliness left her with sequelae, and she talked to herself for many years after being released from prison.
In prison for 4 years, Dai Naidie's biggest worry is his children.
Upon learning that his relatives had been implicated and that his two children had been sent to the countryside, Dai Naidie cried bitterly in prison.
But what made the two feel the most painful was their beloved son Yang Ye, who was implicated by his father, gradually became mentally **, and finally ignited gasoline at his aunt's house**, and has been separated from his parents forever....
From coming to China with Yang Xianyi, facing the war
Exile and poverty, Dai Naidie never wavered, she loves this land and the culture hereBut now her son is dead
Her spiritual world collapsed....
Yang Ye. After the end of the civil strife, in the face of the pain of losing their son and the trauma of their spirits, the couple continued their translation career.
Although Yang Xianyi always said that he didn't like English so much, and he didn't like translation so much, translation has long been integrated into his blood and has become the biggest support for his spiritual world.
He himself admitted:
"As long as people live, their minds have to keep thinking
You have to do something, or your life will be even more uncomfortable. "
In this world, the only thing that can make him feel fulfilled and live a worthwhile life is translation.
In his later years, Dai Naidie was trapped in dementia, and Yang Lao was often accompanied by him, never leaving an inch.
When a friend came to visit, she didn't recognize anyone.
But occasionally from Dai Naidie's mouth, there will be a sentence or two of the aftermath of the times, which is like the sound of fear after being caught in a nightmare.
Dai Naidie no longer recognized his lover.
But from time to time to find his son, he often painfully walked around the house and asked:
"What about my son?What about my son?"
Whenever this happens, Yang Lao pats her on the back.
In 1999, Dai Naidie passed away, and in order to mourn his deceased wife, Yang Lao wrote a poem:
In the early days, Biyi went to the netherworld, but unexpectedly lost his health halfway.
The hair is dregs and chaff are poor and cheap, and they are trapped in prison and die lightly.
Youth is a companion and many ghosts, and the white head is my responsibility.
If there is love in the sky, the sky is also old, and the silver and the Han are separated by two stars.
After the death of his beloved wife, Yang Lao never translated anything again.
He lived in the small golden silk alley of Houhai, which used to have a rich name:"Million Dollar Village"。
But for Yang Lao, wealth has long gone.
Although he was born in Zhong Mingding's family, the place where he lived in his later years was very simple.
The old man often sits on the sofa in the living room, sits all afternoon, smokes the cheapest cigarettes, and stares at the sky outside the window, as if reminiscing about something, is it those days that have passed?
Or is it some moment of joy and sorrow?
In his later years, he rarely watched TV, and waited for the sun to shine in through the window lattice every day, and the day passed like this...
Some people say that Yang Xianyi may be the last set in China"Doctors"、"Dr. Yang"with"Revolutionary"
All-in-one intellectual.
He loved the country so much that he came back desperately.
His friend Huang Yongyu gave him a lot of paintings, and he kept them in his hand, not knowing where he lost them.
The old man Wang Shixiang wrote a couplet to him"Since ancient times, the sages have been lonely, and they are true celebrities"，
He also rarely hangs out. Wealth, fame, and even the status of the leader in the translation industry, Yang Lao has never taken it to heart.
For him in his later years, life was indeed lonelyBecause of the contemporaries
Either you can't walk, or you're dead....
On November 23, 2009, Mr. Yang finished the last journey of his life.
When the mountains and rivers were broken, he returned to China despite the hardships and dangers, resolutely devoted himself to the homeland he loved, and still maintained his reputation and morale in the midst of danger.
In Dai Naidie's later years, her golden hair became gray, but she, like Yang Lao, still retains a noble charm under the infiltration of culture.
Once Yu Dafu's niece, the painter Yu Feng came to visit the second elder and painted a painting for Dai Naidie, with two lines of small characters above the portrait:
"The blonde hair turned silver white,
But the heart of gold does not change. "
The heart of this gold is also the heart of Yang Lao, for the sake of this country's thousands of years of classics, how has it ever changed?