英语翻译学习笔记 A Valentine to One Who Cared -

 一、解说
1. As I lie awake in bed, listening to the sound of those razor-sharp drops pounding on the pavement, my mind goes reeling down dark corridors teeming with agonizing flashbacks, and a chill from within fills me with dread.我躺在床上，睡不着，听着雨点儿落在路面上啪啪作响。我思绪万千，恍恍惚惚进入了一条条幽暗的甬道，回想起许多痛苦的往事。心里一阵冰凉，不禁感到毛骨悚然。
    “listening to ...”是现在分词短语，作状语，表示伴随状态，译作“听着…”。
    “razor-sharp”意为：extremely sharp极其锐利的。常用作比喻，如：razor-sharp wit/ repartee/ criticism极敏锐的智力、极巧妙的回答、极尖锐的批评。用“razor-sharp”形容雨点，有点夸张，这主要是反映出主人公的心情，因为雨点声使她想起的极度痛苦的事。
    “reel”意为：move unsteadily or sway; stagger摇摇晃晃地移动；蹒跚。如：reel drunkenly down the road醉得东倒西歪沿路走去。
    “teem with...”意为：have sth in great numbers 有许多、大量的某事物。
    例1) The river was teeming with fish. 河里的鱼很多。
    例2) His mind is teeming with bright ideas. 他心里有很多好主意。
    “and”连接主句中的两个分句，译文将整个句子处理成三个独立的单句。
    “from within”中的“within”是副词，意思是：inside在内部。

2. It does this every year in Southern California; at least that's what they told me last year when I marveled at the relentless determination of the rain. 加利福尼亚南部，年年如此，雨固执地下个不停，我表示惊异，人们就是这样对我说的。
    “relentless”意为：not ceasing; constant不停的；不间断的。如：relentless pursuit, questioning, criticism不断的探索、询问、批评。“the relentless determination of the rain”是拟人的修辞手法，译文中选用“固执”一词就能体现拟人手法。

3. Often property damage and disrupted lives result. 结果往往是财产遭损失，生活受影响。
    “result”是动词，意为：occur as a result（因而）发生、产生、出现。
    “disrupt”作动词时意为：cause disorder in (sth)将（某事物）弄乱；扰乱（某事物）。如：Demonstrators succeeded in disrupting the meeting. 示威者扰乱了会议。

4. That takes care of the property that managed to survive the deluge, again disrupting lives. 暴雨过后勉强剩下的财物就落到它的手里，人们的生活再次受到影响。
    “takes care of”也是拟人手法。意为：大火吞食了大雨过后幸存的财物。
    “deluge”意为：heavy fall of rain大暴雨。

5. The days connecting these seasons are monotonous, with some sun, some smog and some more sun. 这两个季节之间的日子是非常单调的，有时见一点儿阳光，有时烟雾弥漫，过后再见一点儿阳光。
    “The days connecting these seasons连接两个季节的日子”就是“这两个季节之间的日子”。
    “smog”是smoke and fog的合成词，意为：烟雾。

6. Thunderstorms in spring and summer often come with intensity great enough to cause flash-flooding. 春夏两季雷电交加，猛烈异常，往往顷刻之间暴雨成灾。
    “intensity”指暴雨的猛烈。“flash-flooding”意为：sudden destructive flood of water暴洪。

7. A man parked his 57 Chevy on a little bridge overlooking a picturesque, arid gully and took out his camera.电影里有一位先生把他那57型车威牌小轿车停在一座小桥上，小桥下面是一条美丽、干涸的溪谷。他拿出了相机。
    “picturesque”意为：forming a 前一单元tty scene; charming or quaint美如画的；迷人的；奇特有趣的。如：a picturesque fishing village in the bay风景如画的海湾渔村。
    “arid”意为：dry干涸的。
    “gully” 意为：narrow channel cut or formed by rain-water, eg on a hillside溪谷。

8. A year ago I would have sworn that children here are taught nothing about the dangerous powers of nature. 一年前我就该断言，从来没有人对这里的孩子讲讲大自然的力量有多么危险。
    “would have sworn”是个虚拟语气，表示假想的过去的动作或事情。事实上主人公在一年前没有这样说过。
    “swear”意为：say or promise (sth) very seriously, definitely or solemnly极其认真、明确或郑重地说或允诺（某事）。如果只译作“说”，语气不够强烈，译作“断言”比较贴切。

9. The rains started in earnest. 老天便迫不及待地下起雨来。
    原句是拟人句，译文最好能保持相应的风格。故添补“老天”作主语，把原句的主语“the rains”移到后面作宾语。

10. The Suunynook footbridge connects Atwater with Griffith Park, spanning the Los Angeles River and the Golden State Freeway. 桑尼努克步行桥横跨洛杉矶河和金州高速公路，连接着阿特瓦德区和格力菲公园。
    按照汉语习惯，先说桥的位置，即“横跨…”，然后再说实际的作用，即“连接…”。
    “footbridge”意为：narrow bridge for the use of people who are walking步行桥；人行桥。