瓊·克雷格黑德·喬治

Yet Kapu loved pups. Pups aroused the most tender emotions in him and all wolves. Those emotions were so strong， they could overflow to pups not their own. When Kapu was young， his parents， Amaroq and Silver， had nurtured a lost girl-pup. She had learned to speak wolf with whimpers and posturing and had endeared herself to them. She had shared Kapu’s puppy food and romped with him when he spanked the ground inviting her to play.

As Kapu became friends with the girl-pup， a name for her formed in his mind. It was a scent name： Willow. She smelled of the tiny tundra willows she had crept through to join him and his brothers and sister at their den. She was a puppy herself， and so she became Willow Pup.

Many months later， when she went back to her people， he heard them call her “Julie” and added that sound to his scent， sound， and sight picture of her. She was Willow Pup Julie. The wolf names of the Avaliks were changed by their association with Julie. Kapu’s wolf name had been Wind Caller for his lilting voice， Zing’s Berry Brother， and Silver’s Saxifrage， a scented plant she liked to roll in. But Willow Pup Julie had named them only with sound—Kapu， Zing， and Silver. The sounds were vivid， and they began to know each other by Julie’s names for them.

Willow Pup Julie became more than a playmate to Kapu. She was a mother-sister. She had nursed him back to health after a hunter in a roaring metal bird had sent a bullet into his flesh and another had killed his father. Her care had inspired in him a deep loyalty. It was the love he felt for his parent alphas， and the love that dogs， the descendants of wolves， feel for their masters.

After Willow Pup Julie returned to her people pack， devoted Kapu checked on her often. He would stop out of sight of her home and call her back to her pack. She would answer with concern in her howl， and he would go away. She was afraid for him.

In the purple darkness of winter Kapu had found Aaka， the graceful rime-gray daughter of Storm Alarm and Star Gentian， leaders of the lower Colville River Pack. They lived east of the Avaliks and were a powerful tribe of nine. Amaroq had respected the Lower Colville wolves. He had marked the border between their properties with stronger messages than on any other border.

When Aaka was two years old， she became tired of helping Storm Alarm and Star Gentian with their puppies. She wanted her own. On a sunny afternoon she stole into the no-wolf land between the Avaliks and the Lower Colvilles and hid in the scrubby alders. She listened and waited for Kapu to find her. She had liked him for a long time.

可是卡普喜歡狼崽。狼崽能喚起卡普最溫柔的情感。所有的狼都跟卡普一個樣兒。這種柔情過于強烈，以至于能夠泛濫到別人家的狼崽身上。卡普還小的時候，他的父母，阿馬羅克和銀白，曾經(jīng)養(yǎng)育過一個迷路的女娃。她學會了狼的語言，可以像狼一樣哀鳴、擺姿勢，大家都喜歡她。她曾經(jīng)分享卡普的狼崽食物。當卡普用爪子拍打地面，邀請她一起玩耍，她就會跟卡普玩鬧。

卡普和這個女娃成了朋友，頭腦里就給她起了個名字，一個有關(guān)氣味的名字：柳樹。女娃聞起來有凍原上那種矮小柳樹的味道，因為她每次爬到狼窩里跟卡普的兄弟姐妹一起玩，都需要爬過柳樹叢。她自己還是一個女娃娃，所以就叫她柳樹娃。

七個月以后，她回到人們那里，卡普聽人們叫她“朱莉”，于是把這個聲音加上，組成了有關(guān)她的氣味、聲音和樣貌的畫面。她就是柳樹娃朱莉。阿瓦里克河狼群里每一只狼的名字都因為跟朱莉發(fā)生聯(lián)系而產(chǎn)生了變化?？ㄆ盏睦敲臼秋L之呼喊者，因為他的叫聲高低起伏極為悅耳，像是歌唱。津的狼名是漿果弟弟，而銀白的狼名是虎耳草，因為銀白喜歡在虎耳草叢里翻滾，經(jīng)常帶著這種草的氣味。但是柳樹娃朱莉只是按照聲音給他們起名字——卡普、津和銀白。這些聲音很生動，所以每只狼也都知道朱莉給他們起的名字。

柳樹娃朱莉后來不僅僅是卡普的玩伴。她既是母親也是姐妹?？ㄆ罩貍螅侵炖蛘疹櫵B(yǎng)好了傷。那一次，有個獵人坐在轟鳴的金屬大鳥里面，把一顆子彈射到他的身體里，另一顆殺死了他的父親。朱莉?qū)λ恼樟献屗a(chǎn)生了深深的依戀。這種愛就像他對自己頭狼父母的愛，就像狼的近親——狗——對主人的愛。

柳樹娃朱莉回到人們那里之后，依戀著朱莉的卡普還經(jīng)常去探望她?？ㄆ諘Ｔ谥炖蚣铱床灰姷牡胤?，喊朱莉回到狼群去。朱莉會回答他，聲音里充滿關(guān)切。卡普就會走開。朱莉替他害怕。

冬天紫色的暗夜里，卡普找到了阿卡。阿卡是一只顏色灰白、姿態(tài)優(yōu)雅的母狼。她是科爾維爾河下游狼群頭狼的女兒，父親叫風暴預(yù)警，母親叫星龍膽。這群狼住在阿瓦里克河東邊，共有9只，是很有實力的部落?？ㄆ盏母赣H阿馬羅克一直都很尊重科爾維爾河下游的這個狼群。在阿瓦里克河部落和科爾維爾河部落領(lǐng)地之間的邊界上，阿馬羅克留下了比其他任何邊界都強烈的氣味信息。

阿卡長到兩歲時，已經(jīng)厭倦了幫風暴預(yù)警和星龍膽照顧幼崽。她想要自己的狼崽。一天下午陽光燦爛，阿卡偷偷地溜進阿瓦里克河和科爾維爾河之間的無狼區(qū)，躲在矮小的赤楊叢中。她仔細傾聽著，等待著卡普過來找她。她早就喜歡上卡普了。

【背景知識】這一部分從狼的視角出發(fā)，思考每一頭狼的命名原則，體現(xiàn)狼對人類社會的觀察，以及人類命名與狼群自我命名的差異。作者把自己設(shè)想為狼，從狼的心理視角觀察和描述世界，然而狼的心理和思考難免打上作者的烙印和想象。狼的心理與作者的心理難免有矛盾和沖突之處。品味和翻譯這樣的文字很有趣味。

【第一段】第二句中最后的省略部分in him and all wolves是一個難點，譯文需要補足原文意思，即“所有的狼都跟卡普一樣對狼崽柔情款款”。這一選段最有趣的是命名方式，第四句中的girl-pup就是其中之一。對人類來說，小女孩是girl，而小狼崽是pup，卡普將這兩個詞放在一起，表示“跟狼崽一樣的人類女娃”。第五句中的speak wolf非常簡潔，意思是“像狼一樣講話”或“講狼語”。譯文添加了“像狼一樣（哀鳴、擺姿勢）”，讓句意更明晰。

【第二段】這里作者想象著卡普給朱莉命名的理據(jù)，即柳樹的味道。作者當然是在想象，因為我們無法了解狼的思維和狼的具體語言。

【第三段】卡普用了many months，也許作者認為狼不識數(shù)，數(shù)不清幾個月。譯者根據(jù)全文的信息補充了“七個月”，因為中文里不說“很多個月”。至于后面狼群之中的命名理據(jù)和叫法，則純粹是作者想象的結(jié)果。lilt一詞意思微妙，查閱網(wǎng)絡(luò)《柯林斯詞典》，解釋為：If someone’s voice has a lilt in it， the pitch of their voice rises and falls in a pleasant way， as if they were singing. 中文里沒有一個詞可以表達如此復雜的意思，譯者只好增譯，展開這個詞語的釋義，插入到譯文中：“他的叫聲高低起伏極為悅耳，像是歌唱?！?/p>

【第四段】第三句比較長，英語的敘事順序是先有結(jié)果再補出原因。此類情況一般可以有兩種翻譯方法。其一是調(diào)換譯文順序，先講原因再講結(jié)果。其二是按照原文的信息結(jié)構(gòu)靈活處理?？紤]到原文的信息流當中后文是緊接著解釋為什么朱莉既是母親也是姐妹，因為朱莉幫卡普養(yǎng)好了傷。如果調(diào)換語序?qū)⒋騺y和中斷原文的信息流。所以譯文把全句拆分，先講朱莉照顧卡普養(yǎng)好了傷，呼應(yīng)上一句，然后在下一句解釋受傷的過程。第四句中的deep loyalty不容易翻譯。我們通常認為loyalty對應(yīng)著“忠誠”，那么deep loyalty不過是“深深的忠誠”，但這樣的直譯很難理解。查閱網(wǎng)絡(luò)《柯林斯詞典》，loyalty的解釋為：Loyalties are feelings of friendship， support， or duty toward someone or something. 在此，譯者將loyalty明晰化為“依戀”。最后一句中的descendants of wolves（狼的后裔）一說具有爭議，因此譯文改為“狼的近親”。

【第五段】第二句中的短語out of sight of her home按照字面意思是“在看不見她家的地方”，即卡普離朱莉的家很遠，在視線之外，但叫聲朱莉能聽得見，因為卡普不能靠人類太近。最后一句中的“朱莉替他害怕”是指朱莉怕卡普離人類太近而受到人類傷害。

【第六段】這里要注意動物小說中的命名方式，阿卡的父母名字分別為風暴預(yù)警和星龍膽。這種帶有豐富意義的名字是作者對狼群生活的想象結(jié)果。最后一句中的stronger messages實際是指頭狼（卡普的父親阿馬羅克）用了更多尿液來標記這兩個狼群之間的邊界，因為對方實力強勁，阿馬羅克心存忌憚。

【第七段】彼此忌憚的部落之間卻常常有通婚發(fā)生?？磥韾矍榈牧α靠梢猿揭磺校侨旱墓适赂祟惙浅Ｏ嗨?。

【小結(jié)】該選段視角獨特，從狼的心理思考狼群和人類各自命名的方式，讀起來妙趣橫生，但翻譯難度較大。譯文需要在很多地方補足必要的信息，讓譯文更加清楚易懂，同時保留原文的信息結(jié)構(gòu)不至于發(fā)生太大改變。另外，這一部分出現(xiàn)的英文詞語意義微妙，譯文要采取適當?shù)姆绞讲拍軠蚀_全面地傳遞原文思想。? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? □