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ChrisAbani_2007G-_讲述非洲故事_
I just heard the best joke about Bond Emeruwa. 我刚听到一个关于Bond Emeruwa的最有意思的笑话。
I was having lunch with him just a few minutes ago, and a Nigerian journalist comes -- and this will only make sense if you've ever watched a James Bond movie -- 在几分钟前我刚和他共进午餐, 一个尼日利亚记者进来了——当然这只有在 你看过007电影的情况下才能领略其中奥妙——
journalist:n.新闻工作者;报人;记日志者;
and a Nigerian journalist comes up to him and goes, "Aha, we meet again, Mr. Bond!" 尼日利亚记者走到他面前说: “啊,我们又见面了,邦德先生！”
(Laughter) （笑声）
Ah, it was great. 啊,这真是太好了。
So, I've got a little sheet of paper here, mostly because I'm Nigerian, and if you leave me alone , 我拿了一张小纸片在这里, 主要由于我是个尼日利亚人,如果你不限制我,
sheet:n.薄板;床单;纸张;报纸;v.覆盖;展开;给…铺床单;铺开;adj.片状的; leave me alone:走开;别理我;别管我;
I'll talk for, like, two hours. 我会滔滔不绝说上两个钟头。
But, I just want to say good afternoon, good evening. 但是,我只是想说声下午好,晚上好。
It's been an incredible few days. 这真是令人难以置信的日子。
incredible:adj.难以置信的,惊人的;
It's downhill from now on . I wanted to thank Emeka and Chris. 从今往后都没有这么好了。我想感谢艾莫克和克里斯。
downhill:adv.下坡;向下;每况愈下;adj.下坡的;容易的;n.下坡;滑降; from now on:从今以后;从现在起;
But also, most importantly, all the invisible people behind here that you just see flitting around the whole place that have made sort of this space for such a diverse and robust conversation. 但是,最重要的是这些幕后的不为人知的人们, 而你仅看到了一些在四处活动的人。 正是这样才使得这个地方有着如此多姿多彩、精力充沛的谈话。
invisible:adj.看不见的;n.看不见的人或物; flitting:v.轻快地从一处到另一处;掠过;迁移;迁居;搬家;(flit的现在分词) diverse:adj.不同的;多种多样的;变化多的; robust:adj.强健的;健康的;粗野的;粗鲁的;
It's really amazing. 这真是太棒了
And I've been in the audience. 我也听过一些讲座。
I'm a writer, and I've been watching people with the slide shows and scientists and bankers, and I've been feeling a bit like a gangsta rapper at a bar mitzvah . 我是一个作家,我也看过那些带幻灯片来做演讲的人 科学家和银行家,我觉得有点 像一个黑帮说唱歌手在犹太教成人礼现场。
gangsta:n.黑帮;歹徒成员; rapper:n.敲门者;叩击物; bar mitzvah:n.受诫礼(为年满13岁的犹太男孩举行的成人仪式);v.[犹]使受戒;
(Laughter) (笑声)?
Like, what have I got to say about all this? 我为什么说这些呢？
And I was watching Jane [Goodall] yesterday, and I thought it was really great, and I was watching those incredible slides of the chimpanzees , and I thought, "Wow. What if a chimpanzee could talk, you know? What would it say?" 昨天我看了简(古道尔)的幻灯片。 我认为非常好,而且我看到 那些关于黑猩猩的非常好的幻灯,我想, “哇,如果一只黑猩猩能说话,它将会说些什么？”
chimpanzees:n.[脊椎]黑猩猩(chimpanzee的复数); What if:如果…怎么办?
My first thought was, "Well, you know, there's George Bush ." 我的第一个想法是:“哦,你知道,那是乔治.布什。”
Bush:n.灌木; v.以灌木装饰; adj.如灌木般长得低矮的;
But then I thought, "But why be rude to chimpanzees?" 然而随后我又想到:“为什么要对黑猩猩这么无礼？”
I guess there goes my green card . 我猜这么说完我的绿卡算是泡汤了。
green card:n.绿卡(允许外国人在美国居住和工作的法律证件);
(Laughter) (笑声)
There's been a lot of talk about narrative in Africa. 关于非洲的叙事作品有很多。
narrative:n.叙述;故事;讲述;adj.叙事的,叙述的;叙事体的;
And what's become increasingly clear to me is that we're talking about news stories about Africa; we're not really talking about African narratives . 而对于我来说,越来越清晰地是 我们正在谈论关于非洲的新闻故事, 我们并没有真正谈及非洲的叙事作品。
increasingly:adv.越来越多地;渐增地; narratives:n.叙述,故事;叙述的手法(narrative复数);
And it's important to make a distinction , because if the news is anything to go by, 40 percent of Americans can't -- either can't afford health insurance or have the most inadequate health insurance, and have a president who, despite the protest 如果新闻只是随时间流逝的事情的话,那么在这里做一个区分非常重要。 40%的美国人不能负担健康保险 或者只能拥有最不充足的健康保险, 他们有一位总统,这位总统不顾
distinction:n.区别;区分;差别;卓越; afford:v.给予,提供;买得起; insurance:n.保险;保险业;保险费;保费;adj.胜券在握的; inadequate:adj.不充分的,不适当的;
of millions of his citizens -- even his own Congress -- continues to prosecute a senseless war. 上百万公民——甚至包括他自己的国会在内——的抗议, 坚持发动一场不义的战争。
Congress:n.国会;代表大会;会议;社交; prosecute:vt.检举;贯彻;从事;依法进行;vi.起诉;告发;作检察官; senseless:adj.愚蠢的;无知觉的;无意识的;
So if news is anything to go by, the US is right there with Zimbabwe , right? 因此,如果新闻是顺便采访的一些东西, 那么美国就与津巴布韦没什么区别了,是不是？
Zimbabwe:n.津巴布韦(国家名,位于非洲);
Which it isn't, really, is it? 它到底是不是这样呢？
And talking about war -- my girlfriend has this great t-shirt that says, "Bombing for peace is like fucking for virginity ." 谈及战争,我的女朋友有一件很棒的T恤, 上面写道:“以轰炸求和平就如同通过做爱来找处女。”
virginity:n.童贞;处女;纯洁;
It's amazing, isn't it. 这话写得很绝,难道不是吗？
The truth is, Americans -- everything we know about America, everything Americans come to know about being American, isn't from the news. 事实是,美国人——我们所知道的关于美国的每件事, 美国人所了解的作为美国人的每件事, 并非源于新闻。
It -- we -- I lived there. 它——我们——我曾生活于此。
We don't go home at the end of the day and think, "Well, I really know who I am now because the Wall Street Journal says that the Stock Exchange closed at this many points." 我们没有在一天结束回家之时想着 “好的,我现在已经知道我是谁了。” “因为华尔街新闻说股票交易” “在多少点上已经收盘了。”
Wall Street:n.华尔街(美国纽约金融中心和证券交易所所在地); Stock Exchange:n.证券交易(所);股票交易(所);
What we know about how to be who we are comes from stories. 是一些故事让我们知道如何成为我们自己。
It comes from the novels , the movies, the fashion magazines. 它来自小说,电影,时尚杂志。
novels:n.小说;(novel的复数)
It comes from popular culture. 它来自流行文化。
In other words, it's the agents of our imagination who really shape who we are. And this is important to remember, because, you know, in Africa, the complicated questions we want to ask about what all of this means has been asked from the rock paintings of the San people, through the Sundiata epics of Mali, to modern, contemporary literature . 换句话说,是我们想象力的代言者 将我们塑造成我们自己。必须记住, 因为,如你所知,在非洲, 我们思考过很多复杂的问题, 人生,世界的意义,都被质疑过 从岩画到桑河人类, 穿越马里Sundiata 史诗,直到现代、当代文学。
agents:n.代理人,经纪人;原动力;(agent的复数) imagination:n.想象;想象力;创造力;想象的事物; complicated:adj.复杂的;难懂的;v.使复杂化;(complicate的过去分词和过去式) epics:n.史诗;叙事诗(epic的复数); contemporary literature:n.[语]现代文学;
If you want to know about Africa, read our literature -- and not just Things Fall Apart , because that would be like saying, "I've read Gone with the Wind, and so I know everything about America." 如果你想了解非洲,请阅读我们的文学作品—— 不仅仅是阅读Things Fall Apart《支离破碎》,因为那相当于是说, “我已经读了《飘》,因此我对美国了如指掌。”
Fall Apart:崩溃;土崩瓦解;破碎;
That's very important. 这一点非常重要。
There's a poem by Jack Gilbert called "The Forgotten Dialect of the Heart." 杰克.吉尔伯特写了首诗,题为“被遗忘的心语”
Dialect:n.方言;地方话;土话;
He says, "When the Sumerian tablets were first translated, they were thought to be business records. 他写道:“当闪族人的书简初次被翻译,” “它被认为是商业记录,”
tablets:n.药片;片剂;(固定于墙上作纪念的)牌,碑,匾;(tablet的第三人称单数和复数)
But what if they were poems and psalms ? “但是,它们要是诗篇和圣歌呢？”
psalms:n.圣经旧约中的诗篇(等于BookofPsalms);
My love is like twelve Ethiopian goats standing still in the morning light. “我的爱如同十二只埃塞俄比亚山羊,” “站立在静寂的晨光中。”
Ethiopian:adj.埃塞俄比亚的;黑人的;n.埃塞俄比亚人;黑人;
Shiploads of thuja are what my body wants to say to your body. “满船的金钟柏是我的身体想要对你的诉说。”
Shiploads:n.船货;船舶运载量;
Giraffes are this desire in the dark." “长颈鹿正是这黑暗中的渴望。”
This is important. 这一点非常重要。
It's important because misreading is really the chance for complication and opportunity. 因为误读确实会给 复杂化以可能性和机会。
misreading:n.读错;误解;v.误解;读错;误读;(misread的现在分词) complication:n.并发症;复杂;复杂化;混乱;
The first Igbo Bible was translated from English in about the 1800s by Bishop Crowther, who was a Yoruba. 第一本伊博人的圣经翻译自英文, 于1800年代由克鲁瑟主教所译。 这个主教是约鲁巴人。
Bible:n.有权威的书; Bishop:n.主教;象;
And it's important to know Igbo is a tonal language, and so they'll say the word "igwe" and "igwe": same spelling, one means "sky" or "heaven," 要知道伊博语是一种注音语言, 因此他们说一个词 igwe 和 igwe 拼法相同,一个意思是“天空”或“天堂”,
tonal:adj.色调的;音调的;
and one means "bicycle" or "iron." 而另一个意思是“自行车”或“铁”。
So "God is in heaven surrounded by His angels" 所以“上帝在天堂里被他的天使围绕”
was translated as -- 被翻译成
[Igbo translation] (伊博语翻译)
And for some reason, in Cameroon , when they tried to translate the Bible into Cameroonian patois , they chose the Igbo version. 由于某种原因,在喀麦隆,当他们试图 把圣经翻译成喀麦隆方言时, 他们选择了伊博语版本。
Cameroon:n.喀麦隆(西非国名); translate:v.翻译;被翻译;被译成;(使)转变; patois:n.方言,土语;行话;
And I'm not going to give you the patois translation; 而我并没有打算给你这种方言译文,
I'm going to make it standard English. 我想让它成为标准的英文。
standard:n.标准;水准;旗;度量衡标准;adj.标准的;合规格的;公认为优秀的;
Basically , it ends up as "God is on a bicycle with his angels." 基本上,结果它就翻成是“上帝和他的天使骑在自行车上”。
Basically:adv.主要地,基本上;
This is good, because language complicates things. 这很好,因为语言让事情变复杂了。
complicates:v.使复杂化;(complicate的第三人称单数)
You know, we often think that language mirrors the world in which we live, and I find that's not true. 如你所知,我们常认为语言反映 我们所生活的世界,但是,我发现并非如此。
The language actually makes the world in which we live. 实际上是语言造就了我们所生活的世界。
Language is not -- I mean, things don't have any mutable value by themselves; we ascribe them a value. 语言并非——我是说,事情对于 它们自身并没有易变的价值——具有我们所赋予它们的价值。
mutable:adj.易变的,不定的;性情不定的; ascribe:vt.归因于;归咎于;
And language can't be understood in its abstraction . 而且语言不能在抽象中被理解。
abstraction:n.抽象;出神;心神专注;提取;分离;
It can only be understood in the context of story, and everything -- everything, all of this -- is story. 它只能在故事的上下文中被理解。 而且每件事都是故事。
context:n.环境;上下文;来龙去脉;
And it's important to remember that, because if we don't, then we become ahistorical. 必须记住 因为如果我们不这样,我们就将变成跟历史无关的。
We've had a lot of -- a parade of amazing ideas here. 我们已经有很多——一堆令人惊异的观点。
parade:n.阅兵;游行;炫耀;检阅;v.游行;展览;游行庆祝;游行示威;
But these are not new to Africa. 但这些对于非洲并不新鲜。
Nigeria got its independence in 1960. 尼日利亚于1960年独立。
independence:n.独立;独立性;自恃心;独立不羁的精神;
The first time the possibility for independence was discussed was in 1922, following the Aba women's market riots . 第一次讨论独立的可能性 是在1922年,紧随阿巴妇女市场骚动之后。
riots:n.暴动(riot的复数);v.骚乱(riot的第三人称单数形式);闹事;
In 1967, in the middle of the Biafran-Nigerian Civil War, 在1967年,在比夫拉-尼日利亚内战中,
Civil:adj.公民的;民间的;文职的;有礼貌的;根据民法的;
Dr. Njoku-Obi invented the Cholera vaccine . Njoku-Obi医生发明了霍乱疫苗。
Cholera:n.[内科]霍乱; vaccine:n.疫苗;牛痘苗;adj.疫苗的;牛痘的;
So, you know, the thing is to remember that, because otherwise, 10 years from now, we'll be back here trying to tell this story again. 因此,这事该被记住, 因为,否则10年后, 我们将回头来继续再说同样的故事。
So ... what it says to me, then, is that it's not really -- the problem isn't really the stories that are being told or which stories are being told; the problem really is the terms of humanity 因此,对于我来说,它并非真的么？ 问题并不在于被讲述的故事 或者是哪些故事正在被讲述; 真正的问题在于关于人性,
humanity:n.人类;人道;仁慈;人文学科;
that we're willing to bring to complicate every story, and that's really what it's all about. 我们要带入多少,来复杂化每个故事 这才是问题所在。
Let me tell you a Nigerian joke. 我给你们讲个尼日利亚笑话。
Well, it's just a joke, anyway. 不管怎样,这都只是个笑话。
So there's Tom, Dick , and Harry and they're working construction . 张三、李四和王五,他们都是搞建筑的。
Dick:n.阴茎,鸡巴;侦探;誓言; construction:n.建设;建筑物;解释;造句;
And Tom opens up his lunch box and there's rice in it, and he goes on this rant about, "Twenty years, my wife has been packing rice for lunch. 张三打开午餐盒,里面有米饭, 他叫道:“20年了,” “我老婆一直只给我带米饭作午餐。”
rant:vi.咆哮;痛骂;大声责骂;vt.咆哮;痛骂;n.咆哮;激昂的演说;
If she goes it again tomorrow, I'm gonna throw myself off this building and kill myself." “如果明天还是这样,我就” “跳楼自杀。”
And Dick and Harry repeat this. 李四和王五也重复了同样的话。
The next day, Tom opens his lunchbox , there's rice, so he throws himself off and kills himself, and Tom, Dick, and Harry follow. 第二天,张三打开饭盒,还是米饭, 因此他跳楼自杀, 李四和王五也效仿。
lunchbox:n.饭盒;便当;
And now the inquest -- you know, Tom's wife and Dick's wife are distraught . 警方调查之中,张三的老婆 和李四的老婆悔得肠子都青了
inquest:n.审讯;验尸;讯问; distraught:adj.发狂的;心烦意乱的;
They wished they'd not packed rice. 她们希望自己没有装米饭。
But Harry's wife is confused , because she said, "You know, 但是王五的老婆很迷惑,因为她说,“你知道,”
confused:adj.困惑的; v.使糊涂; (confuse的过去分词和过去式)
Harry had been packing his own lunch for 20 years." “王五自己装午饭装了20年了。”
(Laughter) (笑声)
This seemingly innocent joke, when I heard it as a child in Nigeria, was told about Igbo, Yoruba and Hausa, with the Hausa being Harry. 当我孩提时代在尼日利亚听到的时候,我觉得这个表面上很无知的笑话 是用来指伊博人、约鲁巴人和豪萨人的, 而豪萨人就是那个王五。
seemingly:adv.看来似乎;表面上看来; innocent:adj.无辜的;无罪的;无知的;n.天真的人;笨蛋;
So what seems like an eccentric if tragic joke about Harry becomes a way to spread ethnic hatred . 因此这看来有些古怪,如果关于王五的悲剧性笑话 成为一种宣扬种族仇恨的途径。
eccentric:adj.古怪的,反常的;n.古怪的人; tragic:adj.悲剧的;悲痛的,不幸的; ethnic:adj.种族的;人种的; hatred:n.仇恨;憎恨;厌恶;
My father was educated in Cork , in the University of Cork , in the '50s. 我父亲于20世纪50年代在科克（爱尔兰港口）的科克大学上学。
Cork:n.木栓;塑料塞;adj.用软木制的;v.用软木塞封(瓶);
In fact, every time I read in Ireland, people get me all mistaken and they say, "Oh, this is Chris O'Barney from Cork." 实际上,每次我在爱尔兰阅读时, 人们总是弄错,他们说, “哦,这是来自科克的克里斯.欧巴内”
mistaken:adj.错误;不正确;被误解的;v.弄错;误解;误会;(mistake的过去分词)
But he was also in Oxford in the '50s, and he had -- growing up as a child in Nigeria, my father used to say to me, "You must never eat or drink in a Yoruba person's house because they will poison you." “但是他50年代的时候也在牛津。” “而且他在尼日利亚度过童年时代。” 我的父亲曾对我说:“你必须不吃不喝” “在一个约鲁巴人家里,因为他们会给你下毒。”
It makes sense now when I think about it, because if you'd known my father, you would've wanted to poison him, too. 当我想起这话时,现在知道是什么意思了。 因为如果你认识我父亲, 你也会想给他下毒。
(Laughter) (笑声)
So I was born in 1966, at the beginning of the Biafran-Nigerian Civil War, and the war ended after three years. 我生在1966年, 在比夫拉-尼日利亚内战之初,这场战争在三年后结束。
at the beginning of:在…的开始;
And I was growing up in school and the federal government didn't want us taught about the history of the war, because they thought it probably would make us generate a new generation of rebels . 我在学校里成长,联邦政府 不希望我们学习这段战争的历史。 因为他们认为这有可能使我们 成为新的背叛的一代。
federal:adj.联邦的;同盟的;联邦政府的;联邦制的;adv.联邦政府地; generate:v.产生;引起; rebels:n.反叛者(rebel的复数形式);v.谋反(rebel的第三人称单数形式);
So I had a very inventive teacher, a Pakistani Muslim, who wanted to teach us about this. 因此,我有了一位极富创造性的老师,一个巴基斯坦的穆斯林, 他想教我们这些战争历史。
inventive:adj.发明的;有发明才能的;独出心裁的; Pakistani:adj.巴基斯坦的;n.巴基斯坦人;
So what he did was to teach us Jewish Holocaust history, and so huddled around books with photographs of people in Auschwitz, 他所做的是教我们犹太人大屠杀历史, 书中充满了奥斯维辛集中营的照片。
Jewish:adj.犹太人的;犹太族的; Holocaust:n.大屠杀;毁灭; huddled:v.挤成一团;胡乱堆积(huddle的过去式及过去分词形式);
I learned the melancholic history of my people through the melancholic history of another people. 我学到了关于我的人民的悲惨的历史 通过其他民族的悲惨史。
melancholic:adj.忧郁的;抑郁的;患忧郁症的;n.忧郁症患者;
I mean, picture this -- really picture this. 我说,想象这幅画面——真正地想想看
A Pakistani Muslim teaching Jewish Holocaust history to young Igbo children. 一个巴基斯坦穆斯林教犹太大屠杀历史 给幼小的伊博儿童。
Story is powerful. 故事充满了力量。
Story is fluid and it belongs to nobody. 故事是流淌的,它不属于任何人。
fluid:adj.流动的;流畅的;不固定的;n.流体;液体;
And it should come as no surprise that my first novel at 16 was about Neo-Nazis taking over Nigeria to institute the Fourth Reich . 它必须波澜不惊地出现。 因此我写于16岁时的第一篇小说是关于新纳粹 第四帝国体制接管尼日利亚。
Neo-Nazis:n.新纳粹分子(neo-Nazi的复数形式); institute:v.开始(调查);制定;创立;提起(诉讼);n.学会,协会;学院; Reich:n.德国;德意志帝国;
Makes perfect sense. 特别说得通
And they were to blow up strategic targets and take over the country, and they were foiled by a Nigerian James Bond called Coyote Williams, and a Jewish -- a Jewish Nazi hunter. 他们突然打击战略目标 掌握了整个国家,结果被一个人阻止了, 这人是一个尼日利亚的詹姆士.邦德,名叫考尔欧特.威廉姆斯. 和一个犹太人——一个犹太的“纳粹猎人”。
strategic:adj.战略上的,战略的; take over:接管;继承;接收;接任;接替; foiled:adj.有叶形装饰的;v.阻止(foil的过去式和过去分词); Coyote:n.一种产于北美大草原的小狼;引外国人从墨西哥偷渡进入美国的不法分子;
And it happened over four continents . 这个故事涉及四个大陆。
continents:n.[地理]大陆,大洲(continent复数);
And when the book came out, I was heralded as Africa's answer to Frederick Forsyth, which is a dubious honor at best. 当此书一出版,受到广泛欢迎, 我被看作非洲版的弗莱德里克.福塞斯,这最好是个值得怀疑的荣誉。
heralded:n.先驱;传令官;报信者;vt.通报;预示…的来临; dubious:adj.可疑的;暧昧的;无把握的;半信半疑的;
But also, the book was launched in time for me to be accused of constructing the blueprint for a foiled coup attempt . 但是,这本书发行的时候正值我被控 有意谋反。
launched:v.发射;发起;开展;开始;(launch的过去式和过去分词) accused:v.控告;控诉;谴责;(accuse的过去分词和过去式) constructing:n.构造;v.构造(construct的现在分词); blueprint:vt.计划;制成蓝图;n.蓝图,设计图;计划; coup:n.政变; v.使…颠倒; attempt:n.企图,试图;攻击;v.企图,试图;尝试;
So at 18, I was bonded off to prison in Nigeria. 因此在18岁时,我被关进尼日利亚的监狱。
I grew up very privileged , and it's important to talk about privilege, because we don't talk about it here. 我在有特权的情况下成长, 谈及特权非常重要,因为我们在这里不谈论它。
privileged:adj.有特权的; v.给予特权; (privilege的过去式和过去分词)
A lot of us are very privileged. 我们中的很多人享有特权。
I grew up -- servants , cars, televisions, all that stuff . 我长大的过程中有仆人、汽车、电视,所有这些东西。
servants:n.仆人;服务员(servant的复数); stuff:n.东西:物品:基本特征:v.填满:装满:标本:
My story of Nigeria growing up was very different from the story 我在尼日利亚长大的故事完全不同于
I encountered in prison, and I had no language for it. 我在监狱里面对的情况。那种情况真是让我无言以对。
encountered:v.遭遇,遇到;偶然碰到;意外地遇见;(encounter的过去分词和过去式)
I was completely terrified, completely broken, and kept trying to find a new language, a new way to make sense of all of this. 我完全受到了惊吓,完全崩溃了, 而且尽力想寻找一种新的语言, 一种新的途径去理解这种状况。
make sense of:搞清…的意思;
Six months after that, with no explanation, they let me go. 六个月以后,没有任何解释, 他们就把我放了。
Now for those of you who have seen me at the buffet tables know that it was because it was costing them too much to feed me. 现在,你们在餐桌边碰见我,就会知道 那是因为我吃得太多,关着我花了他们太多钱。
buffet:n.自助餐; vt.对…打来打去; adj.快餐式的
(Laughter) (笑声)
But I mean, I grew up with this incredible privilege, and not just me -- millions of Nigerians grew up with books and libraries. 但是我的意思是说,我长大的过程中享有了难以置信的特权。 而且并非只有我——上百万尼日利亚人 成长中有书籍和图书馆。
In fact, we were talking last night about how all of the steamy novels of Harold Robbins had done more for sex education of horny teenage boys in Africa than any sex education programs ever had. 实际上,我们昨晚谈论了 哈罗德.罗宾斯所有的色情小说如何 对非洲处于性冲动时期的青少年进行性教育, 而这些书中的性教育远多于已有的其他形式的性教育。
steamy:adj.蒸汽的;雾重的,潮湿的;充满蒸汽的; horny:adj.角的;角状的;淫荡的;
All of those are gone. 所有的这些都已经过去了。
We are squandering the most valuable resource we have on this continent: the valuable resource of the imagination. 我们正在浪费最有价值的资源。 我们在这块大陆上拥有的最有价值的资源是 想象力。
squandering:浪费;滥用; valuable:adj.有价值的;贵重的;可估价的;n.贵重物品; resource:n.资源;资料;才智;财力;v.向…提供资金(或设备);
In the film, "Sometimes in April" by Raoul Peck , 在鲁尔.派克的电影《四月某时》中,
Peck:vi.啄食; vt.啄食; n.许多;
Idris Elba is poised in a scene with his machete raised, and he's being forced by a crowd to chop up his best friend -- fellow Rwandan Army officer, albeit a Tutsi -- played by Fraser James. 伊迪里斯.厄尔巴在一幕中泰然自若举起弯刀, 他正被一群人强迫去砍他最好的朋友—— 卢旺达军官,是一个图西人—— 此人由弗莱舍.詹姆斯扮演。
poised:adj.摆好姿势准备行动的; v.保持(某种姿势); machete:n.弯刀;大砍刀;马谢特琴; chop:v.砍;劈;切碎;剁碎;n.砍;劈;剁;猪(或羊等)排; albeit:conj.虽然;即使;
And Fraser's on his knees, arms tied behind his back, and he's crying. 弗莱舍双手被反绑在背后,跪在地上 他在哭泣。
He's sniveling . 他简直是涕泗横流。
sniveling:v.(令人讨厌地)哭诉;(snivel的现在分词)
It's a pitiful sight. 这是个令人同情的场景。
pitiful:adj.可怜的,令人同情的;
And as we watch it, we are ashamed . 当看到这一幕时,我们感到羞愧难当。
ashamed:adj.惭愧;尴尬;因惭愧而不情愿;
And we want to say to Idris, "Chop him up. 我们想对伊迪里斯说。“砍了他吧。”
Shut him up." “让他闭嘴。”
And as Idris moves, Fraser screams, "Stop! 当伊迪里斯上前,弗莱舍尖叫道:“住手！”
Please stop!" “请住手！”
Idris pauses, then he moves again, and Fraser says, "Please! 伊迪里斯停了一下,复又上前, 弗莱舍说道:“求求你了！”
Please stop!" “求求你,住手吧！”
And it's not the look of horror and terror on Fraser's face that stops Idris or us; it's the look in Fraser's eyes. 并非弗莱舍脸上恐怖和惧怕的表情让伊迪里斯或者是我们这些观众要住手, 让人住手的是弗莱舍的眼神。
horror:n.恐惧;厌恶;震惊;对某事物的强烈畏惧(或憎恨);
It's one that says, "Don't do this. 它在说:“不要这样。”
And I'm not saying this to save myself, although this would be nice; I'm doing it to save you, because if you do this, you will be lost." “我并不是要说这些来救我自己,” “虽然救我会很好,但是我这样做是为了拯救你。” “因为如果你这样做了,你将会迷失自我。”
To be so afraid that you're standing in the face of a death you can't escape and that you're soiling yourself and crying, but to say in that moment, as Fraser says to Idris, "Tell my girlfriend I love her." 那是非常可怕的,如果你直面死亡 无法逃脱,而同时又在羞辱你自己 并且嚎啕大哭,但是此时说出 弗莱舍对伊迪里斯所说的话:“告诉我的女友我爱她。”
in the face of:面对;
In that moment, Fraser says, "I am lost already, but not you ... not you." 在那种时候,弗莱舍说: “我已经迷失自我,但是你,你,不该也这样。”
This is a redemption we can all aspire to. 这是一种我们都可以盼望的救赎。
redemption:n.赎回;拯救;偿还;实践; aspire:v.渴望(成就);有志(成为);
African narratives in the West, they proliferate . 在西方,有关非洲的叙事作品快速增多。
proliferate:vi.增殖;扩散;激增;vt.使激增;
I really don't care anymore. 我确实已不再关心。
I'm more interested in the stories we tell about ourselves -- how as a writer, I find that African writers have always been the curators of our humanity on this continent. 我更关注那些讲述我们自己的故事—— 如何当一个作家,我发现非洲作家 一直在充当这块大陆上我们人性的监护者。
curators:n.馆长;监护人;管理者;
The question is, how do I balance narratives that are wonderful with narratives of wounds and self-loathing ? 问题是,我如何去平衡那些令人愉快的作品 和那些创伤文学,自揭其丑的作品呢?
wounds:n.(身体上的)伤,伤口; v.使(身体)受伤; (wound的第三人称单数和复数) self-loathing:n.自我讨厌的;自我憎恨的;
And this is the difficulty that I face. 这是我所面临的困难。
I am trying to move beyond political rhetoric to a place of ethical questioning. 我正试图超越政治上的花言巧语, 去触及民族问题。
rhetoric:n.修辞,修辞学;华丽的词藻;adj.花言巧语的; ethical:adj.伦理的;道德的;凭处方出售的;n.处方药;
I am asking us to balance the idea of our complete vulnerability with the complete notion of transformation or what is possible. 我请我们大家去平衡这些 有关我们所有的弱点的看法。 用观念上的完全变革或任何可能的办法去达到这种平衡。
vulnerability:n.易损性;弱点; notion:n.观念;信念;理解; transformation:n.转变;(用于南非)民主改革;
As a young middle-class Nigerian activist , 作为一个年轻的尼日利亚中产阶级活动家,
middle-class:adj.中产阶级的;中层社会的; activist:n.积极分子;激进主义分子;
I launched myself along with a whole generation of us into the campaign to stop the government. 我与所有同辈人一起投入 阻止政府的运动。
And I asked millions of people, without questioning my right to do so, to go up against the government. 我请求上百万同胞, 我丝毫不怀疑自己有权这样去做, 去揭竿而起反对政府。
And I watched them being locked up in prison and tear gassed. 我看到他们被关进监狱,被催泪弹袭击。
I justified it, and I said, "This is the cost of revolution . 我认为这是正当的,我说:“这是革命的代价。”
justified:adj.正当的; v.证明…正确; (justify的过去式和过去分词) revolution:n.革命;旋转;运行;循环;
Have I not myself been imprisoned ? 我是不是没蹲过监狱？
imprisoned:v.监禁;关押;(imprison的过去分词和过去式)
Have I not myself been beaten?" 我是不是没被打过？
It wasn't until later, when I was imprisoned again, that I understood the real meaning of torture , and how easy your humanity can be taken from you, for the time I was engaged in war, righteous , righteous war. 没多久,我又被关进监狱, 我知道了严刑拷打到底是什么, 你的人格尊严轻易就被剥夺了, 此时我卷入了战争, 正义的战争。
torture:v.折磨;拷问;歪曲;n.折磨;拷问;歪曲; engaged in:从事于;忙于; righteous:adj.正义的;正直的;公正的;
Excuse me. 对不起。
Sometimes I can stand before the world -- and when I say this, transformation is a difficult and slow process . 有时,我能站在全世界面前—— 此时,变革 正经历一个困难而缓慢的过程。
process:v.处理;加工;列队行进;n.过程,进行;方法,adj.经过特殊加工(或处理)的;
Sometimes I can stand before the world and say, "My name is Chris Abani. 有时,我能站在全世界面前说, “我叫克里斯.阿巴尼,”
I have been human six days, but only sometimes." “我做了六天人,而这其中仅仅只是有时是人。”
But this is a good thing. 但是这是一件好事。
It's never going to be easy. 它从未变得简单。
There are no answers. 那些问题没有答案。
As I was telling Rachel from Google Earth, that I had challenged my students in America -- 我对来自谷歌地球的蕾切尔说, 我在美国曾挑战过我的学生。
Google:谷歌;谷歌搜索引擎;
I said, "You don't know anything about Africa, you're all idiots ." 我说:“你们完全不了解非洲,你们是白痴。”
idiots:n.蠢人;笨蛋;白痴;(idiot的复数)
And so they said, "Tell me about Africa, Professor Abani." 他们说:“跟我们说说非洲吧,阿巴尼教授。”
So I went to Google Earth and learned about Africa. 因此我上谷歌网,去了解非洲。
And the truth be told, this is it, isn't it? 那上面说了真实情况,就是这样,不是吗？
There are no essential Africans, and most of us are as completely ignorant as everyone else about the continent we come from, and yet we want to make profound statements about it. 那里没有本质上的非洲人, 我们大部分都像其他所有人一样 对于我们的大陆是完全无知的, 然而我们还想对它进行深入地阐述。
essential:n.要点;要素;实质;必需品;adj.完全必要的;必不可少的;极其重要的;本质的; ignorant:adj.无知的;愚昧的; profound:adj.深厚的;意义深远的;渊博的; statements:n.说明; v.(英国)对儿童进行特殊教育评估认定; (statement的第三人称单数和复数)
And I think if we can just admit that we're all trying to approximate the truth of our own communities , it will make for a much more nuanced and a much more interesting conversation. 我想如果我们能够承认我们都试图 去接近我们自己所处社会的真实情况, 这将有助于形成一个更有区别 也更加有趣的谈话。
approximate:v.近似;使…接近;粗略估计;接近于;adj.[数]近似的;大概的; communities:n.社区;社会;团体;共有(community的复数) nuanced:adj.微妙的; v.精确细腻地表演;
I want to believe that we can be agnostic about this, that we can rise above all of this. 我愿意相信我们在这个问题上能够成为不可知论者, 以便我们能够凌驾于这一切。
agnostic:n.不可知论者;adj.不可知论的;
When I was 10, I read James Baldwin's "Another Country," 当我10岁的时候,我看了詹姆士.鲍尔温的《另一个国家》,
and that book broke me. 此书让我崩溃。
Not because I was encountering homosexual sex and love for the first time, but because the way James wrote about it made it impossible for me to attach otherness to it. 这不是因为我第一次面对同性性行为和爱情, 而是因为詹姆士写作这本书的方式 使得我无法对它产生疏离感。
encountering:v.遭遇,遇到;偶然碰到;意外地遇见;(encounter的现在分词) homosexual:n.同性恋者;adj.同性恋的; attach:v.贴上;重视;把…固定,把…附(在…上);参加;与…有联系; otherness:n.差异性;相异;他物;
'"Here," Jimmy said. “这里,”吉米说。
'"Here is love, all of it." “这里有爱,全部的爱。”
The fact that it happens in "Another Country" 发生在《另一个国家》里的事情
takes you quite by surprise. 使你因为惊奇而变得平静。
My friend Ronald Gottesman says there are three kinds of people in the world: those who can count, and those who can't. 我的朋友罗纳德.高茨曼说世上有三种人。 会算计的人,不会算计的人。
(Laughter) (笑声)
He also says that the cause of all our trouble is the belief in an essential, pure identity : religious , ethnic, historical , ideological . 他还说导致所有麻烦的原因 是对本质的纯粹的一致性的信仰: 宗教的,种族的,历史的,意识形态的。
identity:n.身份;同一性,一致;特性;恒等式; religious:adj.宗教的;虔诚的;严谨的;修道的;n.修道士;尼姑; historical:adj.历史的;史学的;基于史实的; ideological:adj.思想的;意识形态的;
I want to leave you with a poem by Yusef Komunyakaa that speaks to transformation. 我想给你们留下一首尤瑟夫.考门亚卡写的诗 这首诗是写变革的。
It's called " Ode to the Drum ," and I'll try and read it the way Yusef would be proud to hear it read. 名叫“鼓颂”,我试着用一种 尤瑟夫会觉得自豪的方式来读它。
Ode:n.赋;颂歌;颂诗; Drum:n.鼓; v.打鼓;
'" Gazelle , I killed you for your skin's exquisite touch, for how easy it is to be nailed to a board weathered raw as white butcher paper. “瞪羚,我为了你皮毛细腻的触感而杀了你,” “还为了你的皮毛能轻易地被钉在木板上” “如同屠宰用的白纸一样被风化”
Gazelle:n.瞪羚;小羚羊;vi.似瞪羚般跳跃; exquisite:adj.精致的;细腻的;优美的,高雅的;异常的;剧烈的;n.服饰过于讲究的男子; butcher:n.屠夫;肉贩;肉店;肉铺;v.屠杀;杀戮;屠宰;宰杀;adj."butch"的比较级;
Last night I heard my daughter praying for the meat here at my feet. “昨晚我听到我女儿为了我脚边的肉祷告。”
You know it wasn't anger that made me stop my heart till the hammer fell. “你知道不是愤怒使我的心在锤落时停跳。”
hammer:n.锤子; v.锤打;
Weeks ago, you broke me as a woman once shattered me into a song beneath her weight, before you slouched into that grassy hush . “数周前,你粉碎我好像一个女人 在她的身下,将我碎成一首歌 “在你慵懒沉入绿色的静谧之前”
shattered:adj.受到严重打击的; v.(使)破碎,碎裂; (shatter的过去式和过去分词) beneath:prep.在…之下;adv.在下方; slouched:n.下垂;笨拙的人,懒散的人;懒散的样子;vi.没精打采地站;耷拉;vt.使下垂; grassy:adj.长满草的;草绿色的; hush:v.安静;别说话;别叫喊;使安静下来;n.寂静;鸦雀无声;
And now I'm tightening lashes , shaping hide as if around a ribcage , shaped like five bowstrings. “现在,我系紧鞭子,修整兽皮围住胸腔,” “形如五股弓弦。”
tightening:v.(使)变紧,更加牢固;使更加严格;加强;(tighten的现在分词) lashes:n.睫毛; v.鞭打; (lash的第三人称单数和复数) ribcage:n.胸腔;胸廓;
Ghosts cannot slip back inside the body's drum. “鬼魂无法溜回身体之鼓”
Ghosts:n.鬼魂;幽灵;一点点;v.无声地行进(ghost的第三人称单数和复数) slip:v.溜;下降;滑落;n.纸条;衬裙;
You've been seasoned by wind, dusk and sunlight . “你已经风雨、薄暮与阳光的历练。”
dusk:n.黄昏;傍晚;v.变暗;使变暗; sunlight:n.日光;
Pressure can make everything whole again, brass nails tacked into the ebony wood your face has been carved five times. “压力使得万物再次变得完整,” “黄铜指甲嵌入黑檀木之中” “你的面孔经过五次雕琢。”
brass:n.黄铜;黄铜制品;铜管乐器;厚脸皮; tacked:[水运]抢风行驶;[五金]平头钉; ebony:adj.乌木制的,黑檀木制的;似木的,黑檀木色的;n.乌木,黑檀; carved:v.雕刻;刻;把(熟肉)切成块;(carve的过去分词和过去式)
I have to drive trouble in the hills. “我不得不将烦恼赶入山林。”
Trouble in the valley. “赶入深谷。”
And trouble by the river too. “跟随河流走远。”
There is no palm wine, fish, salt, or calabash . “没有棕榈酒,鱼,盐和葫芦。”
palm:n.手掌;手心;棕榈树;v.把…藏在手中(尤指玩戏法); calabash:n.葫芦;炮弹果;
Kadoom. Kadoom. Kadoom. 鬼魂毁灭。鬼魂毁灭。鬼魂毁灭。
Ka-doooom. “鬼魂毁灭。”
Now I have beaten a song back into you, rise and walk away like a panther ." “现在我敲击出了一首歌给你,” “起身像黑豹一样走远。”
panther:n.豹;黑豹;美洲豹;
Thank you. 谢谢。
(Applause) (掌声)