Why should you read Virgil's "Aeneid"? - Mark Robinson

翻译人员: Wang Jianyu 校对人员: Sylvia He

In 19 B.C., the Roman poet Virgil was traveling from Greece to Rome

公元前 19 年，古罗马诗人 维吉尔跟随奥古斯都大帝

with the emperor Augustus.

从希腊出游回到罗马。

On the way, he stopped to go sightseeing in Megara, a town in Greece.

半路上，他停下来观赏 希腊小镇迈加拉的风景。

Out in the sun for too long, he suffered heatstroke

因站在阳光下太久，他中了暑，

and died on his journey back to Italy.

在回意大利的路上不幸去世。

On his deathbed,

临死时，

Virgil thought about the manuscript he had been working on for over ten years,

维吉尔回想到过去十年 一直在撰写的书稿，

an epic poem that he called the "Aeneid."

一部他称为《埃涅伊德》的史诗。

Unsatisfied with the final edit, he asked his friends to burn it,

由于对终稿不满意， 他请求朋友们烧掉这本书，

but they refused,

但他们拒绝了，

and soon after Virgil's death, Augustus ordered it to be published.

维吉尔去世后不久， 奥古斯都下令出版这部史诗。

Why was Augustus so interested in saving Virgil's poem?

为什么奥古斯对拯救 维吉尔这部史诗有如此大的兴趣？

The Romans had little tradition of writing serious literature

古罗马人没有创作严肃文学的传统，

and Virgil wanted to create a poem

而维吉尔想要创作一部能与古希腊

to rival the "Iliad" and "Odyssey" of Ancient Greece.

史诗《伊利亚特》 和《奥德赛》抗衡的史诗。

The "Aeneid," a 9,896 line poem, spans twelve separate sections, or books,

《埃涅伊德》是一部有 9896 行， 分为 12 个独立章节 （或书）的长诗，

the first six of which mirror the structure of the "Odyssey"

前六章模仿了《奥德赛》的结构，

and the last six echo the "Iliad."

后六章则与《伊利亚特》相呼应。

Also like the Greek epics,

《埃涅伊德》同希腊的史诗一样，

The "Aeneid" is written entirely in dactylic hexameter.

完全是按照六音步长短短格写成的。

In this meter, each line has six syllable groups called feet

按照这个韵律，每一行都有 六个音节小组，称为韵脚，

made up of dactyls which go long, short, short,

由长短短格构成，长-短-短，

and spondees which go long, long.

长长格就是长-长。

So the famous opening line in the original Latin starts,

所以拉丁文源语开场白是

"Arma Virvmqve Cano,"

"Arma Virvmqve Cano,"

which can be translated as "I sing of arms and the man,"

可以翻译成：我赞扬战争和男人，

arms, meaning battles and warfare, another "Iliad" reference,

arms 是战争的意思， 这也是参照《伊利亚特》的写法，

and the man being the hero Aeneas.

这个男人指的是 特洛伊战争中的勇士埃涅阿斯。

To understand the "Aeneid,"

要理解《埃涅伊德》这部史诗，

it's necessary to examine the unsettled nature of Roman politics

有必要研究一下公元前 1 世纪后半叶

in the second half of the 1st century B.C.

罗马政治不稳定的特点。

In 49 B.C., Julius Caesar, Augustus's great uncle,

公元前 49 年，尤利乌斯•凯撒， 也就是伟大的奥古斯都的舅爷，

triggered nearly 20 years of civil war

发起了长达 20 年的内战，

when he led his army against the Roman Republic.

亲自带军进攻罗马共和国。

After introducing a dictatorship, he was assassinated.

成为又一个独裁者之后，他被刺杀。

Only after Augustus's victory over Marc Antony and Cleopatra in 31 B.C.

公元前 31 年，在奥古斯都打败 马克·安东尼和克利欧佩特拉后，

did peace return to Rome

罗马才又迎来了和平。

and Augustus became the emperor.

奥古斯都成为了大帝。

Virgil aimed to capture this sense of a new era

维吉尔想要抓住新时代

and of the great sacrifices that the Romans had endured.

以及罗马人民的伟大牺牲这个灵感。

He wanted to give the Romans a fresh sense of their origins,

他想要带给予罗马人有关 他们的起源，过去

their past,

和潜能的

and their potential.

一个全新的诠释。

By connecting the founding of Rome

维吉尔通过 将罗马帝国的形成过程

to the mythological stories that his audience knew so well,

和他的读者早已熟知的传说联系起来，

Virgil was able to link his hero Aeneas to the character of Augustus.

能够把他的英雄埃涅阿斯 和奥古斯都的性格联系到一起。

In the epic poem, Aeneas is on a quest to establish a new home for his people.

在这部史诗中，埃涅阿斯 一直为人民寻求建立一个新的家园。

This duty, or pietas as the Romans called it,

然而这个责任， 或是罗马人所谓的 piatas ，

faces all kinds of obstacles.

面临着各种困难。

Aeneas risks destruction in the ruins of Troy,

阿涅阿斯在特洛伊的废墟面临危险，

agonizes over love when he meets the beautiful Queen of Carthage, Dido,

在迦太基美丽的女王那里 面对不能爱的痛苦。

and in one of the most vivid passages in all of ancient literature,

所有的古代文学里 最生动形象的一个章节中提到，

has to pass through the underworld.

他还不得不通过地狱。

On top of all that, he must then fight to win a homeland for his people

最后，他必须为他的子民战斗，

around the future sight of Rome.

在日后成为罗马的土地上 建立一个家园。

Virgil presents Aeneas as a sort of model for Augustus,

维吉尔这样描写埃涅阿斯， 是为了给奥古斯都设立榜样，

and that's probably one of the reasons the emperor was so eager

这可能也是奥古斯都大帝 如此迫切地防止

to save the poem from destruction.

这部史诗被销毁的原因之一。

But Virgil didn't stop there.

但是维吉尔并没有就此停止。

In some sections, Aeneas even has visions of Rome's future and of Augustus himself.

在一些章节中，埃涅阿斯还提到了 对罗马的未来以及对奥古斯都本人的期许。

Virgil presents Augustus as a victor, entering Rome in triumph

维吉尔在史诗中将奥古斯都 描述成胜利者，带领罗马走向繁荣，

and shows him expanding the Roman Empire.

扩张了罗马帝国的疆域。

Perhaps most importantly, he's hailed as only the third Roman leader in 700 years

或许最重要的是，他被认为是 700 年来关上象征着

to shut the doors of the Temple of Janus signifying the arrival of permanent peace.

永久和平的亚努斯神庙之门的 第三个罗马帝王。

But there's a twist.

但是其中还蕴含着一个转折。

Virgil only read Augustus three selected extracts of the story

维吉尔生前只为奥古斯都诵读过

and that was Augustus's entire exposure to it.

史诗中的三个选段。

Some of the other sections could be seen as critical,

其他的选段对帝王有所批评，

if not subtly subversive about the emperor's achievements.

甚至是对他的成就 明显具有颠覆性的评价。

Aeneas, again a model for Augustus, struggles with his duty

埃涅阿斯作为奥古斯都的榜样， 纠结于自己的职责，

and often seems a reluctant hero.

似乎是个不情愿的英雄。

He doesn't always live up to the behavior expected of a good Roman leader.

他并不总能做到 一个好的罗马帝王需要做的事。

He struggles to balance mercy and justice.

他一直纠结于怜悯和正义的平衡。

By the end, the reader is left wondering about the future of Rome

最后，读者会期待罗马的未来会怎样，

and the new government of Augustus.

奥古斯都带领的新政府会怎么样。

Perhaps in wanting the story published,

也许为了出版这个故事，

Augustus had been fooled by his own desire for self-promotion.

奥古斯都被自我吹捧的欲望蒙蔽了。

As a result, Virgil's story has survived to ask questions

于是，维吉尔的故事便留存了下来，

about the nature of power and authority ever since.

从此继续质疑权利和权威的本质。