比董卿朗讀《紅樓夢》更美的，是英文版的語言魅力！
壹
一語未了，只聽外面一陣腳步響，丫鬟進來笑道：“寶玉來了！”黛玉心中正疑惑着：“這個寶玉，不知是怎生個憊懶人物，懵懂頑童？”——倒不見那蠢物也罷了。心中想着，忽見丫鬟話未報完，已進來了一位年輕的公子。
譯文：
The words were hardly out of her mouth when they heard footsteps in the courtyard and a maid came in to announce, "Baoyu is here."
Daiyu was wondering what sort of graceless scamp or little dunce Baoyu was and feeling reluctant to meet such a stupid creature when, even as the maid announced him, in he walked.（楊憲益＆戴乃迭）
While they were speaking, a flurry of footsteps could be heard outside and a maid came in to say that Bao-yu was back.
'I wonder,' thought Dai-yu, 'just what sort of graceless creature this Bao-yu is going to be'.（霍克斯）
解析：
此時，兩人還未相見，黛玉已經藉着母親和王夫人的描述腦補了寶玉的形象——“憊懶人物”、“懵懂頑童”，對見他這事兒並不多上心。這也與後文的熟悉感形成了對比。
從譯文中可以看出，楊戴把黛玉心中所想事無鉅細地體現出來，用graceless scamp（淘氣鬼）、little dunce（愚笨的人）和stupid creature來形容寶玉，層層遞進，水到渠成地表現了黛玉不情願的情緒。而霍克斯則直接抹去了黛玉的情緒，只用what sort of graceless creature將她的疑惑譯了出來。
相對於下文中的反轉，英大傾向於楊戴的譯文，把不情願的情緒的表現出來更爲貼切。
這裏，兩個版本的creature都選得很妙，就像寶玉說的，“女兒是水作的骨肉，男人是泥作的骨肉”，雖然說的是人，可不就是個“生物”嘛！
貳
黛玉一見，便吃一大驚，心下想道：“好生奇怪，倒像在哪裏見過一般，何等眼熟到如此！”
譯文：
His appearance took Daiyu by surprise. "How very strange!" she thought. "It's as if I'd seen him somewhere before. He looks so familiar."（楊戴）
Dai-yu looked at him with astonishment. How strange! How very strange! It was as though she had seen him somewhere before, he was so extraordinarily familiar.（霍克斯）
解析：
短短几句話表現了黛玉初見寶玉的思緒，似曾相識的熟悉撲面而來，這讓黛玉極爲驚訝。但身爲女兒家，她沒有表現出來，只是暗暗地在心中想。在程度的把握上，霍克斯的疊句和“extraordinarily”比楊戴的更好。除此之外，兩個版本的譯文大同小異。
比較明顯的不同是楊戴用了第一人稱表現黛玉的驚訝，而霍克斯則用了第三人稱。英大私以爲，楊戴的處理方式更好，原文本來就是黛玉的主觀感受，用第一人稱讓讀者更有代入感，與下文中寶玉的反應形成呼應。
叄
寶玉看罷，因笑道：“這個妹妹我曾見過的。”賈母笑道：“可又是胡說，你又何曾見過她？”寶玉笑道：“雖然未曾見過她，然我看着面善，心裏就算是舊相識，今日只作遠別重逢，亦未爲不可。”
譯文：
"I've met this cousin before,"he declared at the end of his scrutiny.
"You're talking nonsense again," said his grandmother, laughing.
"How could you possibly have met her?"
"Well, even if I haven't, her face looks familiar. I feel we're old friends meeting again after a long separation."（楊戴）
Having completed his survey, Bao-yu gave a laugh. 'I have seen this cousin before.'
'Nonsense!' said Grandmother Jia. 'How could you possibly have done?'
'Well, perhaps not,' said Bao-yu, 'but her face seems so familiar that I have the impression of meeting her again after a long separation.’（霍克斯）
解析：
說完了黛玉，再來說說寶玉。他素來是家裏的掌珠，被一羣人捧在手心裏長大的，自是有什麼說什麼，也不管是不是渾話。他覺得似曾相識，也不藏着掖着了，直接宣之於口。此處，也算借寶玉的口說出了兩人的心裏話，是爲心有靈犀，正式拉開了倆人愛情的大幕。
胡說都是nonsense，久別重逢都是meeting again after a long separation，細節處理不相同。
值得一提的是“看”這個詞的選擇，楊戴用了scrutiny，霍克斯用了survey，兩個詞都偏學術氣息，不夠日常。兩者之間，英大傾向於scrutiny，表示“審視，打量”。
除了以上的敘述，這一段最精彩的就是對寶玉和黛玉兩人外貌和服飾的描述，而這些古代特有的服飾也向來是譯者最頭疼的地方。需要注意的是，原書的這一章中有兩段對寶玉的描述，換裝前後各一次，而《朗讀者》中是節選，只出現了換裝後的一段。就把兩段一起放上來，來看看兩位大家是如何描述這位濁世佳公子的吧。
肆
換裝前：
戴着束髮嵌寶紫金冠，齊眉勒着二龍戲珠金抹額，一件二色金百蝶穿花大紅箭袖，束着五彩絲攢花結長穗宮絛，外罩石青起花八團倭緞排穗褂，登着青緞粉底小朝靴。面若中秋之月，色如春曉之花，鬢若刀裁，眉如墨畫，鼻如懸膽，睛若秋波，雖怒時而似笑，即瞋視而有情。項上金螭纓絡，又有一根五色絲絛，繫着一塊美玉。
譯文：
His face was as radiant as the mid-autumn moon, his compleXion fresh as spring flowers at dawn. The hair above his temples was as sharply outlined as if cut with a knife. His eyebrows were as black as if painted with ink, his cheeks as red as peach-blossom, his eyes bright as autumn ripples. Even when angry he seemed to smile, and there was warmth in his glance even when he frowned.（楊戴）
As to his person, he had:
a face like the moon of Mid-Autumn,
a complexion like flowers at dawn,
a hairline straight as a knife-cut,
eyebrows that might have been painted by an artist's brush,
a shapely nose, and eyes clear as limpid pools,
that even in anger seemed to smile,
and, as they glared, beamed tenderness the while.（霍克斯）
換裝後：
頭上週圍一轉的短髮，都結成小辮，紅絲結束，身上穿着銀紅撒花半舊大襖，仍舊戴着項圈，寶玉，寄名鎖，護身符等物，錦邊彈墨襪，厚底大紅鞋，越顯得面如敷粉，脣若施脂，轉盼多情，語言常笑，天然一段風騷，全在眉梢，平生萬種情思，悉堆眼角。看其外貌最是極好，卻難知其底細。
譯文：
His face looked as fair as if powdered, his lips red as rouge. His glance was full of affection, his speech interspersed with smiles. But his natural charm appeared most in his brows, for his eyes sparkled with a world of feeling. （楊戴）
The cheeks might have been brushed with powder and the lips touched with rouge, so bright was their natural colour.
His glance was soulful,
yet from his lips the laughter often leaped;
a world of charm upon that brow was heaped;
a world of feeling from those dark eyes peeped.（霍克斯）
解析：
楊戴的譯文信息完整，句式繁雜，霍克斯的譯文信息簡潔，選用了類似詩體的形式。整體來看，楊戴對原文進行了增譯，把所有有用的信息鋪陳在讀者面前，方便讀者理解；而霍克斯則儘量遵循原文，保留了琵琶半遮的美感，各有千秋。
鬢若刀裁：鬢髮指的是臉頰靠近耳朵的頭髮，楊戴將它譯成“hair above his temples（太陽穴）”，而霍譯直接簡化成hairline（髮際線），採取了模糊的翻譯方式。如果日常翻譯中遇到了拿捏不準的內容，不妨借鑑霍克斯的方法試一試。
鼻若懸膽：楊戴省去了這一句話，而霍譯用shapely（形狀美觀的）代替了“懸膽”這個詞。雖然文化信息被省略了，但從達意層面上是有利於讀者理解的。
睛若秋波：秋波這個詞也是中國特有的形容詞，指秋風中的湖泊漣漪，形容眼神清澈。楊戴的autumn ripples體現了原意，霍克斯的limpid（清澈的，透明的） pools側重了清澈。
風騷、情思：兩版譯文都選用了charm和feeling。
伍
兩彎似蹙非蹙籠煙眉，一雙似喜非喜含情目。態生兩靨之愁，嬌襲一身之病。淚光點點，嬌喘微微。閒靜似嬌花照水，行動如弱柳扶風。心較比干多一竅，病如西子勝三分。
譯文：
Her dusky arched eyebrows were knitted and yet not frowning, her speaking eyes held both merriment and sorrow; her very frailty had charm. Her eyes sparkled with tears, her breath was soft and faint. In repose she was like a lovely flower mirrored in the water; in motion, a pliant willow swaying in the wind. She looked more sensitive than Bi Gan, more delicate than Xi Shi.（楊戴）
Her mist-wreathed brows at first seemed to frown, yet were not frowning;
Her passionate eyes at first seemed to smile, yet were not merry.
Habit had given a melancholy cast to her tender face;
Nature had bestowed a sickly constitution on her delicate frame.
Often the eyes swam with glistening tears;
Often the breath came in gentle gasps.
In stillness she made one think of a graceful flower reflected in the water;
In motion she called to mind tender willow shoots caressed by the wind.
She had more chambers in her heart than the martyred Bi Gan;
And suffered a tithe more pain in it than the beautiful Xi Shi.（霍克斯）
解析：
兩版譯文雖用詞不同，但都算忠實完整地呈現了原文的描述。這裏，英大想說說最後一句“心較比干多一竅，病如西子勝三分”的譯文，比干和西子（西施）是中國古代的人物，如果要鋪開講需要很大的篇幅，兩種譯文都省去了對他們的解釋。
那麼要想準確傳達文中的意思就需要在前文中多下功夫，這裏英大很喜歡楊戴版本的處理。一貫秉承信息完整的楊戴在這句話的處理上撇開了異化，採取了歸化的方式。用sensitive和delicate恰到好處地表現了林黛玉的兩大特質：敏感、美麗。而霍譯對讀者的理解力和想象力都是不小的挑戰。
中華文學博大精深，很多東西是不可譯的，有些慶幸我們能享有這些精緻而美麗的語言，有些遺憾不能把它們分享給更多人。感謝楊戴和霍克斯給出瞭如此磅礴的兩個譯本，讓我們能學到更多。
這段寶黛初見乍一看沒什麼玄機，其實爲後續的進展埋下了許多伏筆。林黛玉和賈寶玉的愛情源於木石前盟，他們一個是赤瑕宮神瑛侍者，另一個是西方靈河岸上三生石畔的絳珠仙草，長期以來，神瑛侍者一直用甘露灌溉這株仙草，使其修成女體。雙雙入凡間成了表兄妹，初見便似曾相識，別人只當是寶玉胡說，卻不知道這是前世的緣分。
一個是閬苑仙葩，一個是美玉無瑕，可惜木石前盟沒有比得過金玉良緣（賈寶玉和薛寶釵），最後只能是水中月鏡中花，一場悲劇。
滬江網校針對翻譯考試推出了一系列名師課程，感興趣的可以根據自己的需要選擇。
CATTI口譯三級長線備考【隨到隨學班】
適合人羣：口譯基礎薄弱的考生、想考CATTI口譯三級的學員、未來期望從事口譯相關工作的大學生和工作中有陪同口譯需求的在職人士。
CATTI口譯二級長線備考【隨到隨學班】
適合人羣：有一定口譯基礎和實踐的考生，針對想考CATTI口譯二級的學員、未來期望從事口譯相關工作的大學生和工作中有專業口譯業務需求的在職人士。
CATTI筆譯三級長線備考【隨到隨學班】
適合人羣：六級以上水平，想要考CATTI筆譯三級證書的學員；想考MTI的學員；對筆譯感興趣，期望未來從事相關工作的學員；希望提高筆譯水平的學員。
CATTI筆譯二級長線備考【隨到隨學班】
適合人羣：MTI在讀學生；想要考CATTI筆譯二級證書的學員；期望未來從事筆譯工作的學員；希望提高筆譯水平的學員。
大學水平直達CATTI筆譯3級【隨到隨學班】
適合人羣：大學六級水平，或大學四級取得550以上者；有較好的英語水平，未來希望從事翻譯相關工作；想要獲得CATTI筆譯三級證書的學員；希望提高筆頭翻譯能力的學員。
翻譯能力在人事招聘中越來越受到重視，希望大家能實現自己的翻譯夢。
