英文文學與文化教學資料庫

Canto I

And then went down to the ship,
Set keel to breakers, forth on the godly sea, and
We set up mast and sail on that swart ship.
Bore sheep aboard her, and our bodies also
Heavy with weeping, and winds from sternward	5
Bore us out onward with bellying canvas,
Circe's this craft, the trim-coifed goddess.
Then sat we amidships wind jamming the tiller,
Thus with stretched sail we went over sea till day's end.
Sun to his slumber, shadows o'er all the ocean,	10
Came we then to the bounds of deepest water,
To the Kimmerian lands, and peopled cities
Covered with close-webbed mist, unpierced ever
With glitter of sun-rays	(13-14)
Nor with stars stretched, nor looking back from heaven	15
Swartest night stretched over wretched men there.
The ocean flowing backward came we then to the place
Aforesaid by Circe.	(17-18)
Here did they rites, Perimedes and Eurylochus,
And drawing sword from my hip	20
I dug the ell-square pitkin;	(20-21)
Poured we libations unto each the dead,
First mead and then sweet wine, water mixed with white flour.
Then prayed I many a prayer to the sickly death's-heads;
As set in Ithaca, sterile bulls of the best	25
For sacrifice, heaping the pyre with goods,	(25-26)
A sheep to Tiresias only, black and a bell-sheep.
Dark blood flowed in the fosse,
Souls out of Erebus, cadaverous dead, of brides
Of youths and of the old who had borne much;	30
Souls stained with recent tears, girls tender,
Men many, mauled with bronze lance heads,
Battle spoils, bearing yet dreory arms,
These many crowded about me; with shouting,
Pallor upon me, cried to my men for more beasts;	35
Slaughtered the herds, sheep slain of bronze;
Poured ointment, cried to the gods,
To Pluto the strong, and praised Proserpine;
Unsheathed the narrow sword,
I sat to keep off the impetuous impotent dead,	40
Till I should hear Tiresias.
But first Elpenor came, our friend Elpenor,
Unburied, cast on the wide earth,
Limbs that we left in the house of Circe,
Unwept, unwrapped in sepulchre, since toils urged other.	45
Pitiful spirit. And I dried in hurried speech:
"Elpenor how art thou come to this dark coast:
"Cam'st thou afoot, outstripping seamen?"
And he in heavy speech:
"Ill fate and abundant wine. I slept in Circe's ingle.	50
"Going down the long ladder unguarded,
"I fell against the buttress,
"Shattered the nape-nerve, the soul sought Avernus.
"But thou, O King, I bid remember me, unwept, unburied,
"Heap up mine arms, be tomb by sea-bord, and inscribed:	55
"A man of no fortune, and with a name to come.
"And set my oar up, that I swung mid fellows."

And Anticlea came, whom I beat off, and then Tiresias Theban,
Holding his golden wand, knew me, and spoke first:
"A second time? Shy? Man of ill star,	60
"Facing the sunless dead and this joyless region?
"Stand from the fosse, leave me my bloody bever
"For soothsay."
And I stepped back,
And he strong with the blood, said then: "Odysseus	65
"Shalt return through spiteful Neptune, over dark seas,
"Lose all companions."And then Anticlea came.
Lie quiet Divus. I mean, that is Andreas Divus,
In officina Wecheli, 1538, out of Homer.
And he sailed, by Sirens and thence outward and away	70
And unto Circe.
Venerandam,
In the Cretan's phrase, with the golden crown, Aphrodite,
Cypri munimenta sortita est, mirthful, orichalchi, with golden
Girdles and breast bands, thou with dark eyelids	75
Bearing the golden bough of Argicida. So that:

Line	Annotation
2	Set keel to breakers：指衝浪航行。keel為船上的龍骨；breakers為衝碎的浪花。[back]
3	We：指Odysseus和他的部下。that swart ship：那黑船。swart：黑色的。[back]
4	Bore sheep sternward：帶羊隻上船。羊作為獻祭Tiresias之用。[back]
5	winds from sternward：從船尾吹來的風。stern：船尾。[back]
6	bellying canvas：鼓漲的船帆。[back]
7	Circe's this craft：Circe曾告訴Odysseus北風（the North Wind）會把他們的船帶向目的地。[back]
7	the trim-coifed goddess：指Circe. Trim-coifed：with dressed hair.[back]
8	wind jamming the tiller：指一路風之意。tiller為舵炳。[back]
10	Sun to his slumber：太陽入睡，指西沉之意。[back]
11	the bounds of the deepest water：海洋的界限。[back]
12	the Kimmerian lands：此地為日落之處，世界的邊緣。[back]
12	peopled cities：人群聚居的都市。[back]
13	close-webbed mist：密網似的霧。指濃霧。[back]
13-14	unpierced . . . sun-rays：陽光的燦爛從未穿透（那濃霧）。[back]
15	指在白天晚上，陽光都穿不透。此處，有的譯本作在太陽升上天空驅走星星時，或在太陽回到地上時，（陽光都穿不透那濃霧）。[back]
16	最黑的黑夜覆蓋著那兒的不幸的人。swartest：最黑的。 wretched：不幸的。[back]
17-18	the place / Aforesaid by Circe：Circe以前說過的地方。指到他們該行「血禮」（blood rite）的地方。[back]
19	Perimedes和Eurylochus在此處行儀式。有的譯本作 Perimedes和Eurylochus捉住犧牲（黑羊）。 Perimedes和Eurylochus都是Odysseus的部下。Eurylochus還曾向 Odysseus報告Circe把一些同伴變成豬。[back]
20-21	Odysseus說他拔劍挖坑。the ell-square pitkin：四十五英吋見方的小坑。ell：四十五英吋。[back]
22	Poured . . . dead：向死者酹酒。libations：酹酒。[back]
23	mead：一種以蜜、麥芽、酵素、香料及水等釀成之酒。[back]
24	然後我向憔悴死者之頭禱告再禱告。[back]
25	Ithaca：Odysseus的家鄉。[back]
25-26	Sterile . . / For sacrifice：以最好之不能生產的牛隻為犧牲。 sterile：不能生產的。指回家後以牛為獻。[back]
26	pyre：一堆（東西）。[back]
27	Tiresias：希臘傳說中的一位預言者（seer）。 a bell-sheep：一隻鳴叫的羊。bell尤指交尾期之鳴叫聲。[back]
28	fosse：壕溝。指21行的小坑（pitkin）。[back]
29	Erebus：在希臘神話中由塵世通往冥府的暗界。cadaverous dead：死屍般的死者。指由死者的屍體所聚成的。[back]
30	the old . . . much：擔負很多的老者。指受過很多若的老年人。[back]
31	指沾著新淚浪的少女之靈魂。可能指因情而死的少女。mauled . . . heads：為青銅矛頭所傷的。mauled: injured.[back]
33	bearing . . . arms：還帶著沾血的武器。dreory: bloody.[back]
35	Pallor upon me：指Odysseus 變成不自然的蒼白。那些死者的叫聲使Odysseus害怕。cried：主詞為I，即Odysseus.[back]
36	sheep slain of bronze：指為青銅劍所殺的羊隻。[back]
37	ointment：油膏。[back]
38	Pluto：冥王。Proserpine：冥后。[back]
39	Unsheathed . . . sword：狹窄的劍出鞘。[back]
40	to keep off . . . dead：防止衝動而又無力的死者靠近。[back]
42	Elpenor：Odysseus的同伴之一。他因醉酒，在Odysseus他們要離開Circe的當天早從Circe宮殿屋頂跌下摔死。Odysseus等因臨行匆匆而未及予以埋葬和哀悼。[back]
45	unwrapped in sepulchre：沒有用墳墓包起來，即沒有埋葬。 since toils urged other：指因為有別的事，故沒有埋Elpenor.[back]
48	Cam'st thou afoot：即you came afoot.你步行來。outstripping seamen：比水手們還快。指Elpenor比他們先到。[back]
50	Ill . . . wine：指因運氣不好和喝了太多的酒（而使他致死）。 ingle：fireplace，壁爐。[back]
52	the buttress：撐牆。[back]
53	Shattered the nape-nerve：摔破了後頸神經。the soul sought Avernus：靈魂往冥府而去。Avernus為義大利Naples附近之一湖，在另一傳說中認係地獄之人口，因此，亦指地獄。[back]
55	be . . . inscribed：給我在海邊築墓，並刻上。[back]
56	with a mane to come：將來會成名。在此Pound可能暗示他的詩將來會獲得人們的瞭解稱讚而成名。[back]
57	在我平常划船的地方設槳。[back]
58	Anticlea：Odysseus的母親。Tiresias Theban：或作Theban Tiresias，因為Tiresias為Thebes人所敬愛。[back]
60	A second time? ：在Homer的Odyssey中的Odysseus到過冥府，現在 Pound充當Odysseus再次進入冥府。故稱A second time. man of ill star：不幸的人。古人相信星主宰人的命運。 Odysseus被稱man of ill star因他注定要流浪。Pound也自認要遭同樣的命運。 Stand from the fosse：Tiresias要Odysseus走開壕溝。[back]
62	leave. . / For soothsay：給我留下我的血食以便我預言。[back]
63	bever：古用法中為飲料之意。soothsay：預言。有的譯本提到，Tiresias說在飲了血之後，則所預言者不會錯誤。[back]
66	through spiteful Neptune：通過懷恨在心的海神。Neptune原為羅馬神話中海神，在希臘神話中海神為Poseidon.海神Poseidon憤恨 Odysseus是因為Odysseus弄瞎了Poseidon的兒子獨眼巨人 Polyphemus. Poseidon誓言Odysseus必須經長期的痛若流浪並失去所有的同伴之後才能回到家裡。而這一點也出現在Tiresias的預言中。[back]
68	Lie quiet Divus：Andreas Divus曾經把Odysseus翻譯成文藝復興時代的平白拉丁文。於1533年出版。龐德在巴黎書店找到這本書，並在Canto I裡引用了它的譯文。到這裡龐德叫Andreas Divus安靜下來。這一行以後的詩句是龐德自己的話。（參見Pound the Poet之說明）[back]
69	In officina Wecheli：拉丁文，意為At the workshop of Wechel. Wechel為Andreas Divus譯本的出版者。1538為出版年代。Out of Homer：出自荷馬，即指Divus譯的Odyssey。[back]
70	he sailed：指Odysseus航行。by Sirens：經過Sirens, [the] Sirens是一些非常善於唱歌的海妖，其歌誘惑水手而使他毀滅。Odysseus在返家的途中即經過Sirens.還好他事先經過Circe的指點，用蠟堵塞水手們的耳朵，而Odysseus自己則叫他的水手將他緊綁在枙杆下聽那些海妖的歌聲。[back]
71	unto Circe：unto在文言的用法中等於to. Odysseus在到冥府之後，再回到Circe處。在Homer原來的故事中，Odysseus先回Circe處，然後在返家途中再經過Sirens.[back]
72	Venerandam：拉丁文，意為compelling adoration，強迫性崇拜。[back]
73	In the Cretan's phrase：Cretan是克里特（Crete）人的意思。有一回，Pound在巴黎買到Divus所譯的荷馬，在該書後面附有某克里特人譯成拉丁文的the Homeric Hymns（Hymni Deorum, George Dartona Cretense interprete）這些Homeric Hymns的譯文化較華麗。（參閱解說部份Pound the Obscure）Canto I的後面幾行即採自Cretan's Homeric Hymns.[back]
73	Aphrodite：希臘神話中與美之女神，相當於羅馬神話中之Venus. 在荷馬的Iliad中，她為Zeus和Dione所生的女兒，但在後來的詩中則稱她是從海中的泡沫升起的。[back]
74	Cypri munimenta sortita est：拉丁文，意為The citadels of Cyprus are her appointed realm，塞浦路斯的城堡是她受封的領土。據說Aphrodite海生（sea-birth）的過程始於Cythera附近，然後漂向 Cyprus（塞浦路斯）。這兩處於是都成為屬於她的聖地。oricalchi：拉丁文，意為of copper，銅的。指Aphrodite戴身上有銅製的飾品。[back]
75	thou：指Aphrodite.[back]
76	Bering . . . Argicida：Argicida的意思是the killer of Argus. 在神話中，Zeus愛上年輕貌美的Io. 他的妻子Hera嫉妒非常。為了隱藏來到地球上，Zeus以濃雲覆蓋天空，Hera在天廷找不到Zeus，疑心Zeus必是下凡了，乃追蹤而至。Zeus恐怕Hera的醋性大發，把Io變成了一隻可愛的白牝牛（a white heifer）.Hera不為所蔽，向Zeus要了牝牛，交給有百眼的Argus看管。Argus即使在睡覺時亦不全閉眼睛，Zeus一籌莫展，乃向他的兒子Hermes求助。Hermes是諸神的使者和先鋒；商人和小偷的保護神；又是幸運與財富之神。他以村夫的姿態，吹笛而至。Argus不防，讓他靠近後，Hermes在講述Pan的故事時，Argus的所有眼睛全部閉上，Hermes乃得機會殺了Argus救了Io. 但不幸 Hera又把Io變成了牝牛，並派了一隻牛虻（gad-fly）叮她以為處罰。Io於是流浪遠方。the killer of Argus是指眾神的使者Hermes，即羅馬神話中的Mercury. the golden bough指Hermes所攜帶的權杖the golden wand，有此杖為證，他可上天堂，入地獄。這幾行所寫的事實上為Aphrodite，但the golden wand的攜帶者卻為 Hermes. 此當為Pound之誤。 So that：引介以下各cantos. Pound以Odysseus的流浪探尋為始，而開始描繪他的心路歷程。[back]