《乔布斯传》翻译笔记：退学 旁听

《乔布斯传》自问世以来受到了全世界人民的关注，对此和谐英语推出《乔布斯传》翻译笔记系列，让我们在翻译学习中回顾乔帮主的伟大一生。第二章 “辍学” 第三、四部分讲述了乔布斯辍学成为旁听生的大学经历。乔布斯在进入里德学院6个月后就决定辍学，不再向学校支付学费，不再去上那些硬性要求而他不感兴趣的课程。里德学院校方允许他以旁听的方式继续住在学校里。他以旁听生的身份在里德学院待了18个月，选择去上一些他感兴趣的课程，比如说书法课（calligraphy class)。作为深受美国嬉皮运动影响的一代，迷幻药（psychedelic drugs）对乔布斯的影响也相当深远。他又是怎么看待这些好孩子视为洪水猛兽的毒品的呢？

【英语原文】

In the meantime Jobs eked out a bohemian existence on the fringes of Reed. He went barefoot most of the time, wearing sandals when it snowed. Elizabeth Holmes made meals for him, trying to keep up with his obsessive diets. He returned soda bottles for spare change, continued his treks to the free Sunday dinners at the Hare Krishna temple, and wore a down jacket in the heatless garage apartment he rented for $20 a month. When he needed money, he found work at the psychology department lab maintaining the electronic equipment that was used for animal behavior experiments. Occasionally Chrisann Brennan would come to visit. Their relationship sputtered along erratically. But mostly he tended to the stirrings of his own soul and personal quest for enlightenment. “I came of age at a magical time,” he reflected later. “Our consciousness was raised by Zen, and also by LSD.” Even later in life he would credit psychedelic drugs for making him more enlightened. “Taking LSD was a profound experience, one of the most important things in my life. It reinforced my sense of what was important—creating great things instead of making money, putting things back into the stream of history and of human consciousness as much as I could.” (Chapter 3 The Dropout)

【译文】

同时，乔布斯游走在里德学院的边缘，放荡不羁地生活着，勉强度日。他大部分时间都打着赤脚，下雪的时候穿着凉鞋。丹尼尔·科特肯（Daniel Kottke）的女朋友伊丽莎白为他做饭，努力满足他强迫性的进食习惯。他会把汽水瓶还回去换点零钱花，坚持每个周末晚上长途跋涉的去曼陀罗印度神庙吃顿免费的好饭。他租下了一间车库公寓，每月租金20美元，没有暖气，只好穿着羽绒服。需要钱的时候，他会去心理系的实验室打零工，帮他们维修用做动物行为实验的电子设备。有时候他的女友克里斯安会来看他，他们之间的关系时好时坏。但是大部分时间，他更专注于自己内心的纠结和个人觉悟的追求。他后来回忆道：“我在一个神奇的时刻长大成熟。禅宗思想提高了我们的觉悟，当然还有迷幻药的功劳。” 就算到后来，乔布斯还是觉得迷幻药对他有很大的启发作用。“那是很深刻的经历，也是我人生中最重要的事情之一。它增强了我对生活的观念：创造伟大的发明比赚钱更重要。我会尽我所能，把我的想法放回到历史和人类意识的长河中。”

【翻译笔记】

1. eke out: 竭力维持，辛苦经营，维持……的不足

eke out a living/existence: 勉强度日，维持生计

We must try to eke out our water supply.
我们必须尽量节约用水。

Even in China's richest city, huge numbers of people eke out a very modest existence.
在这个中国最富裕的城市，还是有很多人勉强维生。

2.Their relationship sputtered along erratically.

sputter本意形容的是声音或者火花劈啪四溅的状态，着重强调声音。这里描述的是乔布斯和女友关系不稳定时好时坏的状态。

We heard his truck pull up in the parking lot and sputter when the engine was turned off.
我们听见他的卡车泊进了车位，以及发动机熄火的声音。

3. come of age: 达到法定年龄，成大成人，成熟

She signed her own hire purchase agreement now that she's come of age.
因为她已到法定年龄，她自己在分期付款购买契约上签了字。

After decades of research and development fuel cells have come of age and are making an impact in everyday life.
经过几十年的研究和开发燃料电池已经成熟，并正在影响日常生活。

4. LSD：全称为Lysergic acid diethylamide（麦角二乙胺） 是迷幻药的一种，也是已知药力最强的迷幻剂，极易为人体所吸收。LSD在美国20世纪60年代的嬉皮运动（Hippie movement）中扮演着重要的反文化角色。