On a trip to China in 2005, Hwang, whose previous works include the award-winning 1988 play M Butterfly, visited just such an arts centre in Shanghai. It featured sleek German design and the best Italian marble, but also the badly translated signage that is ubiquitous in China. The rest room for the disabled had a sign reading: "Deformed Man's Toilet."
2005年,当黄哲伦来到中国时,他就在上海参观了一个这样的艺术中心。黄哲伦之前的作品包括1988年上演的获奖剧作《蝴蝶君》(M Butterfly)。这个艺术中心运用德国的时尚设计,采用来自意大利上好的大理石,但标牌的翻译很烂,而这在中国是普遍的现象。残疾人洗手间的标牌是这样写的:“畸形人厕所。”
As the comedy unfolds, however, one realises that language is among the least of the problems. The misperceptions are more fundamental. When Daniel pitches for a contract to the cultural minister of the province, the translator describes his home town, Cleveland, as close to Chicago, and the minister takes the conversation in unexpected directions. He loves Chicago, he says, especially its steakhouses. Daniel's sales pitch is thrown off course, but he replies that the steak chain Smith & Wollensky is his second home. "A steak restaurant, where he sometimes lives," explains the translator.
然而,随着这部喜剧的展开,人们意识到,语言是最不重要的问题之一。误解是更根本性的问题。当丹尼尔力求与该省文化局长达成一份协议时,翻译描述了他的家乡克利夫兰,离芝加哥很近,于是文化局长把谈话带到了意料之外的方向。他说,他喜欢芝加哥,特别是那里的牛排餐厅。丹尼尔的销售说辞被带离了轨道,但他回答,连锁牛排餐厅Smith & Wollensky是他的第二个家。翻译解释说:“有时他会住在这家牛排餐厅。”
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