【看中國2018年5月17日訊】這兩天，一段晚清德齡公主的英文演講視頻被華人網友瘋傳。
據《美國留學快報》報導，德齡公主的真名叫做裕德齡，少年時隨父先後在日本和法國生活了6年，精通多國語言。17歲時隨父回京，因通曉外文和西方禮儀，和妹妹裕容齡一同被慈禧招入宮中，成為紫禁城八女官之一。
她是首次用英文寫作的華人女作家，著有《清宮二年記》、《清末政局回憶錄》等作品。1905年3月，德齡離開皇宮。1907年，德齡與美國駐滬領事館副領事迪厄斯．懷特結婚。
裕德齡（圖片來源：網路截圖）
下面就是她1930年錄製的視頻，旨在向美國展示中國文化，促進國家交流與瞭解。
你可能會覺得，因為德齡公主少年時隨父先後在日本和法國生活了6年，所以她才有如此出眾的英語。那麼，民國時期，其他土生土長中國人的英語水平到底是什麼樣子呢？
我們先來看看民國第一夫人宋美齡，以及民國的才女，張愛玲和林徽因的英語水平。
傳奇一般的民國的第一夫人——宋美齡，擁有著卓越的英文能力。她於1943年2月18日的臨時演說，讓美國的朝野為其傾倒。
下面是部分演說內容：
I should like to tell you alittle story which will illustrate this belief.When General Doolittle and his men went to bomb Tokyo,on their return some of your boys had to bail out in the interior of China.One of them later told me that he had to mail out of his ship.And that when he landed on Chinese soil and saw the populace running toward him,he just waved his arm and shouted the only Chinese word he knew,「Mei-kuo,Mei-kuo,」which means「America,」
Literally translated from the Chinese it means「Beautiful country.」This boy said that our people laughed and almost hugged him,and greeted him like along lost brother.He further told me that the thought that he had come home when he saw our people;and that was the first time he had ever been to China.
I came to your country as alittle girl.I know your people.I have lived with them.I spent the formative years of my life amongst your people.I speak your language,not only the language of your hearts,but also your tongue.So coming here today Ifeel that Iam also coming home.
I believe,however,that it is not only Iwho am coming home;I feel that if the Chinese people could speak to you in your own tongue,or if you could understand our tongue,they would tell you that basically and fundamentally we are fighting for the same cause;that we have identity of ideals’that the「four freedoms,」which your President proclaimed to the world,resound throughout our vast land as the gong of freedom,the gong of freedom of the United Nations,and the death knell of the aggressors.
在此，我想說個小故事，來說明此一信念。
杜利特爾將軍和部下一起去轟炸東京，回程時有些美國子弟兵不得不在中國內陸跳傘。其中一人後來告訴我，他被迫從飛機跳傘，踏上中國的土地時，看到當地居民跑向他，他就揮著手，喊出他會說的唯一中國話：「美國，美國」，也就是「美利堅」的意思，美國在中國話的意思是「美麗的國家」。這個大男孩說，敝國人民聽了都笑起來，擁抱他，像歡迎失散多年的兄弟一般。他還告訴我說，當他看到我們的人民，感覺他已經回到了家，而那是他第一次來到中國。
我來到貴國時是個小女孩，我熟悉貴國人民，我和他們一起生活過。我生命中成長的歲月是和貴國人民一起度過的，我說你們的話，我想的和你們一樣，說的也和你們一樣。所以今天來到這裡，我也感覺我好像回到家了。
不過，我相信不只是我回到家，我覺得，如果中國人民會用你們的語言與你們說話，或是你們能瞭解我們的語言，他們會告訴你們，根本而言，我們都在為相同的理念奮戰。我們有一致的理想；亦即貴國總統向全世界揭示的「四個自由」：自由的鐘聲、聯合國自由的鐘聲、和侵略者的喪鐘響徹我國遼闊的土地。
民國才女張愛玲自幼喜歡英語，後來去了美國人辦的教會學校讀書。張愛玲可以背誦大段的莎翁的英文劇本，她也會經常一個人演莎翁的話劇玩，一會演哈姆雷特，一會演克勞迪。
張愛玲也從小立志成為一個雙語作家。20歲前後，張愛玲就用英文寫了《更衣記》、《中國人的宗教》等文章發表在上海租界的英文報刊上，轉頭再翻成中文投給本土雜誌，一篇文章拿兩份稿費。
1956年，張愛玲將《金鎖記》擴展成英文長篇Pink Tears，後來她將Pink Tears改寫成The Rouge of the North（《北地胭脂》），之後又將《北地胭脂》翻譯成中文版的《怨女》。
下面為大家奉上一小段張愛玲早期的英文習作，和自己的essay相比，用詞有沒有覺得更精湛一點呢？
The Sun Parlor
My favourite spot in St.Mary's Hall is the Sun Parlor.It gives me the same impression as its name;a warm,bright room constantly filled with sunshine.It is arectangular room.The walls are painted in white,but the lower half of them is hidden behind acover of black wood.In the middle of the room there is along black table,and around it are many chairs.These are prepared for the girls to have achance for reading newspapers.In one corner of the room there is awooden box placed on the shelf.This belongs to the Phoenix Broad,and every girl has the privilege of putting her own themes in it.The box is locked,and we always dream of how we would open this mysterious box and see the things within.On the wall there hang many interesting pictures and records that attract girls'attention every time they pass the Sun Parlor.The room is very bright,because one side of it faces the big glass door that leads to the school gate,and one side of it is composed of three glass doors which face the school garden.Sunlight can reach the room in both directions.When we stand before the glass door,we can see the whole view of our lovely school garden.In winter afternoons,when the pale yellow sunlight lies lazily on the stone ground,we sit beside the steam heaters,with newspapers in our hands.We feel nice and warm and pleasant,and thoroughly enjoy the charm of the"Sun Parlor".
TSANG AI-LING,1937
同樣是民國才女，林徽因的英文也很出眾。
民國才女林徽因（圖片來源：網路）
林徽因是中國著名建築師、詩人、作家，代表作有《你是人間四月天》等等。
19歲時，林徽因在1923年12月1日《晨報五週年紀念增刊》上嘗試翻譯了王爾德的《夜鶯與玫瑰》（The Nightingale and the Rose），下面節選一段，感受一下林徽因的翻譯功底：
"No red rose in all my garden!"he cried,and his beautiful eyes filled with tears.
"Ah,on what little things does happiness depend!I have read all that the wise men have written,and all the secrets of philosophy are mine,yet for want of ared rose is my life made wretched."
青年哭道，「我園中並沒有紅玫瑰！」他秀眼裡滿含著淚珠。
「呀！幸福倒靠著這些區區小東西！古聖賢書我已讀完，哲學的玄秘我已徹悟，然而因為求一朵紅玫瑰不得，我的生活便這樣難堪。」
林語堂是我國現代著名作家、學者、翻譯家、語言學家，新道家代表人物。早年留學美國、德國，獲哈佛大學文學碩士，萊比錫大學語言學博士。他也於1940年和1950年先後兩度獲得諾貝爾文學獎提名。
下面是林語堂參加NBC訪談的對話。
Lin:China is…the oldest self-governing nation in the world.
林語堂:中國是世界上最古老的自治國家。
Anchor:Oh,wait amoment.You are pulling my leg.
主持人：等等。你在開玩笑嘛。
Lin:No,I am quite serious…Mencius long ago said that all men are created equal and any man is capable of development to the moral stature of the saint emperors.And that is about 2500 years ago.Mencius further said that in astate,the people are the most important factor and the king is the least important…Mencius is as modern as Thomas Jefferson.
林語堂：不，我是認真的。早在2500年前，孟子就提出了人生而平等的理念，「聖人，與我同類者」。孟子還指出，民貴君輕。孟子和托馬斯．傑斐遜一樣先進。
雖然當年的英語學習條件並沒有現在這麼優越，但是他們憑藉自己的努力，擁有一口流利的英語口語表達能力，和精湛的寫作能力。處於新時代的我們，是不是應該更加努力學習英語，而不是感嘆自己的英語水平還不如一百年前的國人呢？
