這一小段是歐文名篇《西敏大寺》的節(jié)選，歐文的文筆可謂獨(dú)樹一幟，溫雅可愛，感情充沛。節(jié)選更是反映了作者對(duì)文人地位的反思，文章感人至深，兩篇譯文也堪稱妙筆，一古一今，大家可對(duì)照著看。
Poet's Corner
I passed some time in Poet's Corner, which occupies an end of one of the transepts or cross aisles of the abbey. The monuments are generally simple, for the lives of literary men afford no striking themes for the sculptor. Shakespeare and Addison have statues erected to their memories, but the greater part have busts, medallions, and sometimes mere inscriptions. Notwithstanding the simplicity of these memorials, I have always observed that the visitors to the abbey remained longest about them. A kinder and fonder feeling takes place of that cold curiosity or vague admiration with which they gaze on the splendid monuments of the great and the heroic. They linger about these as about the tombs of friends and companions, for indeed there is something of companionship between the author and the reader. Other men are known to posterity only through the medium of history, which is continually growing faint and obscure； but the intercourse between the author and his fellowmen is ever new, active, and immediate. He has lived for them more than for himself； he has sacrificed surrounding enjoyments, and shut himself up from the delights of social life, that he might the more intimately commune with distant minds and distant ages. Well may the world cherish his renown, for it has been purchased not by deeds of violence and blood, but by the diligent dispensation of pleasure. Well may posterity be grateful to his memory, for he has left it an inheritance not of empty names and sounding actions, but whole treasures of wisdom, bright gems of thought, and golden veins of language. From "Westminster Abbey" by Washington Irving
余此時(shí)迤邐至古詩人墳碣之下，盤桓久之。詩人遺事，至簡而易讀。惟莎士比、愛迭森兩先生尚有小石像存焉，余人則半像粗記姓名而已。嗟夫！詩人固無勛榮，而吊古人來，往往于詩人斷墳多增留戀。凡人之吊古英雄，但有駭嘆，若詩家遺像，則綿綿然情動(dòng)于中，即亦不知其所以然。以詩人感人之深，異代有同夙契。蓋著書者之神，往往合于讀書者，情絲蒙絡(luò)，款款深深。余人則但憑歷史為準(zhǔn)，而史殊不足恃。詩人印人以心，每誦其詩，輒如新發(fā)諸硎，不斥為陳人屏之也。須知詩人為人多而為己少，以詩人生平去歡樂而即幽邃，閉戶苦吟，取古人之心跡與今人粘合無間，而名譽(yù)又不從流血而來，一一本諸心思，以公道論之，后人宜有感戴之思。蓋詩人之留貽，非屬豐功偉烈，或徒托空名，直握其智珠，出其慧力，悉投諸后人，一無所吝也。
我在詩人祠里面逗留了一些時(shí)候，詩人祠者，只是寺內(nèi)一個(gè)十字形側(cè)堂的一隅。這兒的紀(jì)念碑，一般都很樸素；因?yàn)槲娜说纳拇蠖嗥椒?，缺少可供雕刻的驚人題材。莎士比亞和艾迪生有全身的紀(jì)念雕像；其他詩人大多只有半身雕像或肖像牌，有些只有碑文。這些紀(jì)念碑雖然樸素?zé)o飾，我發(fā)現(xiàn)游客總是在這兒停留的時(shí)間最長。偉人和英雄的墓碑，華麗是華麗了，但只能引起他們冷淡的好奇心，或是模糊的羨慕之情；詩人的墓碑卻勾起了他們一種更為親切的情愛。他們留戀左右，就像置身于朋友和知己的墓旁；因?yàn)樵谧髡吆妥x者之間，的確存在著一種友情。別種人物之聞名后世，完全要靠歷史的媒介，而歷史總是變得愈來愈模糊，愈來愈隔膜；作家和他的讀者之間卻永遠(yuǎn)保持著新鮮、活潑和直接的交誼。作家與其說為了自己活在世上，不如說為了讀者。他為了要和后世的人作更親密的交談。不惜犧牲他當(dāng)時(shí)周遭的享受，自絕于社交生活的樂趣。但愿世人都珍重作家的聲名，因?yàn)樽骷业穆暶⒎怯帽┝土餮氖侄尉鹑《?，而是以不斷施與快樂的善行換來的。但愿后世能永遠(yuǎn)紀(jì)念他的恩賜，因?yàn)樗z留下來的，并非空洞的名字和虛夸的行為，而是智慧的寶庫，思想的結(jié)晶，和珠璣的文字。
Poet's Corner
I passed some time in Poet's Corner, which occupies an end of one of the transepts or cross aisles of the abbey. The monuments are generally simple, for the lives of literary men afford no striking themes for the sculptor. Shakespeare and Addison have statues erected to their memories, but the greater part have busts, medallions, and sometimes mere inscriptions. Notwithstanding the simplicity of these memorials, I have always observed that the visitors to the abbey remained longest about them. A kinder and fonder feeling takes place of that cold curiosity or vague admiration with which they gaze on the splendid monuments of the great and the heroic. They linger about these as about the tombs of friends and companions, for indeed there is something of companionship between the author and the reader. Other men are known to posterity only through the medium of history, which is continually growing faint and obscure； but the intercourse between the author and his fellowmen is ever new, active, and immediate. He has lived for them more than for himself； he has sacrificed surrounding enjoyments, and shut himself up from the delights of social life, that he might the more intimately commune with distant minds and distant ages. Well may the world cherish his renown, for it has been purchased not by deeds of violence and blood, but by the diligent dispensation of pleasure. Well may posterity be grateful to his memory, for he has left it an inheritance not of empty names and sounding actions, but whole treasures of wisdom, bright gems of thought, and golden veins of language. From "Westminster Abbey" by Washington Irving
余此時(shí)迤邐至古詩人墳碣之下，盤桓久之。詩人遺事，至簡而易讀。惟莎士比、愛迭森兩先生尚有小石像存焉，余人則半像粗記姓名而已。嗟夫！詩人固無勛榮，而吊古人來，往往于詩人斷墳多增留戀。凡人之吊古英雄，但有駭嘆，若詩家遺像，則綿綿然情動(dòng)于中，即亦不知其所以然。以詩人感人之深，異代有同夙契。蓋著書者之神，往往合于讀書者，情絲蒙絡(luò)，款款深深。余人則但憑歷史為準(zhǔn)，而史殊不足恃。詩人印人以心，每誦其詩，輒如新發(fā)諸硎，不斥為陳人屏之也。須知詩人為人多而為己少，以詩人生平去歡樂而即幽邃，閉戶苦吟，取古人之心跡與今人粘合無間，而名譽(yù)又不從流血而來，一一本諸心思，以公道論之，后人宜有感戴之思。蓋詩人之留貽，非屬豐功偉烈，或徒托空名，直握其智珠，出其慧力，悉投諸后人，一無所吝也。
我在詩人祠里面逗留了一些時(shí)候，詩人祠者，只是寺內(nèi)一個(gè)十字形側(cè)堂的一隅。這兒的紀(jì)念碑，一般都很樸素；因?yàn)槲娜说纳拇蠖嗥椒?，缺少可供雕刻的驚人題材。莎士比亞和艾迪生有全身的紀(jì)念雕像；其他詩人大多只有半身雕像或肖像牌，有些只有碑文。這些紀(jì)念碑雖然樸素?zé)o飾，我發(fā)現(xiàn)游客總是在這兒停留的時(shí)間最長。偉人和英雄的墓碑，華麗是華麗了，但只能引起他們冷淡的好奇心，或是模糊的羨慕之情；詩人的墓碑卻勾起了他們一種更為親切的情愛。他們留戀左右，就像置身于朋友和知己的墓旁；因?yàn)樵谧髡吆妥x者之間，的確存在著一種友情。別種人物之聞名后世，完全要靠歷史的媒介，而歷史總是變得愈來愈模糊，愈來愈隔膜；作家和他的讀者之間卻永遠(yuǎn)保持著新鮮、活潑和直接的交誼。作家與其說為了自己活在世上，不如說為了讀者。他為了要和后世的人作更親密的交談。不惜犧牲他當(dāng)時(shí)周遭的享受，自絕于社交生活的樂趣。但愿世人都珍重作家的聲名，因?yàn)樽骷业穆暶⒎怯帽┝土餮氖侄尉鹑《?，而是以不斷施與快樂的善行換來的。但愿后世能永遠(yuǎn)紀(jì)念他的恩賜，因?yàn)樗z留下來的，并非空洞的名字和虛夸的行為，而是智慧的寶庫，思想的結(jié)晶，和珠璣的文字。