儿童尚且知道龙完全不同于 Dragon

黄佶

　　外国儿童小说 Horrible Harry and the Dragon War 中的亚裔女孩宋丽（Song Lee）坚持龙和 dragon 截然不同，不惜和最要好的朋友 Harry 对立，直到同学们检索了资料，了解到龙的确不同于 dragon，Harry 主动道歉，她才和 Harry 恢复友谊。

　　一个三年级的小女孩尚且如此明察秋毫、立场坚定，而我们的很多专家学者却对龙和 dragon 被混为一谈持无所谓的态度，反对使用不同的词汇区分这两种品性截然相反的事物，真是令人遗憾。

　　小女孩宋丽的态度实际上反映了该书的外国作者充分认识到了龙和 dragon 截然不同，是无法调和的。截然不同的事物却有一个共同的名称 dragon，也许只有龙和 dragon 这一对冤家所仅有，该书作者抓住了这个难得的现象，用它引发的误解作为切入点，通过一个虚构的故事，来戏剧性地说明了解和尊重不同的文化对于保持友谊是多么的重要。显然，把龙翻译为 loong，和 dragon 形成明确的区别，就不会造成这一误解了。

　　以下是小说摘要和评论的原文和译文（黄佶翻译）：

3B 教室里爆发了一场战争！

　　Harry和宋丽（音译）正在闹别扭，3B 教室里大家都很不开心。上幼儿园时，Harry 和宋丽就是很要好的朋友。宋丽总是被Harry的笑话惹得哈哈大笑，他们都喜欢做调皮捣蛋的事情，在二年级时，他们还在操场的大树下举行了结婚仪式。但是在 Mackle 老师让他们一起做一项关于龙的作业之后，宋丽甚至不愿意和 Harry 说话了！那么谁将先举起白旗、结束这场围绕着龙的战争呢？

There's a war in Room 3B!
Horrible Harry and Song Lee are in a fight, and nobody in Room 3B is happy. Harry and Song Lee have been best friends since kindergarden. Song Lee always laughs at Harry's jokes, they both love gross things, and they even got married by the big tree at the playground in second grade. But ever since Miss Mackle let them work together on a project about dragons, Song Lee won't even speak to Harry! Will someone wave the white flag soon and end this war over ... dragons?

摘要原文来源：
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Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

When Harry and his friend Song Lee disagree over a dragon assignment, their falling out affects the whole third-grade class. He insists dragons are frightening and mean, while she believes them to be friendly and lucky. A third classmate finds information that proves they are both right: dragons are fearsome in Western traditions and gentle in Eastern traditions. Harry apologizes and makes a peace offering, which Song Lee accepts.

　　当 Harry 和他的朋友宋丽在龙的作业上产生分歧之后，他们的冲突影响了整个三年级班级。Harry 坚持 dragon 是令人恐怖的、低劣卑鄙的，但宋丽认为 dragon（实际上龙）是友善的、吉祥的。另一个同学发现的信息证明他们俩都是正确的：在西方的传统文化中，dragon 是可怕的，而在东方的传统文化中，dragon（龙）是和善的。Harry 向宋丽道歉并建议停止争吵，宋丽接受了。

This story carries some important messages. For one, it shows that best friends can have differences of opinion, yet both can be right. Additionally, it points out the importance of respecting the beliefs of others. And, finally, it proves that friendships can be broken by name-calling, yet repaired with a sincere gesture of apology.

　　这个故事传递了一个重要的信息。首先，它说明最要好的朋友也会有观点上的分歧，然而良人的观点都是正确的。其次，它说明了相互尊重对方信仰的重要性。最后，它说明了攻击性的语言会使友谊破裂，而真诚的道歉能够修复受到损害的友谊。

With its likable characters, escalating tension, and pacing, Dragon War will hold the interest of young readers while deepening their understanding of themselves and others.

　　Horrible Harry and the Dragon War 这本小说里的主人公很可爱，随着故事的发展，冲突逐渐增强，这些都能够吸引住小读者们的兴趣，并使他们加深对自己和别人的理解。

Laurie von Mehren, Cuyahoga County Public Library, Parma, OH
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

From Booklist

A horrible thing has happened in Room 3B--best friends Harry and Song Lee aren't speaking to each other. Their teacher, Miss Mackle, has allowed both Harry and Song Lee to research dragons for their class projects, and each child has a different idea about the subject. Song Lee's dragon is beautiful and benevolent; Harry's is a fierce, fire-eating creature that drinks elephants' blood.

　　在 3B 教室里发生了一件令人不愉快的事情——好朋友 Harry 和宋丽相互之间不说话了。他们的老师 Mackle 小姐允许他们俩人去研究龙，作为他们的课堂作业，但他们俩对龙有着不同的理解。宋丽的龙是美丽而吉祥的，Harry 的则是吞吐火焰的、喝大象血的可怕生物。

The resulting fight casts a gloom on the entire day until Harry apologizes and research reveals the differences between Western and Eastern dragons. Kline perfectly captures the difficulties of learning about differing opinions and the discomfort of fighting with a friend as well as the relief that comes when problems are solved. A lively addition to a reliable chapter-book series.

　　这一差异引起的对立造成的不愉快，持续了一整天，直到 Harry 做了道歉，研究表明西方的 dragon 和东方的龙之间是存在差异的。作者 Kling 准确地描绘了了解不同观念时的困难，和朋友发生争吵时的不愉快，以及分歧被解决之后的轻松感。这本书是该系列小说又一生动的新作品。

Karen Hutt
Copyright ? American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

评论原文来源：
http://www.amazon.com/Horrible-Harry-Dragon-Puffin-Chapters/dp/0142501662/ref=pd_sxp_grid_pt_1_2/002-7263115-5592008