失眠
伊丽莎白·毕肖普 作
忒绿 译
梳妆台镜里的明月
向千万里外远眺
(也许她带着自豪,凝视自己,
但她从不,从不笑)
远离睡眠,说不定
可能她只在白昼就寝。
被宇宙遗弃,
她定会诅咒它下地狱,
然后寻一片水域,
或一面镜子,来栖居。
用蛛网裹住忧虑
投进井底
坠入一个颠倒的世界
那里,左边总是右边,
那里,影子其实是身躯,
那里,我们整夜清醒不眠,
那里,浮浅的天穹正是此刻深邃的海,
并且你与我相爱。
Insomnia
Elizabeth Bishop
The moon in the bureau mirror
looks out a million miles
(and perhaps with pride, at herself,
but she never, never smiles)
far and away beyond sleep, or
perhaps she's a daytime sleeper.
By the Universe deserted,
she'd tell it to go to hell,
and she'd find a body of water,
or a mirror, on which to dwell.
So wrap up care in a cobweb
and drop it down the well
into that world inverted
where left is always right,
where the shadows are really the body,
where we stay awake all night,
where the heavens are shallow as the sea
is now deep, and you love me.
(注:尾韵abcbdd)
伊丽莎白·毕肖普(英语:Elizabeth Bishop,1911年2月8日—1979年10月6日),美国著名女诗人。她是美国1949-1950年度的桂冠诗人,并于1956年获普利策奖。代表作为《北方和南方——一个寒冷的春天》。