Ben Johnson - The Noble Nature 汉译

It is not growing like a tree<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" />

In bulk, doth make man better be;

Or standing long an oak, three hundred year,

To fall a log at last, dry, bald, and sere:

A lily of a day,

Is fairer far in May,

Although it fall and die that night;

It was the plant and flower of light.

In small proportions, we just beauty see;

And in short measures, life may perfect be.

高贵的天性

本·琼生

并不是长得像一棵树干，

使一个人超俗脱凡；

也不是像棵橡树挺立三百年，

最后倒下来落个叶枯枝干：

只开一天的百合花

在五月里更为鲜艳，

尽管它枯死就在当晚——

这植物花朵光彩灿烂。

在小小的范围中我们看到全美；

在短短的尺度内声明可以精粹。