喻血轮·《老与少》英译

老年为少年之过来人，少年为老年之候补者，老与少，只不过时间上之差别而已。然中国习惯，对老少之间，往往划有无形界限。在客观上，有时重老而轻少，有时重少而轻老。在主观上，老者自恃其老，少年自矜其少。几千年来，遂形成老者自以为持重练达，而菲薄少年为少不更事；而少年自以为新锐精进，而輘轹老者为老朽昏庸。此真所谓偏颇两失之见也！

曩梁任公在其《少年中国》一文中，对老年人与少年人曾有一适当对比。其言曰：“老年人如夕照，少年人如朝阳；老年人如瘠牛，少年人如乳虎；老年人如僧，少年人如侠；老年人如字典，少年人如戏文；老年人如鸦片烟，少年人如白兰地酒；老年人如别行星之陨石，少年人如大海洋之珊瑚岛；老年人如埃及沙漠之金字塔，少年人如西伯利亚之铁路；老年人如秋后之柳，少年人如春间之草；老年人如死海之潴为泽，少年人如长江之初发源……”

观此，则知老年与少年，各有所长，各有其用，如能祛除成见，同为国家效力，则裨益民族，定非浅鲜。

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The aged are the antecedents of the young, and the young are the candidates of the aged. The difference between age and youth is only a matter of time. But, according to the Chinese custom, there is always an invisible line of demarcation between them. Objectively speaking, sometimes the aged are held in esteem and the young are made light of; sometimes it is just the other way round. Subjectively speaking, the aged are self-conceited because of their good old age, while the young think no small beer of their own youth. For thousands of years it has been assumed that the aged, thinking themselves experienced and more skillful, look down upon the young for their greenness in worldly affairs, while the young, thinking themselves fresh in life and more energetic, call the aged old fogies. Either of these views, of course, is far from being impartial.

Liang Qi-chao in an article entitled “Young China” made a proper contrast between the aged and the young. He said: “The old man is like the setting sun; the young man, the morning sun. The old man is like a lean ox; the young man, a cub tiger. The old man is like a monk; the young man, a knight. The old man is like a dictionary; the young man, the text of a play. The old man is like opium; the young man, brandy. The old man is like a shooting star; the young man, a coral island. The old man is like the pyramid of Egypt; the young man, the Siberian railroad. The old man is like the willow after autumn; the young man, the grass in spring. The old man is like the dead sea that turns into a lake; the young man, the source of the Yangtze River.

From this, we know that the aged and the young both have their own merits and uses. If they will cast away their prejudices and work together for the country, their services to the people shall be immense.