诗歌－Edmund Spenser

Edmund Spenser (1552-1599)

One day I wrote her name upon the strand¹,
But came the waves and washed it away;
Agayne I wrote it with a second hand,
But came the tyde, and made my paynes his pray.
“Vayne man,”, said she, “that does in vain assay²,”
A mortal thing so to immortalize.
For I my selve shall lyke to this decay,
And eek my name bee wiped out lykewize.”
“Not I”, quod I, “let bader thigs devize,”
To dy in dust, but you shall live by fame;
My verse your virtues³ rare shall eternize,
And in the heavens wryte your glorious name.
Where whenas death shall all the word subdew,
Our love shall live, and later life renew.

· 注释

1. strand: beach
2. Agayne: again
3. Made my paynes his pray: 使我的心血和努力白费。Pray: prey  tyde: tide
4. That doest in vaine assay: That does attempt in vain. 作徒劳无功的努力。   Doest=does    assay: attempt
5. For my selve shal lyke to this decay: 因为我自己也要经历这一腐朽，败落的过程。My selve: myself   lyke: like
6. eek: also
7. likewise: likewise 同样的
8. quod: quoth=said
9. devise: contrive⁴ 图谋
10. my verse your virtues rare shall eternize = my verse shall eternize your rare virtues: 我的诗歌将使你罕见的美德永恒
11. wryte: write
12. death shall all the world subsew = death shall subdew all the world. Subdew: subdue 使屈服，征服

1 strand   

vt.使（船）搁浅，使（某人）困于（某地）

参考例句：

• She tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ears.她把一缕散发夹到了耳后。
• The climbers had been stranded by a storm.登山者被暴风雨困住了。

2 assay   

n.试验，测定

参考例句：

• The assay result of that material is rich in iron.化验结果表明那种物质含铁量丰富。
• The ore assay 75 percent of gold.这种矿石经分析证明含金百分之七十五。

3 virtues   

美德( virtue的名词复数 )； 德行； 优点； 长处

参考例句：

• Doctors often extol the virtues of eating less fat. 医生常常宣扬少吃脂肪的好处。
• She delivered a homily on the virtues of family life. 她进行了一场家庭生活美德方面的说教。

4 contrive   

vt.谋划，策划；设法做到；设计，想出

参考例句：

• Can you contrive to be here a little earlier?你能不能早一点来？
• How could you contrive to make such a mess of things?你怎么把事情弄得一团糟呢？