2017翻译硕士考研：《三十六计》英文表达(6)

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《孙子兵法》三十六计(Thirty-Six Stratagems)乃兵家之经典著作。语源于南北朝，成书于明清，是汉民族悠久文化遗产之一。古人学好三十六计，带兵打胜券在握。现代人习之，在商场职场生活领域中，古为今用。而三十六计在外国也极受欢迎！那么我们就一起看看三十六计的英文表达吧!

第六套：败战计

Chapter 6: Desperate Stratagems

第三十一计 美人计

using seductive women to corrupt the enemy

▌原文

兵强者，攻其将;将智者，伐其情。将弱兵颓，其势自萎。利用御寇，顺相保也。

▌英文注释

Send your enemy beautiful women to cause discord within his camp. This strategy can work on three levels.

First, the ruler becomes so enamoured with the beauty that he neglects his duties and allows his vigilance to wane.

Second, other males at court will begin to display aggressive behaviour that inflames minor differences hindering co-operation and destroying morale.

Third, other females at court, motivated by jealousy and envy, begin to plot intrigues further exacerbating the situation.

第三十二计 空城计

presenting a bold front to conceal unpreparedness

▌原文

虚者虚之，疑中生疑。刚柔之际，奇而复奇。

▌英文注释

When the enemy is superior in numbers and your situation is such that you expect to be overrun at any moment, then drop all pretense of military preparedness, act calmly and taunt the enemy, so that the enemy will think you have a huge ambush hidden for them.

It works best by acting calm and at ease when your enemy expects you to be tense.

第三十三计 反间计

sowing discord among the enemy

▌原文

疑中之疑。比之自内，不自失也。

▌英文注释

Undermine your enemy's ability to fight by secretly causing discord between him and his friends, allies, advisors, family, commanders, soldiers, and population. While he is preoccupied settling internal disputes, his ability to attack or defend is compromised.

第三十四计 苦肉计

deceiving the enemy by torturing one's own man

▌原文

人不自害，受害必真。假真真假，间以得行。童蒙之吉，顺以巽也。

▌英文注释

Pretending to be injured has two possible applications. In the first, the enemy is lulled into relaxing his guard since he no longer considers you to be an immediate threat.

The second is a way of ingratiating yourself to your enemy by pretending the injury was caused by a mutual enemy.

第三十五计 连环计

coordinating one stratagem with another

▌原文

将多兵众，不可以敌，使其自累，以杀其势。在师中吉，承天宠也。

▌英文注释

In important matters, one should use several stratagems applied simultaneously after another as in a chain of stratagems. Keep different plans operating in an overall scheme; however, in this manner if any one strategy fails, then the chain breaks and the whole scheme fails.

第三十六计 走为上

decamping being the best; running away as the best choice

▌原文

全师避敌。左次无咎，未失常也。

▌英文注释

If it becomes obvious that your current course of action will lead to  defeat, then retreat and regroup. When your side is losing, there are only three choices remaining: surrender, compromise, or escape.

Surrender is complete defeat, compromise is half defeat, but escape is not defeat.

As long as you are not defeated, you still have a chance.This is the most famous of the stratagems, immortalized in the form of a Chinese idiom: "Of the Thirty-Six Stratagems, fleeing is best".