THE FOOL AND THE VENUS
丑角與維納斯
The Echo :
原文摘錄：
One of those artificial fools, one of those wilful clowns whose duty it is to make kings laugh when Remorse or Boredom obsesses them, dressed up in a garish and ridiculous costume …
– Charles Baudelaire
……那些人為的丑角之一，那些任性的弄臣之一，他們的職責便是在國王被悔恨或厭倦糾纏時，逗他們發笑，他們穿著華麗而可笑的服裝……
In this passage, Baudelaire uses concrete language to describe the “fool.” For example, he notes that these fools are dressed in ridiculous costumes. This raises the question: What does the fool represent? I believe the fool symbolizes the lower classes, whose lives are akin to hell.
In contrast, what does Venus represent? In Baudelaire’s words:
在這段文字中，波特萊爾運用了具體的語言來描寫「丑角」。例如，他提到這些丑角穿著可笑的服裝。這就引出了一個問題：丑角代表了什麼？我相信，丑角象徵著那些生活如同地獄般的底層階級。
作為對比，維納斯又代表了什麼？用波特萊爾的話來說：
Venus gazes far into the distance at some object or other with her marble eyes.
– Charles Baudelaire
維納斯用她那大理石的眼睛，凝視著遠方的某個物體。
Venus, a goddess from mythology, holds a status far above that of mere mortals. In the poem, she is an inanimate marble sculpture, showing no reaction at all. This symbolizes how the upper classes are indifferent to the needs of the lower classes. To sum up, in this prose poem, I see a stark contrast between these two classes.
維納斯是神話中的女神，她的地位遠高於區區凡人。在詩中，她是一座沒有生命的大理石雕像，自然不會有任何反應。這象徵著上層階級對於下層階級的需求是何等冷漠。總而言之，在這首散文詩中，我看到了這兩個階級之間存在的巨大對比。
CROWDS
人群
The Echo:
原文摘錄：
It is not given to everyone to take a bath in the multitude; to enjoy the crowd is an art; and only that man can gorge himself with vitality …
– Charles Baudelaire
不是每個人都能沐浴在人群之中；享受人群是一門藝術；只有那個人才能讓自己沉浸其中，吸取生命的活力……
In this paragraph, Baudelaire classifies people, suggesting there is a certain kind of person who can thrive in crowds. According to the following sentence, we can understand that this special kind of person is the poet:
在這段文字中，波特萊爾對人們進行了分類，暗示有一種特定的人可以在人群中如魚得水。根據下面這句話，我們可以理解到，這種特殊的人就是詩人：
The poet enjoys the incomparable privilege that he can, at will, be either himself or another.
– Charles Baudelaire
詩人享有一種無與倫比的特權，他可以隨心所欲地成為他自己，或成為另一個人。
Each prose poem acts as a small story about a single concept. For instance, the final paragraph seems to be a wake-up call to these “lucky” individuals, telling them that they are nearsighted.
每一首散文詩都像一個關於單一概念的小故事。例如，詩的最後一段似乎是在喚醒那些「幸運兒」，告訴他們是多麼的短視。
GET DRUNK
沉醉
The Echo:
原文摘錄：
So as not to feel Time’s horrible burden that breaks your shoulders and bows you down, you must get drunk without ceasing.
– Charles Baudelaire
為了不再感受到時間那可怕的重擔，那壓垮你的肩膀、使你俯首的重擔，你必須持續不斷地沉醉。
The poem suggests one should get drunk to escape into a fantasy world. We all face pressure in our daily lives. How can we release it? The answer is to “get drunk.” Baudelaire wants to express a state of ecstasy, whether through wine, poetry, or virtue—the choice is yours. This is clear in poetic lines such as:
這首詩暗示，人應該沉醉，以逃離到一個幻想的世界。我們在日常生活中都會面臨壓力，該如何釋放它？答案就是「沉醉」。波特萊爾想要表達的是一種狂喜的狀態，無論是透過美酒、詩歌還是美德——任君選擇。這一點在詩句中顯而易見：
But what with? With wine, with poetry, or with virtue, as you choose. But get drunk.
– Charles Baudelaire
但要沉醉於何物？沉醉於酒，沉醉於詩，或沉醉於美德，隨你的便。但務必沉醉。
The following paragraph mentions many things that call on you to get drunk. The repetition of “All…” and “which…” is a literary device used to emphasize the importance of this state of being.
接下來的段落提到了許多召喚你沉醉的事物。「所有……」和「哪些……」的重複，是一種文學手法，用以強調進入這種沉醉狀態的重要性。
SOLITUDE
孤獨
The Echo:
原文摘錄：
I know that willingly and often the fiend haunts arid land, and that the spirit of murder and of lechery flares up marvelously in deserted places. But it is not impossible that this solitude is dangerous only to the idle and wandering soul, which peoples it with its passions and its chimeras.
– Charles Baudelaire
我知道惡魔樂於且經常出沒於不毛之地，謀殺與淫蕩的靈魂在荒僻之處燃燒得格外熾烈。但這種孤獨或許只對那遊手好閒、徬徨無依的靈魂是危險的，是它用自己的激情與幻想填滿了孤獨。
In fact, solitude is not dangerous to everyone, but only to the “idle and wandering soul.” Baudelaire believes that solitude can bring a sense of mystery, which he loves. Each part of the poem reveals a different aspect of solitude and Baudelaire’s thoughts on it.
事實上，孤獨並非對每個人都危險，它只對那些「遊手好閒、徬徨無依的靈魂」構成威脅。波特萊爾認為孤獨能帶來一種他所鍾愛的神秘感。詩的每個部分都揭示了孤獨的不同面向，以及波特萊爾對它的思索。
Oh the great misfortune of those who cannot be alone!” La Bruyere says somewhere, as though to shame all those who rush away to forget themselves in the crowd, afraid, no doubt, that they cannot support themselves without help.
– Charles Baudelaire
『噢，那些無法獨處的人是多麼不幸！』拉布呂耶爾曾在某處這樣說，彷彿在羞辱所有那些為了在人群中忘卻自我而奔走的人，他們無疑是害怕，若沒有旁人扶持，便無法支撐自己。
THE PORT
港口
The Echo:
原文摘錄：
This entire prose poem is just one paragraph. In it, Baudelaire uses many concrete items to describe the beauty of the port. Certain words are particularly noteworthy:
這整首散文詩只有一個段落。在其中，波特萊爾運用了許多具體的意象來描寫港口之美，某些詞彙特別值得注意：
Also, and above all, for the man who no longer possesses either curiosity or ambition, here is a kind of mysterious and aristocratic pleasure in contemplating, while lying on the belvedere or resting his elbows on the jetty-head, all these movements of men who are leaving and men who are returning, of those who still have the strength to will, the desire to travel or to enrich themselves.
– Charles Baudelaire
此外，尤其對於一個不再擁有好奇心或野心的人來說，當他躺在眺望臺上，或將手肘倚在碼頭的欄杆上，凝視著所有那些啟程與歸來的人們，那些仍有意志的力量、旅行的渴望或致富的慾望的人們的動態時，這裡存在著一種神秘而高貴的樂趣。
This describes an inner, spiritual feeling of contemplating things one has tried and experienced before. Baudelaire uses this imagery to express the inner feeling he wants to convey.
這段話描寫了一種內在的、精神層面的感受，那是當一個人靜觀自己曾嘗試與經歷過的事物時所產生的感覺。波特萊爾正是透過這樣的意象，來表達他想傳達的內心感受。
ANYWHERE OUT OF THE WORLD
世界之外的任何地方
The Echo:
原文摘錄：
My soul does not reply.
– Charles Baudelaire
My soul remains silent.
Not a word. Could my soul be dead?
At last my soul explodes, and widely cries out to me : No matter where! No matter where! As long as it’s out of the world!
我的靈魂沒有回答。
我的靈魂保持沉默。
一言不發。難道我的靈魂已經死了？
最後我的靈魂爆發了，對我狂亂地大喊：『任何地方！任何地方！只要它是在這世界之外！』
Baudelaire asks questions of his inner soul and finds that his soul simply hates this world. He suggests many different places, like the Baltic or the Pole, to try to get his soul’s attention. We can also see that Baudelaire is very anxious about his seemingly dead soul, but no matter how anxious he gets, it is of no use.
波特萊爾向他內心的靈魂提問，卻發現他的靈魂只是純粹地憎恨這個世界。他提議了許多不同的地方，如波羅的海或北極，試圖引起他靈魂的注意。我們也可以看到，波特萊爾對於他那看似死去的靈魂感到非常焦慮，但無論他多麼焦慮，都無濟於事。
按：本文完成於 2008 年，全文以英文寫作，現在加上中文翻譯，方便閱讀。
