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Professor Pedantic 教授的考究學問
【學術專欄】
TPS的編輯教授在此歡迎關於學術文章的所有詢問，當然，其實他並沒有足夠的時間給你。他擁有終身教職的教授身份，也是著名的學術巨作作者。即便如此，他仍大方地接受你們的詢問。將關於學術方面的詢問寫在下方，你將獲得教授的親自指導，陶冶對學術的探索與啟發。
The professor awaits your query on academic writing, though in all honesty, he doesn’t have a lot of time for you. He is a tenured full professor and working on yet another magnificent academic tome. Even so, he has graciously consented to entertain your question. Submit it and prepare to be edified.
QUESTION: I have been told I write well in two languages, but I also have been told that my English writing runs too long. Is there a guideline that helps academic writers write succinctly in a second language?
曾經有人稱讚我使用兩種語言的書寫能力相當良好，但是也曾有人說過我的英文寫作內容過於冗長。請問是否有一些指導方向可以幫助學術文章撰寫者能夠以第二種語言寫文章寫得更簡潔？
First of all, never devalue in your own mind your ability to communicate in two languages. Many people around the world would like to express themselves in a second language and wouldn’t care one whit if they “ran long” in doing so. Your interest in refining your writing in a second language is an indication of your professionalism and ambition as a writer. Languages, as you know, don’t always translate exactly in terms of number of characters, imagery, and, yes, number of words. So first of all I would suggest that word count not be a deciding factor in a translation.
首先，永遠不要自我貶低你的雙語能力。這個世界上有許多人想要使用第二種語言來表達看法，並且絲毫不介意他們的敘述內容是否「冗長」。你想要精進第二語言寫作能力的想法充分地展現了一個作者應該有的專業以及野心。眾所周知，語言是無法精準地逐字或依樣畫葫蘆進行翻譯。所以，首先我認為字數並非是影響一篇翻譯最關鍵的因素。
The “length” standard in a translation or in an original language always is… however many words are needed to produce clarity. That might seem like an unhelpful guideline, but it is absolutely valid. A professor never will complain about wordiness if each word has value and helps express a thought. That might be two words or ten. The trick is to become proficient in choosing words so that excessive numbers of words are not employed. This is a skill that comes to a writer only one way: by writing and re-writing. Experience teaches a talented academic writer about succinctness.
談到翻譯文章或是原文「長度」的標準，可以有很多不同的答案。無論文章字數，都必須讓讀者們清晰明瞭文章內容。這句話聽起來可能很像廢話，但這是真的。如果你能做到字字珠璣，並善用文字表達想法，教授永遠不會抱怨你寫太多，不管是你只寫了兩個還是十個字。訣竅在於慎選用字，即可避免多餘的贅字。對於一名作者來說，唯一的金科玉律就是：寫跟重寫。一個厲害的學術文章撰寫者可以從經驗中學習如何言簡意賅。
The task is doubly difficult when a thought conceived in one language must be communicated in a second one. So I would suggest that little or no effort be made in a rough draft to write succinctly. The better course is to write an original draft freely, with little concern for numbers of words used to explore a thought or to express an argument. Second and, if necessary, third drafts are where tightening should occur. That is when you should look for extraneous language and other padding. After a while, lean writing will come naturally to you—in both languages.
不過當想法是由一種語言而生，卻必須以第二種語言加以溝通傳達時，要做到這點就特別困難。所以我會建議在擬定草稿時不要拘泥於維持文章簡潔的問題。最好就是隨心所欲的書寫，完全不需要擔心應該使用多少字來表達某個想法或者是論點。再者，如果有必要的話，於第三次的草稿加強內容。這就是你檢查是否有冗贅拖沓，或是殘缺脫漏等問題的時候。經過一段時間訓練，在兩種語言的文章寫作上，你都將句句鏗鏘、簡潔有力。
The professor awaits your query on academic writing, though in all honesty, he doesn’t have a lot of time for you. He is a tenured full professor and working on yet another magnificent academic tome. Even so, he has graciously consented to entertain your question. Submit it and prepare to be edified.
QUESTION: I have been told I write well in two languages, but I also have been told that my English writing runs too long. Is there a guideline that helps academic writers write succinctly in a second language?
曾經有人稱讚我使用兩種語言的書寫能力相當良好，但是也曾有人說過我的英文寫作內容過於冗長。請問是否有一些指導方向可以幫助學術文章撰寫者能夠以第二種語言寫文章寫得更簡潔？
First of all, never devalue in your own mind your ability to communicate in two languages. Many people around the world would like to express themselves in a second language and wouldn’t care one whit if they “ran long” in doing so. Your interest in refining your writing in a second language is an indication of your professionalism and ambition as a writer. Languages, as you know, don’t always translate exactly in terms of number of characters, imagery, and, yes, number of words. So first of all I would suggest that word count not be a deciding factor in a translation.
首先，永遠不要自我貶低你的雙語能力。這個世界上有許多人想要使用第二種語言來表達看法，並且絲毫不介意他們的敘述內容是否「冗長」。你想要精進第二語言寫作能力的想法充分地展現了一個作者應該有的專業以及野心。眾所周知，語言是無法精準地逐字或依樣畫葫蘆進行翻譯。所以，首先我認為字數並非是影響一篇翻譯最關鍵的因素。
The “length” standard in a translation or in an original language always is… however many words are needed to produce clarity. That might seem like an unhelpful guideline, but it is absolutely valid. A professor never will complain about wordiness if each word has value and helps express a thought. That might be two words or ten. The trick is to become proficient in choosing words so that excessive numbers of words are not employed. This is a skill that comes to a writer only one way: by writing and re-writing. Experience teaches a talented academic writer about succinctness.
談到翻譯文章或是原文「長度」的標準，可以有很多不同的答案。無論文章字數，都必須讓讀者們清晰明瞭文章內容。這句話聽起來可能很像廢話，但這是真的。如果你能做到字字珠璣，並善用文字表達想法，教授永遠不會抱怨你寫太多，不管是你只寫了兩個還是十個字。訣竅在於慎選用字，即可避免多餘的贅字。對於一名作者來說，唯一的金科玉律就是：寫跟重寫。一個厲害的學術文章撰寫者可以從經驗中學習如何言簡意賅。
The task is doubly difficult when a thought conceived in one language must be communicated in a second one. So I would suggest that little or no effort be made in a rough draft to write succinctly. The better course is to write an original draft freely, with little concern for numbers of words used to explore a thought or to express an argument. Second and, if necessary, third drafts are where tightening should occur. That is when you should look for extraneous language and other padding. After a while, lean writing will come naturally to you—in both languages.
不過當想法是由一種語言而生，卻必須以第二種語言加以溝通傳達時，要做到這點就特別困難。所以我會建議在擬定草稿時不要拘泥於維持文章簡潔的問題。最好就是隨心所欲的書寫，完全不需要擔心應該使用多少字來表達某個想法或者是論點。再者，如果有必要的話，於第三次的草稿加強內容。這就是你檢查是否有冗贅拖沓，或是殘缺脫漏等問題的時候。經過一段時間訓練，在兩種語言的文章寫作上，你都將句句鏗鏘、簡潔有力。