A Modest Proposal

(for preventing the children of poor people in Ireland, from being a burden on their parents or country, and for making them beneficial to the public.)

by Dr. Jonathan Swift. 1729

育婴刍议

（为使爱尔兰筚门圭窬“贵子”发为惠泽国民之重宝，防其沦为祸殃家国之重负而作）

乔纳森 斯威夫特 1729

斯威夫特（1667-1745）：18世纪英国讽刺小说家和政论家，是英国启蒙运动中激进民主派创始人，擅写讽刺文章，本文亦是其一，其代表小说《格利佛游记》。

（人称“吐槽帝”）

创作背景：“1699年,英国颁布禁止爱尔兰羊毛和亚麻制品出口法令,致使成千上万工人失业,毛纺工业面临崩溃；农业方面,英国对爱尔兰的货物征收重税,剥夺了其在英国销售粮食的机会。因此,大片土地被改为牧场,大批农民被迫沦为乞丐。面对乞丐成群和饿殍遍野的凄凉景象,1720年斯威夫特提出了一系列反对英国殖民剥削和发展民族经济的主张。但当局只考虑自己的利益,对斯威夫特的建议毫不理睬,各种“献策者”还提出了种种加深人民苦难的建议。”——单慧芳,胡荣欣.《狂人日记》和《一个温和的建议》创作手法分析[J].河北北方学院学报(社会科学版),2020,36(01):16-18.

It is a melancholy object to those, who walk through this great town, or travel in the country, when they see the streets, the roads and cabin-doors crowded with beggars of the female sex, followed by three, four, or six children, all in rags, and importuning every passenger for an alms. These mothers instead of being able to work for their honest livelihood, are forced to employ all their time in strolling to beg sustenance for their helpless infants who, as they grow up, either turn thieves for want of work, or leave their dear native country, to fight for the Pretender in Spain, or sell themselves to the Barbados.  

melancholy /'melənkəlɪ/ adj.&n. 忧郁；悲哀（常见于文学作品比sad, sadness更为深刻长久）

this great town 指都柏林（爱尔兰共和国的首都及最大的城市）

alms  /ɑːmz/  n. 救济金，施舍物

stroll /strəʊl/ n.&v. 闲逛；漫步；巡演（多指走走停停，步子缓慢，悠闲自得，漫无目的）

pretender /prɪ'tendə/ n. 觊觎高位者

漫步于这宏伟之城，亦或徒旅于乡野间，眼中所见，街上、路上、木屋门旁，丐衣攘攘。三、四，甚至于六名幼童穿着破衣烂衫，紧随他们的母亲，逢人必求，遇客必乞。这一幕，直教人黯然神伤。可怜为母者劳劳碌碌而只得饥寒依旧，无奈游荡终日乞食抚养婴孩。只是，婴孩成人之后，或无处劳作，沦落鼠窃之徒；或背井离乡，委身西班牙之谋权者；或自售为奴，流离巴巴多斯。

I think it is agreed by all parties, that this prodigious number of children in the arms, or on the backs, or at the heels of their mothers, and frequently of their fathers, is in the present deplorable state of the kingdom, a very great additional grievance; and therefore whoever could find out a fair, cheap and easy method of making these children sound and useful members of the common-wealth, would deserve so well of the public, as to have his statue set up for a preserver of the nation.

prodigious /prə'dɪdʒəs/ adj.&adv. 惊奇；惊异；巨大

deplorable /dɪ'plɔːrəb(ə)l/ adj. 凄惨的；令人发指的

common-wealth /'kɒmənwelθ/ n.共和国；联邦；团体；协会

愚以为，身处王国如今悲凉之境，母亲——时常是父亲——搂于怀、背于背、随于踵的孩童，数量惊异，实乃徒增民生疾苦。各派人士对此当不可置否。故而，凡能以公正合理、事半功倍又简便易行的方法，将这类孩童养得于国于民健全有益的人，必享万民之敬仰，尊护国之先驱，立雕像以颂扬。

But my intention is very far from being confined to provide only for the children of professed beggars: it is of a much greater extent, and shall take in the whole number of infants at a certain age, who are born of parents in effect as little able to support them, as those who demand our charity in the streets.

profess /prə'fes/ vt. 声称；公开表明

不过，愚意远不止于抚育明面上的乞丐幼儿。愚意更为深远，可以囊括某一特定年代的婴幼儿。他们生来清苦，父母犹如街上索求捐助的乞丐，无力抚育。

As to my own part, having turned my thoughts for many years, upon this important subject, and maturely weighed the several schemes of other projectors, I have always found them grossly mistaken in their computation. It is true, a child just dropt from its dam, may be supported by her milk, for a solar year, with little other nourishment: at most not above the value of two shillings, which the mother may certainly get, or the value in scraps, by her lawful occupation of begging; and it is exactly at one year old that I propose to provide for them in such a manner, as, instead of being a charge upon their parents, or the parish, or wanting food and raiment for the rest of their lives, they shall, on the contrary, contribute to the feeding, and partly to the clothing of many thousands.

turn one's thoughts 意为深思熟虑、反复思考。turn本身具有旋转的意思，用词较为形象，最初拟译作“巴前算后”，但个人觉得不够雅致，便更为辗转沉思。无奈“辗转”容易联系“思念他人”，只能放弃。经过多次思考，最终个人认为“上下求索”无论是字意还是词意都最为贴切。

dropt from its dam 从坝滴下；查不到具体含义，根据前后文推测是指新生儿。

a solar year 太阳年（也叫回归年），该含义可以精确到365天5小时48分45.975456秒。个人认为虽然“整整一年”、“头一年”没法充分体现这个词，但直接译为“一个太阳年”略显突兀。

多年以来，愚上下求索，多面权衡各方提议，总发现他们在计算上失误严重。初生儿在头一年里的确只需母乳，辅以微量营养品，总值至多不过两先令，也不会高于母亲合法乞讨得来残羹的价值，他的母亲定能取得。在孩子正好一岁时，为防其成长为父母之重负、教区之重载，也为免其余生衣食之患，愚倡议，将他们投身为民众之所食，分肢为民众之所衣。

There is likewise another great advantage in my scheme, that it will prevent those voluntary abortions, and that horrid practice of women murdering their bastard children, alas! too frequent among us, sacrificing the poor innocent babes, I doubt, more to avoid the expense than the shame, which would move tears and pity in the most savage and inhuman breast.

abortions /ə'bɔːʃ(ə)n/ n. 流产；小产；流产的胎儿；堕胎

horrid /'hɒrɪd/ adj. 可怕的；令人生厌的

bastard /ˈbɑːstəd/ adj. 私生的；杂种的  n. 私生子；卑鄙小人

savage /ˈsævidʒ/ adj.&n. 残酷的（人）；野蛮的（人） vt. 野蛮对待；凶猛打击

愚议更有绝妙之处，自愿的堕胎行为将从此制止；可怕的私子被害案将就此殆尽。噫！我们太常干这种事了！愚怀疑，无辜婴童死于其“贵”而宣之为耻，纵狼虎之徒，亦将悲兴哀恸。

The number of souls in this kingdom being usually reckoned one million and a half, of these I calculate there may be about two hundred thousand couple whose wives are breeders; from which number I subtract thirty thousand couple, who are able to maintain their own children, (although I apprehend there cannot be so many, under the present distresses of the kingdom) but this being granted, there will remain an hundred and seventy thousand breeders. I again subtract fifty thousand, for those women who miscarry, or whose children die by accident or disease within the year. There only remain an hundred and twenty thousand children of poor parents annually born. The question therefore is, How this number shall be reared, and provided for? which, as I have already said, under the present situation of affairs, is utterly impossible by all the methods hitherto proposed. For we can neither employ them in handicraft or agriculture; we neither build houses, (I mean in the country) nor cultivate land: they can very seldom pick up a livelihood by stealing till they arrive at six years old; except where they are of towardly parts, although I confess they learn the rudiments much earlier; during which time they can however be properly looked upon only as probationers: As I have been informed by a principal gentleman in the county of Cavan, who protested to me, that he never knew above one or two instances under the age of six, even in a part of the kingdom so renowned for the quickest proficiency in that art.

reckon /'rek(ə)n/ vt. 猜想；估计；计算（正式用法，通常指较简单的数学计算，也可指心算）

apprehend /æprɪ'hend/ vt. 逮捕, 拘押；理解（知道某事物或某观念的大概意义，但未能理解其内涵意义，暗含一知半解意味）

hitherto /hɪðə'tuː/ adv. 迄今为止

confess /kən'fes/ v. 承认；坦白；供认；忏悔（语气较强，着重承认自己意识到的错误或罪行，含坦白忏悔的意味）

rudiments /'ru:dimənts/ n. 入门；初步；基础知识

王国的人口常简算为一百五十万，其中，愚忖度近二十万对夫妻尚能生育，除去三万对能抚养子女的夫妻，（尽管愚有所了解，知道王国此般窘境之下，数目不及如此），即便如此，依旧存在十七万对可孕夫妻。再剔除五万对一年间可能妻子流产或孩子因意外或疾病死亡的夫妻，如此一来，当年仅有十二万筚门“贵子”得以降世。问题在于，如何抚育这些孩子？如前所言，基于现况，此前所提，皆不得用。他们既不可受雇于工坊，又不得碌作于农田；我等既不建宅于乡野，亦不垦荒于旷原。若非帮团相助，不及六岁，拔葵啖枣，不足谋生。愚虽自惭他们入门甚早，不过，终究只能视为见习学徒。如卡文郡一位重要乡绅处所驳，即便在因掌握如此艺术最为迅捷熟练而闻名的国度，他也未曾听闻超过一或二起的六岁以下孩童的偷盗事例。

I am assured by our merchants, that a boy or a girl before twelve years old, is no saleable commodity, and even when they come to this age, they will not yield above three pounds, or three pounds and half a crown at most, on the exchange; which cannot turn to account either to the parents or kingdom, the charge of nutriments and rags having been at least four times that value.

愚自我国的人口商贩处得到证实：不论男女，十二岁之前都没什么销路。即便是十二岁的小孩，交易利润也不超三磅，最多也就三磅半克朗。父母、国家在营养品、衣物上给他们花的起码是这个价格的四倍，这点钱还补不了家庭开支或国家补助。

I shall now therefore humbly propose my own thoughts, which I hope will not be liable to the least objection.

因此，愚谨谦卑倡议，还望诸公相持。

I have been assured by a very knowing American of my acquaintance in London, that a young healthy child well nursed, is, at a year old, a most delicious nourishing and wholesome food, whether stewed, roasted, baked, or boiled; and I make no doubt that it will equally serve in a fricassee, or a ragout.

愚在伦敦的一位深谙其道的美国朋友告知，一个一岁幼儿，若饲养得当、身体健康，则营养非凡。红焖、烧烤、烘焙、水煮皆无不可。服食之后，芳香留唇，可和五脏、调六腑、通七窍、养八脉。愚深信，不论炖重汁肉丁还是蔬菜炖肉，功效不减。

I do therefore humbly offer it to public consideration, that of the hundred and twenty thousand children, already computed, twenty thousand may be reserved for breed, whereof only one fourth part to be males; which is more than we allow to sheep, black cattle, or swine, and my reason is, that these children are seldom the fruits of marriage, a circumstance not much regarded by our savages, therefore, one male will be sufficient to serve four females. That the remaining hundred thousand may, at a year old, be offered in sale to the persons of quality and fortune, through the kingdom, always advising the mother to let them suck plentifully in the last month, so as to render them plump, and fat for a good table. A child will make two dishes at an entertainment for friends, and when the family dines alone, the fore or hind quarter will make a reasonable dish, and seasoned with a little pepper or salt, will be very good boiled on the fourth day, especially in winter.

个人观点： savage 暗指前文 savage and inhuman breast 段，蓝色字体句回扣该段堕胎与杀子行径，言下之意可能是“反正你们不把他们当人，想堕就堕，想杀就杀，拿来当猪牛羊养也没什么大不了的”，体现了作者对现状的辛辣讽刺。

愚谨恭谦呈议，望天下思量。如前统计十二万孩童中，取二万留待配种，其中，仅保留四分之一的男性——这已高于我们预留的猪牛羊数了——毕竟，这类孩子几乎不是婚姻的结晶，他们源于我们所野蛮鄙薄的行径。故而，一男四女，搭配足矣。余下的十万，一岁时，即可售予全国权贵，他们将反复叮嘱孩子母亲在最后一个月给孩子喂足奶，从而保证杯觥交错时菜品的肥瘦合度、丰满多汁。款待亲朋时，一个小孩便可作为两道佳肴；家庭聚餐时，四分之一的前肢后腿也颇具滋味。尤其是在冬天，撒点胡椒撒点盐，腌制四天，水煮之后，更是垂涎。

注：1、本文题目通常意味《一个小小的建议》或者《一个谦逊的建议》，刘炳善先生将之译为《育婴刍议》。考虑到文章用词相对正式，本次翻译沿用刘炳善先生的《育婴刍议》。

2、词语辨析部分参考“欧路词典”，其中，melancholy一词参考沪江网校知识库（ https://www.hujiang.com/c/k_3934265/ ）。

最后，感谢陈春成同学提供的题注修改建议。

未完待续（译累了，慢慢译了~~~）