[2009.01.22] Selling Scotland by the verse 诗词动人传百载，吸引游客尚未足

Robert Burns 罗伯特.彭斯

Selling Scotland by the verse
诗词动人传百载，吸引游客尚未足
Jan 22nd 2009 | EDINBURGH
From The Economist print edition

Testing the poet’s pulling power
这是诗人魅力的考验

IN THIS especially bleak midwinter, what better excuse to have a drink and a knees-up than commemorating the birth of Robert Burns, the Scottish ploughman whose demotic verse was perhaps the first dialect version of English to achieve world literary and popular acclaim? The celebrations on January 25th this year will be particularly vigorous for they mark the 250th anniversary of the arrival of Rabbie, as Scotland’s bard is known in his homeland.
隆冬已至，目之所及，分外萧条；若要开怀畅饮，或者热闹小聚，最光明正大的理由，莫过庆祝罗伯特.彭斯诞辰。这位苏格兰农夫的诗词通俗易懂，可能是第一次英格兰方言韵文得到世界文学的喝彩，大众的喜爱吧。今年的1月25日应该分外欢腾，因为这是罗比（这位苏格兰吟游诗人在家乡的昵称）250周年诞庆。

Even in an off year, Burns suppers require much whisky-quaffing. Also compulsory is the eating of haggis, a concoction of minced offal, fat and oatmeal stuffed into a sheep’s stomach (a BBC recipe’s final instruction is “eat and then belch loudly or throw up”). Haggis-makers report record sales this year.
即使今年收成欠佳，彭斯晚宴上还是要痛饮威士忌。同样必不可少的还有哈吉斯——把碎羊肉、脂肪油、燕麦塞到羊的胃袋里做成的苏格兰传统小吃。（BBC在某次介绍这种食物做法的时候，最后一步是“入口后响亮地打个嗝，或者马上去呕吐”。）今年，哈吉斯制造商们创下了销售纪录。

Inspired by the anniversary, VisitScotland, the national tourist agency, has set up a website inviting anyone holding a Burns supper to register it. Surprisingly, almost 1,200 are being held in England, more, it seems—as The Economist goes to press—than Scotland’s roughly 1,000. The French, prepared to contemplate eating almost anything, report 33 Burns feasts. North Americans claim to be holding about 385 suppers, and there are several hundred more in countries including Russia, whose folk are no mean quaffers themselves, Jordan and Congo. The poet’s soppy romanticism, flinty egalitarianism and ridicule of pomposity have universal appeal.
受彭斯诞辰的启发，国家级旅游机构苏格兰观光局已经开设网页，邀请彭斯晚宴的承办者在此注册：在英格兰有近1200彭斯晚宴开办，如果按照《经济学人》的统计，看起来比苏格兰还要多——这就让人吃惊不小。在什么都打算“尝”试一下的法国，摆出宴席数目已达33，北美地区也登记了385席，还有几百席分布在俄罗斯（俄国人民喝起酒来也毫不含糊）、约旦和刚果，和一些其他地区。苏格兰诗人伤感的浪漫，坚定地平均思想和对奢华的嘲弄，在世界各地都产生了共鸣。

This all falls softly on the ears of Scotland’s first minister, Alex Salmond. His devolved government has designated 2009 the “Year of Homecoming”, and is spending £5m ($7m) on events and advertising to lure anyone with Scottish ancestry, or just a vague interest in the country, to pay a visit. He hopes an extra 100,000 tourists will spend some £40m.
苏格兰首席部长亚历克斯.萨尔蒙德听此消息，心情不免愉快。他的移交政府把2009年选定为“回归故里年”，投入五百万英镑（七百万美金）打造各种庆祝活动和宣传广告，以吸引有苏格兰血统以及喜爱苏格兰的所有人来此观光。萨尔蒙德希望，这100,000名新增游客能够消费约4000万英镑。

Sadly, a survey published on January 20th by the Scottish Chambers of Commerce found that just 2% of tourist businesses expect an increase in demand this year and 76% foresee decline. Rabbie’s lines may move people, but not enough to travel, it seems.
可惜了，根据1月20日苏格兰商务部公布的调查结果，在旅游界，认为今年需求会有所增长的只有区区2%，认为会下降的却达76%。罗比的诗句是很能打动人，可是打动人们去旅行——看起来，还没到那份儿上。

译者：rhineyuan   http://www.ecocn.org/bbs/viewthread.php?tid=16799&page=1&extra=