《学习阅读》 林木译

如果每看五六个单词我就要翻字典，
那又怎样。我查找。
反正我无处可去。

见不到父亲，我母亲
像将要爆发，
不是开成花朵，每当我说话。

我最爱读伊利亚特。是的。
我不能准确发音，
但我什么时候要发音，

给谁？
难道是我的继父？
首先，他几乎不会说英语；

其次他完全可能
嘲笑或打我
即使我没有触怒他。

孤独，苦闷和恐惧
我的动机
火上浇油

我跪在地上因为他们感谢上帝。
杜甫，赞美诗，惠特曼，里尔克。
生活已经教会了我。
  
Learning To Read — by Franz Wright

If I had to look up every fifth or sixth word,
so what. I looked them up.
I had nowhere important to be.

My father was unavailable, and my mother
looked like she was about to break,
and not into blossom, every time I spoke.

My favourite was the Iliad. True,
I had trouble pronouncing the names,
but when was I going to pronounce them, and

to whom?
My stepfather maybe?
Number one, he could barely speak English;

two, he had sufficient intent
to smirk or knock me down
without any prompting from me.

Loneliness, boredom and terror
my motivation
fiercely fuelled.

I get down on my knees and thank God for them.
Du Fu, the Psalms, Whitman, Rilke.
Life has taught me.

《学习阅读》 林木译

如果每看五六个单词我就要翻字典，
那又怎样。我查找。
反正我无处可去。

见不到父亲，我母亲
像将要爆发，
不是开成花朵，每当我说话。

我最爱读伊利亚特。是的。
我不能准确发音，
但我什么时候要发音，

给谁？
难道是我的继父？
首先，他几乎不会说英语；

其次他完全可能
嘲笑或打我
即使我没有触怒他。

孤独，苦闷和恐惧
我的动机
火上浇油

我跪在地上因为他们感谢上帝。
杜甫，赞美诗，惠特曼，里尔克。
生活已经教会了我。
  
Learning To Read — by Franz Wright

If I had to look up every fifth or sixth word,
so what. I looked them up.
I had nowhere important to be.

My father was unavailable, and my mother
looked like she was about to break,
and not into blossom, every time I spoke.

My favourite was the Iliad. True,
I had trouble pronouncing the names,
but when was I going to pronounce them, and

to whom?
My stepfather maybe?
Number one, he could barely speak English;

two, he had sufficient intent
to smirk or knock me down
without any prompting from me.

Loneliness, boredom and terror
my motivation
fiercely fuelled.

I get down on my knees and thank God for them.
Du Fu, the Psalms, Whitman, Rilke.
Life has taught me.