问答题
So many of the productions currently to be seen on the London stage are concerned with the more violent aspects of life that it is surprising to meet a play about ordinary people caught up in ordinary events. Thomas Sackville"s the Visitor is just such a play—at least, on the surface. It seems to stand well outside the mainstream of recent British drama. In fact the surface is so bland that attention is constantly focused on the care with which the play has been put together, and the clarity with which its argument develops; it seems natural to discuss it in terms of the notion of "the well-wrought play".
The story is about an unremarkable family evening in middle-class suburbia. The husband and wife have invited a friend to dinner. The friend turns up in due course and they talk about their respective lives and interests. During this conversation, in which the author shows a remarkable talent for writing dialogue which is entertaining and witty without being so sparkling as to draw too much attention to itself; the characters are carefully fleshed out and provided with a set of credible—if unremarkable—motives. Through innumerable delicate touches in the writing they emerge: pleasant, humorous, ordinary, and ineffectual. And if they are never made vibrantly alive in terms of the real world, one feels that this is deliberate; that the author is content to give them a theatrical existence of their own, and leave it at that.
问答题
So many of the productions currently to be seen on the London stage are concerned with the more violent aspects of life that is surprising to meet a play about ordinary people caught up in ordinary events.
【正确答案】
【答案解析】如今，伦敦舞台上上演的戏剧多描写生活中的暴力冲突。于是，看到一部平凡人、平凡事的戏剧着实令人感到惊奇。
或：当下在伦敦舞台上看到的演出，有太多的戏关注于生活中的暴力冲突，因此遇上一出在平凡事情中演绎平凡人的戏剧，也就令人感到惊奇。
[解析] 由so...that...引导的因果关系复合句，在前半个分句中含有被动语态to be seen,第二个分句内嵌一形式主语it引导的句子，故在译成汉语时要注意调整语序。可先通过拆分句子，然后通过添加表示结果的关系词进行衔接。
问答题
Thomas Sackville"s the Visitor is just such a play—at least, on the surface. It seems to stand well outside the mainstream of recent British drama.
【正确答案】
【答案解析】托马斯·萨克维尔写的《来客》就是这样一部戏，至少表面上是这样。这部戏看来与眼下英国戏剧的主流格格不入。
[解析] 译文增加了“的确如此”使语义表达更加清晰；原文中的stand well outside短语的引申义为“偏离，不符合……的标准”，可译成“与……相距甚远”。
问答题
In fact the surface is so bland that attention is constantly focused on the care with which the play has been put together, and the clarity with which its argument develops; it seems natural to discuss it in terms of the notion of "the well-wrought play".
【正确答案】
【答案解析】事实上，该戏看上去平淡无奇，寡然无味，这倒使观众一直去关注戏剧的情节是如何精心构思出来的，其主旨是如何清晰地传达出来的。所以，说这部戏“精雕细琢，独具匠心”是合乎情理的。
[解析] so...that主从结构说明两句之间的因果关系。同时在表示结果的分句中又含两个定语从句，with which the play has been put together用来修饰the care，with which its argument develops修饰the clarity，如切分为四句形式上会过于松散，因此可通过修饰语前置进行处理。此外，还要注意指代词it的翻译，要会识别它是形式主语还是指示代词。若是代词，可把指代内容还原。...and the clarity with which its(该剧作的)argument develops；it(形式主语)seems natural to discuss it(指代该剧)in terms of the notion of "the well-wrought play"。
问答题
The story is about an unremarkable family evening in middle-class suburbia. The husband and wife have invited a friend to dinner. The friend turns up in due course and they talk about their respective lives and interests.
问答题
During this conversation, in which the author shows a remarkable talent for writing dialogue which is entertaining and witty without being so sparkling as to draw too much attention to itself.
问答题
Through innumerable delicate touches in the writing they emerge: pleasant, humorous, ordinary, and ineffectual.
【正确答案】
【答案解析】通过细致的刻画，随和亲切、幽默风趣、平凡而一事无成的形象展现在观众面前。
[解析] 原句使用了四个并列形容词描绘各种人物，但如逐字译会带有翻译腔，势必破坏原文的效果。汉语中言简意赅的四字结构是解决这类棘手语句的手段之一，再如：
With speed, consistency, integrity and above all desire, Lewis defied not only the stop watch but also the march of time.刘易斯速度惊人，一如既往，诚实正直，尤其是雄心勃勃，他不仅仅挑战速度，而且挑战岁月。
His consistent good humor, quiet gratitude, Perceptivity, and sincerity set an Olympic standard of love that I continue to reach (strive) for.他幽默风趣，心存感激，知觉敏锐，为人真诚，而且始终如一，他树立了奥林匹克般爱的丰碑，我一直在为此目标而努力。
问答题
And if they are never made vibrantly alive in terms of the real world, one feels that this is deliberate; that the author is content to give them a theatrical existence of their own, and leave it at that.