第八十二回 · 叫聲妖怪 He Calls Them a Monster — Journey to the West

原文 Original text 繁體 Traditional Reader's edition

叫聲妖怪 He Calls Them a Monster

獃dāi子zi走zǒu近jìn前qián，叫jiào聲shēng：「妖yāo怪guài。」那nà怪guài聞wén言yán大dà怒nù，兩liǎng人rén互hù相xiāng說shuō道dào：「這zhè和hé尚shàng憊bèi懶lǎn，我wǒ們men又yòu不bù與yǔ他tā相xiāng識shí，平píng時shí又yòu沒méi有yǒu調tiáo得de嘴zuǐ慣guàn，他tā怎zěn麼me叫jiào我wǒ們men做zuò妖yāo怪guài？」那nà怪guài惱nǎo了le，掄lūn起qǐ擡tái水shuǐ的de杠gàng子zi，劈pī頭tóu就jiù打dǎ。呆dāi子zi走zǒu近jìn前qián，叫jiào声shēng：「妖yāo怪guài。」那nà怪guài闻wén言yán大dà怒nù，两liǎng人rén互hù相xiāng说shuō道dào：「这zhè和hé尚shàng惫bèi懒lǎn，我wǒ们men又yòu不bù与yǔ他tā相xiāng识shí，平píng时shí又yòu没méi有yǒu调tiáo得de嘴zuǐ惯guàn，他tā怎zěn么me叫jiào我wǒ们men做zuò妖yāo怪guài？」那nà怪guài恼nǎo了le，抡lūn起qǐ抬tái水shuǐ的de杠gàng子zi，劈pī头tóu就jiù打dǎ。

逐句解 Line by line

獃dāi子zi走zǒu近jìn前qián，叫jiào聲shēng：「妖yāo怪guài。」呆dāi子zi走zǒu近jìn前qián，叫jiào声shēng：「妖yāo怪guài。」

The Idiot walked up close and called out, "Monsters!"

Four characters of stage direction and then the single worst opening line in the chapter. He does not ask directions, he does not bow. He walks up to two strange women and shouts the word.

那nà怪guài聞wén言yán大dà怒nù，兩liǎng人rén互hù相xiāng說shuō道dào：「這zhè和hé尚shàng憊bèi懶lǎn，我wǒ們men又yòu不bù與yǔ他tā相xiāng識shí，平píng時shí又yòu沒méi有yǒu調tiáo得de嘴zuǐ慣guàn，他tā怎zěn麼me叫jiào我wǒ們men做zuò妖yāo怪guài？」那nà怪guài闻wén言yán大dà怒nù，两liǎng人rén互hù相xiāng说shuō道dào：「这zhè和hé尚shàng惫bèi懒lǎn，我wǒ们men又yòu不bù与yǔ他tā相xiāng识shí，平píng时shí又yòu没méi有yǒu调tiáo得de嘴zuǐ惯guàn，他tā怎zěn么me叫jiào我wǒ们men做zuò妖yāo怪guài？」

At that the fiends flew into a rage and said to one another, "What an insolent monk! We are no acquaintance of his, and we have never once traded banter with him — so what does he mean, calling us monsters?"

Their complaint is worth reading closely, because it is a complaint about manners rather than about accuracy. They do not deny being fiends. They object that a stranger has used a familiar word. 相識 is being on speaking terms; 調 is tiáo here, to banter or tease, not the diào of transferring a post. And in that phrase 得 is de, the light linking syllable that introduces a result, so the sense is teasing carried on until the mouth is used to it. Nobody, in short, has earned the right to talk to them like that.

那nà怪guài惱nǎo了le，掄lūn起qǐ擡tái水shuǐ的de杠gàng子zi，劈pī頭tóu就jiù打dǎ。那nà怪guài恼nǎo了le，抡lūn起qǐ抬tái水shuǐ的de杠gàng子zi，劈pī头tóu就jiù打dǎ。

The fiends lost their tempers, swung up the carrying-pole from the water buckets, and brought it down on his head.

The pole was over their shoulders a moment ago with full buckets on it. The comedy is in the economy of the thing: the weapon is simply the tool they were already holding, and 劈頭 means straight down onto the crown of the head.

總評 Commentary

This is a joke about register, and it survives translation better than most. Bajie uses the correct technical term and it lands as a slur. The equivalent would be walking up to two strangers and opening with an accurate but unforgivable label.

The fiends' logic is a small masterpiece of face culture. Their objection is not that the word is wrong but that the relationship does not license it. We are not friends, we have never joked together, therefore you may not speak to us that way. Pilgrim is about to make the same point at length, and he will make it about carpentry.

Note also that they hit him and he does nothing. He is armed — the rake is at his waist — and he takes three or four blows instead. That passivity is the chapter's running characterisation of Bajie, and it is about to become his complaint.