我要给阿Ｑ做正传，已经不止一两年了。
For at least a couple of years now, I've had it in the back of my mind to do a biography of Ah Q,
但一面要做，一面又往回想，这足见我不是一个“立言”⑵的人，因为从来不朽之笔，须传不朽之人，于是人以文传，文以人传――究竟谁靠谁传，渐渐的不甚了然起来，而终于归接到传阿Ｑ，仿佛思想里有鬼似的。
But while wanting to write I was in some trepidation too, which goes to show that I am not one of those who achieve glory by writing; for an immortal pen has always been required to record the deeds of an immortal man, the man becoming known to posterity through the writing and the writing known to posterity through the man ― until finally it is not clear who is making whom known.
But in the end, as though possessed by some fiend, I always came back to the idea of writing the story of Ah Q
然而要做这一篇速朽的文章，才下笔，便感到万分的困难了。
And yet no sooner had I taken up my pen than I became conscious of tremendous difficulties in writing this far-from-immortal work.
第一是文章的名目。
One.
The question of a title.
What kind of biography was it to be?
孔子曰，“名不正则言不顺”⑶。
As Confucius says: If a name is not right, the words will not ring true.”
传的名目很繁多：列传，自传，内传⑷，外传，别传，家传，小传……，而可惜都不合。
But there are so many!
Why, just for biographies alone there are enough titles hanging around to make yourhead swim: narrative biography, autobiography, private biography, public biography, supplementary biography, family biography, biographical sketch.
Trouble is -- not one of them fits.
“列传”么，这一篇并非和许多阔人排在“正史”⑸里；“自传”么，我又并非就是阿Ｑ。
“Official biography?” This account will obviously not be included with those of many eminent people in some authentic history. “Autobiography”?” But I am obviously not Ah Q.
说是“外传”，“内传”在那里呢？
Public biography?
Okay then, where's the private one?
倘用“内传”，阿Ｑ又决不是神仙。
If I were to call my account the stuff of legend, it could legitimately be objected that Ah-Q is no god. ^+1To 'unauthorized biography', I gave some thought: but where is the authorized version?”
“别传”呢，阿Ｑ实在未曾有大总统上谕宣付国史馆立“本传”⑹――虽说英国正史上并无“博徒列传”，而文豪迭更司⑺也做过《博徒别传》这一部书，但文豪则可，在我辈却不可。
“Supplementary biography?” But- no president has ever ordered the National Historical Institute to write a “standard life” of Ah Q.
It is true that although there are no “lives of gamblers” in authentic English history, the well-known author Conan Doyle nevertheless wrote Rodney Stone;1 but while this is permissible for a well?known author it is not permissible for such as I.
其次是“家传”，则我既不知与阿Ｑ是否同宗，也未曾受他子孙的拜托；或“小传”，则阿Ｑ又更无别的“大传”了。
Let us move swiftly on to genealogy: I know neither of any personal blood connection with Ah-Q nor of any request from his descendants to create such a document. 'Biographical sketch' again begs the question: where is the full-length version?”
总而言之，这一篇也便是“本传”，但从我的文章着想，因为文体卑下，是“引车卖浆者流”所用的话⑻，所以不敢僭称，便从不入三教九流的小说家⑼所谓“闲话休题言归正传”这一句套话里，取出“正传”两个字来，作为名目，即使与古人所撰《书法正传》⑽的“正传”字面上很相混，也顾不得了。
When you come right down to it, what I'm writing here is going to be the only standard biography of Ah Q you'll find anywhere.
Of course I don't dare forget my place and call it that, for the style is "vulgar" and the language I've cast it in is not the language of the classics but rather the "vile vernacular of mere rickshaw boys and peddlers. " 4 And so in the end I've taken my title from a phrase that's popular among the storytellers, those lowly souls who have always been beyond the pale of the Three Doctrines and Nine Schools.Storytellers often end a long digression with the cliche, "Enough of this idle chatter, let's get back to the real story." That's where I got my tide from.
And if "real story" in this context gets mixed up with the "real story" in that book left to us by the ancients, The Real Story of Calligraphy -- well, sorry, I just don't have the time to worry about all that.6
第二，立传的通例，开首大抵该是“某，字某，某地人也”，而我并不知道阿Ｑ姓什么。
The second difficulty confronting me was that a biography of this type should start off something like this: “So-and-so, whose other name was so-and-so, was a native of such-and-such a place”; but I don't really know what Ah Q's surname was.
有一回，他似乎是姓赵，但第二日便模糊了。
There was once a day when it seemed to be Zhao, but then the very next morning it wasn't all that clear anymore.
那是赵太爷的儿子进了秀才的时候，锣声镗镗的报到村里来，阿Ｑ正喝了两碗黄酒，便手舞足蹈的说，这于他也很光采，因为他和赵太爷原来是本家，细细的排起来他还比秀才长三辈呢。
That was the day Old Master Zhao's son passed the Budding Talent exam.With a clang-clang of gongs and all the usual pomp, the good news arrived in the village.As luck would have it, Ah Q had just downed a bowl of wine or two.
Soon as he heard the news, he danced for joy and told everyone what a great honor this was to him personally because he belonged to the same clan as Old Master Zhao.
As a matter of fact, the way Ah Q had it worked out, he even came out three notches above the Budding Talent in the clan's generational pecking order!
其时几个旁听人倒也肃然的有些起敬了。
At the time several bystanders even began to stand slightly in awe of Ah Q.
那知道第二天，地保便叫阿Ｑ到赵太爷家里去；太爷一见，满脸溅朱，喝道：“阿Ｑ，你这浑小子！(ZY)
The following day, the local constable summoned Ah-Q to the Zhaos'. 'You stupid bastard, Ah-Q!” the honourable Mr Zhao roared, his face blotching crimson at the sight of him.
你说我是你的本家么？”
"did you say you're a clansman of mine?"
赵太爷愈看愈生气了，抢进几步说：“你敢胡说！
The more he looked at him the angrier Mr. Zhao became.
Advancing menacingly a few steps he said, “How dare you talk such nonsense!
状元⒆不也是“第一个”么？
What was a Metropolitan Graduate?20 Number one―that's all.
“你算是什么东西”呢！？
“And who do you think you are?”
阿Ｑ以如是等等妙法克服怨敌之后，便愉快的跑到酒店里喝几碗酒，又和别人调笑一通，口角一通，又得了胜，愉快的回到土谷祠，(FJSM)放倒头睡着了。
Once Ah-Q's enemies had been trounced by such ingenious means, he would trot happily off to the tavern, down a few bowls of wine, crack a few jokes, start a few arguments and, victorious again, return happily to the Temple of Earth and Grain, where he would lay his head down and go straight to sleep.
假使有钱，他便去押牌宝⒇，一推人蹲在地面上，阿Ｑ即汗流满面的夹在这中间，声音他最响：“青龙四百！”
If he had money he would gamble.
A group of men would squat on the ground, Ah Q sandwiched in their midst, his face streaming with sweat; and his voice would shout the loudest: “Four hundred on the Green Dragon!”
“咳～～开～～啦！”
"Oh-kay, off with the cover and let's see which side has turned up!"