四成英國(guó)人不喜歡或讀不懂莎翁作品

He may be the crowning jewel in Britain's cultural crown, with commemorative events to mark to the 400th anniversary of his death dominating museums, galleries, television and theatre for months.

莎士比亞也許是英國(guó)文化的瑰寶，連續(xù)好幾個(gè)月博物館、畫(huà)廊、電視和劇院都被莎士比亞逝世400周年的紀(jì)念活動(dòng)所占據(jù)。

But British people understand and like the works of William Shakespeare significantly less than those abroad, a survey has shown.

然而一項(xiàng)研究顯示，英國(guó)人對(duì)莎士比亞作品的了解和喜愛(ài)程度比國(guó)外的人少得多。

Four in ten Britons claim they do not think Shakespeare’s works are relevant to the modern day, simple enough to grasp or even enjoy, according to the study for the British Council.

英國(guó)文化協(xié)會(huì)委托開(kāi)展的這項(xiàng)研究稱(chēng)，四成英國(guó)人表示，他們認(rèn)為莎士比亞的作品和現(xiàn)代沒(méi)什么關(guān)聯(lián)，理解起來(lái)比較費(fèi)勁，更談不上喜愛(ài)。

The YouGov poll, commissioned to find the economic boost Shakespeare gives to Britain, found countries including India, Mexico, Brazil, Turkey, South Africa and China have significantly higher appreciation for the Bard than his British homeland.

YouGov受委托開(kāi)展這項(xiàng)調(diào)查的初衷是為了找出莎士比亞對(duì)英國(guó)經(jīng)濟(jì)的貢獻(xiàn)。調(diào)查發(fā)現(xiàn)，包括印度、墨西哥、巴西、土耳其、南非、中國(guó)在內(nèi)的國(guó)家的人們對(duì)莎士比亞的喜愛(ài)遠(yuǎn)遠(yuǎn)超過(guò)了莎翁的故鄉(xiāng)英國(guó)。

The report questioned 18,000 respondents in 15 countries, with 78 percent of those polled having experience of Shakespeare plays in some form.

這項(xiàng)研究調(diào)查了15個(gè)國(guó)家的1.8萬(wàn)人，其中有78%的受訪(fǎng)者曾觀看過(guò)某種形式的莎士比亞戲劇。

Overall, 76 percent said they liked his plays and sonnets, 69 percent understood them and felt they were still relevant.

總體來(lái)看，76%的受訪(fǎng)者稱(chēng)自己喜歡莎士比亞的戲劇和十四行詩(shī)，69%的人可以理解莎士比亞的作品并感到這些作品依然和時(shí)代相通。

In the UK, however, just 59 percent said they liked Shakespeare’s work, with a significant 34 percent choosing to disagree. It placed 11th out of the 15 countries surveyed in terms of making positive judgment about Shakespeare.

然而，在英國(guó)，只有59%的人表示自己喜歡莎士比亞的作品，多達(dá)34%的人表示不喜歡看莎翁作品。在給予莎士比亞正面評(píng)價(jià)方面，英國(guó)在受調(diào)查的15個(gè)國(guó)家當(dāng)中排名第11。

Just 19 percent of those outside the UK, many of whom will be reading or watching plays in translation, chose to dislike it.

在英國(guó)以外的其他國(guó)家，很多人都是閱讀莎翁作品的譯本或觀看翻譯成其他語(yǔ)言的莎翁戲劇，這部分人群中只有19%表示不喜歡莎翁作品，

Respondents from Germany showed strong dislike for Shakespeare, with just 44 percent saying they like it and 42 percent thinking it had any relevance.

德國(guó)的受訪(fǎng)者對(duì)莎翁作品表現(xiàn)出強(qiáng)烈的反感，只有44%的德國(guó)人稱(chēng)自己喜歡莎翁作品，只有42%的德國(guó)人認(rèn)為它們依然和時(shí)代相通。

Rosemary Hilhorst, director of Shakespeare Lives for the British Council, said: “Four hundred years after his death, Shakespeare’s work continues to play a vital role in educating and entertaining people around the world.

英國(guó)文化協(xié)會(huì)“永恒的莎士比亞”活動(dòng)主管蘿絲瑪麗•希爾霍斯特說(shuō)：“在莎士比亞去世400年后，他的作品繼續(xù)在教育和娛樂(lè)世界民眾方面發(fā)揮著重要作用。

“As well as bringing pleasure to millions of people, his works make a valuable contribution to the UK’s standing in the world and the economy.”

“在給無(wú)數(shù)民眾帶去快樂(lè)的同時(shí)，他的作品還給英國(guó)的世界地位和經(jīng)濟(jì)做出了寶貴的貢獻(xiàn)。”