sorted, sort sth/sb out, unsight, unsightly

Laam Lam

【Human Acts】

《素食者》(The Vegetarian) 獲得布克國際獎(Man Booker International Prize)後，作者韓江(Han Kang)驟然曝光於國際文壇，消息同見於中港台媒體。相關評論和介紹一時湧現，譯者Deborah Smith(DS)的地位也同時提升，共享榮譽，與華文譯者待遇截然不同。到底是不是李敏鎬的長腿帶領韓國跨進國際，還是因為Samsung號令八方使韓國各方面都引人注目已無所謂。《素食者》中對慾望的反芻和反抗，雖無邏輯可言，帶來的紛擾竟也揮之不去，尤其是人對於自身失去控制權的恐懼和周遭的關心或慾望皆可成為剝奪他人或動物生存方式的名義，真讓人「個心離一離」。小說情節或是偶有誇張，嘩眾取寵；然韓江和DS另一部作品Human Acts（《少年歸來》）正好應驗了 ”the first as tragedy, then as farce"。1980年的「光州事件」造成過千人死傷（36年後的今天傷亡數字仍未確定）。雖得官方平反，但「轉型正義」不見得只豎立一個紀念碑就能成事。Human Acts中的7個敘述者（我認為作者也算一員），或有親友遇害，或是直接受害，各人站在不同時間點上述說所聞，叩問的是到底時間能不能撫平傷口？比起《素食者》，這部小說有更怪誕的情節，諸如少年鬼魂重回人間，目睹自己的軀體被埋於屍群當中茫然失措。同時也有母親回憶喪子幼時吃奶的動人情節：”My Dong-ho, I was thirty when I had you……My left breast would still swell with milk, of course, but because they (brothers) refused to suckle from it, it hardened in a way that was completely different to the soft right breast. It was unsightly, a cross I had to bear for several years. But with you, everything was different. You latched onto the left breast of your own free will, your tiny mouth pulling at that deformed nipple with an astonishing gentleness. And so both breasts developed identical soft contours.”

如果我是布克獎的評審，也許我會把獎頒給這本書，但我只是個讀者。

有關Human Acts書名的翻譯考慮，詳見譯者DS的訪問:http://www.asymptotejournal.com/critic…/han-kang-human-acts/

韓江訪問: http://www.worldliteraturetoday.org/…/violence-and-being-hu…

The Independent

Next holiday, sorted

France just opened a wine theme park

INDY100.INDEPENDENT.CO.UK

Opinion: Cyprus is Starting to Get its House in Order

With Cypriot leaders launching reunification talks DW's Peter Philipp
welcomes the fact that the eastern Mediterranean island is finally sorting
its problems out itself.

The DW-WORLD Article
http://newsletter.dw-world.de/re?l=evz742I44va89pI1

The One Man Show Bringing Culture to Outskirts of Leipzig

Großansicht des Bildes mit der Bildunterschrift: Leipzig has a lot of culture to offer -- just not in Grünau. Until now, that is.

The eastern German city of Leipzig has a reputation for culture – that includes the renowned Leipzig school of painters, and the city also boasts the famous Gewandhaus Concert Hall. But once you leave the modern city center, and head into the outskirts like Leipzig Grünau, there's not much culture to be found.

Within the last 15 years, nearly half of the previous occupants have chosen to leave Grünau -- what’s now become an unsightly area with a bad reputation. But more than 40,000 people still live there – and a lot of them are very young: 4000 of them are under 20. Many come from poor families, their parents are unemployed, and they themselves haven’t been able to find a job or apprentices. Most young people seem to have lost hope they’ll ever make it out of the deprived background.

sorted 

Pronunciation: /ˈsɔːtɪd/ 

ADJECTIVE

British informal

1Organized, arranged, or dealt with satisfactorily:‘And your social commitments?’ ‘They’re well sorted’he’s working on that old car he’s been trying to get sorted

More example sentences

1.1(Of a person) confident, organized, and emotionally well balanced:after a while, you realize they’re not as sorted as they seema pretty sorted kind of bloke

More example sentences

1.2(Of a person) prepared for or provided with something (especially illegal drugs):Are you sorted? This is good stuff—it’ll keep you going all night

Unsight

a.

Doing or done without sight; not seeing or examining. [Colloq.]

Unsight unseen, a colloquial phrase, denoting unseeing unseen, or unseen repeated; as, to buy a thing unsight unseen, that is, without seeing it.

For to subscribe, unsight, unseen,
To a new church discipline.

Hudibras.

There was a great confluence of chapmen, that resorted from every part, with a design to purchase, which they were to do «unsight unseen.»

Spectator.

unsightly 

Pronunciation: /ʌnˈsʌɪtli/ 

ADJECTIVE

Unpleasant to look at; ugly:an unsightly rubbish tip

sort sth/sb out (DEAL WITH) phrasal verb [M]
to deal satisfactorily or successfully with a problem, a situation, or a person who is having difficulties:
We've sorted out the computer system's initial problems.
[+ question word] It'll be difficult to sort out how much each person owes.
Most of the job involves sorting customers out who have queries.