The Nigntingale and Rose

                              ---Oscar Wilde

Drawn by Charles Robin-son

“The musicians will sit in their gallery ,”said the young Student , “and play upon their stringed instruments, and my love will dance to the sound of the harp and violin.She will dance so lightly that her feet will not touch the floor, and the courtiers in their gay dresses will strong round her.But with me she will not dance,for I have no red rose to give her;”and he flung himself down on the grass,and buried his face in his hands,and wept.

乐师将在舞会上弹弄丝竹，我那爱人也将随着弦琴的音乐声翩翩起舞，神采飞扬，风华绝代，莲步都不曾着地似的。

for Love is wiser than Philosophy ,though he is wise,and mightier than Power ,though he is mighty .Flame-coloured are his wings ,and coloured like Diane is his body.His lips are sweet as honey ,and his breath is like frankincense.

因为哲理虽智，爱却比它更慧；权力虽雄，爱却比它更伟。焰火的色彩是爱的翅膀，烈火的颜色是爱的躯干，她的唇甜如蜜，她的气息香如乳。

“Look，look!”cried the tree , “the rose is finished now;”but the Nightingale made not answer,for she was lying dead in the long grass,with the thron in her heart.

那玫瑰树叫道：“看呀，看呀，这朵红玫瑰生成了！”

然而夜莺再也不能回答，她已躺在乱草丛中死去，那尖刺还插在她的心头。

奥斯卡·王尔德（Oscar Wilde）

他是爱尔兰剧作家、诗人、作家和智者。他是19世纪晚期发起美学运动的艺术团体中必不可少的一员。他年轻时就进入了都柏林三一学院，随后又申请并成功获得了马格戴伦学院以及牛津大学的奖学金。尽管王尔德崇尚天主教，他还是在那里成为了共济会会员。也正是在马格戴伦学院，王尔德开始我行我素，他阅读、写作、留长发、叛逆不羁。他把房子装修得精美奢华，几乎每天都在招待访客。

图下为本人

The Nigntingale and Rose

在马格戴伦的第三年，王尔德遇到了在审美运动中极具影响力的剧作家沃尔特·佩特（Walter Pater）。佩特帮助王尔德形成了独具一格的哲学系统，王尔德也在《身为艺术家的评论者》中称赞佩特。