Book Review;Queen Elizabeth II

　　書評;伊麗莎白二世

　　Royal bow;Why the queen has to be seen to bebelieved?

　　向女王致敬;女王為什么要與眾不同?

　　The Real Elizabeth: An Intimate Portrait of QueenElizabeth II. By Andrew Marr.

　　《真實的伊麗莎白：近觀伊麗莎白二世》安德魯馬爾著。

　　Queen Elizabeth II: Her Life in Our Times. By SarahBradford.

　　《伊麗莎白二世：她生活在我們這一代》莎拉布萊德福德著。

　　A Brief Life of the Queen. By Robert Lacey.

　　《女王一生簡觀》羅伯特拉西著。

　　Our Queen. By Robert Hardman.

　　《我們的女王》羅伯特哈德曼著。

　　Elizabeth the Queen: The Life of a Modern Monarch. By Sally Bedell Smith.

　　《伊麗莎白女王：一位現(xiàn)代君主的一生》莎莉貝德爾史密斯著。

　　Being on show is a serious business for Queen Elizabeth II who acceded to the throne 60years ago next month. On royal tours and walkabouts, she is careful to choose bright coloursand small-brimmed hats, glides through crowds like a liner and seemingly never tires. Ohlook! She s keeled over again, the queen once noted at a stifling-hot palace reception,spotting her then prime minister, Margaret Thatcher, pale and slumped in a chair.

　　對于伊麗莎白二世來說，出席公眾場合是一項非常重要的任務(wù)，下個月就是她登基六十周年的紀念了。在參加皇室的出訪和視察時,她小心翼翼地選擇明亮色調(diào)的衣服和窄檐禮帽，優(yōu)雅地走過人群，像一艘遠洋油輪靜靜駛過，看上去永遠都不知疲倦。哦! 看，她又跌倒了在一次皇宮的招待宴會上，室內(nèi)的溫度令人窒息，女王眼尖地發(fā)現(xiàn)了當時的首相撒切爾夫人臉色慘白，跌落于椅子中。

　　On several occasions she has been urged to retreat behind more obtrusive layers ofsecurity. Each time she has refused with something between a joke and a motto for her sixdecades on the throne, telling aides: I have to be seen to be believed.

　　有許多次，女王被勸說退居二線，每一次，她都以一個介于玩笑和座右銘似的話來描述她在位的六十年，她如此告訴副官：我是如此與眾不同。

　　Yet for the 85-year-old monarch, pictured above with Prince Charles shortly before hercoronation, belief requires distance, too. Younger generations of royals have kissed and told.But the queen has never given an interview. Though some of her 12 British prime ministerswere convinced they forged a special bond during weekly audiences with their sovereign,her personal politics remain unknown.

　　上面圖片中和查爾斯王子的合照拍攝于女王加冕后不久。然而，對于八十五歲的女王來說，信仰也是需要距離的。皇室里年輕的一代受到寵愛，都被如此教育著。但是女王自己從來都不接受任何采訪。英國的十二任首相都認為自己是民眾和女王之間的特殊紐帶，女王對政治的看法仍不為大眾所知。

　　Over the years, various aristocrats, cousins and horse-racing grandees have been more orless plausibly identified as her friends. Even among such intimates, boundaries areobserved, for fear of crossing an unseen line and triggering a stare of blank, silent rebuke. She is neveryou knownot the Queen, advises an unnamed friend, quoted in the openinglines of a new biography by the BBC s senior political interviewer, Andrew Marr.

　　許多年來，各種貴族，皇親國戚，參加賽馬的顯貴們都或多或少地證實了哪些為女王的朋友。即使在和這些密友相處的過程中，也有界線需要遵守，朋友們害怕越過無形的界線會使女王受驚，從而招致無聲的指責。她從來都不是-你知道的-不是女王一位不愿透漏姓名的朋友說道，這句話被BBC資深政治記者安德魯 馬爾所引用，寫在了關(guān)于伊麗莎白二世的一本新傳記的首頁幾行。

　　Yet as a constitutional monarch, ruling with the tacit consent of the majority, she is notthe only judge of the trade-off between necessary display and indispensable discretion.The public have a say as well. Some of the queen s closest brushes with disaster haveinvolved a lack of visibility, most painfully in 1997 when she remained in Scotland with theroyal family after the death of Diana, Princess of Wales. She only returned to London afterpleas from her new, young prime minister, Tony Blair .

　　作為一名立憲制君主，女王和大眾保持著一致。她不僅僅要為自己在公眾面前必要的露面負責，也要不失謹慎小心。因為公眾也有發(fā)言權(quán)。在一些事情上，女王對災(zāi)禍的處理還缺乏透明度，最為深痛的是在1997年，當戴安娜--威爾士王妃去世時，女王仍留在蘇格蘭和皇室成員們在一起。在當時新上任的年輕的首相托尼布萊爾的懇請下，女王才回到了倫敦。

　　The double nature of the queenan unusually private woman with extraordinary publicdutiesposes a test for all who try to write about her. Including Mr Marr s book, five newbiographies have been prepared for 2023, the queen s diamond jubilee year. The authorsboast of watching the queen at work, interviewing officials from the royal household and oftrawling through archives. They quote family members, friends and people with a claim toknow the queen.

　　女王的雙重特性一個非常低調(diào)的女子肩負著重大的公共責任對于所有想描寫她的人都是一個難題。2023年，在女王登基60周年之際，紀念包括馬爾這本書在內(nèi)的五本新傳記都將出版。作者們吹噓曾看過女王辦公的樣子，采訪了皇室家族的成員們，翻閱無數(shù)文獻資料。他們引用了皇室家族成員，朋友和一些自稱認識女王的人的話。

　　In the process, all five biographers wrestle with the question neatly framed by their subjectherself: if to see the queen is to believe in her, what vantage point allows the mostauthentic experience of faith? Which queen is the most real, the private woman or thepublic figure? Each offers a different answer.

　　在此過程中，五本傳記都在試圖回答一個問題，這個問題都和女王有關(guān)：如果要信任我們所看到的女王，那么我們應(yīng)站在什么角度來獲得這些最為真實的信任?哪一個女王是最真實的?那個低調(diào)的女子還是那個公共人物?每個人心中都有不同的答案。

　　Two of the authors, Sarah Bradford and Robert Lacey, are veteran royal historians, whose2023 biographies draw on previously published work. With the frankness of an old pro, atone point Ms Bradford names different schools of royal-watching. There is the work of theQueen genre, as pioneered by the 1969 television film Royal Family, which showed themonarch working through boxes of state papers, preparing state visits or relaxing with herfamily. Alas, she explains, once the public had seen inside royal drawing rooms, they soonwanted to peer into the bedroom. Thus arose the royal soap opera genre. Ms Bradfordtakes readers on a brisk, assured canter through the familiar landmarks of both genres,adding a dose of history as she goes. Mr Lacey, who has been writing about the queen fornearly 40 years, advertises his slim volume as a pleasant afternoon s reading, which it isnot. At once knowledgeable and jaundiced, Mr Lacey seems slightly sick of his royalsubjects, as do the unnamed courtiers and insiders whom he quotes.

　　這其中的兩個作者，沙拉布拉德福德和羅伯特拉西都是經(jīng)驗豐富的皇家歷史學家，他們在2023年出版的作品援引了之前已經(jīng)出版著作的內(nèi)容。布拉德福德女士坦白她是支持皇室的，她曾經(jīng)將幾種關(guān)注皇室的不同行為進行了分類。有一種是女王的工作派別，是由1969年電視節(jié)目皇室家族開啟，展現(xiàn)女王伏案工作的場景，桌上堆滿了國務(wù)文件，準備國事訪問以及和家人休閑娛樂。啊，她解釋道，一旦公眾看到了皇家的畫室，他們會好奇臥室是什么樣子。因此出現(xiàn)了 皇室肥皂劇流派。布拉德福德女士引入一部分歷史事實，以輕松的筆調(diào)帶領(lǐng)讀者信步于這兩派熟知的情節(jié)之間。拉西曾用了將近40年的時間來寫女王，他將自己單薄的一本書定義為午后休閑閱讀，但事實上并非如此。拉西博學多才，對女王懷有偏見，他似乎有些反感這些皇室成員，在他書中一些沒有提及姓名的官員和圈內(nèi)人也此表示了同感。

　　Robert Hardman, a royal correspondent for the Daily Mail, offers a convincing tour of theBritish monarchy as an institution, apeing the vantage point of the fly-on-the-walldocumentary. His access produces an interview with Prince William and several lesserscoopsa rarity in the world of royal biography, in which the same anecdotes turn up ineach book. But access has its limitations. The young prince is more loyal than revelatoryabout his grandmother, explaining that her gravitas awes even her family, that she offersgood advice and was so excited by her 2011 state visit to Ireland. Some lesser sourcesappear to be quoted largely to thank them for their time.

　　羅伯特哈德曼是《每日郵報》的一名王室事務(wù)記者，他模仿電視真人秀的紀實特點，展現(xiàn)了英國女王的生活中很重要的部分。他有機會接觸到皇室成員，在此過程中，他訪問了威廉王子，采訪幾個次要人物，獲取了一些獨家資訊這在描寫皇室的傳記中是非常稀有的材料，以前的傳記中總是出現(xiàn)千篇一律的趣聞軼事。但是與皇室成員的接觸也是有其限制之處。年輕的王子對他的祖母十分忠誠，并不會透露女王的事情，他解釋道，祖母的莊重使她整個家族深感敬畏，女王也常常提出意見，2011年出訪愛爾蘭使她感到很興奮。一些次要人物在接受采訪中大都表示生正逢時的幸運。

　　Sally Bedell Smith, an American society biographer, offers her readers the illusion ofknowing the queen as a friend. Ms Bedell Smith brightly describes her own brief chats withthe monarch at a Washington garden party and a London reception, before sprinkling heraccount with minute indiscretions from other people who have met her. The elder PresidentBush reveals that Elizabeth II is rather formal but not standoffish. A witness describeshow a puppy defecated in front of the queen during a visit to a Kentucky horse-breeder,breaking the ice. Nancy Reagan recalls a breakfast with the queen, Prince Philip and PrinceCharles at Windsor Castle; she was surprised that everyone poured their own cereal fromthe box. It is reported that the queen likes a travel rug round her knees and used to wear ahard hat when watching stallions cover her mares . This footling stuff is only of any interest because it is aboutthe queen. Butfatallythose same domestic details have nothing to do with why ElizabethII, as queen, is interesting.

　　美國的社會傳記作家莎莉貝德爾史密斯向讀者描述了女王作為朋友的一面。貝德爾史密斯女士生動地記敘了她在華盛頓一個花園派對和在倫敦的一次招待會上同女王簡短的談話，也寫到了一些遇見女王的人的輕率之舉動。老布什總統(tǒng)透露，伊麗莎白二世非常遵守禮節(jié)但又不冷淡。一個目擊者描述，在女王去肯塔基州一戶養(yǎng)馬人家時，一只小狗當著女王的大便，這打破了沉默的氣氛。南希里根回憶：有一次和女王，菲利普親王以及查爾斯王子在溫莎城堡里共進早餐，當她看到在座的每個人都自己從一個大盒子里倒出吃的食物，她很驚訝。據(jù)報道，女王喜歡在膝蓋上裹一條毯子，在看她的種馬和母馬交配時喜歡戴一頂安全帽。這些無足輕重的事情一點都不有趣，僅僅因為它們和女王有關(guān)。但不幸的是，這些家庭生活的細節(jié)和作為女王的伊麗莎白二世是否有趣一點關(guān)系都沒有。

　　Mr Marr, a former political editor of the BBC and author of some shrewd books on modernBritain, sets himself a more ambitious task: to explain what the queen s role and positiontell us about her subjects. It is an admiring portrait, of an unfashionably dutiful monarchwho in her weekly audiences offers prime ministers what he calls a kind of highertherapya chance to share anxieties or explanations which will never leak, with someonewho has read almost every state secret of the past 60 years .He describes the queen and her strong sense of vocation, as a monarch God-called togive her life to her people as a sacrifice. Only by understanding that calling, he writes, canthe queen be understood.

　　馬爾以前是英國廣播公司的一位政治編輯，曾寫過幾本關(guān)于現(xiàn)代英國的書，很有見地。現(xiàn)在他給自己定下了一個甚為龐大的目標：要解釋清楚女王的角色和位置，告訴我們她的民眾的看法。這是一本令人欽佩的傳記，它記述了一位守舊、盡職的女王每周會見首相時提供的 高級療法用馬爾的話來說這是首相和女王分擔焦慮、共謀計策的時刻，這些談話的內(nèi)容永遠不會泄露出去。在過去的六十年，女王幾乎知曉所有的國家機密。在書中，馬爾描述了女王和她強烈的使命感：女王是受到了上帝召喚，要將自己的生命獻給民眾。只有理解了這種召喚，才能理解女王馬爾如此寫到。

　　In perhaps a claim too far, Mr Marr emphasises the comfort offered by the queen as asymbol of the continuing British state. By representing those who did not vote for thecurrent government or did not vote at all, she strengthens democracy, he suggests. It is aclever thought, but may overstate the degree to which most Britons suffer fromconstitutional angst.

　　馬爾強調(diào)了女王作為大英帝國延續(xù)的標志給人們帶來的慰藉，這一點可能說的有些過頭了。為了那些反對現(xiàn)任政府和那些根本沒有投票的人，女王要推進民主。這個想法非常明智，但是這過度夸大了大多數(shù)英國人對現(xiàn)行體制的擔心。

　　But a symbol she certainly is. And in modern Britaina restless, exhibitionist placeMrMarr s Queen Elizabeth stands out for her discretion, and for understanding that symbolsare better off keeping mostly quiet. There is a lesson there for her heir, the Prince of Wales,Mr Marr suggests sharply.

　　但是女王肯定是一個標志。在現(xiàn)代英國處于一個焦躁不安，要出風頭的位置馬爾筆下的伊麗莎白二世以她的謹慎而名，也深知作為標志性的人物最好保持沉默。馬爾毫不留情的指出，對于她的繼承人--威爾士親王來說，還有許多經(jīng)驗需要學習。

　　Mr Marr palpably likes the queen, whether for touring the country to greet and thank peoplemostly ignored by London power brokers, or for relaxing when her work is done with aglass of something cheerful. Yet liking is not really the point. In Mr Marr s words, there isonly a little space, though an interesting space, between the queen and the woman wholives her life. Her calling gives her meaning. She is what she does.

　　能感覺的出來，馬爾是欣賞女王的。不論是出訪全國會見問候被倫敦權(quán)勢掮客忽略的人們，還是完成很滿意的工作 之后的放松。然而喜好無關(guān)緊要。用馬爾的話來說，在女王和過普通生活的女子之間只有一點點的距離，盡管這個距離很有趣。女王應(yīng)有的使命感賦予了她意義。女王的言行舉止即代表了女王。

　　Mr Marr s sober conclusion feels right. To adapt the queen s one-liner: for all that thespectacle and unattainable glamour of royalty still fascinates , forBritain s jubilee monarch the show is a means to an end. Being seen is about being believed.

　　馬爾發(fā)人深省的結(jié)論可能是正確的。為了改編了女王一脈相承的生活：所有的規(guī)模宏大的慶典和難以企及的皇室魅力仍然散發(fā)著強大的吸引力，對于已經(jīng)登基了六十周年的英國女王來說這場秀可能是一個結(jié)束。所見即所信。

　　Book Review;Queen Elizabeth II

　　書評;伊麗莎白二世

　　Royal bow;Why the queen has to be seen to bebelieved?

　　向女王致敬;女王為什么要與眾不同?

　　The Real Elizabeth: An Intimate Portrait of QueenElizabeth II. By Andrew Marr.

　　《真實的伊麗莎白：近觀伊麗莎白二世》安德魯馬爾著。

　　Queen Elizabeth II: Her Life in Our Times. By SarahBradford.

　　《伊麗莎白二世：她生活在我們這一代》莎拉布萊德福德著。

　　A Brief Life of the Queen. By Robert Lacey.

　　《女王一生簡觀》羅伯特拉西著。

　　Our Queen. By Robert Hardman.

　　《我們的女王》羅伯特哈德曼著。

　　Elizabeth the Queen: The Life of a Modern Monarch. By Sally Bedell Smith.

　　《伊麗莎白女王：一位現(xiàn)代君主的一生》莎莉貝德爾史密斯著。

　　Being on show is a serious business for Queen Elizabeth II who acceded to the throne 60years ago next month. On royal tours and walkabouts, she is careful to choose bright coloursand small-brimmed hats, glides through crowds like a liner and seemingly never tires. Ohlook! She s keeled over again, the queen once noted at a stifling-hot palace reception,spotting her then prime minister, Margaret Thatcher, pale and slumped in a chair.

　　對于伊麗莎白二世來說，出席公眾場合是一項非常重要的任務(wù)，下個月就是她登基六十周年的紀念了。在參加皇室的出訪和視察時,她小心翼翼地選擇明亮色調(diào)的衣服和窄檐禮帽，優(yōu)雅地走過人群，像一艘遠洋油輪靜靜駛過，看上去永遠都不知疲倦。哦! 看，她又跌倒了在一次皇宮的招待宴會上，室內(nèi)的溫度令人窒息，女王眼尖地發(fā)現(xiàn)了當時的首相撒切爾夫人臉色慘白，跌落于椅子中。

　　On several occasions she has been urged to retreat behind more obtrusive layers ofsecurity. Each time she has refused with something between a joke and a motto for her sixdecades on the throne, telling aides: I have to be seen to be believed.

　　有許多次，女王被勸說退居二線，每一次，她都以一個介于玩笑和座右銘似的話來描述她在位的六十年，她如此告訴副官：我是如此與眾不同。

　　Yet for the 85-year-old monarch, pictured above with Prince Charles shortly before hercoronation, belief requires distance, too. Younger generations of royals have kissed and told.But the queen has never given an interview. Though some of her 12 British prime ministerswere convinced they forged a special bond during weekly audiences with their sovereign,her personal politics remain unknown.

　　上面圖片中和查爾斯王子的合照拍攝于女王加冕后不久。然而，對于八十五歲的女王來說，信仰也是需要距離的。皇室里年輕的一代受到寵愛，都被如此教育著。但是女王自己從來都不接受任何采訪。英國的十二任首相都認為自己是民眾和女王之間的特殊紐帶，女王對政治的看法仍不為大眾所知。

　　Over the years, various aristocrats, cousins and horse-racing grandees have been more orless plausibly identified as her friends. Even among such intimates, boundaries areobserved, for fear of crossing an unseen line and triggering a stare of blank, silent rebuke. She is neveryou knownot the Queen, advises an unnamed friend, quoted in the openinglines of a new biography by the BBC s senior political interviewer, Andrew Marr.

　　許多年來，各種貴族，皇親國戚，參加賽馬的顯貴們都或多或少地證實了哪些為女王的朋友。即使在和這些密友相處的過程中，也有界線需要遵守，朋友們害怕越過無形的界線會使女王受驚，從而招致無聲的指責。她從來都不是-你知道的-不是女王一位不愿透漏姓名的朋友說道，這句話被BBC資深政治記者安德魯 馬爾所引用，寫在了關(guān)于伊麗莎白二世的一本新傳記的首頁幾行。

　　Yet as a constitutional monarch, ruling with the tacit consent of the majority, she is notthe only judge of the trade-off between necessary display and indispensable discretion.The public have a say as well. Some of the queen s closest brushes with disaster haveinvolved a lack of visibility, most painfully in 1997 when she remained in Scotland with theroyal family after the death of Diana, Princess of Wales. She only returned to London afterpleas from her new, young prime minister, Tony Blair .

　　作為一名立憲制君主，女王和大眾保持著一致。她不僅僅要為自己在公眾面前必要的露面負責，也要不失謹慎小心。因為公眾也有發(fā)言權(quán)。在一些事情上，女王對災(zāi)禍的處理還缺乏透明度，最為深痛的是在1997年，當戴安娜--威爾士王妃去世時，女王仍留在蘇格蘭和皇室成員們在一起。在當時新上任的年輕的首相托尼布萊爾的懇請下，女王才回到了倫敦。

　　The double nature of the queenan unusually private woman with extraordinary publicdutiesposes a test for all who try to write about her. Including Mr Marr s book, five newbiographies have been prepared for 2023, the queen s diamond jubilee year. The authorsboast of watching the queen at work, interviewing officials from the royal household and oftrawling through archives. They quote family members, friends and people with a claim toknow the queen.

　　女王的雙重特性一個非常低調(diào)的女子肩負著重大的公共責任對于所有想描寫她的人都是一個難題。2023年，在女王登基60周年之際，紀念包括馬爾這本書在內(nèi)的五本新傳記都將出版。作者們吹噓曾看過女王辦公的樣子，采訪了皇室家族的成員們，翻閱無數(shù)文獻資料。他們引用了皇室家族成員，朋友和一些自稱認識女王的人的話。

　　In the process, all five biographers wrestle with the question neatly framed by their subjectherself: if to see the queen is to believe in her, what vantage point allows the mostauthentic experience of faith? Which queen is the most real, the private woman or thepublic figure? Each offers a different answer.

　　在此過程中，五本傳記都在試圖回答一個問題，這個問題都和女王有關(guān)：如果要信任我們所看到的女王，那么我們應(yīng)站在什么角度來獲得這些最為真實的信任?哪一個女王是最真實的?那個低調(diào)的女子還是那個公共人物?每個人心中都有不同的答案。

　　Two of the authors, Sarah Bradford and Robert Lacey, are veteran royal historians, whose2023 biographies draw on previously published work. With the frankness of an old pro, atone point Ms Bradford names different schools of royal-watching. There is the work of theQueen genre, as pioneered by the 1969 television film Royal Family, which showed themonarch working through boxes of state papers, preparing state visits or relaxing with herfamily. Alas, she explains, once the public had seen inside royal drawing rooms, they soonwanted to peer into the bedroom. Thus arose the royal soap opera genre. Ms Bradfordtakes readers on a brisk, assured canter through the familiar landmarks of both genres,adding a dose of history as she goes. Mr Lacey, who has been writing about the queen fornearly 40 years, advertises his slim volume as a pleasant afternoon s reading, which it isnot. At once knowledgeable and jaundiced, Mr Lacey seems slightly sick of his royalsubjects, as do the unnamed courtiers and insiders whom he quotes.

　　這其中的兩個作者，沙拉布拉德福德和羅伯特拉西都是經(jīng)驗豐富的皇家歷史學家，他們在2023年出版的作品援引了之前已經(jīng)出版著作的內(nèi)容。布拉德福德女士坦白她是支持皇室的，她曾經(jīng)將幾種關(guān)注皇室的不同行為進行了分類。有一種是女王的工作派別，是由1969年電視節(jié)目皇室家族開啟，展現(xiàn)女王伏案工作的場景，桌上堆滿了國務(wù)文件，準備國事訪問以及和家人休閑娛樂。啊，她解釋道，一旦公眾看到了皇家的畫室，他們會好奇臥室是什么樣子。因此出現(xiàn)了 皇室肥皂劇流派。布拉德福德女士引入一部分歷史事實，以輕松的筆調(diào)帶領(lǐng)讀者信步于這兩派熟知的情節(jié)之間。拉西曾用了將近40年的時間來寫女王，他將自己單薄的一本書定義為午后休閑閱讀，但事實上并非如此。拉西博學多才，對女王懷有偏見，他似乎有些反感這些皇室成員，在他書中一些沒有提及姓名的官員和圈內(nèi)人也此表示了同感。

　　Robert Hardman, a royal correspondent for the Daily Mail, offers a convincing tour of theBritish monarchy as an institution, apeing the vantage point of the fly-on-the-walldocumentary. His access produces an interview with Prince William and several lesserscoopsa rarity in the world of royal biography, in which the same anecdotes turn up ineach book. But access has its limitations. The young prince is more loyal than revelatoryabout his grandmother, explaining that her gravitas awes even her family, that she offersgood advice and was so excited by her 2011 state visit to Ireland. Some lesser sourcesappear to be quoted largely to thank them for their time.

　　羅伯特哈德曼是《每日郵報》的一名王室事務(wù)記者，他模仿電視真人秀的紀實特點，展現(xiàn)了英國女王的生活中很重要的部分。他有機會接觸到皇室成員，在此過程中，他訪問了威廉王子，采訪幾個次要人物，獲取了一些獨家資訊這在描寫皇室的傳記中是非常稀有的材料，以前的傳記中總是出現(xiàn)千篇一律的趣聞軼事。但是與皇室成員的接觸也是有其限制之處。年輕的王子對他的祖母十分忠誠，并不會透露女王的事情，他解釋道，祖母的莊重使她整個家族深感敬畏，女王也常常提出意見，2011年出訪愛爾蘭使她感到很興奮。一些次要人物在接受采訪中大都表示生正逢時的幸運。

　　Sally Bedell Smith, an American society biographer, offers her readers the illusion ofknowing the queen as a friend. Ms Bedell Smith brightly describes her own brief chats withthe monarch at a Washington garden party and a London reception, before sprinkling heraccount with minute indiscretions from other people who have met her. The elder PresidentBush reveals that Elizabeth II is rather formal but not standoffish. A witness describeshow a puppy defecated in front of the queen during a visit to a Kentucky horse-breeder,breaking the ice. Nancy Reagan recalls a breakfast with the queen, Prince Philip and PrinceCharles at Windsor Castle; she was surprised that everyone poured their own cereal fromthe box. It is reported that the queen likes a travel rug round her knees and used to wear ahard hat when watching stallions cover her mares . This footling stuff is only of any interest because it is aboutthe queen. Butfatallythose same domestic details have nothing to do with why ElizabethII, as queen, is interesting.

　　美國的社會傳記作家莎莉貝德爾史密斯向讀者描述了女王作為朋友的一面。貝德爾史密斯女士生動地記敘了她在華盛頓一個花園派對和在倫敦的一次招待會上同女王簡短的談話，也寫到了一些遇見女王的人的輕率之舉動。老布什總統(tǒng)透露，伊麗莎白二世非常遵守禮節(jié)但又不冷淡。一個目擊者描述，在女王去肯塔基州一戶養(yǎng)馬人家時，一只小狗當著女王的大便，這打破了沉默的氣氛。南希里根回憶：有一次和女王，菲利普親王以及查爾斯王子在溫莎城堡里共進早餐，當她看到在座的每個人都自己從一個大盒子里倒出吃的食物，她很驚訝。據(jù)報道，女王喜歡在膝蓋上裹一條毯子，在看她的種馬和母馬交配時喜歡戴一頂安全帽。這些無足輕重的事情一點都不有趣，僅僅因為它們和女王有關(guān)。但不幸的是，這些家庭生活的細節(jié)和作為女王的伊麗莎白二世是否有趣一點關(guān)系都沒有。

　　Mr Marr, a former political editor of the BBC and author of some shrewd books on modernBritain, sets himself a more ambitious task: to explain what the queen s role and positiontell us about her subjects. It is an admiring portrait, of an unfashionably dutiful monarchwho in her weekly audiences offers prime ministers what he calls a kind of highertherapya chance to share anxieties or explanations which will never leak, with someonewho has read almost every state secret of the past 60 years .He describes the queen and her strong sense of vocation, as a monarch God-called togive her life to her people as a sacrifice. Only by understanding that calling, he writes, canthe queen be understood.

　　馬爾以前是英國廣播公司的一位政治編輯，曾寫過幾本關(guān)于現(xiàn)代英國的書，很有見地。現(xiàn)在他給自己定下了一個甚為龐大的目標：要解釋清楚女王的角色和位置，告訴我們她的民眾的看法。這是一本令人欽佩的傳記，它記述了一位守舊、盡職的女王每周會見首相時提供的 高級療法用馬爾的話來說這是首相和女王分擔焦慮、共謀計策的時刻，這些談話的內(nèi)容永遠不會泄露出去。在過去的六十年，女王幾乎知曉所有的國家機密。在書中，馬爾描述了女王和她強烈的使命感：女王是受到了上帝召喚，要將自己的生命獻給民眾。只有理解了這種召喚，才能理解女王馬爾如此寫到。

　　In perhaps a claim too far, Mr Marr emphasises the comfort offered by the queen as asymbol of the continuing British state. By representing those who did not vote for thecurrent government or did not vote at all, she strengthens democracy, he suggests. It is aclever thought, but may overstate the degree to which most Britons suffer fromconstitutional angst.

　　馬爾強調(diào)了女王作為大英帝國延續(xù)的標志給人們帶來的慰藉，這一點可能說的有些過頭了。為了那些反對現(xiàn)任政府和那些根本沒有投票的人，女王要推進民主。這個想法非常明智，但是這過度夸大了大多數(shù)英國人對現(xiàn)行體制的擔心。

　　But a symbol she certainly is. And in modern Britaina restless, exhibitionist placeMrMarr s Queen Elizabeth stands out for her discretion, and for understanding that symbolsare better off keeping mostly quiet. There is a lesson there for her heir, the Prince of Wales,Mr Marr suggests sharply.

　　但是女王肯定是一個標志。在現(xiàn)代英國處于一個焦躁不安，要出風頭的位置馬爾筆下的伊麗莎白二世以她的謹慎而名，也深知作為標志性的人物最好保持沉默。馬爾毫不留情的指出，對于她的繼承人--威爾士親王來說，還有許多經(jīng)驗需要學習。

　　Mr Marr palpably likes the queen, whether for touring the country to greet and thank peoplemostly ignored by London power brokers, or for relaxing when her work is done with aglass of something cheerful. Yet liking is not really the point. In Mr Marr s words, there isonly a little space, though an interesting space, between the queen and the woman wholives her life. Her calling gives her meaning. She is what she does.

　　能感覺的出來，馬爾是欣賞女王的。不論是出訪全國會見問候被倫敦權(quán)勢掮客忽略的人們，還是完成很滿意的工作 之后的放松。然而喜好無關(guān)緊要。用馬爾的話來說，在女王和過普通生活的女子之間只有一點點的距離，盡管這個距離很有趣。女王應(yīng)有的使命感賦予了她意義。女王的言行舉止即代表了女王。

　　Mr Marr s sober conclusion feels right. To adapt the queen s one-liner: for all that thespectacle and unattainable glamour of royalty still fascinates , forBritain s jubilee monarch the show is a means to an end. Being seen is about being believed.

　　馬爾發(fā)人深省的結(jié)論可能是正確的。為了改編了女王一脈相承的生活：所有的規(guī)模宏大的慶典和難以企及的皇室魅力仍然散發(fā)著強大的吸引力，對于已經(jīng)登基了六十周年的英國女王來說這場秀可能是一個結(jié)束。所見即所信。