At home, in my flannel gown, like a bear to its floe,

在家里，穿着法兰绒长袍，像一只熊在浮冰上，

I clambered to bed; up the globe's impossible sides

我爬上床；顺着地球那不可能的边缘

I sailed all night—till at last, with my black beard,

我整晚航行——直到最终，带着我的黑胡须，

My furs and my dogs, I stood at the northern pole.

我的皮衣和我的狗，站在北极。

There in the childish night my companions lay frozen,

在童年的夜里，我的伙伴们僵冷地躺着

The stiff furs knocked at my starveling throat,

硬硬的皮毛刺着我饥饿的喉咙，

And I gave my great sigh: the flakes came huddling,

我发出深深的叹息：雪花蜷缩着走来

Were they really my end? In the darkness I turned to my rest.

这果真是我的结局么？黑暗中我求助于睡眠。

—Here, the flag snaps in the glare and silence

——那儿，旗杆劈啪地折断于阳光和未碎裂的

Of the unbroken ice. I stand here,

冰的寂静中。我站在这儿，

The dogs bark, my beard is black, and I stare

狗在哀嚎，我的胡须漆黑，我瞪视着

At the North Pole . . .

北极…

                                        And now what? Why, go back.

而此刻又如何？那么，回去吧。

Turn as I please, my step is to the south.

如我高兴的那样转身，我的脚步朝南。

The world—my world spins on this final point

这世界——我的世界旋转于

Of cold and wretchedness: all lines, all winds

寒冷而可怜的终点上：所有的道路，所有的风

End in this whirlpool I at last discover.

都在我最终发现的漩涡中终结。

And it is meaningless. In the child's bed

而那是无意义的。在整夜的航行之后

After the night's voyage, in that warm world

在孩子的床上，在那个温暖的世界

Where people work and suffer for the end

人们工作，并经受为疼痛

That crowns the pain—in that Cloud-Cuckoo-Land

加冕的末日——在那云和布谷鸟之乡

I reached my North and it had meaning.

我到达我的北极，它满含意义。

Here at the actual pole of my existence,

这儿在我存在的真实的北极，

Where all that I have done is meaningless,

我做过的一切是无意义的，

Where I die or live by accident alone—

我或死、或生，但凭运气——

Where, living or dying, I am still alone;

那儿，活着或者死去，我都是孤零零的；

Here where North, the night, the berg of death

这里，在北极，夜晚，死亡的冰山

Crowd me out of the ignorant darkness,

把我挤出无知的黑暗，

I see at last that all the knowledge

我最终看见我从黑暗中

I wrung from the darkness—that the darkness flung me—

夺取的全部的知识——黑暗抛给我的——

Is worthless as ignorance: nothing comes from nothing,

像无知一样毫无用处：无来自于无，

The darkness from the darkness. Pain comes from the darkness

黑暗来自于黑暗。疼痛来自于黑暗

And we call it wisdom. It is pain.

我们称它为智慧。而它是痛苦。