【翻译原文】

《红楼梦》（A Dream of Red Mansions）是曹雪芹在18世纪中期的作品。它不仅是一部中国小说的巨作，同时也是世界文学的瑰宝。曹雪芹出生于一个由极富没落到极贫的贵族权势家族。基于他对生活的理解、进步的思想、认真的写作态度和高超的写作技能，他才能创作出《红楼梦》。这本书描述了一个封建大家庭的生活及其没落，小说中所写的家庭既是现实的反映，又是曹雪芹自己家庭的小说化或者“梦”般的写照。

【表达难点】

1.它不仅是一部中国小说的巨作，同时也是世界文学的瑰宝：“不仅……也……”可译为“not only…but also”。

2.曹雪芹出生于一个由极富没落到极贫的贵族权势家族：“出生于”可译为固定短语be born into。

3.这本书描述了一个封建大家庭的生活及其没落：“一个封建大家庭”可译为a large feudal family，“没落”可译为declining fortunes。

【精彩译文】

A Dream of Red Mansions was written by Cao Xueqin in the middle of the 18th century.It is not only agreat Chinese novel but also a gem of world literature.Cao Xueqin was born into a noble and powerful family which declined from extreme prosperity to poverty.Based on his own understanding of life，his progressive ideas，serious writing attitude and excellentwriting skill，he was able to create A Dream of Red Mansions.The book describes the life and declining fortunes of a large feudal family，which is both a realistic inflection and a fictional or“dream”version of Cao’s own family.