3

With that, I saw two Swannes1 of goodly hewe2

Come softly swimming downe along the Lee3;

Two fairer Birds I yet did never see;

The snow which doth the top of Pindus4 strew,

Did never whiter shew,

Nor Jove himself when he a Swan would be,

For love of Leda, whiter did appeare;

Yet Leda was they say as white as he,

Yet not so white as these, nor nothing neare;

So purely white they were,

That even the gentle streame, the which them bare,

Seemed foule to5 them, and bad his billowes spare6

To wet their silken feathers, lest they might

Soyle their fayre plumes with water not so fayre,

And marre their beauties bright,

That shone as heavens light,

Against the Brydale day, which is not long:

Sweete Themmes runne softly, till I end my song.

注释：1.Swanne：天鹅。这里引入了一个关于宙斯和勒达的神话故事。勒达是斯巴达王廷达瑞俄斯的妻子，王后。宙斯醉心于她的容貌，趁她在河中洗澡时，化作天鹅与她亲近。勒达因此怀孕，生下引起特洛伊战争的美人海伦。有的神话里说勒达生下的是两个金鹅蛋，一个孵出了绝世美女海伦，一个孵出了德奥古利。德奥古利后来上了寻找金羊毛的阿尔戈船，并多次立功。

2.hewe：外貌，外观。

3.Lee：意思很模糊。单词“lea”是草地的意思，而里河（Lee River）是汇入泰晤士河的一条河流。那时的泰晤士河面经常能看到天鹅游来游去。这里的天鹅代表新娘。

4.Pindus：诗人也许指希腊色萨利平原西部的山区。奥维德在其作品中多次提及的高耸巍峨品都斯山。

5.和……比起来。

6.spare：忍耐，容忍。