Section Two Striving for a Change of One’s Life
人生道路并不总是铺着玫瑰花瓣。有时却是荆棘丛生，充满曲折，颠簸，坎坷，磕碰，甚至落入陷阱或被人陷害。但不管发生什么，决不要失望或丧失信心。要不懈地进行奋斗——这才是生命的真谛！奋斗能够改变人生。死亡使得生命格外珍贵；挫折使得成功更加完满；失败使得下一次成就更有意义。你没有深切体会到失败的痛苦，又哪能真正领悟到成功完成一项艰巨工作之后的满足？我们在感受之中发现自己和他人，探索完满而有意义的人生的可能性。从而，我们在为我们的终极目标——完善人生而奋斗。
The path of life is not one covered only with rose petals. In fact， it is oftentimes overgrown withbrambles， full of twists and turns， ups and downs， trials and tribulations， setbacks and frustrations， sometimeseven falling into a trap or being ensnared. But， no matter whatever happens， never be disappointed or loseconfidence！ To struggle， and again and again to renew the conflict. This is life’s inheritance. Striving canchange one’s life. Death makes life more precious； frustration makes success more fulfilling； failure makesthe next accomplishment more meaningful. You can’t really know how great is your sense of satisfaction atsucceeding at a hard job unless you are also deeply aware of the pain of failure. It’s through the capacity tofeel that we discover ourselves and others and explore the potential for a full， significant life. Consequently，we have been striving for our final goal—Perfection of One’s Life.
咱们去读一读罗贯中的《三国演义》吧！我们就能看到作者及其主要人物是如何通过不断奋斗改变他们人生的。
Let’s read Luo Guanzhong’s The Romance of the Three Kingdoms！ We can see how the writer and hismain characters have changed their lives by constant striving.
2.1 内容简介
2.1 Introduction
《三国演义》是中国文学史上的第一部长篇小说，它用文学的手法叙述历史，再现历史人物，被称为历史演义，也就是我们今天所说的历史小说。和西方的历史小说不同，中国古代的历史演义更贴近历史事实，因此清代史学家章学诚关于《三国演义》“七实三虚”的说法为许多人所认可。尽管如此，这部小说的作者罗贯中将历史事实，民间传说和奇异的艺术想象完美地结合起来，仍然使作品不仅具有动人心弦的戏剧性，而且灌注了强烈的爱憎之情。借助于人物形象的出色塑造，罗贯中使自己拥刘反曹的情感倾向深为读者认同。在《三国演义》中，重要形象几乎都是某一道德品质或个性的典型，曹操的奸、关羽的义、诸葛亮的智，都在多样化的情境中得到了反复表现。在对这一段历史的叙述中，作者表现出一种鲜明的思想倾向：赞美刘备，贬抑曹操。这种思想倾向寄托了罗贯中对“仁政”的理想，在罗贯中的笔下，刘备是一个好皇帝的形象，他为人忠厚，仁德爱民，礼贤下士，注重义气。他手下的人也都是封建社会理想人格的代表，比如诸葛亮是贤明的宰相，又是足智多谋的军事家；关羽是英勇的将军，又是豪气干云的义士；赵云、张飞是勇敢无畏的英雄。相反，作者把曹操作为刘备的对立面进行描写，把他写成一个奸相，一个奸雄。他阴险狡诈，残暴猜忌，极端利己；他挟天子以令诸侯，飞扬跋扈，横行无忌。通过对曹操形象的描写，作者表达了反对“暴政”的思想。
The first long novel in the history of Chinese literature， The Romance of the Three Kingdoms， whichnarrates historical events and portrays historical figures in the form of literature， is called historical romanceor what is today known as historical novel. Different from its Western counterparts， the literary historicalromance in ancient China is much closer to historical facts， therefore， the theory of“seventy percent truthand thirty percent fabrication”about the novel， put forward by the Qing-dynasty historian Zhang Xuecheng，is widely recognized. Such being the case， however， the author Luo Guanzhong combined historical facts， folklegends and unique artistic imagination into a perfect whole， rendering it not only full of moving dramatic plotbut also infused with intense love and hate. Through his intricate portrayal of the characters， Luo Guanzhongsucceeds in swaying readers toward his pro-Liu and anti-Cao sentimental bias. In the novel， each of theimportant figures is a model of a certain ethic or character， such as Cao Cao’s treachery， Guan Yu’s loyaltyto his sworn brothers， Liu Bei’s benevolence， and Zhuge Liang’s wisdom， all repeatedly displayed througha variety of situations. In narrating the history of this period， the author displays his clear-cut inclination toextol Liu Bei and disparage Cao Cao， which reflects his ideal of“the benevolence government”. Liu Beiis portrayed as an outstanding emperor， who sparkles with honesty and kind-heartedness， benevolence andloyalty as well as love for the people and the respect for the subordinates. And those working faithfully for himare all representative of the ideal personalities in the feudal society. For example， Zhuge Liang is both a primeminister of insight and ability and a wise and resourceful strategist； Guan Yu is a brave general and also aman of loyalty and heroism； Zhao Yun and Zhang Fei are the brave and fearless heroes. Conversely， Cao Cao，Liu Bei’s counterpart， is depicted as evil and treacherous. He is villainy in treachery and deceit， suspicionand tyranny and extreme selfishness. He orders the lords about in the emperor’s name， throwing his weightaround and running amok. In the depictions of Cao Cao the author expresses his strong disapproval of“thetyrannical government”.
这部古典文学名着，描述了从东汉中平元年（184年）的黄巾起义，到西晋武帝司马炎太康元年（280年）统一中国的将近一个世纪中，魏、蜀、吴三国间的政治和军事斗争史。
This great classic chronicles the century long political and military struggle among the three Kingdoms，Wei， Shu and Wu. It spans the period from 184 when the Yellow Turbans Uprising broke out to 280 whenEmperor Wu of Western Jin Sima Yan reunited China.
在《三国演义》第一回我们发现，曹操和刘备都在战场上为汉灵帝效力，镇压黄巾军领导的农民起义。在接下来的几回，焦点转向帝王。公元189年汉灵帝驾崩，他儿子刘辩继位，为少帝，在位短暂。军阀董卓废黜少帝，立少帝的弟弟刘协为献帝。献帝在位至公元220年东汉王朝灭亡。曹操和刘备时断时续地出现，直到第二十回，曹操把刘备介绍给献帝，此时曹操已掌握着军队，挟天子以令诸侯。正如幕府时代的将军一样小心地保留着帝王统治的外观，曹操克制着不篡夺帝位来建立他自己的曹家天下的欲望。当时的帝王尽力限制曹操的权力，试图建立一个刘备的同盟，批准刘备做皇家直系的要求，叫他皇叔并于公元199年破旨修诏，令其活动反对曹操叛贼。在皇帝血诏的激励之下，刘备加入了宫中忠臣的同盟，立誓要营救皇帝。这一谋划失败了，刘备离开了皇宫和首都。从此，刘备和曹操，别无他人，能合法地要求在王法下活动，并因此变成了可以匹敌的保皇对手。献帝总是他们精心预谋的中心，所以献帝肯定能继续活下去。曹操仍是宫中起支配作用的人物；刘备到广阔的世界——祖国的千山万水去寻找发展机会，证明他有“德”或值得当统治者。曹操与刘备之间的斗争，开始是宫廷冲突，到第三十八回就变成了帝国范围的广泛危机；到第五十回达到了顶点。这十三回（从第三十八回到第五十回）叙述了从公元207年刘备求得他理想的军师诸葛亮（孔明）到公元208年赤壁之战的故事。
In Chapter 1， The Romance of the Three Kingdoms， we find Cao Cao and Liu Xuande serving the Hanemperor Ling on the battlefield as they conduct operations to suppress peasant uprisings led by the YellowScarves. In the following chapters the focus shifts to the Emperor. In A.D. 189 Ling dies， and his successor，Shao， reigns briefly. A warlord named Dong Zhuo deposes Shao and places Shao’s younger brother Xian onthe throne. Emperor Xian will reign until the dynasty ends in A.D. 220. Cao Cao and Liu Xuande appearintermittently until chapter 20， when Cao Cao presents Liu Xuande to Emperor Xian. At this point Cao Caohas command of the armed forces and holds the Emperor in thrall. But like a shogun careful to preservethe facade of imperial rule， Cao Cao refrains from usurping the throne and founding his own ruling house.
The Emperor， in an effort to limit Cao Cao’s control， tries to make an ally of Liu Xuande. He confirms LiuXuande’s claim to royal lineage by naming him imperial uncle and in A.D. 199 issues an edict written inhis own blood and calling for action against the traitor Cao Cao. Liu Xuande joins a group of court loyalistswho， inspired by the edict， vow to rescue the Emperor. This intrigue fails， and Liu Xuande leaves the courtand the capital. Henceforth Liu Xuande as well as Cao Cao—but no one else—can legitimately claim to actunder imperial sanction， and so they become rival loyalists. Emperor Xian is always at the center of theircalculations， and his survival is therefore assured. Cao Cao remains the dominant figure at court； Liu Xuandegoes to seek his fortune in the wide world， the“rivers and hills”of China， by proving his virtue (de) ofworthiness to rule. The Cao Cao-Liu Xuande struggle， which begins as a court conflict， becomes an empire-wide crisis in Chapter 38； the crisis culminates in Chapter 50. In these thirteen chapters (from Chapter 38to Chapters 50)， the narrative runs from the meeting of Liu Xuande and his ideal minister， Zhuge Liang(Kongming)， in A.D. 207 to the battle at Red Cliffs in A.D. 208.
刘备离开皇宫后，于公元200年被曹军击败投向袁绍处避难。次年，他又被曹军打败投向荆州刺史刘表，但他并不安全。因为刘表的妻子蔡夫人和妻兄蔡瑁从内对他有威胁；曹操对荆州垂涎已久，从外对他有威胁。公元207年，曹操向荆州进军，企图吞并荆州，刘备面临灭顶之灾。他终于明白，他和他的兄弟们都不能掌握帝国的迅速变化，要变成权力的主要竞争者，他需要外交和军事上的指导。正在这关键时刻，不管是在历史上或小说中，诸葛亮都登场了。刘备三顾茅庐，赢得了诸葛亮之心。诸葛亮决定做刘备的军师，为其效劳就确认了玄德之德。诸葛亮在第三十六回中出现。他只有二十七岁，比刘备小二十岁。尽管他年轻，但他是个精明且博学的外交家和战略家。他第一次与刘备见面，就提出了恢复汉朝的三分方案（第三十八回）。他的当前目标就是为刘备联合南方力量，以挽救玄德免遭曹操吞并，同时激励南方力量抵抗曹操。他的中期目标就是为刘备在西边沿江地带建立一个独立的王国，并保持与南方结盟以抵抗北方。他的最终目标是要重新征服北方的中心地带，并为刘备找到汉朝皇上的宝座。随着各种事件的展开，南方对曹操的抵抗导致了东汉帝国分裂成三个进行战争的王国。因此，在开头的时候，诸葛亮的行程就得随他所处时期的中心问题而定。他用其战略之才支持刘备反对曹操，并在多年的一系列有深远影响的战役中使刘备摆脱了在东汉帝国一分为三之中处于失败方的处境。通过劝说孙权与刘备结盟反曹，赤壁之战就打下了三国命运的基础（第四十三回至五十回）。
After Liu Bei leaves the imperial court， he takes refuge with Yuan Shao in A. D. 200 after being defeatedby Cao Cao’s army. The next year after being defeated by Cao Cao’s army again， he takes refuge with Liu Biao，protector of Jingzhou， but he is not safe. Liu Biao’s wife Lady Cai and her brother CaiMao threaten him fromwithin， while Cao Cao， who covets Jingzhou， remains a threat from without. In A.D. 207 Cao Cao marcheson Jingzhou， hoping to annex it； Xuande is about to be overwhelmed. Xuande has come to understand thatneither he nor his brothers are able to master the rapid changes in the empire， and that to become a majorcontender for power he needs diplomatic and military guidance. At this point Kongming enters the scene，both in history and in the novel. Liu Xuande pays three visits to Zhuge Liang and has won Kongming’s heart.
Zhuge Liang’s decision to serve Xuande as chief adviser confirms Xuande’s virtue. Kongming appears inChapter 36. He is twenty-seven， twenty years Xuande’s junior. Despite his youth Kongming proves to beshrewd and erudite as both a diplomat and a strategist. In his first interview with Xuande， Kongming presentshis three-part project for restoring the Han dynasty (in Chapter 38). His immediate goal is for Xuande tojoin forces with the Southland in order to save Xuande from Cao Cao and to inspire the south to resist him.
His intermediate goal is for Liu Bei to establish an independent kingdom in the west， along the river， and tomaintain the alliance with the south against the north. His ultimate goal is to reconquer the northern heartlandand place Liu Bei on the Han throne. As events unfold， southern resistance to Cao Cao leads to the division ofthe Han empire into three warring Kingdoms. Thus， at the outset Kongming’s career becomes bound up withthe central issue of his time. He uses his talent for military strategy to support Liu Bei in his struggle againstCao Cao， and in a series of far-ranging battles over a period of many years he enables Liu Bei to extricatehimself from the position of being the underdog in the threefold division of the empire. By persuading SunQuan to join forces with Liu Bei against Cao Cao at the Battle of the Red Cliffs he laid the foundation of thedestiny of the Three Kingdoms (from Chapter 43 to Chapter 50).
曹操赤壁之战大败后，暂时放弃了通过征服来统一帝国的努力，开始发展并巩固他在北方的地位。随着刘备与曹操影响力的扩大，尽管他们都不先采取行动暴露自己去承担别人指控犯有叛逆罪之责，但他们以汉帝的支持者形象并且凭他们本身的头衔作为潜在的帝王形象在越来越多地出现。当然，正常的情况是献帝或灵帝的儿子依次继承皇位。但曹操把所有的王子都降低了地位并把允许皇帝娶的伏皇后和她生的两个皇子都谋杀了。“于建安二十年正月朔，就庆贺正旦之节，册立曹操女曹贵人为正宫皇后。群下莫敢有言。”（第六十六回）。曹操留心排除所有可能继承献帝的人，只使刘备在刘氏皇帝家族中有他自己的位置，虽然是远房并存质疑，但更有意义。刘备像曹操一样，等待下一代的降临。对曹操和他的任何一个儿子来说，变成皇帝就构成了统治家族的变化。什么原则能证明非同一家族的成员继承是合法的？这个问题就提出了众所周知的合法性或正统性。曹操自己决不走篡权的最后一步，他总是让自己扮演献帝的代理人。相应地，他常把自己比作第一个君主统治的周朝（公元前11世纪）的摄政王周公，庆幸他在完成了监护年幼的国王后，到国王成年时就把权力归还给了他。以周公为榜样，曹操公开宣布他不会背离监护作用去废黜皇帝，并声称他的摄政维护着国内秩序，遏制着众多争斗者追求各自的目的而把帝国陷入内战之中的欲望。曹操的声称听起来似乎很有道理。但他保存献帝的位置其实是想为发展他自己的王国并为他的继承人创立新的王朝打下基础。他的第一步就是宣布自己是魏公（第六十一回），前西汉王朝的篡权者王莽使用过的称号。曹操的第二步就是宣布自己是魏王并任命了继承人（第六十八回）。作为魏王，他就变成了可以世袭的君主。他两个儿子曹丕和曹植之间的竞争迅速地使曹家王朝明白了王朝体制的祸根。曹操于公元220年病逝（第七十八回），长子曹丕继承他做魏王。同一年内，曹丕强求并接受献帝禅位，并建立魏朝，自己坐上帝王的宝座。从此，东汉灭亡（第八十回）。
After Cao Cao’s serious defeat at Red Cliffs Battle， he abandons his effort to unify the empire byconquest and proceeds to develop his position in the north. As their influence grows， Liu Xuande and CaoCao increasingly appear not merely as supporters of the Han emperor but as potential emperors in their ownright， though neither one can afford to take any action that would expose him to the charge of treason by theother. Normally， of course， a son of Emperor Xian or Emperor Ling would stand in the line of succession. ButCao Cao neutralizes all the imperial sons by demoting them to minor princes. And he murders the one consortpermitted to Emperor Xian， Empress Fu， along with her two sons. On the first day of the first month of JianAn 20 (A.D 215)， on the celebration of the new year， Cao Cao’s daughter， the concubine Cao， became theEmpress of Han. And no courtier dared object (in Chapter 66). The care Cao Cao takes to eliminate possibleheirs to Emperor Xian only makes Liu Xuande’s place in the royal Liu clan， however remote or dubious，all the more significant. He， like Cao Cao， awaits the next generation. For Cao Cao or for one of his sons tobecome emperor would constitute a change of the ruling house. What principle could justify a nonfamilialsuccession？ This question raises what is commonly known as the issue of legitimacy or orthodxy. Cao Caohimself never takes the final step of usurpation； he always casts himself in the role of regent to Emperor Xian.
Accordingly， he often compares himself to the regent of the first reign of the Zhou dynasty (late eleventhcentury B.C.)， the Duke of Zhou (Zhougong)， celebrated for fulfilling his custodial office and then returningpower to the child-king in his trust when the ruler came of age. By taking the Duke of Zhou as his model，Cao Cao makes it known that he will not depart from his custodial role and depose the Emperor. Cao Caoclaims that his regency preserves civil order by restraining a multitude of contenders who， in pursuit of theirends， would plunge the empire into civil war. Cao Cao’s claim sounds quite reasonable. But he preservesEmperor Xian’s position， he also builds his own kingdom and thus lays the foundation for his heirs to founda new dynasty. His first step is to proclaim himself duke of Dake (Weigong) (in Chapter 61)， a title last usedby Wang Mang， the usurper of the Former Han dynasty. Cao Cao’s second step is to proclaim himself King ofWei and to name an heir (in Chapter 68). As king he becomes a dynast. And rivalry between two of his sons，Pi and Zhi， swiftly brings home to the house of Cao the curse of dynastic government. Cao Cao dies of illnessin A.D. 220 (in Chapter 78)， and Cao Pi， his first son， succeeds him as King of Wei. Within the year Cao Pidemands and receives the abdication (shan) of Emperor Xian and establishes himself on the throne of the Weidynasty. The Han is no more (in Chapter 80).
在王国之间，曹丕宣布建立新王朝的下一年，即公元221年，汉中王刘备以汉朝真正的继承人身份做了两川的君王。“惟建安二十六年四月丙午朔，越十二日丁巳（即公元221年5月15日），皇帝备，敢昭告于皇天后土：汉有天下，历数无疆……今曹操阻兵残忍，戮杀主后，罪恶滔天；操子丕，载肆凶逆，窃据神器。群下将士，以为汉祀堕废，备宜延之……”“改元章武元年。立妃吴氏为皇后，长子刘禅为太子……”从此该王国被称为蜀汉。这些大事（第八十回）标志着三国时期正式开始。第三个国王孙权，统治着吴国，或叫东吴，等到公元229年才宣布他自己的王朝。从上述有关《三国演义》的介绍可见，该小说主要关切的是汉朝末代献帝（公元189—220）的统治。对这段时期，作者奉献了他小说的三分之二篇幅，头八十回，详细叙述了汉朝400年的最后危机，生动地描写了军阀混战，群雄并起的历史场景，最后以刘氏天下变成曹氏天下而告终。
On the Kingdom front， the next year of Cao Pi’s declaration of a new dynasty， i.e. A.D.221， the King ofHanzhong， Liu Xuande， takes the Two Plain’ throne as Han’s true heir.“It being the day Dingsi， fifty-fourthof the cycle， twelve days after the beginning of the fourth moon on Bingwu， the twenty-sixth year of Jian An.
I， Bei， the August Emperor， resolve to proclaim to the august shining Heaven and the fruitful earth that theHan hold the empire in unbroken succession.... Now Cao Cao has committed atrocities and cruelly murderedthe reigning sovereign， a hideous crime that assails the very skies. His son Pi gives free rein to nefarioustreason， unlawfully seizing the sacred instruments of rule. The whole of our civil and military hold that， withthe services of the Han lapsed and void， it is proper for me， Bei， to resume them ...”“...they changed thereign title to Zhang Wu， Manifest Might. The Emperor’s consort， Lady Wu， was made Empress. His eldestson， Shan， was appointed heir apparent....”Hence the kingdom is called Shu-Han. These events (Chapter80) mark the official beginning of the era called The Romance of the Three Kingdoms. The third king， SunQuan， who rules Wu， or the Southland， waits until A.D. 229 before proclaiming his own dynasty. From whatis introduced above we can see the novel’s main concern is the reign of the last Han emperor， Xian (r. A.D.189-220). To this period the author devotes two- thirds of his work， the first eighty chapters； he describes inrich detail the final crisis of the four-hundred-year Han dynasty and vividly portrays the historical scenesabout tangled warfare among the warlords and a number of contenders for the throne， finally culminating inthe displacement of its ruling house， the Liu， by the Cao family.
小说的最后三分之一，后四十回，主要叙述曹操集团、刘备集团、东吴孙氏集团的兴衰和三国鼎立，继而相互斗争，最后由司马集团司马懿之子司马炎于公元280年统一中国。所以，我们说《三国演义》写的是三国时期乱世英雄争王争霸的历史，写了从统一到分裂，从分裂到统一的历史进程。
The last third of the novel， the final forty chapters， tells the story mainly of the rise and fall of the threecliques like Cao Cao’s， Liu Bei’s and Sun Quan’s， the emergence of the Three Kingdoms and their mutualstruggles as well as the reunification of China by Sima Yi’s son Sima Yan of the Sima clique in A.D. 280.
That’s why we say The Romance of the Three Kingdoms， based on a history of several heroes’ contention forthe throne during the chaotic Three Kingdom Period， deals with the historical process from the unification ofthe country through its division to its final reunification.
《三国演义》是中国历史上第一部清楚写明章回的古典历史演义。这部历史小说把读者带到了从王朝政权最高的各种行政班子到社会最底层、从首都和那些关键的省份到帝国边界及边界外的地方，讲述中国自己的各种各样的故事，故事中有帝王和廷宦、指挥官和学者、术士和农民起义者等各种人物1200多个。妇女似乎所起的作用较小，但她们有着最大的意义。
小说提供了政权如何行使、外交如何实施、战争如何运筹和进行等使人惊奇并很严厉的看法。反转来，小说又影响了中国人关于政权、外交和战争的思考方式。它不仅包括传统的各种礼仪、音乐、诗歌、散文等优美文体，还吸收了民间的讲故事、戏剧、占卜（预测）等艺术，既富于强劲的情节主线，又写有众多栩栩如生的人物，这就是为什么说《三国演义》是中国文学遗产的结晶，是历代积累的丰富智慧的原因。不论是过去还是现在，都没有类似它的其他作品对中国社会产生过如此深刻和广泛的影响。各种事件，不是直接地就是间接地，通过戏剧、歌词和其他各种大众文化的途径，传到了中国社会的每个角落，并且家喻户晓。
凡有文化的人都一读再读《三国》；不能读的（也许更热切地）也通过听评书、看戏剧和口头传讲来学习。简直是妙极了！要学的每样东西都有：戏剧和悬念、英勇和懦弱、忠诚和背叛、权力和诡秘、侠义和权术、统治者义务和臣民、兄弟关系和家族间的冲突等等。总而言之，《三国演义》不仅很值得一读，而且在影响中国人为人处事的态度和言谈举止诸方面都有强大生命力。
The Romance of the Three Kingdoms is the first full-length classic historical romance with clearchapter divisions to appear in Chinese history. This historical novel transports the reader from the highestcouncils of dynastic power to the lowest fringes of society， from the capital and key provinces to the edges ofthe empire and beyond. It is a tale of China itself in its infinite variety， a tale peopled with kings and courtiers，commanders and scholars， magicians and peasant rebels. Women seem to play a small part， but their roleshave the utmost significance. The novel offers a starling and unsparing view of how power is wielded， howdiplomacy is conducted， and how wars are planned and fought； and the novel has in turn influenced the waysthe Chinese think about power， diplomacy， and war. It includes not only fine writing from the traditionalcategories of the rites， music， poetry and prose， it also draws from the folk arts storytelling， drama， divination，etc. as well as a plethora of vigorous plot lines， and life-like characters. This is why it’s said that the novel isa crystallization of the heritage of Chinese literature and contains a wealth of wisdom accumulated throughthe ages. No other work of this genre， in past times or present， has had such a deep and wide-ranging impacton Chinese society. The various episodes have been transmitted to every nook and cranny of Chinese society，either directly or indirectly by means of the theatre， songs and other channels of popular culture， and areknown in every household in the land. The literate of China read and reread it； those who cannot read learnit (perhaps even more intensely) from story tellers and opera and word of mouth. It is， simply， a terrific story.
Every element is there： drama and suspense， valor and cowardice， loyalty and betrayal， power and subtlety，chivalry and statecraft， the obligations of ruler and subject， conflicts in the basic ties of brotherhood andlineage， etc. It is an important piece of world literature. In a word， the novel not only well merits a reading butalso continues to have vitality in Chinese attitudes and behaviour.
《三国演义》不仅在中国有着广泛而深远的影响，而且被翻译成60多种外语，风行全世界。最早翻译出的语种是日语。那是全文译成的五十卷。从目前有十多种版本在日本销售的事实可以判断《三国演义》在日本的流行情况。英语版的首批翻译是选译的，在19世纪的一些期刊上连续登载。第一部全文英译本在上海于1925年分上下两册出版。这个译本于1959年由查尔斯·E.塔特尔公司在美国佛蒙特州的拉特兰和日本东京同时再版。由在纽约出生、现任纽约大学中文教授的罗慕士翻译的最新全文英译本于1991年由外文出版社和加州大学出版社联合出版。法译本第一卷于1845年在巴黎出版，第二卷1851年只译到原文的第四十四回。俄语全译本分上下册一二○回于1954年由莫斯科文学出版社出版。越南语第一次全译本于1949年在河内出版。朝鲜语第一次全译本于1959年由朝鲜国家文学艺术出版社出版。小说还有其他几十种外语的摘译或全译。总之，《三国演义》一直在全世界传播，不仅是中国文学的杰作，也是世界文学宝库中的珍宝。
The Romance of the Three Kingdoms， which has had a wide and profound influence in China， hasbeen translated into more than sixty foreign languages and has been widely read across the world. Theearliest translation into a foreign language was into Japanese. This was a complete translation in 50 volumes.
The novel’s popularity in Japan can be judged from the fact that there are at present about a dozen versionson sale. In English， the first translations were of excepts serialized in periodicals during the 19th century，and the first full-length translation was published in two volumes in Shanghai in 1925. This version wasreprinted in the United States by the Charles E. Tuttle Company in Rutland， Vermont， and in Tokyosimultaneously in 1959. The latest complete English translation was done by Moss Roberts who was born inNew York， is Professor of Chinese at New York University and published jointly by the Foreign LanguagesPress and University of California Press in 1991. The first volume of the French translation was publishedin Paris in 1845， and the second volume， which goes only as far as Chapter 44 in the original， in 1851. Acomplete translation into Russian， in two volumes and 120 chapters， was published by the Moscow LiteraturePublishing House in 1954. The whole novel translated for the first time into Vietnamese was published inHanoi in 1949， and the first complete translation into Korean was published by the National Literature andArt Publishing House in 1959. There are besides partial or complete translations of the novel in scores ofother languages. In short， The Romance of the Three Kingdoms has been spread all over the world， not justas a masterpiece of Chinese literature， but as a precious gem from the treasure house of world literature.