Twelfth Night

　　愛真的能勝過一切的險阻嗎？這真是個難題──而在許多人都喬裝假扮成他人的狀況下又更艱難了。幸好，所有這些令人困擾的假身分，最後都成為令人發噱的笑點。

　　“Do not be afraid of greatness! Some are born great, some achieve greatness, and some have greatness thrust upon them.”
　　莫要害怕地位之崇高！有些人天生地位崇高，有些人是憑實力而臻至偉大，有些人則是被強加以偉大。 (Act II, Scene V)

　　“Journeys end in lovers meeting, every wise man’s son does know.”
　　愛侶們重逢即結束旅行，所有智者之子皆心知肚明。 (Act II, Scene III)

　 　“He’s wise enough to be a paid fool. And, to do that well, requires intelligence. He must observe the moods of those He jokes about. This is a job requiring as much hard work as the profession of a wise man.”

　　他是個夠聰明的傻子，值得打賞。而且做得好就需要天資聰穎，他必須觀察打趣對象的情緒。如同一位智者的專業一般，這也是需要很努力的工作。 (Act III, Scene I)

　　莎翁名劇雋永優美，細膩的角色刻畫讓故事穿越文化與時空，引起廣大世人的迴響與共鳴。本書為英國文豪莎士比亞的著名劇作改寫，並保留劇本格式。經過精心改寫的文字，使莎劇簡明易懂又不失文學內涵，適合英語學習者閱讀，不再受古英文之苦，輕鬆享受閱讀經典的樂趣。

　　本書中譯本<<第十二夜>>由寂天出版

　　Separated from her twin brother Sebastian after a shipwreck, Viola disguises herself as a boy to serve the Duke of Illyria. Wooing a countess on his behalf, she is stunned to find herself the object of his beloved's affections. With the arrival of Viola's brother, and a trick played upon Malvolio, the countess's steward, confusion reigns in this romantic comedy of mistaken identity. Its gentle melancholy,enlivened by a comic sub-plot of considerable accomplishment, has long made the play a favourite with Shakespearian audiences.

　　This Macmillan Collector's Library edition is illustrated throughout by renowned artist Sir John Gilbert (1817-1897), and includes an introduction by Dr Robert Mighall.

　　Designed to appeal to the booklover, the Macmillan Collector's Library is a series of beautiful gift editions of much loved classic titles. Macmillan Collector's Library are books to love and treasure.

威廉‧莎士比亞 William Shakespeare （1564－1616）

　　威廉．莎士比 亞出生於英 國，被公認是英國文學史和戲劇史上最傑出的詩人和劇作家。父親在他十三歲時因經商失敗而破產，他因此無法上大學。他十八歲時娶了大他八歲的Anne Hathaway，育有三名小孩。莎士比亞在1590年成為劇作家，起初只是模仿別的作家寫故事，藉此磨練寫作技巧，後來他越漸歡迎，最後成為成功的演員 與劇作家。

　　莎士比亞擅於刻畫人物心理，運用生動的戲劇語言扣動讀者心弦，他的故事結構嚴謹、情節豐富多元，更富含人生哲理。他一生 共 寫了37部作品，可分成四個時期：歷史劇、喜劇、悲劇和浪漫喜悲劇。其中四大悲劇：《哈姆雷特》、《奧賽羅》、《李爾王》和《馬克白》寫於悲劇時期。這些 戲劇故事在世界各地不斷地改編、上演，數百年來雋永不朽，為他贏得最偉大的劇作家的聲譽。

　　William Shakespeare (1564-1616) was an English dramatist, poet, and actor, generally regarded as the greatest playwright of all time