A Coat

by William Butler Yeats

I made my song a coat

Covered with embroideries

Out of old mythologies

From heel to throat;

But the fools caught it,

Wore it in the world's eyes

As though they'd wrought it.

Song, let them take it,

For there's more enterprise

In walking naked.

外套

威廉?巴特勒?叶芝(著)

我用古老的神话作为衣料，

为我的歌缝制一件外套，

上面铺满刺绣，

层层秘密，从头到脚;

可是愚蠢的人们把它夺去，

穿起来在世人面前炫耀，

似乎是他们亲手织造。

让他们拿走吧，

歌啊，没有衣服更好，

因为裸体行走，

需要胆识更加高超。