Part A Compulsory Translation (必譯題)(30 points)

　　The Dreadlock Deadlock

　　In the fall of 1993 Christopher Polk transferred from FedEx‘s hub in Indianapolis to take over a delivery route in Flatbush District, Brooklyn, N.Y. But moving to the country’s largest community of Caribbean and African immigrants only precipitated a far more profound journey. "I was becoming culturally aware of the history of the black people," says Polk, now 31, "and that gave me these spiritual questions." His answer came providentially, by way of a music video featuring Lord Jamal, who raps about the Rastafarian belief in the sanctity of dreadlocks - the cords of permanently interlocked strands first worn by African chiefs perhaps 6,000 years ago.

　　Now a practicing Rastafarian, Polk sports thick garlands that gently cascade onto his shoulders. "Your hair is your covenant," he says. "Once you grow your locks, it puts you on a path."

　　Unfortunately, that path was a collision course with Federal Express‘s grooming policy, which requires men to confine their dos to "a reasonable style." After years of deliberation, Polk’s bosses gave him a choice: shear his locks or be transferred to a lower-paid job with no customer contact. He refused both options and was terminated in June 2000.

　　His tale is not unique. Although Rastafarians number about 5,000 nationally, today dreadlocks, twists or braids are at the height of fashion, nearly as common as Afros were 30 years ago. If Afros symbolized militancy, dreads signal a more spiritual self-declaration, a figurative locking with African ancestors. As Stanford professor Kennell Jackson, who teaches a course called "African Coiffures and Their New World Legacies," puts it, "There‘s a divinity to these locks."

　　Divine or not, some employers consider them unacceptably outré. Six other New York-area FedEx employees have lost their jobs because of dreadlocks. They have sued, alleging religious discrimination; the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and New York‘s attorney general have also charged FedEx with violating religious protections in the Civil Rights Act.

　　The dreadlock deadlock may be easing. FedEx altered its policy slightly a few weeks ago: in the future, observant employees who seek a waiver may wear their locks tucked under uniform hats, says a company spokeswoman. The concession isn‘t enough to settle the lawsuits yet. The EEOC also wants reinstatement for the fired drivers, says trial attorney Michael Ranis. He’s optimistic. Some new styles, he knows, grow more appealing over time.

　　Part B Choice of Two Translations (二選一題)(30 points)

　　Topic 1 (選題一)

　　Eurasians: The New Face of Asia

　　Fusion is in, not only as an abstract fashion concept, but in that most grounded of realities: mixed-blood people who walk, talk, and produce even more multiracial progeny. Most strange of all, these hybrids are finding themselves hailed as role models for vast masses in Asia with no mixed blood at all. "When I think of Asia, I don't necessarily think of people who look like me," says Declan Wong, a Chinese-Dutch-American actor and producer, "But somehow we‘ve become the face that sells the new Asia."

　　So maybe Asia's Eurasian craze is driven by the theories of that whitest of white men, economist Adam Smith. As the world gets smaller, we look for a global marketing mien, a one-size-fits-all face that helps us sell Nokia cell phones and Palmolive shampoo across the world.

　　"For any business, you can't think locally anymore," says Paul Lau, general manager at Elite Model Management in Hong Kong, who has built up a stable of Eurasians for his internationally minded clients. "At the very least, you need to think regionally. Ideally, you should think globally." A global image helps sell products, even if no one but Filipinos would ever want to buy duck-fetus eggs or Thais the most pungent variety of shrimp paste. Yanto Zainal, president of Macs909, a boutique ad agency in Jakarta, used all indos for a campaign for the local Matahari department store chain. "The store wanted to promote a more cosmopolitan image," he says. "Indos have an international look but can still be accepted as Indonesian."

　　Channel V, the Asia-wide music television channel, was one of the first to broadcast the message of homogenized hybridism. "We needed a messenger that would fit in from Tokyo to the Middle East." Says Jonnifer Seeto, regional sales marketing manager for the channel, which began beaming its border-busting images in 1994. Star Veejay Asha Gill personifies the global look. When asked what her ethnic heritage is, Gill, a Malaysian citizen, simply shrugs. "Oh, who knows," she says. "I'm half Punjabi, mixed with some English, a little French and dribs and drabs of God knows what else." The 29-year-old speaks crisp British English, fluent Malay, and a smidgen of Punjabi. She grew up in a Kuala Lumpur neighborhood that was mostly Chinese, attended an English-speaking school and was pals with Malay and Indian kids. Gill‘s Channel V show, broadcast in English, has a strong following in Malaysia, Japan and the United Arab Emirates. "I'm Hitler’s worst nightmare," she says. "My ethnicity and profession make me a global person who can't be defined in just one category."

　　global person who can't be defined in just one category."