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A fantasy novel can be a ticket to a land of magic. The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien takes us to Middle-earth to witness a battle of good and evil with dwarves, elves and wizards. And A Song of Ice and Fire, a series of novels by US author George R.R. Martin, invites us to another fictional world where powerful families compete to win the most important throne of all.
奇幻小說就像一張通向魔法世界的門票。J•R•R•托爾金的《指環王》讓我們目睹了矮人族、精靈族和巫師之間善與惡的戰爭。美國作家喬治•R•R•馬丁的系列小說《冰與火之歌》則邀我們進入了另外一個虛構世界，這里的大家族互相爭奪，都想得到至高無上的王權。
Today, most people know Martin’s work by the name of the first book, Game of Thrones, since it is also the name of the famous TV series. Now, with its sixth TV season beginning on April 24, many of us are still wondering what has made Martin’s fictional world so popular.
自《權力的游戲》成為知名電視劇的名字，大多數人通過它——也是馬丁第一本書的名字知道了馬丁的作品。4月24日該劇第六季回歸，可還是有很多人想知道，為什么馬丁虛構的世界會如此受歡迎。
Unlike many writers who try to copy Tolkien or J.K. Rowling, Martin has something original to say and an original way in which to say it.
和那些想要模仿托爾金和J•K•羅琳的作家不同，馬丁有自己原創的故事要說，他也有自己講故事的獨特方式。
The basic structure of the Ice and Fire books is familiar enough. In his made-up world, the action takes place on the continents of Westeros and Essos. There is a war between a number of powerful families for control of Westeros. The basic idea is made more complicated by supernatural “Others”.
《冰與火之歌》的基本脈絡大家一定都很熟悉了。在他的虛構世界里，故事發生在維斯特洛和厄索斯大陸。為了爭奪維斯特洛的控制權，當地的大家族彼此征戰。由于引入了超自然的“異族”，故事的基本設定變得更加復雜。
One character in particular has drawn readers’ attention: Daenerys Targaryen. The daughter of a former king, she can control dragons and wants to sit on the “Iron Throne”.
其中有一個角色尤其吸引讀者——丹妮莉絲.坦格利安。她是前朝君主的女兒，能控制龍，想坐上“鐵王座”。
None of this is very original in itself. It is Martin’s writing that makes the story special. His characters are complex. He says that he wishes to have “good and bad, noble and selfish well-mixed” in them. This makes his stories more morally nuanced than that of J.R.R. Tolkein.
其實這些情節本身都不新鮮，正是馬丁的寫作讓這個故事不同一般。他筆下的人物十分復雜。他說曾說過希望這些人物“融合了善與惡、高尚與利己”。這讓他的故事在道德觀上和J•R•R•托爾金的作品略有差別。
Tolkien’s world is one of heroes and villains, in which good always wins in the end. In Martin’s world, we are not sure of that. Indeed, we aren’t even sure who is good and who is evil.
托爾金的世界里善惡分明，正義最后總是勝利的一方。而在馬丁的世界里，我們甚至分不清孰善孰惡。
Many fantasy writers pack their tales full of supernatural and science fiction elements. There is magic in Martin’s books too, but he doesn’t use it too much. In fact, his stories have more in common with historical fiction than fantasy, and his characters seem as if they were based on actual historical emperors, kings and queens.
許多奇幻小說家會在自己的故事里塞滿超自然和科幻元素。馬丁的作品里也會有魔法，但是只占很少的比重。實際上，他的故事更類似于一部歷史小說而非奇幻小說，他筆下的人物讀起來就像是根據歷史上真實的君王、國王和皇后改編而來。
It is Martin’s complex characters and suspenseful plots that have left readers and TV viewers unsure but desperate to find out what happens next in the battle for the Iron Throne.
正是馬丁創造的復雜人物和攝人心魄的情節讓讀者和電視劇觀眾無法預測，卻又急切想知道下一場鐵王座爭奪戰里會發生什么。
