文言文 宋人有耕田者.田中有株,兔走触株,折颈而死.因释其耒而守株,冀复得兔.兔不可复得,而身为宋国笑.今欲以先王之政,治当世之民,皆守株之类也.
白话文 宋国有一个农民,每天在田地里劳动.一年四季,早上天一亮就起床,扛着锄头往田野走；傍晚太阳快落山了,又扛着锄头回家.他实在是很辛苦.有一天,这个农夫正在地里干活,突然一只野兔从草丛中窜出来.野兔见到有人而受了惊吓.它拼命地奔跑,不料一下子撞到农夫地头的一截树桩子上,折断脖子死了.农夫放下手中的农活,走过去捡起死兔子.他非常庆幸自己的好运气.晚上回到家,农夫把死兔交给妻子.妻子做了香喷喷的野兔肉,两口子有说有笑美美地吃了一顿.第二天,农夫照旧到地里干活,可是他再不像以往那么专心了.守株待兔他干一会儿就朝草丛里瞄一瞄、听一听,希望再有一只兔子窜出来撞在树桩上.就这样,他心不在焉地干了一天活,该锄的地也没锄完.直到天黑也没见到有兔子出来,他很不甘心地回家了.第三天,农夫来到地边,已完全无心锄地.他把农具放在一边,自己则坐在树桩旁边的田埂上,专门等待野兔子窜出来.可是又白白地等了一天.后来,农夫每天就这样守在树桩边,希望再捡到兔子,然而他始终没有再得到.而农夫地里的野草却越长越高,把他的庄稼都淹没了.农夫因此成了宋国人议论的笑柄.[2]现在如果还要用以前的方法来治理现在的人民,就象守着一棵树等兔子来撞一样.
守株待兔的英译文
Staying by a Stump Waiting for More Hares To Come and Dash Themselves Against It
This story took place more than 2,000 years ago,in the Warring States period（475-221 B.C.）.Tradition has it that in the State of Song at that time there was a man who was famous for staying by a stump waiting for more hares to come and dash themselves against it.
He was a yong farmer,and his family had been farmers for generations.Year after year and generation after generation,farmers used to sow in spring and harvest in autumn,beginning to work at sunrise and retiring at sunset.In good harvest years,they could only have enough food to eat and enough clothing to wear.If there was a famine due to crop failure,they had to go hungry.
This young farmer wanted to improve his life.But he was too lazy and too cowardly.Being lazy and cowardly over everything,he often dreamed of having unexpected blessings.
A miracle took place at last.One day in late autumn,when he was ploughing in the field,two groups of people were hunting nearby.As shoutings were rising one after another,scared hares were running desperately.Suddenly,a blind hare dashed itself headlong against the stump of a dead tree in his field and died.
That day,he ate his fill.
