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白痴|The Idiot

Part 1 第7章|Part 1 Chapter 7

属类: 双语小说 【分类】世界名著 -[作者: 陀思妥耶夫斯基] 阅读:[21664]
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当公爵不再说话时,大家都高兴地望着他,甚至连阿格拉娅也是这样,而叶莉扎维塔·晋罗科菲耶夫娜则特别高兴。

1
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When the prince ceased speaking all were gazing merrily at him-- even Aglaya; but Lizabetha Prokofievna looked the jolliest of all.

2
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“这下通过考试了!”她高声说道,“慈悲的小姐们,你们曾经想要把他当穷人一样加以袒护照顾,可是他自己却赏光才勉强选择你们,而且还附带条件,只能偶而才来。瞧我们都当了傻瓜,我还很高兴;最傻的是伊万·费奥多罗维奇:妙极了!公爵,刚刚还吩咐要考考您呢。至于您说的有关我脸相的话,全都非常对:我是个孩子,我知道这一点。还在您说这话以前我就知道这一点了;您正好一语道破了我的思想。我认为您的性格与我十分相似,简直一模一样,我非常高兴。只不过您是男人,而我是女人,也没有去过瑞本;这就是全部差别。”

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"Well!" she cried, "we HAVE ’put him through his paces,’ with a vengeance! My dears, you imagined, I believe, that you were about to patronize this young gentleman, like some poor protege picked up somewhere, and taken under your magnificent protection. What fools we were, and what a specially big fool is your father! Well done, prince! I assure you the general actually asked me to put you through your paces, and examine you. As to what you said about my face, you are absolutely correct in your judgment. I am a child, and know it. I knew it long before you said so; you have expressed my own thoughts. I think your nature and mine must be extremely alike, and I am very glad of it. We are like two drops of water, only you are a man and I a woman, and I’ve not been to Switzerland, and that is all the difference between us."

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妈妈,您别急嘛,”阿格拉娅嚷着,“公爵说,在他的全部自白中有着特别的思想,不是无缘无故说的。”

3
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"Don’t be in a hurry, mother; the prince says that he has some motive behind his simplicity," cried Aglaya.

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“是啊,是啊,”另外两位小姐笑着说、

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"Yes, yes, so he does," laughed the others.

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“亲爱的,别逗了,也许,他比你们三个人合起来还有心计呢。你们会看到这一点的。只不过公爵您为什么对阿格拉娜只字未提?阿格拉娅等着,我也等着呢。”

5
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"Oh, don’t you begin bantering him," said mamma. "He is probably a good deal cleverer than all three of you girls put together. We shall see. Only you haven’t told us anything about Aglaya yet, prince; and Aglaya and I are both waiting to hear."

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“现在我什么也说不出来;我以后再说。”

6
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"I cannot say anything at present. I’ll tell you afterwards."

7
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“为什么?好像,她是很出众的吧?”

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"Why? Her face is clear enough, isn’t it?"

8
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“啊,是的,很出众;您非常美貌,阿格拉娅·伊万诺夫娜,您这么美丽,使人都不敢朝您看。”

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"Oh yes, of course. You are very beautiful, Aglaya Ivanovna, so beautiful that one is afraid to look at you."

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“仅此而已?那么品性呢?”将军夫人坚持问道。

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"Is that all? What about her character?" persisted Mrs. Epanchin.

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“美是很难判断的;我还没有准备好。美是个谜。”

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"It is difficult to judge when such beauty is concerned. I have not prepared my judgment. Beauty is a riddle."

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“这就是说,您给阿格拉娅出了个谜,”阿杰莱达说,“阿格拉娅,猜猜吧。那么她漂亮吗,公爵,漂亮吗?”

11
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"That means that you have set Aglaya a riddle!" said Adelaida. "Guess it, Aglaya! But she’s pretty, prince, isn’t she?"

12
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“漂亮非凡!”公爵倾慕地瞥了一眼阿格拉娅,热忱地回答说,“几乎跟纳斯塔西娅·费利帕夫娜一样,虽然脸长得完全不一样!……”

12
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"Most wonderfully so," said the latter, warmly, gazing at Aglaya with admiration. "Almost as lovely as Nastasia Philipovna, but quite a different type."

13
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大家都惊讶地彼此交换了一下眼色。

13
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All present exchanged looks of surprise.

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“跟谁一样?”将军夫人拉长了声音问,“跟纳斯塔西娅·费利帕夫娜一样吗?您在什么地方见过纳斯塔西娅·费利帕夫娜?哪一个纳斯塔西娅·费利帕夫娜?”

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"As lovely as WHO?" said Mrs. Epanchin. "As NASTASIA PHILIPOVNA? Where have you seen Nastasia Philipovna? What Nastasia Philipovna?"

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“刚才加夫里拉·阿尔达利翁诺维奇给伊万·费奥多罗维奇看过一张照片。”

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"Gavrila Ardalionovitch showed the general her portrait just now."

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“怎么,他给伊万·费奥多罗维奇带照片来了?”

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"How so? Did he bring the portrait for my husband?"

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“是带来给他看的。纳斯塔西娅·费利帕夫娜今天送给加夫里拉·阿尔达利翁诺维奇一张自己的照片。他就带来给伊万·费奥多罗维奇看。”

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"Only to show it. Nastasia Philipovna gave it to Gavrila Ardalionovitch today, and the latter brought it here to show to the general."

18
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“我想看!”将军夫人气冲冲地说,“这张照片在哪里?如果她是送给他的,那么它应该在他那里,而他当然还在书房里。他每逢星期三总是来工作的,并且从来也不会早于4点钟离开的。马上去叫加夫里拉·阿尔达利翁诺维奇来!不,我并不是想见她而急得要死。公爵,请劳驾,亲爱的,去一趟书房,向他拿照片,然后带到这里来。您就说拿来看一下。请去吧。”

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"I must see it!" cried Mrs. Epanchin. "Where is the portrait? If she gave it to him, he must have it; and he is still in the study. He never leaves before four o’clock on Wednesdays. Send for Gavrila Ardalionovitch at once. No, I don’t long to see HIM so much. Look here, dear prince, BE so kind, will you? Just step to the study and fetch this portrait! Say we want to look at it. Please do this for me, will you?"

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“是个好人,就是太单纯了,”公爵走出去后,阿杰莱达说。

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"He is a nice fellow, but a little too simple," said Adelaida, as the prince left the room.

20
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“是啊,是有点太单纯了,”亚历山德拉认同说,“所以甚至有点可笑。”

20
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"He is, indeed," said Alexandra; "almost laughably so at times."

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这一个和那一个似乎都没有把自己的全部想法讲出来。

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Neither one nor the other seemed to give expression to her full thoughts.

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“不过,对我们的脸相他倒是说得挺乖巧,”阿格拉娅说,“奉承了大家,甚至连妈妈也恭维到了。”

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"He got out of it very neatly about our faces, though," said Aglaya. He flattered us all round, even mamma."

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“请别说俏皮话了。”将军夫人大声说,“不是他恭维我。而是我感到憎恶。”

23
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"Nonsense" cried the latter. "He did not flatter me. It was I who found his appreciation flattering. I think you are a great deal more foolish than he is. He is simple, of course, but also very knowing. Just like myself."

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“你认为,他乖巧?”阿杰莱达问。

24
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"How stupid of me to speak of the portrait," thought the prince as he entered the study, with a feeling of guilt at his heart, "and yet, perhaps I was right after all." He had an idea, unformed as yet, but a strange idea.

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“我觉得,他不是这么单纯。”

25
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Gavrila Ardalionovitch was still sitting in the study, buried in a mass of papers. He looked as though he did not take his salary from the public company, whose servant he was, for a sinecure.

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“哼,又胡扯了!”将军夫人气乎乎地说,“照我看来,你们比他还可笑。他单纯,可自个儿很有主见,当然,这是从最高尚的意义上来说的。完全像我。”

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He grew very wroth and confused when the prince asked for the portrait, and explained how it came about that he had spoken of it.

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“我说出了照片的事,当然,这很糟糕,”公爵走向书房时,一边暗自思忖,一边感到有些不安,“但是……也许,我讲出来了,倒是做了件好事……”他头脑里开始闪过一个奇怪的念头,不过这念头还不完全明晰。

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"Oh, curse it all," he said; "what on earth must you go blabbing for? You know nothing about the thing, and yet--idiot!" he added, muttering the last word to himself in irrepressible rage.

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加夫里拉·阿尔达利翁诺维奇还坐在书房里,忙着处理公文。看来,他确实不是白拿股份公司的薪俸的。当公爵向他要照片并告诉他将军夫人那里怎么会知道照片的事时,他惶恐得不得了。

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"I am very sorry; I was not thinking at the time. I merely said that Aglaya was almost as beautiful as Nastasia Philipovna."

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“唉--!您于吗要多嘴!”他又气又恼地嚷起来,“您什么也不知道!白痴!”他暗自嘀咕着。

29
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Gania asked for further details; and the prince once more repeated the conversation. Gania looked at him with ironical contempt the while.

30
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“是我的过错,我完全没有多加考虑;顺口就说出来了。我说,阿格拉娅几乎跟纳斯塔西娅·费利帕夫娜一样美。”

30
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"Nastasia Philipovna," he began, and there paused; he was clearly much agitated and annoyed. The prince reminded him of the portrait.

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加尼亚请他说得详细些;公爵说了。加尼亚重又嘲讽地望了他一眼。

31
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"Listen, prince," said Gania, as though an idea had just struck him, "I wish to ask you a great favour, and yet I really don’t know--"

32
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“您倒很注意纳斯塔西娅·费利帕夫娜……”他低声说,但是没有说完沉思起来。

32
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He paused again, he was trying to make up his mind to something, and was turning the matter over. The prince waited quietly. Once more Gania fixed him with intent and questioning eyes.

33
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他显然非常惴惴不安。公爵又向他提及要照片的事。

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"Prince," he began again, "they are rather angry with me, in there, owing to a circumstance which I need not explain, so that I do not care to go in at present without an invitation. I particularly wish to speak to Aglaya, but I have written a few words in case I shall not have the chance of seeing her" (here the prince observed a small note in his hand), "and I do not know how to get my communication to her. Don’t you think you could undertake to give it to her at once, but only to her, mind, and so that no one else should see you give it? It isn’t much of a secret, but still--Well, will you do it?"

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“请听着,公爵,”仿佛突然冒出一个始料未及的想法,加尼亚忽然说,“我对您有一个很大的请求……但是,真的,我不知道……”

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"I don’t quite like it," replied the prince.

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“他很窘,话没有说完;他正在下决心要来取什么行动,似乎还在跟自傲斗争,”公爵默默地等待着。加尼亚又一次用探究、专注的目光打量着他。

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"Oh, but it is absolutely necessary for me," Gania entreated. "Believe me, if it were not so, I would not ask you; how else am I to get it to her? It is most important, dreadfully important!"

36
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“公爵,”他又开始说,“那边现在对我……由于一种十分奇怪的情况,也相当令人可笑……但这并非是我的过错……算了吧,总之,这是多余的,你好像对我有点生气,所以我想在一段时间里不召见就不到那里去。现在非常需要跟阿格拉娅·伊万诺夫娜谈一谈。我写好几句话(他手里有一张好的小纸片)以候万一出现的机会,可是我不知道,怎么转交给她,公爵,是否可以拿去转交给阿格拉娅·伊万诺夫娜,就现在,只不过要给她一个人,也就是不让任何人看见,您明白吗?这不是什么天大的秘密,没有什么大不了的……但是……您肯做吗?”

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Gania was evidently much alarmed at the idea that the prince would not consent to take his note, and he looked at him now with an expression of absolute entreaty.

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“我不太乐意干这件事,”公爵回答说。

37
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"Well, I will take it then."

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“啊,公爵,我极为需要!“加尼亚开始恳求,“她也许会答复的……请相信,我只是在极为极为迫切的情况才求助于您……我还能让谁送去呢了……这很重要……对我来说重要得不得了……”

38
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"But mind, nobody is to see!" cried the delighted Gania "And of course I may rely on your word of honour, eh?"

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加尼亚非常胆怯,生怕公爵不答应,带着怯生生请求的目光探视着他的眼睛。

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"I won’t show it to anyone," said the prince.

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“好吧,我去转交。”

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"The letter is not sealed--" continued Gania, and paused in confusion.

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“只是别让任何人发现,”高兴起来的加尼亚央求说,“还有,公爵,我可是寄希望于您的诚实话的,行吗?”

41
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"Oh, I won’t read it," said the prince, quite simply.

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“我谁也不给看见,”公爵说。

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He took up the portrait, and went out of the room.

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“字条没有封,但是……”过于慌乱的加尼亚刚说,又不好意思停住了。

43
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Gania, left alone, clutched his head with his hands.

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“噢,我不会看的,”公爵非常简单地回答说,拿了照片便走出了书房。

44
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"One word from her," he said, "one word from her, and I may yet be free."

45
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加尼亚一个人留在那里,他抓着自己的头。

45
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He could not settle himself to his papers again, for agitation and excitement, but began walking up and down the room from corner to corner.

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“只要她一句话,我……我,真的,也许就断绝关系!……”

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The prince walked along, musing. He did not like his commission, and disliked the idea of Gania sending a note to Aglaya at all; but when he was two rooms distant from the drawing-room, where they all were, he stopped a though recalling something; went to the window, nearer the light, and began to examine the portrait in his hand.

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由于激动和等待他已经无法重新坐下来处理公文了,便在书房里从一个角落走到另一个角落踱着。

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He longed to solve the mystery of something in the face Nastasia Philipovna, something which had struck him as he looked at the portrait for the first time; the impression had not left him. It was partly the fact of her marvellous beauty that struck him, and partly something else. There was a suggestion of immense pride and disdain in the face almost of hatred, and at the same time something confiding and very full of simplicity. The contrast aroused a deep sympathy in his heart as he looked at the lovely face. The blinding loveliness of it was almost intolerable, this pale thin face with its flaming eyes; it was a strange beauty.

48
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公爵一边走,一边思考着;这个委托使他吃惊和不快,想到加尼亚给阿格拉娅的字条也使他惊愕和不乐。但是在没有走过两个房间到客厅前,他突然停住了,仿佛想起了什么,环顾了一下周围,然后走近窗口亮处,开始端详起纳斯塔西娅·费利帕夫娜的照片来。

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The prince gazed at it for a minute or two, then glanced around him, and hurriedly raised the portrait to his lips. When, a minute after, he reached the drawing-room door, his face was quite composed. But just as he reached the door he met Aglaya coming out alone.

49
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他似乎想猜测隐藏在这张脸上的和刚才使他感到惊诧的东西。刚才的感受几乎没有离开他,现在他似乎急于要检验什么。这张美丽的非凡的,还有什么不同寻常的脸,现在更加强烈地使他惊异。在这张脸上仿佛有一种无上的骄矜和蔑视,几乎是仇恨,同时又有某种信任人的,某种天真无邪得惊人的神情;看一眼这张脸,这两种对立的东西甚至仿佛激发起某种同情。这种光艳照人的美丽甚至令人难以忍受,苍白的脸色,几乎是凹陷的双颊和炽热的眼睛,这一切都美;真是一种奇异的美!公爵望了一会,然后突然醒悟过来,看了一下周围,急促地把照片贴近嘴唇吻了吻。过了一会他走进客厅时,他的脸完全是平静的。

49
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"Gavrila Ardalionovitch begged me to give you this," he said, handing her the note.

50
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但是他刚走进餐室(到客厅还要经过一个房间),正好走出来的阿格拉娅和他在门口几乎憧了个满怀。她是一个人。

50
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Aglaya stopped, took the letter, and gazed strangely into the prince’s eyes. There was no confusion in her face; a little surprise, perhaps, but that was all. By her look she seemed merely to challenge the prince to an explanation as to how he and Gania happened to be connected in this matter. But her expression was perfectly cool and quiet, and even condescending.

51
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“加夫里拉·阿尔达利翁诺维奇请我转交给您,”公爵说着,把字条递给了她。

51
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So they stood for a moment or two, confronting one another. At length a faint smile passed over her face, and she passed by him without a word.

52
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阿格拉娅停了下来、拿了字条,不知为什么奇怪地看了公爵一眼。在她的目光中没有丝毫窘意,只流露出一丝惊讶,这好像也只是与公爵一人相关。阿格拉娅的目光就像要求他解释:他是怎么跟加尼亚一起参与进这件事里来的?她要求解释,显得很平静和傲慢。他们面对面站了有眨两三下眼的工夫;最后,在她脸上稍稍流露出某种嘲讽的神色;她微微一笑,走了过去。

52
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Mrs. Epanchin examined the portrait of Nastasia Philipovna for some little while, holding it critically at arm’s length.

53
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将军夫人默默地,带着一丝轻蔑的神情细细打量了纳斯塔西娅·费利帕夫娜的照片好一会。她伸长了手,非同寻常和颇有风度地把照片拿得离眼睛远远的。

53
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"Yes, she is pretty," she said at last, "even very pretty. I have seen her twice, but only at a distance. So you admire this kind of beauty, do you?" she asked the prince, suddenly.

54
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“是的,是漂亮,”她终于说,“甚至很漂亮,我见过她两次,只不过都在远处。您推崇这样的美貌吗。”她突然朝公爵问。

54
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"Yes, I do--this kind."

55
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“是的……我赞赏……”公爵有点紧张地答道。

55
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"Do you mean especially this kind?"

56
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“也就是说正是这种美?”

56
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"Yes, especially this kind."

57
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“正是这种。”

57
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"Why?"

58
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“为什么?”

58
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"There is much suffering in this face," murmured the prince, more as though talking to himself than answering the question.

59
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“在这张脸上……流露出许多痛苦……”公爵仿佛是不由自主地,又似乎自言自语地说着,而不是回答问题。

59
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"I think you are wandering a little, prince," Mrs. Epanchin decided, after a lengthened survey of his face; and she tossed the portrait on to the table, haughtily.

60
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“不过,您也许是在说胡话,”将军夫人说完,用一个傲慢的动作把照片扔到桌上。

60
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Alexandra took it, and Adelaida came up, and both the girls examined the photograph. Just then Aglaya entered the room.

61
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亚历山德拉拿起照片,阿杰莱达走过来,两人开始细细看起来,这时阿格拉娅又回到客厅里来了。

61
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"What a power!" cried Adelaida suddenly, as she earnestly examined the portrait over her sister’s shoulder.

62
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“多大的魅力呀!”阿杰莱达从姐姐肩后贪婪地盯着看照片,突然大声嚷了起来。

62
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"Whom? What power?" asked her mother, crossly.

63
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“在什么地方?什么样的魅力?”叶莉扎维塔·普罗科菲耶夫娜生硬地问。

63
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"Such beauty is real power," said Adelaida. "With such beauty as that one might overthrow the world." She returned to her easel thoughtfully.

64
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“这种美就是魅力,”阿杰莱达热情地说,“有这样的美可以颠倒乾坤!”

64
-

Aglaya merely glanced at the portrait--frowned, and put out her underlip; then went and sat down on the sofa with folded hands. Mrs. Epanchin rang the bell.

65
-

她若有所思地走到自己的画架眼前。阿格拉娅对照片只是匆匆一瞥,便眯起眼,咬着下唇,走开坐到旁边去,双手交叉着。

65
-

"Ask Gavrila Ardalionovitch to step this way," said she to the man who answered.

66
-

将军夫人打了下铃。

66
-

"Mamma!" cried Alexandra, significantly.

67
-

“把加夫里拉·阿尔达利翁诺维奇叫来,他在书房里,”她对进来的仆人吩咐说。

67
-

"I shall just say two words to him, that’s all," said her mother, silencing all objection by her manner; she was evidently seriously put out. "You see, prince, it is all secrets with us, just now--all secrets. It seems to be the etiquette of the house, for some reason or, other. Stupid nonsense, and in a matter which ought to be approached with all candour and open- heartedness. There is a marriage being talked of, and I don’t like this marriage--"

68
-

“妈妈!”亚历山德拉意味深长地喊了起来。

68
-

"Mamma, what are you saying?" said Alexandra again, hurriedly.

69
-

“我想对他说两句话,这就够了!”将军夫人不容反对,很快地斩钉截铁说。看来她很恼火。“我们这里,公爵,您看到了吧,现在一切都是秘密,全都是秘密!说是要求这样,是什么礼节的需要,真是胡扯。而这还是在最需要坦诚,明朗,诚实的事情上。几桩婚事却在开始进行,我不喜欢这些婚事……”

69
-

"Well, what, my dear girl? As if you can possibly like it yourself? The heart is the great thing, and the rest is all rubbish--though one must have sense as well. Perhaps sense is really the great thing. Don’t smile like that, Aglaya. I don’t contradict myself. A fool with a heart and no brains is just as unhappy as a fool with brains and no heart. I am one and you are the other, and therefore both of us suffer, both of us are unhappy."

70
-

“妈妈,您这是干什么呀?”亚历山德拉又急忙阻止她。

70
-

"Why are you so unhappy, mother?" asked Adelaida, who alone of all the company seemed to have preserved her good temper and spirits up to now.

71
-

“你怎么啦,亲爱的女儿?难道你自己喜欢吗?公爵听见了又有何妨,我们是朋友嘛,至少我跟他是。上帝找人,当然是找好人,他不需要坏人和反复无常的人;特别是不要反复无常的人,他们今天决定这样,明天又说那样。亚历山德拉·伊万诺夫娜,您明白吗?公爵,她们常说我是个怪人,可是我却会识别人。因为心灵是主要胁,其余的全是胡说八道。头脑当然也是需要的……也许,头脑是最主要的。别讥笑,阿格拉娅,我并没有自相矛盾:有心灵而没有头脑的傻瓜,跟有头脑而没有心灵的傻瓜,是一样不幸的。这是古老的真理。我就是有心灵而没有头脑的傻瓜,而你则是有头脑而没有心灵的傻瓜;我们俩都不幸,我们俩也很痛苦。”

71
-

"In the first place, because of my carefully brought-up daughters," said Mrs. Epanchin, cuttingly; "and as that is the best reason I can give you we need not bother about any other at present. Enough of words, now! We shall see how both of you (I don’t count Aglaya) will manage your business, and whether you, most revered Alexandra Ivanovna, will be happy with your fine mate."

72
-

“妈妈,什么地方您竟这么不幸了?”阿杰莱达忍不住问,就像她们之中就她上人没有丧失快活的心情。

72
-

"Ah!" she added, as Gania suddenly entered the room, "here’s another marrying subject. How do you do?" she continued, in response to Gania’s bow; but she did not invite him to sit down. "You are going to be married?"

73
-

“第一,是由于有你们这儿个有学问的女儿,”将军夫人断然说,“因为光这一点就够了,所以其它的也就没什么好多说了。废话够多的了,我们要看看,你们俩(我没有把阿格拉娅算进去)靠自己的才智和多言怎么个摆脱困境,还有您,十分尊敬的亚历山德拉·伊万诺夫娜,跟您那可敬的先生是否会幸福?……啊!……” 她看见进来的加尼亚,发出一声感叹说,“瞧,又一门婚事在进行。您好!”她回答着加尼亚的鞠躬,却没有请他坐下。“您在准备结婚吧?”

73
-

"Married? how--what marriage?" murmured Gania, overwhelmed with confusion.

74
-

“结婚?……怎么回事?……结什么婚?……”大为震惊的加夫里拉·阿尔达利翁诺维奇嘟哝着说,他显得十分慌乱。

74
-

"Are you about to take a wife? I ask,--if you prefer that expression."

75
-

“我是问,您要娶媳妇了吗?如果您只喜欢这样的表达。”

75
-

"No, no I-I--no!" said Gania, bringing out his lie with a tell- tale blush of shame. He glanced keenly at Aglaya, who was sitting some way off, and dropped his eyes immediately.

76
-

“没有……我……没有,”加夫里拉·阿尔达利翁诺维奇撤了谎,羞愧得满脸飞上了红晕。他向坐在一旁的阿格拉娅匆匆扫了一眼,很快就移开了眼光。阿格拉娅冷漠、专注、平静地望着他,注目定睛地观察他的窘相。

76
-

Aglaya gazed coldly, intently, and composedly at him, without taking her eyes off his face, and watched his confusion.

77
-

“没有?您说:没有?”坚定不移的叶莉扎维塔·普罗科菲耶夫娜执拗地盘问着,“够了,我将记住,今天,星期三早晨,您回答我的问题说‘没有’,今天什么日子?是星期三吗?”

77
-

"No? You say no, do you?" continued the pitiless Mrs. General. "Very well, I shall remember that you told me this Wednesday morning, in answer to my question, that you are not going to be married. What day is it, Wednesday, isn’t it?"

78
-

“好像是星期三,妈妈,”阿杰莱这回答说。

78
-

"Yes, I think so!" said Adelaida.

79
-

“她们总是不知道日子。今天几号?”

79
-

"You never know the day of the week; what’s the day of the month?"

80
-

“27号,”加尼亚回答说。

80
-

"Twenty-seventh!" said Gania.

81
-

“27号?根据某种说法这日子很好。再见,您好像还有许多事,而我也该更衣外出了;把您的照片拿去吧。向不幸的尼娜·亚历山德罗夫娜转致我的问候。再见,公爵,亲爱的!常来走走,我要特地上别洛孔斯卡娅老太婆那儿去讲讲您的事。请听着,亲爱的:我相信,上帝正是为了我才把您从瑞士带到彼得堡来。也许,您还有别的事,但是主要是为了我。上帝正是这样考虑的。再见,各位亲爱的。亚历山德拉,到我这儿来一下,我的朋友。”

81
-

"Twenty-seventh; very well. Good-bye now; you have a good deal to do, I’m sure, and I must dress and go out. Take your portrait. Give my respects to your unfortunate mother, Nina Alexandrovna. Au revoir, dear prince, come in and see us often, do; and I shall tell old Princess Bielokonski about you. I shall go and see her on purpose. And listen, my dear boy, I feel sure that God has sent you to Petersburg from Switzerland on purpose for me. Maybe you will have other things to do, besides, but you are sent chiefly for my sake, I feel sure of it. God sent you to me! Au revoir! Alexandra, come with me, my dear."

82
-

将军夫人走出去了。加尼亚一付沮丧颓唐、悯然若失的样子,恶狠狠地从桌上拿起照片,带着尴尬的微笑对公爵说:

82
-

Mrs. Epanchin left the room.

83
-

“公爵,我现在回家去,如果您不改变住我家的打算的话,那么我带您去,不然您连地址也不知道。”

83
-

Gania--confused, annoyed, furious--took up his portrait, and turned to the prince with a nasty smile on his face.

84
-

“等一下,公爵,”阿格拉娅突然从自己奇子上站起身,说“您还要给我在纪念册上写几个字呢。爸爸说,您是个书法家。我马上给您去拿来……”

84
-

"Prince," he said, "I am just going home. If you have not changed your mind as to living with us, perhaps you would like to come with me. You don’t know the address, I believe?"

85
-

她走出去了。

85
-

"Wait a minute, prince," said Aglaya, suddenly rising from her seat, "do write something in my album first, will you? Father says you are a most talented caligraphist; I’ll bring you my book in a minute." She left the room.

86
-

“再见,公爵,我也要走了,”阿杰莱达说。她紧蛋地握了握公爵的手,亲切而温柔的对他芜尔一笑,走了出去。她没有朝加尼亚看一眼。

86
-

"Well, au revoir, prince," said Adelaida, "I must be going too." She pressed the prince’s hand warmly, and gave him a friendly smile as she left the room. She did not so much as look at Gania.

87
-

“这都是您,”所有的人刚走出去,加尼亚便突然冲着公爵咬牙切齿地说,“都是您多嘴说我要结婚了!”他很快地低声哺咕着,怒容满脸,眼睛有恶狠狠地闪着光。“您是个恬不知耻的饶舌鬼!

87
-

"This is your doing, prince," said Gania, turning on the latter so soon as the others were all out of the room. "This is your doing, sir! YOU have been telling them that I am going to be married!" He said this in a hurried whisper, his eyes flashing with rage and his face ablaze. "You shameless tattler!"

88
-

“我请您相信,您弄错了,”公爵平静而有礼地回答说,“我根本就不知道您要结婚的事。”

88
-

"I assure you, you are under a delusion," said the prince, calmly and politely. "I did not even know that you were to be married."

89
-

“您刚才听见伊万·费奥多罗维奇说了,今天晚上在纳斯塔西娅。费利帕夫娜家里将决定一切,您就告诉她们了!您在撒谎!她们怎么会知道?除了您,真见鬼,谁会对他们说,难道老太婆没有向我暗示吗?”

89
-

"You heard me talking about it, the general and me. You heard me say that everything was to be settled today at Nastasia Philipovna’s, and you went and blurted it out here. You lie if you deny it. Who else could have told them Devil take it, sir, who could have told them except yourself? Didn’t the old woman as good as hint as much to me?"

90
-

“如果您只是觉得她们向您暗示了,那么最好还是先了解清楚,是谁告诉的,我对于这事可是只字未提。”

90
-

"If she hinted to you who told her you must know best, of course; but I never said a word about it."

91
-

“字条转交了吗?答复呢?”加尼亚火急火燎、急不可耐地打断他,但就在这个时候阿格拉娅回来了,因此公爵什么也没来得回答。

91
-

"Did you give my note? Is there an answer?" interrupted Gania, impatiently.

92
-

“瞧,公爵,”阿格拉娅把自己的纪念册放到小桌上,说,“您就选一页,给我写点什么。这是笔,还是新的。是钢的笔尖,不碍事吧?我听说,书法家们是不用钢的笔尖写字的。”

92
-

But at this moment Aglaya came back, and the prince had no time to reply.

93
-

在跟公爵说话的时候,她仿佛没有注意到加尼亚就在这里。但是,在公爵摆弄着笔尖,寻找写字的纸页,准备写字的那会儿,加尼亚走近了壁炉,此刻在公爵右边的阿格拉娅站在附近。他用颤抖、断续的声音几乎是对着她耳朵说:

93
-

"There, prince," said she, "there’s my album. Now choose a page and write me something, will you? There’s a pen, a new one; do you mind a steel one? I have heard that you caligraphists don’t like steel pens."

94
-

“一句话,只要您的一句话,我就得救了。”

94
-

Conversing with the prince, Aglaya did not even seem to notice that Gania was in the room. But while the prince was getting his pen ready, finding a page, and making his preparations to write, Gania came up to the fireplace where Aglaya was standing, to the right of the prince, and in trembling, broken accents said, almost in her ear:

95
-

公爵很快转过身来,朝他们两人瞥了一眼。加尼亚的脸上现出一种真正绝望的神情,看来他似乎不加思考、孤注一掷说出这些话来的。阿格拉娅完全还是以刚才望公爵那种平静和惊讶的神情望了他几秒钟,好像,她的这种平静惊讶,这种困惑不解,全是因为不明白他对她说的话,这对于此刻的加尼亚来说比最强烈的轻蔑还更可怕。

95
-

"One word, just one word from you, and I’m saved."

96
-

“我写什么呢?”公爵问。

96
-

The prince turned sharply round and looked at both of them. Gania’s face was full of real despair; he seemed to have said the words almost unconsciously and on the impulse of the moment.

97
-

“我现在向您口述,”阿格拉娅转向他,说,“准备好了吗?您就写:‘我不做交易。’现在写上周期、月份。请给我看看。”

97
-

Aglaya gazed at him for some seconds with precisely the same composure and calm astonishment as she had shown a little while before, when the prince handed her the note, and it appeared that this calm surprise and seemingly absolute incomprehension of what was said to her, were more terribly overwhelming to Gania than even the most plainly expressed disdain would have been.

98
-

公爵把纪念册递给她。

98
-

"What shall I write?" asked the prince.

99
-

“好极了!您写得令人惊倒;您的字体奇妙无比!谢谢您。再见,公爵……等一下,”她仿佛突然想起了什么,补充说,“我们一起走吧,我想送您点东西作纪念。”

99
-

"I’ll dictate to you," said Aglaya, coming up to the table. "Now then, are you ready? Write, ’I never condescend to bargain!’ Now put your name and the date. Let me see it."

100
-

公爵跟在她后面走着,但是,一走进餐室,阿格拉娅就停住了。“请看看这个,”她把加尼亚的字条递给他,说。

100
-

The prince handed her the album.

101
-

公爵拿过了字条,困惑不解地望了阿格拉娅一眼。

101
-

"Capital! How beautifully you have written it! Thanks so much. Au revoir, prince. Wait a minute,"; she added, "I want to give you something for a keepsake. Come with me this way, will you?"

102
-

“我可是知道,您没有看过它,也不会相信这个人。看吧,我希望您看看。”

102
-

The prince followed her. Arrived at the dining-room, she stopped.

103
-

字条显然写得仓促:

103
-

"Read this," she said, handing him Gania’s note.

104
-

“今天将决定我的命运,您知道将以什么方式来决定。今天我非要说出自己的话不可。我没有任何权利要求得到您的同情,也不敢抱有任何希望;但是您曾经说过一句话,只是一句话,而这句话却照亮我那犹如一片黑夜的生活,成为我的灯塔。现在请再说一次同样的那句话,您就能把我从毁灭中拯救出来,请只要对我说:挣脱一切,我今天就扯断一切,啊,说这句话对您来说又算得了什么!我只请求在这句话里表示您对我的同情的怜悯,--仅此而已,仅此而已!别无它求,别无它求!我不敢想入非非,抱什么奢望,因为我不配。但是有了您这句话,我将重新忍受我的贫穷,我将乐于承受我的绝境。我将迎接斗争,我还乐于去斗争,我要以新的力量投入斗争并获得新生!

104
-

The prince took it from her hand, but gazed at her in bewilderment.

105
-

请带给我这一句表示怜悯的活(就只要怜悯,我向您发誓)。请别对一个绝望者的恣意妄为生气,别对一个溺水者生气,因为他敢于作最后的拼命挣扎只是为了使自己免遭灭顶之灾。

105
-

"Oh! I KNOW you haven’t read it, and that you could never be that man’s accomplice. Read it, I wish you to read it."

106
-

“这个人担保,”当公爵看完字条时,阿格拉娅尖刻地说,“‘挣脱一切’这句话不会损坏我的名誉,也不用承担任何责任,他自己,您看见了,用这张字条给了我这方面的书面保证。请注意,但是多么天真地急于强调某些句子的含义,又多么笨拙地透露出他那隐藏的思想。其实,他知道,如果他挣脱一切,但是是他自己一个人去挣脱,并不期待我的话,甚至也不告诉我这一点,对我不寄任何希望,那么到时候我会改变对他的感情,也许,会成为他的朋友。他无疑是知道这一点的!但是他有一颗肮脏的灵魂:他知道,却下不了决心;他知道,却依然要求得到保证。他不能下决心为信念作斗争。他想要我给他答应他终身的希望,以取代10万卢布。至于说他在字条里提到的并且似乎是我以前说过的照亮了他生活的话,那他是厚颜无耻地撤谎。有一回我不过是对他表示怜悯而已。但他是个恣意狂妄和恬不知耻的人:他当时立即就闪出了可能如愿的希望;我马上就看透了这一点。从那时起他就开始抓住我,现在也还在抓。但是够了;请把字条拿去,带给他,您一走出我家就立即给他,当然,不要在这以前给。”

106
-

The letter had evidently been written in a hurry:

107
-

“有什么话要答复他吗?”

107
-

"My fate is to be decided today" (it ran), "you know how. This day I must give my word irrevocably. I have no right to ask your help, and I dare not allow myself to indulge in any hopes; but once you said just one word, and that word lighted up the night of my life, and became the beacon of my days. Say one more such word, and save me from utter ruin. Only tell me, ’break off the whole thing!’ and I will do so this very day. Oh! what can it cost you to say just this one word? In doing so you will but be giving me a sign of your sympathy for me, and of your pity; only this, only this; nothing more, NOTHING. I dare not indulge in any hope, because I am unworthy of it. But if you say but this word, I will take up my cross again with joy, and return once more to my battle with poverty. I shall meet the storm and be glad of it; I shall rise up with renewed strength.

108
-

“当然没有。这是最好的回答。那么,您看来是想住到他家去喏?”

108
-

"Send me back then this one word of sympathy, only sympathy, I swear to you; and oh! do not be angry with the audacity of despair, with the drowning man who has dared to make this last effort to save himself from perishing beneath the waters.

109
-

“刚才伊万·费奥多罗维奇亲自介绍的,”公爵说。

109
-

"G.L."

110
-

“那么我提醒您,要提防着他;您把字条还给他,现在他是不会饶恕您的。”

110
-

"This man assures me," said Aglaya, scornfully, when the prince had finished reading the letter, "that the words ’break off everything’ do not commit me to anything whatever; and himself gives me a written guarantee to that effect, in this letter. Observe how ingenuously he underlines certain words, and how crudely he glosses over his hidden thoughts. He must know that if he ’broke off everything,’ FIRST, by himself, and without telling me a word about it or having the slightest hope on my account, that in that case I should perhaps be able to change my opinion of him, and even accept his--friendship. He must know that, but his soul is such a wretched thing. He knows it and cannot make up his mind; he knows it and yet asks for guarantees. He cannot bring himself to TRUST, he wants me to give him hopes of myself before he lets go of his hundred thousand roubles. As to the ’former word’ which he declares ’lighted up the night of his life,’ he is simply an impudent liar; I merely pitied him once. But he is audacious and shameless. He immediately began to hope, at that very moment. I saw it. He has tried to catch me ever since; he is still fishing for me. Well, enough of this. Take the letter and give it back to him, as soon as you have left our house; not before, of course."

111
-

阿格拉娅稍稍握了一下公爵的手便走出去了。她的脸色阴郁、严峻,当她向公爵点头告别时,甚至都没有一丝微笑。

111
-

"And what shall I tell him by way of answer?"

112
-

“我马上来,就拿一下我的小包,”公爵对加尼亚说,“我们就走。”

112
-

"Nothing--of course! That’s the best answer. Is it the case that you are going to live in his house?"

113
-

加尼亚不耐烦而跺了一下脚。他怒气冲冲甚至脸都变黑了。最后,两人走到了街上,公爵手里拿着自己的小包。

113
-

"Yes, your father kindly recommended me to him."

114
-

“答复呢?答复呢?”加尼亚气乎乎地冲着公爵问,“她对您说什么了?你把信转交了吗?”

114
-

"Then look out for him, I warn you! He won’t forgive you easily, for taking back the letter."

115
-

公爵默默地把他的字条递给了他,加尼亚呆若木鸡。

115
-

Aglaya pressed the prince’s hand and left the room. Her face was serious and frowning; she did not even smile as she nodded good- bye to him at the door.

116
-

“怎么回事?我的字条!”他嚷了起来,“您没有转交给她!啊,我早该知道的!嘿,该死的……这就明白了,她刚才什么都不清楚!怎么会,怎么会您怎么会没有转交的呢,唉,该死的……”

116
-

"I’ll just get my parcel and we’ll go," said the prince to Gania, as he re-entered the drawing-room. Gania stamped his foot with impatience. His face looked dark and gloomy with rage.

117
-

“请原谅,相反,在您把字条给我的那会儿,并且正像您要求的那样,我马上就顺利地转交了。它又在我这里出现,是因为阿格拉娅·伊万诺夫娜刚刚将它交还给我。”

117
-

At last they left the house behind them, the prince carrying his bundle.

118
-

“什么时候?什么时候?”

118
-

"The answer--quick--the answer!" said Gania, the instant they were outside. "What did she say? Did you give the letter?" The prince silently held out the note. Gania was struck motionless with amazement.

119
-

“我刚写好纪念册上的字,她邀请我跟她走的时候。(您听到了吗?)我们走进餐室,她把字条递给我,吩咐我读一下并交还给您。”

119
-

"How, what? my letter?" he cried. "He never delivered it! I might have guessed it, oh! curse him! Of course she did not understand what I meant, naturally! Why-why-WHY didn’t you give her the note, you--"

120
-

“读--一下!”加尼亚差点没放开嗓子叫喊起来,“读一下,您读过了。”

120
-

"Excuse me; I was able to deliver it almost immediately after receiving your commission, and I gave it, too, just as you asked me to. It has come into my hands now because Aglaya Ivanovna has just returned it to me."

121
-

他又呆若木鸡似地站在人行道中间,但是惊愕失色到甚至张口结舌的。

121
-

"How? When?"

122
-

“是的,我读过了,就刚才那会。”

122
-

"As soon as I finished writing in her album for her, and when she asked me to come out of the room with her (you heard?), we went into the dining-room, and she gave me your letter to read, and then told me to return it."

123
-

“是她本人,亲自给您读的?本人吗?”

123
-

"To READ?" cried Gania, almost at the top of his voice; "to READ, and you read it?"

124
-

“是她本人,请相信,没有她的邀请我是下会读它的。”

124
-

And again he stood like a log in the middle of the pavement; so amazed that his mouth remained open after the last word had left it.

125
-

加尼亚沉默了片刻,殚思竭虑地揣摩着什么,突然嚷了起来:

125
-

"Yes, I have just read it."

126
-

“不可能!她不可能吩咐您读字条的。您在撒谎!是您自己读了它。”

126
-

"And she gave it you to read herself--HERSELF?"

127
-

“我说的是实话,”公爵仍然用原先完全没有气愤的语气说,“请相信:此事让您产生这么不快的感受,我感到很遗憾。”

127
-

"Yes, herself; and you may believe me when I tell you that I would not have read it for anything without her permission."

128
-

“但是,倒霉鬼,至少她向您说了什么关于这字条的话?她回答什么了吗?”

128
-

Gania was silent for a minute or two, as though thinking out some problem. Suddenly he cried:

129
-

“当然说了。”

129
-

"It’s impossible, she cannot have given it to you to read! You are lying. You read it yourself!"

130
-

“那快说,快说,嗬,活见鬼!……”

130
-

"I am telling you the truth," said the prince in his former composed tone of voice; "and believe me, I am extremely sorry that the circumstance should have made such an unpleasant impression upon you!"

131
-

加尼亚在人行道上两次跺了跺穿着套鞋的右脚。

131
-

"But, you wretched man, at least she must have said something? There must be SOME answer from her!"

132
-

“我刚看完,她就对我说,您不放过她;您想要从她那里得到希望,从而损害她的名誉,为的是,依靠这种希望来毁掉可以得到十万卢布的另一个希望而不受损失,如果您不跟她做交易而去做这件事,如果您不先向她请求保证就自己去挣脱一切,那么,她可能会成为您的朋友,好像就说了这些。对了,还有:当我已经拿了字条,问有什么答复时,她说,没有答复就是最好的答复,--好像是这样说的;如果我忘了她的原话,请原谅,我是照我自己的理解转告的。”

132
-

"Yes, of course, she did say something!"

133
-

无比的恼恨驾驭着加尼亚,他的怒气不受任何遏制地爆发了出来。

133
-

"Out with it then, damn it! Out with it at once!" and Gania stamped his foot twice on the pavement.

134
-

“啊,原来是这样!”他咬牙切齿地说,“怪不得把我的字条往窗外扔!啊!她不做交易,那么我来做!我们走着瞧!我还有得让她瞧的……我们走着瞧!……我要给她看厉害的!……”

134
-

"As soon as I had finished reading it, she told me that you were fishing for her; that you wished to compromise her so far as to receive some hopes from her, trusting to which hopes you might break with the prospect of receiving a hundred thousand roubles. She said that if you had done this without bargaining with her, if you had broken with the money prospects without trying to force a guarantee out of her first, she might have been your friend. That’s all, I think. Oh no, when I asked her what I was to say, as I took the letter, she replied that ’no answer is the best answer.’ I think that was it. Forgive me if I do not use her exact expressions. I tell you the sense as I understood it myself."

135
-

他歪着嘴脸,气得脸色发白,唾沫飞溅;他用拳头威吓着。他们就这样走了几步。他丝毫也不顾忌公爵在场,就像只有他一人在自己房间里似的,因为他根本就认为公爵是个无足轻重的人,但是,他突然想到了什么,恍然大悟过来。

135
-

Ungovernable rage and madness took entire possession of Gania, and his fury burst out without the least attempt at restraint.

136
-

“对了,究竟怎么,”突然他对公爵说,“您究竟怎么(他暗自补了一声:‘白痴!’),在初识二小时后就获得了这种信赖?怎么会这样?”

136
-

"Oh! that’s it, is it!" he yelled. "She throws my letters out of the window, does she! Oh! and she does not condescend to bargain, while I DO, eh? We shall see, we shall see! I shall pay her out for this."

137
-

在他的万般痛苦中尚没有嫉妒。现在它却突然螫痛了他的心。

137
-

He twisted himself about with rage, and grew paler and paler; he shook his fist. So the pair walked along a few steps. Gania did not stand on ceremony with the prince; he behaved just as though he were alone in his room. He clearly counted the latter as a nonentity. But suddenly he seemed to have an idea, and recollected himself.

138
-

“这一点我可不会向您解释,”公爵回答说。

138
-

"But how was it?" he asked, "how was it that you (idiot that you are)," he added to himself, "were so very confidential a couple of hours after your first meeting with these people? How was that, eh?"

139
-

加尼亚恶狠狠地看了他一眼。

139
-

Up to this moment jealousy had not been one of his torments; now it suddenly gnawed at his heart.

140
-

“她叫您到餐室去,这不是把自己的信赖送给您吗?她不是打算送什么东西给您的吗?”

140
-

"That is a thing I cannot undertake to explain," replied the prince. Gania looked at him with angry contempt.

141
-

“除了这样,我没有别的理解。”

141
-

"Oh! I suppose the present she wished to make to you, when she took you into the dining-room, was her confidence, eh?"

142
-

“那么究竟为了什么呢,真见鬼!您在那里做了什么?凭什么您叫人喜欢?听着,”他心烦意乱到极点(此刻他身上的一切仿佛都乱套了,翻腾得紊乱不堪,因此他也无法集中思想),“听着,您是否能哪怕是多少想起一点,有条理地想一想,在那里您究竟说了些什么,从头到尾究竟说了些什么?您没有记住什么,没有记牢吗。”

142
-

"I suppose that was it; I cannot explain it otherwise?"

143
-

“噢,我完全能想起来,”公爵回答说,“最初,我进去并认识以后,我们便开始讲有关瑞士的情况。”

143
-

"But why, WHY? Devil take it, what did you do in there? Why did they fancy you? Look here, can’t you remember exactly what you said to them, from the very beginning? Can’t you remember?"

144
-

“算了,让瑞士见鬼去吧!”

144
-

"Oh, we talked of a great many things. When first I went in we began to speak of Switzerland."

145
-

“后来讲到了死刑……”

145
-

"Oh, the devil take Switzerland!"

146
-

“讲到死刑?”

146
-

"Then about executions."

147
-

“是的;因为有一个情况……后来我对她们讲到,在那里的三年是怎么过的,就讲到了一个穷苦的乡村女的故事……”

147
-

"Executions?"

148
-

“算了,穷苦的乡村女去它的吧!往下讲!”加尼亚不耐烦地急着问。

148
-

"Yes--at least about one. Then I told the whole three years’ story of my life, and the history of a poor peasant girl--"

149
-

“后来,谈到施奈德对我说出了有关我性格的意见并强迫我……”

149
-

"Oh, damn the peasant girl! go on, go on!" said Gania, impatiently.

150
-

“让施奈德滚开,管他的意见呢!往下讲!”

150
-

"Then how Schneider told me about my childish nature, and--"

151
-

“后来,由于某个情况,我讲到了脸相,也就是脸的表情,于是就说到,阿格拉娅·伊万诺夫娜几乎就跟纳斯塔西娅·费利帕夫娜一样漂亮。就在这种情况下我讲出了照片的事……”

151
-

"Oh, CURSE Schneider and his dirty opinions! Go on."

152
-

“但是您没有搬弄,您可是没有搬弄刚才在书房里听到的话吧?没有?没有?”

152
-

"Then I began to talk about faces, at least about the EXPRESSIONS of faces, and said that Aglaya Ivanovna was nearly as lovely as Nastasia Philipovna. It was then I blurted out about the portrait--"

153
-

“我再向您重复一次,没有。”

153
-

"But you didn’t repeat what you heard in the study? You didn’t repeat that--eh?"

154
-

“那么从哪里,真见鬼……啊!阿格拉娅有没有把字条拿给老太婆看?”

154
-

"No, I tell you I did NOT."

155
-

“这一点我完全可以让您放心,她没有给将军夫人看。我始终在那里;再说她也没有时间。”

155
-

"Then how did they--look here! Did Aglaya show my letter to the old lady?"

156
-

“是啊,也许,您自己没有记住什么……哦!该死的白痴,”他已经完全不自禁地感叹说,“什么都讲不清楚!”

156
-

"Oh, there I can give you my fullest assurance that she did NOT. I was there all the while--she had no time to do it!"

157
-

加尼亚既然骂开了头,又没有遇到反对,渐渐地就失去了任何克制,有些人总是这样的。他怒不可遏,再过一会,他可能就要啐唾沫了。但是正因为这种狂怒他就丧失了理智;否则他早就会注意到,这个他非常鄙视的“白痴”有时却能非常迅速和敏锐地理解一切,会十分令人满意地转述一切,但是突然发生了意想不到的情况。

157
-

"But perhaps you may not have observed it, oh, you damned idiot, you!" he shouted, quite beside himself with fury. "You can’t even describe what went on."

158
-

“我应该向您指出,加夫里拉·阿尔达利翁诺维奇,”公爵突然说,“我过去确实有病,真的几乎是白痴;但现在我早就已经痊愈了。因此,当有人当面叫我白痴时,我是有点不快的。虽然考虑到您遭遇的挫折也可以原谅您,但是您在恼火中甚至两次辱骂了我。我非常不愿意这样,尤其是像您这样第一次见就这么突然开口骂人;我们现在正站在十字路口,我们是不是最好分手:您向右回自己家,而我向左走。我有25个卢布,大概我能找到带家具的旅馆房间的。”

158
-

Gania having once descended to abuse, and receiving no check, very soon knew no bounds or limit to his licence, as is often the way in such cases. His rage so blinded him that he had not even been able to detect that this "idiot," whom he was abusing to such an extent, was very far from being slow of comprehension, and had a way of taking in an impression, and afterwards giving it out again, which was very un-idiotic indeed. But something a little unforeseen now occurred.

159
-

加尼亚窘得不得了,甚至难为情得脸都红了。

159
-

"I think I ought to tell you, Gavrila Ardalionovitch," said the prince, suddenly, "that though I once was so ill that I really was little better than an idiot, yet now I am almost recovered, and that, therefore, it is not altogether pleasant to be called an idiot to my face. Of course your anger is excusable, considering the treatment you have just experienced; but I must remind you that you have twice abused me rather rudely. I do not like this sort of thing, and especially so at the first time of meeting a man, and, therefore, as we happen to be at this moment standing at a crossroad, don’t you think we had better part, you to the left, homewards, and I to the right, here? I have twenty- five roubles, and I shall easily find a lodging."

160
-

“请原谅,公爵,”他突然把骂人的腔调改换成十分彬彬有礼的口气,热情地嚷了起来,“看在上帝份上,千万请原谅!您看见了,我是多么不幸!您还几乎什么都不知道,但是,如果您知道了一切,那么一定会多少原谅我的;虽然,不用说,我是不可原谅的……”

160
-

Gania was much confused, and blushed for shame "Do forgive me, prince!" he cried, suddenly changing his abusive tone for one of great courtesy. "For Heaven’s sake, forgive me! You see what a miserable plight I am in, but you hardly know anything of the facts of the case as yet. If you did, I am sure you would forgive me, at least partially. Of course it was inexcusable of me, I know, but--"

161
-

“哦,我也不需要如此殷殷的道歉,”公爵急忙回答说,“我倒是能理解,您心境很不好,所以您就骂人。好了,到您家去吧。我很高兴……”

161
-

"Oh, dear me, I really do not require such profuse apologies," replied the prince, hastily. "I quite understand how unpleasant your position is, and that is what made you abuse me. So come along to your house, after all. I shall be delighted--"

162
-

“不,现在可不能就这么放过他,”加尼亚一路上不时恶狠狠地看一眼公爵,暗自想,“这个骗子从我这里把一切都打探清楚了,以后突然又撕下假面具……这可是非同小可的事。我们走着瞧吧!一切就要得到解决了,一切,一切!就今天。”

162
-

"I am not going to let him go like this," thought Gania, glancing angrily at the prince as they walked along. " The fellow has sucked everything out of me, and now he takes off his mask-- there’s something more than appears, here we shall see. It shall all be as clear as water by tonight, everything!"

163
-

他们已经站在那幢房子的前面了。

163
-

But by this time they had reached Gania’s house.

简典