注册
正文 目录 文库目录 文库收藏 中文百科 Wiki百科
刀锋|The Razor's Edge

第一章 八|CHAPTER ONE 8

属类： 双语小说 【分类】双语小说 -[作者: 威廉-萨默赛特-毛姆] 阅读：[27544]
《 字+字- 页+页- 字+字- 页+页- 》
1
-

次日，艾略特请我去帕尔玛饭店共进午餐，同时会见马图林父子。这一席总共四人。亨利·马图林也是个大块头，差不多和他儿子一样魁梧，一张肉乎乎的红脸，大下巴，也有着一个咄咄逼人的狮子鼻，但眼睛却比儿子的小，也不如儿子的那样蓝，露出几分刁钻诡诈。论年岁，他也只不过五十开外，面相却老上十岁，头发稀得很厉害，白如霜染；初看上去，并不给人好感。看他的气派，好像这些年头混得挺不错。他给我留下的印象是一个残酷、精明、能干的人，这种人在生意场上是绝不会讲情面的。起初，他少言寡语的，我觉得他在打量我。我一眼就看得出，艾略特在他的眼中只是个可笑的人。格雷温和可亲、彬彬有礼，几乎一句话不说，如若不是艾略特交际手腕老到，滔滔不绝扯些闲话，局面一定会很僵的。我猜他过去和那些中西部商人做交易，积累了不少经验——那些人不用甜言蜜语哄着，是不会花那样惊人的价钱买一张古旧名画的。过了一会儿，马图林先生渐渐放松了下来，吐出了几句话语，这才显出他并不似表面那样严峻，而且的确还有点干巴巴的幽默感。席间有那么一会儿，话题转到了股票证券上。艾略特口若悬河，显得知识极为渊博，这一点也不叫人惊奇，因为我一向知道他虽然处事荒唐可笑，在这方面却绝非饭桶。就在这时候，只听马图林先生说道：

1
-

"Next day Elliott asked me to lunch at the Palmer House to meet the elder Maturin and his son. We were only four.Henry Maturin was a big man, nearly as big as his son, with a red fleshy face and a great jowl, and he had the same blunt aggressive nose, but his eyes were smaller than his son’s, not so blue and very, very shrewd.Though he could not have been much more than fifty he looked ten years older and his hair, rapidly thinning, was snow-white.At first sight he was not prepossessing.He looked as though for many years he had done himself too well, and I received the impression of a brutal, clever, competent man who, in business matters at all events, would be pitiless.At first he said little and I had a notion that he was taking my measure.I could not but perceive that he looked upon Elliott as something of a joke.Gray, amiable and polite, was almost completely silent, and the party would have been sticky if Elliott, with his perfect social tact, hadn’t kept up a flow of easy conversation.I guessed that in the past he had acquired a good deal of experience in dealing with Middle Western businessmen who had to be cajoled into paying a fancy price for an old master.Presently Mr.Maturin began to feel more at his ease and he made one or two remarks that showed he was brighter than he looked and indeed had a dry sense of humour.For a while the conversation turned on stocks and shares.I should have been surprised to discover that Elliott was very knowledgeable on the subject if I had not long been aware that for all his nonsense he was nobody’s fool.It was then that Mr.Maturin remarked：

2
-

“今天上午我收到格雷的朋友拉里·达雷尔写的一封信。”

2
-

"“I had a letter from Gray’s friend Larry Darrell this morning.”

3
-

“没听你讲起过呀，爸爸。”格雷说。

3
-

"“You didn’t tell me, Dad，”said Gray.

4
-

马图林先生转向我问：

4
-

Mr. Maturin turned to me.

5
-

“你认识拉里吧？”我点点头。“格雷做过我的工作，让我在公司里给他安排一个位置。他们是好朋友。格雷对他极为上心。”

5
-

“You know Larry, don’t you?”I nodded.“Gray persuaded me to take him into my business. They’re great friends.Gray thinks the world of him，”

6
-

“他是怎么说的，爸爸？”

6
-

“What did he say, Dad?”

7
-

“他向我表示感谢，说这对一个年轻人而言是千载难逢的好机会。他认真做了一番思考，最后觉得一定会辜负我的栽培，还不如最初就不接受的好。”

7
-

“He thanked me. He said he realized it was a great chance for a young fellow and he’d thought it over very carefully and come to the conclusion he’d have been a disappointment to me and thought it better to refuse.”

8
-

“简直愚蠢之极。”艾略特说。

8
-

"“That’s very foolish of him，”said Elliott.

9
-

“是这样的。”马图林先生说。

9
-

“It is，”said Mr. Maturin.

10
-

“太让人遗憾了，爸爸。”格雷说，“如果我们俩能在一起工作，那该多好呀。”

10
-

“I’m awfully sorry, Dad，”said Gray.“It would have been grand if we could have worked together.”

11
-

马图林先生说这话时看着儿子，那双诡诈的眼睛顿时变得温柔起来。我这才看出这位寡情的商人还有另外的一面——他对自己的那个大块头儿子有着极深的舐犊之情。随后，他将目光又一次转向了我。

11
-

Mr. Maturin looked at his son while he said this and his shrewd eyes softened.I realized that there was anotherside to the hard businessman；he doted on this great hulking son of his.He turned to me once more.

12
-

“你知道这孩子星期天在场子上打了两盘标杆赛，赢了我七杆和六杆。我真该用球棒揍他一顿。想起来，他打高尔夫球，还是我一手教会的呢。”

12
-

“D’you know, that boy did our course in two under par on Sunday. He beat me seven and six.I could have brained him with my niblick.And to think that I taught him to play golf myself.”

13
-

他的表情很为儿子感到自豪，叫我开始对他有了好感。

13
-

He was brimming over with pride. I began to like him.

14
-

“我只不过是运气好嘛，爸爸。”

14
-

“I had a lot of luck, Dad.”

15
-

“根本不是那回事。你把球从沙坑里打出来，落下来离洞口只有六英寸远，难道凭的是运气不成？那一杆打了三十五码远，一英寸也不会少。明年我还想叫他去参加业余锦标赛呢。”

15
-

“Not a bit of it. Is it luck when you get out of a bunker and lay your ball six inches from the hole?Thirty-five yards if it was an inch, the shot was.I want him to go into the amateur championship next year.”

16
-

“我恐怕抽不出时间来。”

16
-

“I shouldn’t be able to spare the time.”

17
-

“我是你的老板，难道不是吗？”

17
-

"“I’m your boss, ain’t I?”

18
-

“我可知道你的厉害！我上班哪怕迟到一分钟，你也会暴跳如雷的。”

18
-

"“Don’t I know it！The hell you raise if I’m a minute late at the office.”

19
-

马图林先生扑哧一声笑了。

19
-

Mr. Maturin chuckled.

20
-

“看这小子把我描绘成了个专制霸王了。”他对我说道，“别信他的话。公司靠我撑着呢，我的合伙人都不行。我为自己的业绩感到自豪。我叫这孩子从底层干起，希望他跟其他的年轻员工一样一步一个脚印地干上去，一旦需要他继承我的事业时，他也就成熟了。像我的这个公司规模，可是千斤重担呢。我为有些客户打理投资业务，有长达三十年的历史了，他们对我是信任的。实不相瞒，哪怕是我自己赔钱，也不愿看客户折本。”

20
-

“He’s trying to make me out a tyrant，”he said to me.“Don’t you believe him. I’m my business, my partners are no good, and I’m very proud of my business.I’ve started this boy of mine at the bottom and I expect him to work his way up just like any young fellow I’ve hired, so that when the time comes for him to take my place he’ll be ready for it.It’s a great responsibility, a business like mine.I’ve looked after the investments of some of my clients for thirty years and they trust me.To tell you the truth, I’d rather lose my own money than see them lose theirs.”

21
-

格雷笑了。

21
-

Gray laughed.

22
-

“那天，有个老姑娘来找他，想投资一个风险很大的项目，说是牧师建议她这么做的，他拒绝为她办理。老姑娘认死理，惹得他发了一顿脾气，结果老姑娘哭着走了。后来他又跑去找那个牧师，将牧师也训了一通。”

22
-

“The other day when an old girl came in and wanted to invest a thousand dollars in a wildcat scheme that her minister had recommended he refused to take the order, and when she insisted he gave her such hell that she went out sobbing. And then he called up the minister and gave him hell too.”

23
-

“别人谈论起我们经纪人，总把我们说的一无是处，殊不知经纪人也有好坏之分呢。对客户，我不想让他们折本，只想叫他们赚钱。大多数客户不领情，看他们那做派，就好像人生只有一个目标——散漫使钱，非得将钱折腾光不可。”

23
-

“People say a lot of hard things about us brokers, but there are brokers and brokers. I don’t want people to lose money, I want them to make it, and the way they act, most of them, you’d think their one object in life was to get rid of every cent they have.”

24
-

饭后，马图林父子辞别，回公司去了。我和艾略特离开饭店时，他突然问我：“你怎么看马图林先生？”

24
-

“Well, what did you think of him?”Elliott asked me as we walked away after the Maturins had left us to go back to the office.

25
-

“我一向喜欢结交各种不同类型的人。我觉得他们父子之间感情深厚，令人感动。想来这在英国是不多见的。”

25
-

“I’m always glad to meet new types. I thought the mutual affection of father and son was rather touching.I don’t know that that’s so common in England.”

26
-

“他对儿子宠爱得不得了。他的性格的确有点古怪。他评论自己客户的那席话倒是句句真实。他的客户有好几百，都是些老太婆、退伍军人和牧师，把手里的积蓄交给他搞投资。那些人麻烦得很，我觉得为他们打理生意很划不来。可他极为看重那些人对他的信任。不过，遇到大生意，有厚利可图，他就会翻脸不认人，谁都不如他心狠手辣。这时的他是一点情面都不讲的。他要想从你身上割一磅肉，那他会不达目的誓不罢休。你要是跟他对着干，他会叫你倾家荡产，非整倒你而后快。”

26
-

"“He adores that boy. He’s a queer mixture.What he said about his clients was quite true.He’s got hundreds of old women, retired service men, and ministers whose savings he looks after.I’d have thought they were more trouble than they’re worth, but he takes pride in the confidence they have in him.But when he’s got some big deal on and he’s up against powerful interests there isn’t a man who can be harder and more ruthless.There’s no mercy in him then.He wants his pound of flesh and there’s nothing much he’ll stop at to get it.Get on the wrong side of him and he’ll not only ruin you, but get a big laugh out of doing it.”

27
-

回到家，艾略特对布雷德利夫人直言相告，说拉里拒绝了亨利·马图林给他的机会。伊莎贝尔正跟闺密们共进午餐，走进来时，姐弟还谈着这件事。他们将结果告诉了她。后来，艾略特把这次谈话的情况讲给我听，我觉得他把一番大道理说得头头是道。虽然他自己没有干什么艰苦的活儿，他用以发家致富的工作一点辛苦的味儿也没有，他却坚定地认为经营实业乃国之本。拉里只不过是个普普通通的青年，又没有社会背景，没有理由不按照国之常情办事。在艾略特这样有眼光的人看来，美国显然正在步入一个空前的繁荣时代。拉里现在有个入门的机会，只要他脚踏实地撒手干，到了不惑之年也许能挣几百万。那时候，他要是愿意歇手，过过上等人的日子，完全可以当个寓公，在巴黎的杜波依斯大道买一套公寓，或者在都兰购一幢别墅，他艾略特将无话可说。这时，布雷德利夫人冲着女儿说的一句话更为直截了当，叫伊莎贝尔难以回答：

27
-

"On getting home Elliott told Mrs. Bradley that Larry had refused Henry Maturin’s offer.Isabel had been lunching with girl friends and came in while they were still talking about it.They told her.I gathered from Elliott’s account of the conversation that ensued that he had expressed himself with considerable eloquence.Though he had certainly not done a stroke of work for ten years, and the work by which he had amassed an ample competence had been far from arduous, he was firmly of opinion that for the run of mankind industry was essential.Larry was a perfectly ordinary young fellow, of no social consequence, and there was no possible reason why he shouldn’t conform to the commendable customs of his country.It was evident to a man as clear-sighted as Elliott that America was entering upon a period of prosperity such as it had never known.Larry had a chance of getting in on the ground floor, and if he kept his nose to the grindstone he might well be many times a millionaire by the time he was forty.If he wanted to retire then and live like a gentleman, in Paris, say, with an apartment in the Avenue du Bois and a chateau in Touraine, he（Elliott）would have nothing to say against it.But Louisa Bradley was more succinct and more unanswerable.

28
-

“他要是爱你的话，为了你，他也应该出去工作。”

28
-

“If he loves you, he ought to be prepared to work for you.”

29
-

伊莎贝尔具体是怎么回应的，我无从得知。这姑娘胸藏锦绣，情知大人的话不无道理。她认识的小伙子们都有了出路，或学习深造，或进哪个行当实干，或进公司经商。拉里虽在空军有过辉煌的业绩，但也不能指望着吃一辈子呀。战争硝烟已散，人人都对战争深恶痛绝，恨不能赶快忘掉战争的创伤。经过一番讨论，伊莎贝尔答应跟拉里摊牌，把事情来个彻底了断。布雷德利夫人献计：伊莎贝尔可以求拉里开车送她去马文，就说她在给客厅定制新窗帘，一张量好的尺寸单被她丢掉，所以要叫伊莎贝尔再去量一下。

29
-

"I don’t know what Isabel answered to all this, but she was sensible enough to see that her elders had reason on their side. All the young men of her acquaintance were studying to enter some profession or already busy in an office.Larry could hardly expect to live the rest of his life on his distinguished record in the air corps.The war was over, everyone was sick of it and anxious only to forget about it as quickly as possible.The result of the discussion was that Isabel agreed to have the matter out with Larry once and for all.Mrs.Bradley suggested that Isabel should ask him to drive her down to Marvin.She was ordering new curtains for the living-room and had mislaid the measurements, so she wanted Isabel to take them again.

30
-

“鲍勃·纳尔逊会留你吃午饭的。”她说。

30
-

“Bob Nelson will give you luncheon，”she said.

31
-

“我有个更好的主意。”艾略特说，“不如准备个午餐篮，就在门廊那儿吃，吃完好说事儿。”

31
-

“I have a better plan than that，”said Elliott.“Put up a luncheon basket for them and let them lunch on the stoop and after lunch they can talk.”

32
-

“这样倒是怪有趣的。”

32
-

“That would be fun，”said Isabel.

33
-

“自自在在来一顿野餐，是天下最美的享受了。”艾略特不失时机地补充说，“泽斯公爵老夫人曾私下对我说，再怎么执拗的男子，到了这种场合也会变得温顺服帖。路易莎，你打算给他们准备什么样的午餐？”

33
-

“There are few things so pleasant as a picnic eaten in perfect comfort，”Elliott added sententiously.“The old Duchesse d’Uzès used to tell me that the most recalcitrant male becomes amenable to suggestion in these conditions.What will you give them for luncheon?”

34
-

“煮鸡蛋和鸡肉三明治。”

34
-

“Stuffed eggs and a chicken sandwich.”

35
-

“净胡来。野餐嘛，哪能没有肥鹅肝酱饼。头一道菜应该是咖喱虾仁，再下来就是鸡脯肉冻，配上生菜心沙拉，沙拉的调料由我来配制。有了肥鹅肝酱饼，如果愿意的话，可以按你们美国人的习惯，准备上一个苹果派。”

35
-

“Nonsense. You can’t have a picnic without paté de foie gras.You must give them curried shrimps to start with, breast of chicken in aspic, with a heart-of-lettuce salad for which I’ll make the dressing myself, and after the paté if you like, as a concession to your American habits, an apple pie.”

36
-

“我只给他们准备煮鸡蛋和鸡肉三明治，艾略特。”布雷德利夫人斩钉截铁地说。

36
-

“I shall give them stuffed eggs and a chicken sandwich, Elliott，”said Mrs. Bradley with decision.

37
-

“那你记住我的话：此事一定会泡汤，怪只能怪你自己。”

37
-

“Well, mark my words, it’ll be a failure and you’ll only have yourself to blame.”

38
-

“拉里的胃口非常小，舅舅，”伊莎贝尔说，“而且吃进肚子里的是什么他从不注意。”

38
-

"“Larry eats very little, Uncle Elliott，”said Isabel，“and I don’t believe he notices what he eats.”

39
-

“但愿你不要把这当作他的优点，傻孩子。”做舅舅的回了一句。

39
-

"“I hope you don’t think that is to his credit, my poor child，”her uncle returned.

40
-

至于那次野餐，布雷德利夫人硬是坚持家里有什么就让他们吃什么。事情过后，艾略特告诉我结果时，法国味十分浓地耸了耸肩膀。

40
-

But what Mrs. Bradley said they should have was what they got.When Elliott later told me the outcome of the excursion he shrugged his shoulders in a very French way.

41
-

“我早就有言在先，说事情会泡汤的。我战前送给路易莎一瓶蒙哈榭白葡萄酒，这次求她放进野餐篮，可是她充耳不闻。伊莎贝尔他们只用热水瓶灌了些咖啡，其他一点酒水都没有。你还能指望有什么好结果呢！”

41
-

“I told them it would be a failure. I begged Louisa to put in a bottle of the Montrachet I sent her just before the war, but she wouldn’t listen to me.They took a thermos of hot coffee and nothing else.What would you expect?”

42
-

据说，伊莎贝尔回家时，路易莎·布雷德利和艾略特正坐在客厅里。汽车吱扭一声停在大门前，伊莎贝尔走了进来。天擦黑，窗帘已拉上。艾略特懒散地坐在扶手椅上，在炉边看一本小说。布雷德利夫人在绣一块帷帘，是要当作防火屏风用的。伊莎贝尔没有来客厅，而是直接回楼上她的房间去了。艾略特抬起头，目光从眼镜的上方望了望姐姐。

42
-

It appeared that Louisa Bradley and Elliott were sitting by themselves in the living-room when they heard the car stop at the door and Isabel came into the house. It was just after dark and the curtains were drawn.Elliott was lounging in an armchair by the fireside reading a novel and Mrs.Bradley was at work on a piece of tapestry that was to be made into a firescreen.Isabel did not come in, but went on up to her room. Elliott looked over his spectacles at his sister.

43
-

“我想她脱掉帽子，用不了一分钟就会下来的。”做姐姐的说。

43
-

“I expect she’s gone to take off her hat. She’ll be down in a minute，”she said.

44
-

可是伊莎贝尔没有下来，好几分钟过去了也没下来。

44
-

But Isabel did not come. Several minutes passed.

45
-

“可能是累了，躺在床上休息呢。”

45
-

“Perhaps she’s tired. She may be lying down.”

46
-

“你难道没想到，拉里应该进来坐坐吗？”

46
-

"“Wouldn’t you have expected Larry to have come in?”

47
-

“别说叫人生气的话，艾略特。”

47
-

"“Don’t be exasperating, Elliott.”

48
-

“好吧，反正这是你家的事，我这是狗拿耗子多管闲事。”

48
-

"“Well, it’s your business, not mine.”

49
-

说完，他又继续看他的书了。布雷德利夫人继续刺绣屏风。但半个小时后，布雷德利夫人坐不住了，突然站了起来。

49
-

He returned to his book. Mrs.Bradley went on working.But when half an hour had gone by she got up suddenly.

50
-

“我想，还是上去看看她怎样了吧。假如休息了，我就不惊动她了。”

50
-

“I think perhaps I’d better go up and see that she’s all right. If she’s resting I won’t disturb her.”

51
-

她离开客厅上楼去，可没过多大一会儿就又下来了。

51
-

She left the room, but in a very short while came down again.

52
-

“他为什么要到巴黎去？”

52
-

“Why does he want to go to Paris?”

53
-

“问我没有用，艾略特，我无从得知。她什么都不肯告诉我。她说她理解拉里，不愿当他的绊脚石。我跟她说：‘他一别就是两年，证明他爱你爱得不十分深。’她说：‘我也没有办法。问题在于我爱他爱得十分深。’我说：‘有了今天的变化，你对他的爱还十分深吗？’她说：‘今天的变化反而叫我比以往任何时候都更加爱他了。他也爱我，对这一点我坚信不疑。’”

53
-

“It’s no good asking me questions, Elliott. I don’t know.She won’t tell me anything.She says she understands and she isn’t going to stand in his way.I said to her，‘If he’s prepared to leave you for two years he can’t love you verymuch.’‘I can’t help that，’she said，‘the thing that matters is that I love him very much.’‘Even after what’s happened today?’I said.‘Today’s made me love him more than ever I did，’she said，‘and he does love me, Mamma.I’m sure of that.’”

54
-

艾略特细细思索了一会儿。

54
-

Elliott reflected for a while.

55
-

“两年之后会出现什么情况呢？”

55
-

“And what’s to happen at the end of two years?”

56
-

“我哪能知道，艾略特。”

56
-

"“I tell you I don’t know, Elliott.”

57
-

“你不觉得这样的结局让人十分扫兴吗？”

57
-

"“Don’t you think it’s very unsatisfactory?”

58
-

“的确叫人十分扫兴。”

58
-

“Very.”

59
-

“没什么可讲的了，只能说他们还很年轻，等上两年也无妨。在这两年当中，什么事都可能发生。”

59
-

“There’s only one thing to be said and that is that they’re both very young. It won’t hurt them to wait two years and in that time a lot may happen.”

60
-

姐弟俩达成一致，最好不要去打搅伊莎贝尔。一家人原打算出去吃晚饭，于此只好作罢。

60
-

They agreed that it would be better to leave Isabel in peace. They were going out to dinner that night.

61
-

“我可不想让她听了别人的议论而感到难过。”布雷德利夫人说道，“那些人见她哭肿了眼泡，肯定会感到好奇的。”

61
-

“I don’t want to upset her，”said Mrs. Bradley.“People would only wonder if her eyes were all swollen.”

62
-

第二天，他们在家里吃午饭，饭后布雷德利夫人旧话重提，把那件事又摆在了桌面上，可还是从伊莎贝尔嘴里问不出话来。

62
-

But next day after luncheon, which they had by themselves, Mrs. Bradley brought the subject up again.But she got little out of Isabel.

63
-

“能告诉你的都告诉你了，妈妈，实在没有什么可讲的了。”伊莎贝尔说。

63
-

“There’s really nothing more to tell you than I’ve told you already, Mamma，”she said.

64
-

“我问你，他到巴黎究竟想去干什么？”

64
-

“But what does he want to do in Paris?”

65
-

伊莎贝尔微微一笑，因为她知道自己接下来的回答一定会叫母亲感到不可思议。

65
-

Isabel smiled, for she knew how preposterous her answer would seem to her mother.

66
-

“他要去逛大街。”她说道。

66
-

“Loaf.”

67
-

“逛大街？这是什么鬼话？”

67
-

“Loaf?What on earth do you mean?”

68
-

“他就是这么说的。”

68
-

“That’s what he told me.”

69
-

“我真是受不了你。你要是有点骨气的话，就应该跟他一刀两断。这不明明在耍你嘛。”

69
-

"“Really I have no patience with you. If you had any spirit you’d have broken off your engagement there and then.He’s just playing with you.”

70
-

伊莎贝尔看了看戴在左手上的订婚戒指，然后说道：

70
-

Isabel looked at the ring she wore on her left hand.

71
-

“我有什么办法呢？我爱他。”

71
-

“What can I do?I love him.”

72
-

后来，艾略特也加入了母女的谈话。他运用娴熟的说话技巧掺和了进去。“我可没有摆舅舅的谱，亲爱的伙计，而是作为一个通晓世情的人跟一个毫无社会经验的女孩对话。”他对我解释道。可是，他所达到的效果并不比他的姐姐强。伊莎贝尔好像叫他别管闲事，语气当然是很客气的，说得却是掷地有声。就在当天晚一些的时候，艾略特来到黑石旅馆，在我的小客厅里将事情的来龙去脉一五一十告诉了我。

72
-

Then Elliott entered the conversation. He approached the matter with his famous tact，“Not as if I was her uncle, my dear fellow, but as a man of the world speaking to an inexperienced girl，”but he did no better than her mother had done.I received the impression that she had told him, no doubt politely but quite unmistakably, to mind his own business.Elliott told me all this later on in the day in the little sitting-room I had at the Blackstone.

73
-

“当然，路易莎是完全正确的。”他最后补充道，“此事弄得人非常窝火。男女青年仅仅是相互爱慕，除此之外什么也不懂，让他们决定自己的婚姻，这种结果是避免不了的。我叫路易莎不必为此愁肠百结，也许会有柳暗花明那一天呢。拉里走了，格雷·马图林还在嘛……如果我对自己的国人看法没错的话，结局是很明显的。十八岁的年轻人感情炽热如火，但长久不了。”

73
-

“Of course Louisa is quite right，”he added.“It’s all very unsatisfactory, but that’s the sort of thing you run up against when young people are left to arrange their marriages on no better basis than mutual inclination. I’ve told Louisa not to worry；I think it’ll turn out better than she expects.With Larry out of the way and young Gray Maturin on the spot-well, if I know anything about my fellow-creatures the outcome is fairly obvious.When you’re eighteen your emotions are violent, but they’re not durable.”

74
-

“你真是熟谙世态炎凉呀，艾略特。”我笑了笑说。

74
-

"“You’re full of worldly wisdom, Elliott，”I smiled.

75
-

“我读拉罗什富科的书，总算没有白读。你知道芝加哥社会是个小圈子。他们天天见面。女孩子家，有个男子死心塌地爱她，肯定会芳心大悦。她要是知道自己的闺密无一不心甘情愿地想嫁给这个男子，那你想想，她是不是出于人的本能也会拼一拼、争一争宠呢？这情形犹如去参加一个宴会——你明明知道去了会无聊得不行，吃的东西也只有柠檬水和饼干，然而你还是去了，因为你知道自己最好的朋友们打破头都想去，却没有受到邀请。”

75
-

"“I haven’t read my La Rochefoucauld for nothing. You know what Chicago is；they’ll be meeting all the time.It flatters a girl to have a man so devoted to her, and when she knows there isn’t one of her girl friends who wouldn’t be only too glad to marry him-well, I ask you, is it in human nature to resist the temptation of cutting out everyone else?I mean it’s like going to a party where you know you’ll be bored to distraction and the only refreshments will be lemonade and biscuits；but you go because you know your best friends would give their eye-teeth to and haven’t been asked.”

76
-

“拉里何时启程？”

76
-

“When does Larry go?”

77
-

“不知道。行程可能还没有决定呢。”艾略特说着从口袋里掏出一个长方形的薄薄的镶金铂质烟盒，取出一支埃及烟。对于法蒂玛牌、契斯特菲尔德牌和骆驼牌那样的香烟，他是瞧不上眼的。他笑眯眯地用眼睛瞅着我，笑容含蓄，别有深意。“有些话不便讲给路易莎听，不过可以告诉你：对于那个小伙子，我暗藏同情之心。战争期间，他可能目睹了巴黎的风采。他要是被这个天下唯一适合于文明人居住的城市迷了心窍，那我一点都不感到奇怪。他年纪轻，无疑是想在结婚过小日子之前，纵情风流一把。这很正常，也很自然。我要照拂他的，引荐他认识应该认识的人。论风度，他还是能上得了席面的，稍加指点，便可以出入社交场合了。我保证能叫他看到真正的法兰西生活——能有这种机会的美国人少之又少。老伙计，请相信我的话：普通的美国人要进入圣日尔曼大道，真比登天还难。他二十岁，魅力还是有的。我可以做出安排，让他跟一个年纪大一些的女人建立联系，这对他的成长大有裨益。我总觉得，一个年轻男子给一个有些岁数的女人当情郎，本身就是一种最好的教育方式。当然，我所说的女人必须是社交名媛，这会叫他一步登天，步入巴黎上流社会。”

77
-

“I don’t know. I don’t think that’s been decided yet.”Elliott took a long, thin cigarette case in platinum and gold out of his pocket and extracted an Egyptian cigarette.Not for him were Fatimas, Chesterfields, Camels, or Lucky Strikes.He looked at me with a smile full of insinuation.“Of course I wouldn’t care to say so to Louisa, but I don’t mind telling you that I have a sneaking sympathy for the young fellow.I understand that he got a glimpse of Parisduring the war, and I can’t blame him if he was captivated by the only city in the world fit for a civilized man to live in.He’s young and I have no doubt he wants to sow his wild oats before he settles down to married life.Very natural and very proper.I’ll keep an eye on him.I’ll introduce him to the right people；he has nice manners and with a hint or two from me he’ll be quite presentable；I can guarantee to show him a side of French life that very few Americans have a chance of seeing.Believe me, my dear fellow, the average American can get into the kingdom of heaven much more easily than he can get into the Boulevard St.Germain.He’s twenty and he has charm.I think I could probably arrange a liaison for him with an older woman.It would form him.I always think there’s no better education for a young man than to become the lover of a woman of a certain age and of course if she is the sort of person I have in view, a femme du monde, you know, it would immediately give him a situation in Paris.”

78
-

“你把这锦囊妙计告诉布雷德利夫人了吗？”我微笑着问。

78
-

“Did you tell that to Mrs. Bradley?”I asked, smiling.

79
-

艾略特嘿嘿嘿地笑了。

79
-

Elliott chuckled.

80
-

“我的老伙计，假如我有值得自豪之处，那就是我的处世方针。我没有告诉她，就是说出来，她也不会理解的。可怜的路易莎！她有许多地方叫我永远也吃不透，而这就是其中的一点。她半辈子都生活在外交界，世界上有一半国家的首都她都待过，可骨头缝里仍然是一个死脑筋的美国人。”

80
-

“My dear fellow, if there’s one thing I pride myself on it’s my tact. I did not tell her.She wouldn’t understand, poor dear.It’s one of the things I’ve never understood about Louisa；though she’s lived half her life in diplomatic society, in half the capitals of the world, she’s remained hopelessly American.”

81
-

“强扭的瓜不甜呀。”

81
-

"“You can lead a horse to the water, but you can’t make him drink.”

82
-

“她哭了一场。拉里要到巴黎去，两年内回不来。她答应等他。”

82
-

"“She’s been crying. Larry’s going to Paris.He’s going to be away for two years.She’s promised to wait for him.”

序号 英文/音标 中文解释 更多操作

blunt

[blʌnt]

adj.钝的;迟钝的;直率的

prepossess

[ˌpriːpə'zes]

vt. 预先影晌; 使 ... 先有好感

competent

['kɒmpɪtənt]

adj.有能力的;足够的;胜任的

sticky

['stɪki]

adj.粘的;闷热的;困难的;令人不满意的

conversation

[ˌkɒnvə'seɪʃn]

n.谈话;会话

past

[pɑːst]

a. 过去的;

cajole

[kə'dʒəʊl]

v.(以甜言蜜语)哄骗

fancy

['fænsi]

n. 【C】设想；幻想；空想;

knowledgeable

['nɒlɪdʒəbl]

adj.博学的，有见识的

dote

[dəʊt]

v.溺爱

hulk

[hʌlk]

n. 废船; 笨重的人或物

niblick

['nɪblɪk]

n.铁头球杆之一种

brim

[brɪm]

n.边;边缘

amateur

['æmətə(r)]

n.外行;业余爱好者

chuckle

['tʃʌkl]

v.轻声笑;咯咯笑;暗自笑

tyrant

['taɪrənt]

n.暴君;专制的君主;专横的人

sob

[sɒb]

v.抽泣;呜咽

cent

[sent]

n.分

adore

[ə'dɔː(r)]

vt.爱慕;崇拜;很喜欢

queer

[kwɪə(r)]

a. 古怪的，奇怪的;

mercy

['mɜːsi]

n.仁慈;怜悯;恩惠;宽恕

ensue

[ɪn'sjuː]

v.跟着发生;继起;因而产生

amass

[ə'mæs]

v.积聚;收集

ample

['æmpl]

adj.丰富的;宽敞的;充足的

mankind

[mæn'kaɪnd]

n.人类;男人

customs

['kʌstəmz]

n.海关

grind

[ɡraɪnd]

v.磨;压迫;碾碎;磨得吱吱响;逐渐停顿

Paris

['pærɪs]

n.巴黎;重楼(百合科植物);帕里斯(姓氏)

luncheon

['lʌntʃən]

n.午宴;正式的午餐

stoop

[stuːp]

n.佝偻;弯腰;屈尊;俯冲 vi. 屈身，弯腰;

curry

['kʌri]

n.咖哩饭菜;咖哩粉

concession

[kən'seʃn]

n.让步;特许权;租界;妥协

excursion

[ɪk'skɜːʃn]

n.远足;短途旅行;【物】偏移，漂移，偏离;偏差，偏振

thermos

['θɜːməs]

n.热水瓶

lounge

[laʊndʒ]

n.休息室;候机室;起居室

armchair

['ɑːmtʃeə(r)]

n.扶手椅;单人沙发;安乐椅

spectacle

['spektəkl]

n.景象;场面;奇观;壮观;公开展示;表相，假相

mama

['mæmə]

n.母亲;妈妈

unsatisfactory

[ˌʌnˌsætɪs'fæktəri]

adj.不能令人满意的

swollen

['swəʊlən]

adj.肿大的;水涨的,

preposterous

[prɪ'pɒstərəs]

adj.荒谬的;可笑的

Loaf

[ləʊf]

n.(一条)面包;块

told

[təʊld]

v.告诉;吩咐;讲述

inclination

[ˌɪnklɪ'neɪʃn]

n.倾向;意愿;趋势;斜坡;倾斜度

Chicago

[ʃɪ'kɑːgəʊ,-'kɔː-]

n.芝加哥

flatter

['flætə(r)]

v.奉承;恭维;取悦;显得好看

bore

[bɔː(r)]

【1】 v.使厌烦 【2】 vt. 钻(孔)；镗(孔)；开凿

extract

['ekstrækt]

vt.摘录;提取

Egyptian

[i'dʒɪpʃn]

adj.埃及的;埃及人的

hopeless

['həʊpləs]

adj.没有希望的;绝望的;无可救药的

图片译典（一词多图)
我的生词(单词助记)
道德经
论语
孙子兵法
禮記
孟子
尚書
詩經
周易
简典
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

微信小程序

微信公众号

Email:

22745823@qq.com

联系站长：

QQ:22745823

机构翻译

地址翻译

人名翻译

译典登录

译典注册

译典说明

意见反馈

浙ICP备05023696号-8