現(xiàn)代英文選評：Two Mutes 兩啞巴

Two Mutes 兩啞巴

Carson McCullers (1917—1967)

本文節(jié)錄自長篇小說《心是個寂寞的獵者》（The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter，1940）的第一章。全書以聾啞人John Singer為主角，充滿憐憫與同情心。作者卡森·麥克樂斯女士出生于美國喬治亞州，其文章作風(fēng)之樸素率直與同情心之深厚，論者比之于英國的D. H. Lawrence與十九世紀俄國作家Dostoyevsky。本文句法均甚簡單平穩(wěn)，值得學(xué)者效法。

In the town there were two mutes, and they were always together. Early every morning they would come out from the house where they lived and walk arm in arm down the street to work. The two friends were very different. The one who always steered the way was an obese and dreamy Greek. In the summer he would come out wearing a yellow or green polo shirt stuffed sloppily into his trousers in front and hanging loose behind. When it was colder he wore over this a shapeless gray sweater. His face was round and oily, with half-closed eyelids and lips that curved in a gentle, stupid smile. The other was tall. His eyes had a quick, intelligent expression. He was always immaculate and very soberly dressed.

● 第二句的動詞would come… and walk…中的would表示過去的習(xí)慣。

● steered the way：領(lǐng)路。兩啞巴之中，一個個性較強，已于此句點明。obese：肥碩的。Greek：美國各國移民都有，此人乃希臘人。

● polo：馬球。polo shirt：一種運動襯衫，類似“香港衫”。

● sloppily=carelessly。stuffed：塞。襯衫前擺潦潦草草地塞在褲腰里，后擺松松地掛在外面。

● sweater：（羊）毛衫。此字是wore的賓語。over this之this代表 polo shirt。

● immaculate：潔凈無垢。soberly：樸素地。

Every morning the two friends walked silently together until they reached the main street of the town. Then when they came to a certain fruit and candy store they paused for a moment on the sidewalk outside. The Greek, Spiros Antonapoulos, worked for his cousin, who owned the fruit store. His job was to make candies and sweets, uncrate the fruits, and to keep the place clean. The thin mute, John Singer, nearly always put his hand on his friend's arm and looked for a second into his face before leaving him. Then after this good-bye Singer crossed the street and walked on alone to the jewelry store where he worked as a silverware engraver.

● paused：稍停。每天早晨，兩人一同上班。到了肥啞巴所服務(wù)的糖果鮮果店門前，他們必定停一下。停住了，瘦啞巴要同他告別。第五句敘Singer如何的依依不舍：拉著朋友的臂膊，眼睛細細地對他看。天天見面的尚且如此難分難舍，啞巴心里如何寂寞，不言自明。

● crate（名詞）：簍子。uncrate（動詞）：從簍中取出。同樣的，打開包裹是unpack，解開繩子是unstring。

silverware：銀器。engraver：刻花匠。

In the late afternoon the friends would meet again. Singer came back to the fruit store and waited until Antonapoulos was ready to go home. In the dusk the two mutes walked slowly home together. At home Singer was always talking to Antonapoulos. His hands shaped the words in a swift series of designs. His face was eager and his gray-green eyes sparkled brightly. With his thin, strong hands he told Antonapoulos all that had happened during the day.

● 第四句was always talking表示“停了又說”，“總是在那里說”。

● 啞巴怎么能說話呢？他是用手勢代替語言的。series of designs：一連串的手勢圖樣。

● eager：形容迫不及待的神氣。眼睛里還發(fā)著光。心中有話，即使是很不重要的話，也非吐不可。

Antonapoulos sat back lazily and looked at Singer. It was seldom that he ever moved his hands to speak at all—and then it was to say that he wanted to eat or sleep or to drink. These three things he always said with the same vague, fumbling signs. At night, if he were not too drunk, he would kneel down before his bed and pray awhile. Then his plump hands shaped the words "Holy Jesus," or "God," or "Darling Mary." These were the only words Antonapoulos ever said. Singer never knew just how much his friend understood of all the things he told him. But it did not matter.

● 那希臘人只是懶洋洋地坐著，對他的朋友看著。他除了本能的要求之外，似乎沒有什么理智活動，也沒有什么話要說的。

● at all=in any way：用任何方式，總是用在否定或疑問的句子里。

● vague：模糊的。fumbling：笨拙的（動詞fumble：亂摸）。plump：肥厚的。

● it did not matter：也沒有什么關(guān)系。Singer只管自己把話“說”出來，不管對方“聽”不“聽”。

They shared the upstairs of a small house near the business section of the town. There were two rooms. On the oil stove in the kitchen Antonapoulos cooked all of their meals. There were straight, plain kitchen chairs for Singer and an over-stuffed sofa for Antonapoulos. The bedroom was furnished mainly with a large double bed covered with an eiderdown comfort for the big Greek and a narrow iron cot for Singer.

● shared：合住。business section：商業(yè)區(qū)。stove：爐子。

● 胖子好吃，菜是他煮的。但是在別的事情上，他總是占便宜。Singer坐的是硬板廚房椅子（straight：直挺挺的。plain：沒有墊子椅套等裝飾的），胖子坐的是軟厚沙發(fā)（over-stuffed：墊得滿滿的），胖子睡大雙人床，Singer睡小鐵床。

● comfort：床上的被子，普通拼作comforter。eiderdown：鴨絨（eider是一種野鴨，down是鳥的軟毛）。cot：小床，如帆布行軍床、可折疊的鐵床之類。

Dinner always took a long time, because Antonapoulos loved food and he was very slow. After they had eaten, the big Greek would lie back on his sofa and slowly lick over each one of his teeth with his tongue—while Singer washed the dishes.

● lick：舔。牙齒一只一只舔過，足見吃得津津有味。胖子非但好吃貪舒服，而且行動遲緩。本段內(nèi)兩見slow。

Sometimes in the evening the mutes would play chess. Singer had always greatly enjoyed this game, and years before he had tried to teach it to Antonapoulos. At first his friend could not be interested in the reasons for moving the various pieces about on the board. Then Singer began to keep a bottle of something good under the table to be taken out after each lesson. The Greek never got on to the erratic movements of the knights and sweeping mobility of the queens, but he learned to make a few set, opening moves. He preferred the white pieces and would not play if the black men were given him. After the first moves Singer worked out the game by himself while his friend looked on drowsily. If Singer made brilliant attacks on his own men so that in the end the black king was killed, Antonapoulos was always very proud and pleased.

● 啞巴以下棋為消遣，chess大致與中國象棋相類。

● 棋子叫pieces或men，棋盤叫board。moving the various pieces about：把不同的棋子（車、馬、卒等）各處搬動。about（副詞）=here and there。那希臘人對于各種棋子走法（如車可走好多格，而卒只可走有限的格子）的理由不感興趣。

● a bottle of something good：一瓶好東西，指好酒。棋教完以后，Singer拿酒出來給希臘人喝。要把希臘人訓(xùn)練成他的棋友，Singer不惜用酒來引誘。

● got on to：學(xué)會。erratic：不規(guī)則的。knights：chess中的一種棋子，相當(dāng)于象棋里的“馬”，走法也是一步一拐，并非不規(guī)則，但是在一個沒有弄懂的人看來，好像是不規(guī)則的。queen：地位相當(dāng)于象棋里的“士”，但是威力強大得多，可以像“車”那樣橫走直走，又可以像“象”那樣斜飛（不限格數(shù)）。mobility：機動性。sweeping：一掃而過的，橫沖直撞的。set, opening moves：固定的開局法，如“當(dāng)頭炮，馬來跳”之類（按：chess中沒有“炮”）。set是過去分詞。

● preferred：挑選，喜歡使用。

● Singer worked out the game by himself：他一個人來下完這盤棋。他的對手只會開頭幾下，以后便應(yīng)付不了，Singer就代他走，把黑子白子一手包辦下來。drowsily：打瞌睡似地。

● 胖子本來愛打瞌睡，對下棋又沒有興趣，只是迷迷糊糊地看著而已?？墒桥肿拥暮脛傩倪€是很強。Singer代他下白子，把自己的黑子“將”死了，胖子還很得意呢。brilliant：精彩的。

The two mutes had no other friends, and except when they worked they were alone together. Each day was very much like any other day, because they were alone so much that nothing ever disturbed them. Once a week they would go to the library for Singer to withdraw a mystery book and on Friday night they attended a movie. Then on payday they always went to the ten-cent photograph shop above the Army and Navy Store so that Antonapoulos could have his picture taken. These were the only places where they made customary visits. There were many parts in the town that they had never even seen.

● alone together：只有兩個人在一起。disturbed：擾亂。

● withdraw：抽出，即借出。mystery book：偵探小說，沒有別的“神秘”的意義。

● payday：發(fā)薪水的那一天。ten-cent photograph shop：一角錢照一次的照相館。above：在樓上。customary：經(jīng)常的。

But the two mutes were not lonely at all. At home they were content to eat and drink, and Singer would talk with his hands eagerly to his friend about all that was in his mind. So the years passed in the quiet way until Singer reached the age of thirty-two and had been in the town with Antonapoulos for ten years.

Then one day the Greek became ill. He sat up in bed with his hands on his fat stomach and big, oily tears rolled down his cheeks. Singer went to see his friend's cousin who owned the fruit store, and also he arranged for leave from his own work. The doctor made out a diet for Antonapoulos and said that he could drink no more wine. Singer rapidly enforced the doctor's orders. All day he sat by his friend's bed and did what he could to make the time pass quickly, but Antonapoulos only looked at him angrily from the corners of his eyes and would not be amused.

● 他們在那城里一共住了十年。忽然有一天那希臘人生病了。

● big, oily tears：那胖子本來臉上有油汗（見第一段），眼淚滾下來也像油了。

● arranged for leave：辦請假手續(xù)。他要整天地陪伴病人。

● diet：規(guī)定的食品和食量。enforced the doctor's orders：強制執(zhí)行醫(yī)生的命令（他們同醫(yī)生可以筆談的）。

● to make the time pass quickly：消磨光陰，解除病人的寂寞。

The Greek was very fretful, and kept finding fault with the fruit drinks and food that Singer prepared for him. Constantly he made his friend help him out of bed so that he could pray. He fumbled with his hands to say 'Darling Mary' and then held to the small brass cross tied to his neck with a dirty string. His big eyes would wall up to the ceiling with a look of fear in them, and afterwards he was very sulky and would not let his friend speak to him.

● fretful：容易發(fā)脾氣的。finding fault with：找錯，挑眼。kept是不及物動詞，表示“繼續(xù)地做”。finding是現(xiàn)在分詞做subjective complement。

● fruit drinks：果汁，用以代酒。

● held to：緊握。

● wall當(dāng)不及物動詞用，字典上恐怕沒有這樣一條。此字是從形容詞walleyed（目光炯炯的或眼白露得很多的）轉(zhuǎn)來，wall在這里的意思當(dāng)是“炯炯而視或是把眼白翻上來看”。sulky：鬧別扭的樣子。

Singer was patient and did all that he could. He drew little pictures, and once he made a sketch of his friend to amuse him. The picture hurt the big Greek's feelings, and he refused to be reconciled until Singer had made his face very young and handsome and colored his hair bright yellow and his eyes china blue. And then he tried not to show his pleasure.

● patient：有耐心的。sketch：速寫。Singer可能把他畫得很胖，因此他不高興了。

● reconciled：言歸于好?！皍ntil”clause中有兩動詞：had made和(had) colored。china blue：青瓷色。young、handsome、bright yellow、china blue都是objective complements。

● Singer把他的臉畫漂亮了，那胖子該高興了。可是他心里高興，臉上還不肯表示出來。Singer想盡辦法，無非要使朋友高興，朋友偏不讓他稱心如愿。

Singer nursed his friend so carefully that after a week Antonapoulos was able to return to his work. But from that time on there was a difference in their way of life. Trouble came to the two friends.

● nurse作名詞是“護士”，作動詞便是“看護”。

● 病是好了，卻有別的麻煩來了。

Antonapoulos was not ill any more, but a change had come in him. He was irritable and no longer content to spend the evenings quietly in their home. When he would wish to go out Singer followed along close behind him. Antonapoulos would go into a restaurant, and while they sat at the table he slyly put lumps of sugar, or a peppershaker, or pieces of silverware in his pocket. Singer always paid for what he took and there was no disturbance. At home he scolded Antonapoulos, but the Greek only looked at him with a bland smile.

● irritable：容易發(fā)脾氣的。close（副詞）：貼近地。slyly：偷偷摸摸地，鬼鬼祟祟地。peppershaker：內(nèi)盛胡椒，蓋上有細孔的小瓶。

● disturbance：紛擾。偷走的東西有人給付帳，不會有什么吵鬧了。

● bland：溫文的（按：此字帶一點“油腔滑調(diào)”的意思）。

The months went on and these habits of Antonapoulos grew worse. One day at noon he walked calmly out of the fruit store of his cousin and urinated in public against the wall of the First National Bank Building across the street. At times he would meet people on the sidewalk whose faces did not please him, and he would bump into these persons and push at them with his elbows and stomach. He walked into a store one day and hauled out a floor lamp without paying for it, and another time he tried to take an electric train he had seen in a showcase.

● in public：當(dāng)眾。urinated（動詞）：小便；urine（名詞）：尿。

● bump：撞（上去）。stomach：肚皮。肥人腹大，亦可用以撞人。

● hauled out：拖出來。不是偷偷摸摸地拿，而是明目張膽地拖了。electric train：電動火車（玩具）。he had seen in a showcase是定語從句。showcase：商店陳列貨物之玻璃柜。

For Singer this was a time of great distress. He was in a constant state of agitation. The money he had saved in the bank was spent for bail and fines. All of his efforts and money were used to keep his friend out of jail because of such charges as theft, committing public indecencies, and assault and battery.

● distress：痛苦。agitation：激動。bail：保釋。fines：罰款。charges：罪名。committing public indecencies：在公共場所做不體面的事，指上段的當(dāng)眾便溺。assault and battery（法律名詞）：毆打罪，指街頭撞人。

The Greek cousin for whom Antonapoulos worked did not enter into these troubles at all. Charles Parker (for that was the name this cousin had taken) let Antonapoulos stay on at the store, but he watched him always with his pale, tight face and he made no effort to help him. Singer had a strange feeling about Charles Parker. He began to dislike him.

● 上文講Antonapoulos是在他的一個親戚所開的糖果鋪里做事的，親戚也是希臘人，名字拼起來大約也很長，Charles Parker是他到美國后新起的名字。

● 那親戚坐視Antonapoulos屢蹈法網(wǎng)，而不加援手。Singer漸表不滿。

Singer lived in continual turmoil and worry. But Antonapoulos was always bland, and no matter what happened the gentle, flaccid smile was still on his face.

● turmoil：（心里的）動亂，意義同前面的agitation差不多。worry：擔(dān)憂。

● no matter what happened：不論出了什么事。flaccid：（肌肉）松松的。

And then the final trouble came to Singer.

One afternoon he had come to meet Antonapoulos at the fruit store when Charles Parker handed him a letter. The letter explained that Charles Parker had made arrangements for his cousin to be taken to the state insane asylum two hundred miles away. Charles Parker had used his influence in the town and the details were already settled. Antonapoulos was to leave and to be admitted into the asylum the next week.

● made arrangements：辦手續(xù)。state：州立的。insane asylum：瘋?cè)嗽海ǖ谝粋€字的解釋是“瘋?cè)说摹?，第二個字的解釋是“收容所”）。

● influence：勢力（面子、朋友交情等）。隨隨便便送一個人進瘋?cè)嗽?，恐怕不容易。Charles Parker利用了他在鎮(zhèn)上的一點勢力，才辦妥的。details were already settled：各項手續(xù)都已辦妥。

Singer read the letter several times, and for a while he could not think. Charles Parker was talking to him across the counter, but he did not even try to read his lips and understand. At last Singer wrote on the little pad he always carried in his pocket:

You cannot do this. Antonapoulos must stay with me.

● counter：（糖果鋪里的）柜臺。

● read：仔細地看，端詳。普通人如用英語說話，Singer看嘴唇動作，亦能會意。pad：拍紙簿。

Charles Parker shook his head excitedly. He did not know much American. "None of your business," he kept saying over and over.

Singer knew that everything was finished. The Greek was afraid that some day he might be responsible for his cousin. Charles Parker did not know much about the American language—but he understood the American dollar very well, and he had used his money and influence to admit his cousin to the asylum without delay.

● None of your business：不用你管。Parker不大會說美國話（American），就拿這四個字重復(fù)地說。

● responsible for his cousin：替他負責(zé)；受他的累。怕受累，因此趕快把Antonapoulos送走。

There was nothing Singer could do.

Then came the day when Antonapoulos must leave. Singer brought out his own suitcase and very carefully packed the best of their joint possessions. Antonapoulos made himself a lunch to eat during the journey. In the late afternoon they walked arm in arm down the street for the last time together. It was a chilly afternoon in late November, and little huffs of breath showed in the air before them.

● suitcase：輕便衣箱。joint possessions：（兩人）共有的物品。

● huff=puff：一口一口的氣。空氣寒冷，吐氣成霧。

Charles Parker was to travel with his cousin, but he stood apart from them at the station. Antonapoulos crowded into the bus and settled himself with elaborate preparations on one of the front seats. Singer watched him from the window and his hands began desperately to talk for the last time with his friend. But Antonapoulos was so busy checking over the various items in his lunch box that for a while he paid no attention. Just before the bus pulled away from the curb he turned to Singer and his smile was very bland and remote—as though they were many miles apart.

● Singer送他們表兄弟二人到長途汽車站。Charles Parker冷酷如舊，Antonapoulos還是只顧他個人的舒服，只有Singer真感到痛苦。

● crowded into：擠進去（不一定表示車子里人多，可能只表示門小人肥，走進去很費力）。settled himself：坐下。with elaborate preparations：做些細心的準備工作（如撣撣灰塵、提提褲子、檢點一下手里的包裹等）。

● lunch box：午餐盒，日本人所謂“便當(dāng)”。items：項目（面包、肉、蔬菜等）。那希臘人坐下來，先檢點盒子里的食物，哪管得Singer在窗外對他“說話”？

● pulled away：開走。curb：人行道的邊，汽車常停在它的旁邊。

● remote：遙遠的。

The weeks that followed did not seem real at all. All day Singer worked over his bench in the back of the jewelry store, and then at night he returned to the house alone. More than anything he wanted to sleep. As soon as he came home from work he would lie on his cot and try to doze awhile. Dreams came to him when he lay there half asleep. And in all of them Antonapoulos was there. His hands would jerk nervously, for in his dreams he was talking to his friend and Antonapoulos was watching him.

● did not seem real：不像是真的，不知道怎么過去的。

● bench：這里不作“長凳”解，而是“工作臺”。Singer是個銀器刻花匠，已見前文。

● More than anything：比什么都要緊。照一般語法書規(guī)定，anything后應(yīng)跟else。

● jerk：抽動。nervously：神經(jīng)失常地。在夢中“說話”，手不知不覺動起來了。

Singer tried to think of the time before he had ever known his friend. He tried to recount to himself certain things that had happened when he was young. But none of these things he tried to remember seemed real.

Singer recalled that, although he had been deaf since he was an infant, he had not always been a real mute. At the school he was thought very intelligent. He learned the lessons before the rest of the pupils. But he could never become used to speaking with his lips. When he was twenty-two he had come South to this town from Chicago and he met Antonapoulos immediately. Since that time he had never spoken with his mouth again, because with his friend there was no need for this.

● recount：詳細地說一遍。這里有“回憶”的意思。

● intelligent：聰明，尤其指“讀書、學(xué)習(xí)”方面的聰明。

● before：指學(xué)得比別人快。used在這里是過去分詞，不是finite verb。to后接動名詞speaking。他不慣用嘴唇說話，還是做手勢方便。有了這位啞巴朋友之后，他就用不著再開口了。

Nothing seemed real except the ten years with Antonapoulos. In his half-dreams he saw his friend very vividly, and when he awakened a great aching loneliness would be in him. Occasionally he would pack up a box for Antonapoulos, but he never received any reply. And so the months passed in this empty, dreaming way.

● vividly：生動地，活生生地。

● aching 是動詞ache的現(xiàn)在分詞，作“疼痛”解。loneliness（寂寞）本來只是一種空泛的感覺，今以aching來形容，則心頭煩惱，化為身上疼痛，雖仍未著形象，然而隱者顯，虛者實，觸之宛然如在矣。

● pack up a box：包好一盒（禮物送去）。

● empty：空虛的。dreaming：夢幻似的。此兩字應(yīng)本段開首Nothing seemed real一句。未認識Antonapoulos之前，所經(jīng)所歷，似無一實在之事；今Antonapoulos已走，觸目空虛，如夢似幻，生命又復(fù)虛度而已。

● 前文有句曰：The weeks that followed did not seem real at all，本段又曰：the months passed in this empty, dreaming way，生活空虛如舊，而weeks已延長為months矣。

Each evening the mute walked alone for hours in the street. Sometimes the nights were cold with the sharp, wet winds of March and it would be raining heavily. But to him this did not matter. His gait was agitated and he always kept his hands stuffed tight into the pockets of his trousers. Then as the weeks passed the days grew warm and languorous. His agitation gave way gradually to exhaustion and there was a look about him of deep calm. In his face there came to be a brooding peace that is seen most often in the faces of the very sorrowful or the very wise. But still he wandered through the streets of the town, always silent and alone.

● gait：走路的姿態(tài)。stuffed：塞。手塞在褲袋里面，啞巴的手，本來就是他的嘴。聽他說話的人既然已經(jīng)不在了，手是可以塞起來了。

● languorous：悶人的（天氣）。gave way…to：原意是“讓開路，讓別人走”，或是“撤退了，讓別人前進”。His agitation gave way gradually to exhaustion：他的激動漸漸地消失而疲竭之感繼起。

● there was a look about him of deep calm=there was a look of deep calm about him。

● brooding：沉思的。peace：平和的氣象。the very sorrowful和the very wise中的兩個形容詞，都當(dāng)名詞用——有大悲哀的人和有大智慧的人。望之穆然深思者，大抵其人非為哀傷已極，即已參透人生。今Singer臉上之表情即此類也。