自考高级英语下册电子版教材翻译

工 作 Lesson Thirteen Work 究竟工作是幸福还是痛苦的源泉，这可能是一个难以回答的问题。 Whether work should be placed among the causes of happiness or among the causes of unhappiness may perhaps be regarded as a doubtful question. 毫无疑问有许多工作是非常令人厌烦的，而且过多的工作总是十分痛苦的事。 There is certainly much work which is exceedingly irksome， and an excess of work is always very painful. 然而我认为，只要不过量，对多数人来说即使是最枯燥的工作也比终日无所事事要好些。 I think， however， that， provided work is not excessive in amount， even the dullest work is to most people less painful than idleness. 工作给人的愉快的程度多种多样，从仅仅是消烦解闷到产生巨大的快乐，这会随工作的性质和工作者的能力而异。 There are in work all grades， from mere relief of tedium up to the profoundest delights， according to the nature of the work and the abilities of the worker. 大多数人不得不从事的工作本身大都无乐趣可言，但即使是这样的工作也有一些很大的好处。 Most of the work that most people have to do is not in itself interesting， but even such work has certain great advantages. 首先，工作可将一天的许多时间占满，人们不必再费神来决定应干些什么，大多数人在可以自由地按自己的愿望打发时间时，常常会不知所措，想不起有什么令人愉快的事值得去做。 To begin with， it fills a good many hours of the day without the need of deciding what one shall do. Most people， when they are left free to fill their own time according to their own choice， are at a loss to think of anything sufficiently pleasant to be worth doing. 而他们的决定又总是受到干扰，觉得干别的什么事也许会更令人愉快。 And whatever they decide on， they are troubled by the feeling that something else would have been pleasanter. 能够有意义地利用闲暇时间是文明发展到阶段的结果，而目前很少有人能达到这一层次。 To be able to fill leisure intelligently is the last product of civilization， and at present very few people have reached this level. 何况作出选择本身就是件令人厌烦的事。 Moreover the exercise of choice is in itself tiresome. 除了那些具有非凡主动性的人，其他的人肯定有人乐于被告诉一天中的每时每刻该做什么，当然命令他们做的事不能太令人厌烦。 Except to people with unusual initiative it is positively agreeable to be told what to do at each hour of the day， provided the orders are not too unpleasant. 多数无所事事的阔佬免遭从事单调乏味工作之苦，但代价是莫名其妙的无聊。 Most of the idle rich suffer unspeakable boredom as the price of their freedom from drudgery. 有时他们去非洲猎取巨兽或环绕世界飞行来解闷，但这类刺激的数量有限，尤其到了中年以后更是如此。 At times they may find relief by hunting big game in Africa， or by flying round the world， but the number of such sensations is limited， especially after youth is past. 因此较为明智的阔佬们工作起来几乎像穷人一样卖力，而有钱的女人则大多忙于她们自以为具有震撼世界般重要性的无数琐事。 Accordingly the more intelligent rich men work nearly as hard as if they were poor， while rich women for the most part keep themselves busy with innumerable trifles of whose earthshaking importance they are firmly persuaded. 因此人们愿意工作，首先因为工作可防止产生无聊感。比起终日无所事事而造成的无聊来，人们在干着虽必要但缺乏兴趣的工作时所感到的枯燥无聊就不值一提了。 Work therefore is desirable， first and foremost， as a preventive of boredom， for the boredom that a man feels when he is doing necessary though uninteresting work is as nothing in comparison with the boredom that he feels when he has nothing to do with his days. 与工作的这一好处相关的还有一个好处，那就是假日到来会令人感到更加美妙。只要一个人的工作不至于累得他体力不支，那么他就会从他的闲暇时间里得到无所事事的人绝对得不到的极大乐趣。 With this advantage of work another is associated， namely that it makes holidays much more delicious when they come. Provided a man does not have to work so hard as to impair his vigor， he is likely to find far more zest in his free time than an idle man could possibly find. 多数有报酬的工作和某些没有报酬的工作还有第二个好处，那就是它们提供了成功的机会和实现抱负的可能。 The second advantage of most paid work and of some unpaid work is that it gives chances of success and opportunities for ambition. 在多数工作中，收入的多少是衡量成功与否的标准，当我们这个资本主义社会继续存在时，这是不可避免的。 In most work success is measured by income and while our capitalistic society continues， this is inevitable. 只有在工作的情况下收入才不再被用作当然的衡量标准。 It is only where the best work is concerned that this measure ceases to be the natural one to apply. 人们想增加收入当然是出自钱多了可以获得更多的舒适享受这一愿望，但同样也出自想获得成功的愿望。 The desire that men feel to increase their income is quite as much a desire for success as for the extra comforts that a higher income can procure. 无论工作多么枯燥单调，如果它是能够使人逐渐成名的手段，无论是在世界上出名还是就在自己的圈子里出名，那么这工作就不再难以忍受了。 However dull work may be， it becomes bearable if it is a means of building up a reputation， whether in the world at large or only in one's own circle. 归根结底，幸福的最重要的因素之一是有始终如一的目的。而对多数人来说这样的目的主要来自他们的工作。 Continuity of purpose is one of the most essential ingredients of happiness in the long run， and for most men this comes chiefly through their work. 在这一点上，终日从事家务的妇女便远不如男子幸运，也没有走出家庭参加工作的妇女幸运。 In this respect those women whose lives are occupied with housework are much less fortunate than men， or than women who work outside the home. 家庭妇女没有工资，无法改善自己的状况，她所干的一切在她的丈夫看来都是理所当然的（她的丈夫对此几乎是熟视无睹），丈夫欣赏的不是她干的家务活，而是她的其他品质。 The domesticated wife does not receive wages， has no means of bettering herself， is taken for granted by her hu and （who sees practically nothing of what she does）， and is valued by him not for her housework but for quite other qualities. 当然对那些有足够的钱可以把住宅和花园搞得十分漂亮而成为邻居们的羡慕对象的女人来说，情况就不一样，但这样的女人相对来说数量较少，对于大多数妇女，家务带给她们的满足远不如其他工作带给男子或职业妇女的满足。 Of course this does not apply to those women who are sufficiently well-to-do to make beautiful houses and beautiful gardens and become the envy of their neighbors； but such women are comparatively few， and for the great majority housework cannot bring as much satisfaction as work of other kinds brings to men and to professional women. 多数工作都能使人满意地消磨掉时间，而且给人们实现抱负提供某种令人满意的途径，虽然这途径不起眼。一般说来这种满足足以使一个即使工作枯燥无味的人也比无事可做的人感到快乐。但如果从事的是有趣的工作，就能给人带来比仅仅是解闷高级得多的满足。 The satisfaction of killing time and of affording some outlet， however modest， for ambition， belongs to most work， and is sufficient to make even a man whose work is dull happier on the average than a man who has no work at all. But when work is interesting， it is capable of giving satisfaction of a far higher order than mere relief from tedium. 有兴趣的工作可以按其包含乐趣的大小顺序排列，我先谈小有乐趣的工作，最后谈那些值得伟大人物投入全部精力的工作。 The kinds of work in which there is some interest may he arranged in a hierarchy. I shall begin with those which are only mildly interesting and end with those that are worthy to absorb the whole energies of a great man. 两个使工作有趣的主要因素，一是需要运用技巧，二是有建设性。 Two chief elements make work interesting： first， the exercise of skill， and second， construction. 凡是掌握了不同寻常的技巧的人都喜欢运用这种技巧，直至他感到太平常或他再也不能提高时为止。 Every man who has acquired some unusual skill enjoys exercising it until it has become a matter of course， or until he can no longer improve himself. 这种想要自我表现的动机从幼儿时代就开始了：一个能倒立的男孩总是不想用脚站立。 This motive to activity begins in early childhood： a boy who can stand on his head becomes reluctant to stand on his feet. 许多工作同靠技艺取胜的游戏一样给人以快乐。 A great deal of work gives the same pleasure that is to be derived from games of skill. 律师或政治家的工作一定更愉快而且包含着许多和打桥牌同样的快乐。 The work of a lawyer or a politician must contain in a more delectable form a great deal of the same pleasure that is to be derived from playing bridge. 当然这里不仅运用了技巧，而且还在智力较量上胜过了一个本领高超的对手。 Here of course there is not only the exercise of skill but the outwitting of a skilled opponent. 即使在不存在竞争因素的情况下，表演高难的绝技也是件令人惬意的事情。 Even where this competitive element is absent， however， the performance of difficult feats is agreeable. 能驾驶飞机进行特技飞行的人会从中获得极大的快乐，以至为此甘愿冒生命危险。 A man who can do stunts in an aero——plane finds the pleasure so great that for the sake of it he is willing to risk his life. 我想像尽管一个能干的外科医生工作时处在令人痛苦的气氛中，他还是能从精湛的手术中得到满足。 I imagine that an able surgeon， in spite of the painful circumstances in which his work is done， derives satisfaction from the exquisite precision of his operations. 从大量层次较低的工作中也能得到同样的，只是在程度上没有那么强烈的快乐。 The same kind of pleasure， though in a less intense form， is to be derived from a great deal of work of a humbler kind. 只要工作中需要的技巧不是一成不变的，或存在着不断提高的余地，那么一切需要熟练技巧的工作都会是令人愉快的。 All skilled work can be pleasurable， provided the skill required is either variable or capable of indefinite improvement. 但如不具备上述两个条件，在人们掌握的技巧达到顶峰以后，这种工作便不再有兴趣了。 If these conditions are absent， it will cease to be interesting when a man has acquired his maximum skill. 一个从事3英里长跑的运动员到了不能再打破自己纪录的年龄以后，就不会再从这个职业中获得乐趣。 A man who runs three-mile races will cease to find pleasure in this occupation when he passes the age at which he can beat his own previous record. 幸而有相当数量的工作随新的情况出现而需要新的技巧，人们可以不断提高自己的技巧，至少可以一直继续到中年以后。 Fortunately there is a very considerable amount of work in which new circumstances call for new skill and a man can go on improving， at any rate until he has reached middle age. 从事某些技巧性工作的人，比如从政的人，似乎在60岁到70岁之间才达到颠峰状态，原因是在这些职业中，丰富的阅历至关重要。 In some kinds of skilled work， such as politics， for example， it seems that men are at their best between sixty and seventy， the reason being that in such occupations a wide experience of other men is essential. 因此有成就的政治家在70岁时往往会比其他同龄人幸福。 For this reason successful politicians are apt to be happier at the age of seventy than any other men of equal age. 在这一点上惟一能与他们相比的是大公司的首脑人物。 Their only competitors in this respect are the men who are the heads of big businesses. 然而的工作还具有另一因素，作为幸福的源泉它比运用技巧更为重要，这便是建设性。 There is， however， another element possessed by the best work， which is even more important as a source of happiness than is the exercise of skill. This is the element of constructiveness. 有些工作在完成后，结果会像纪念碑一样存在下去，尽管并非多数工作都能如此。 In some work， though by no means in most， something is built up which remains as a monument when the work is completed. 我们可以用下列标准区分是建设还是破坏。 We may distinguish construction from destruction by the following criterion. 如果是建设，则初始阶段事物较为缺少章法，而到最后阶段则体现出某个目标来；如为破坏，则正好相反，初始阶段体现出某个目标，而最后阶段则是缺少章法，也就是说，破坏者惟一的目的是制造出一个不具备某一目标的状态来。 In construction the initial state of affairs is comparatively haphazard， while the final stale of affairs embodies a purpose. In destruction the reverse is the case； the initial stale of affairs embodies a purpose， while the final state of affairs is haphazard， that is to say， all that is intended by the destroyer is to produce a state of affairs which does not embody a certain purpose. 适用这一标准的体最明显的一个例子，就是建造和拆除房屋。 This criterion applies in the most literal and obvious case， namely the construction and destruction of buildings. 在建造房屋时，预先制定好的方案得到实施，而在拆除房屋时没有人明确规定拆毁后残砖烂瓦应如何处置。 In constructing a building a previously made plan is carried out， whereas in destroying it no one decides exactly how the materials are to lie when the demolition is completed. 当然破坏常常是随之而来的建设的必要前提，在这种情况下它便成了整个建设的一部分。 Destruction is of course necessary very often as a preliminary to subsequent construction， in that case it is part of a whole which is constructive. 但有时一个人从事的活动旨在破坏而不是考虑此后可能进行的建设活动，他常常会标榜自己是为了重新建设而扫平一切，但一般说来如果这是个借口，只要问他随后的建设是什么样就会揭穿他。人们会发现在这一问题上他会含糊其词，毫无热情，但对于作为准备工作的破坏他却津津乐道，谈得十分具体。 But not infrequently a man will engage in activities of which the purpose is destructive without regard to any construction that may come after. Frequently he will conceal this from himself by the belief that he is only sweeping sway in order to build afresh， but it is generally possible to unmask this pretense， when it is a pretense， by asking him what the subsequent construction is to he. On this subject it will be found that he will speak vaguely and without enthusiasm， whereas on the preliminary destruction he has spoken precisely and with zest. 不少的革命者、尚武分子及其他暴力的信徒们就是如此。 This applies to not a few revolutionaries and militarists and other apostles of violence. 他们为仇恨所驱使，但自己往往还没意识到这一点……他们的真正目的是毁灭他们所仇恨的事物，相对来说对随后应做什么的问题并不关心。 They are actuated， usually without their own knowledge， by hatred： the destruction of what they hate is their real purpose， and they are comparatively indifferent to the question what is to come after it. 我无法否认从事破坏性工作和从事建设性工作一样也可能有快乐。 Now I cannot deny that in the work of destruction as in the work of construction there may be joy. 这是一种更为狂暴的快乐，也许有时更为强烈，但却不能给人以那种更深的满足，因为从它的结果中几乎找不到什么满足。 It is a fiercer joy， perhaps at moments more intense， but it is less profoundly satisfying， since the result is one in which little satisfaction is to be found. 你杀死了敌人，他死了你的职业就不存在了，你从胜利中得来的满足很快就消失了。 You kill your enemy， and when he is dead your occupation is gone， and the satisfaction that you derive from victory quickly fades. 从另一方面来说，建设性的工作在完成后一回想起来就令人愉快，而且这种永远也不会做到再也无事可做的地步。 The work of construction， on the other hand， when completed， is delightful to contemplate， and moreover is never so fully completed that there is nothing further to do about it. 最令人满意的目标是那些能永远从一个成功通向另一个成功而从不会走进死胡同的目标，在这个方面人们会发现建设比破坏更能带给人幸福。 The most satisfactory purposes are those that lead on indefinitely from one success to another without ever coming to a dead end； and in this respect it will be found that construction is a greater source of happiness than destruction. 也许更准确的说法应该是，在建设中寻求满足的人得到的满足要比热衷破坏建设的人从破坏中得到的满足更大，因为你一旦变得满腔仇恨，就很难从建设中得到别的人从中得到的乐趣。 Perhaps it would be more correct to say that those who find satisfaction in construction find in it greater satisfaction than the lovers of destruction can find in destruction， for if once you have become filled with hate you will not easily derive from construction the pleasure which another man would derive from it.

lesson6 一个好机会 Lesson Six A Good Chance 我到鸭溪时，喜鹊没在家，我和他的妻子阿米莉亚谈了谈。 When I got to Crow Creek， Magpie was not home. I talked to his wife Amelia. “我要找喜鹊，”我说，“我给他带来了好消息。”我指指提着的箱子，“我带来了他的诗歌和一封加利福尼亚大学的录取通知书，他们想让他来参加为印第安人举办的艺术课。” “I need to find Magpie，” I said. “I've really got some good news for him.” I pointed to the briefcase I was carrying. “I have his poems and a letter of acceptance from a University in California where they want him to come and participate in the Fine Arts Program they have started for Indians.” “你知道他还在假释期间吗？” “Do you know that he was on parole？” “这个，不，不大清楚。”我犹豫着说，“我一直没有和他联系，但我听说他遇到了些麻烦。” “Well， no， not exactly，” I said hesitantly， “I haven't kept in touch with him but I heard that he was in some kind of trouble. 她对我笑笑说：“他已经离开很久了。你知道，他在这儿不安全。他的假释官随时都在监视他，所以他还是不到这儿来为好，而且我们已经分开一段时间了，我听说他在城里的什么地方。” She smiled to me and said， “He's gone a lot. It's not safe around here for him， you know. His parole officer really watches him all the time and so sometimes it is just better for him not to come here. Besides， we haven't been together for a while. I hear he's in town somewhere.” “你是指他在钱柏林？” “Do you mean in Chamberlain？” “对。我和他姐姐住在这儿，她说前一段时间她在那儿见过他。不过喜鹊不会去加利福尼亚的。即使你见到他并和他谈此事，他现在也决不会离开这儿。” “Yes， I live here with his sister and she said that she saw him there， quite a while ago. But Magpie would not go to California. He would never leave here now even if you saw him and talked to him about it.” “可他以前去过，”我说，“他去过西雅图大学。” “But he did before，” I said， “He went to the University of Seattle.” “是的，但……但是，那是以前，”她说，似乎不想再谈这个话题。 “Yeah， but…well， that was before，” she said， as though to finish the matter. “你难道不希望他去吗？”我问道。 “Don't you want him to go？” I asked. “哦，这不是我说了算的。我们现在已经分开了。我只是告诉你，你一定会失望的。像你这样的人希望他需要那些，可他已经不再需要了。”她很快答道，语气非常肯定。 Quickly， she responded， “Oh， it's not up to me to say. He is gone from me now. I'm just telling you that you are in for a disappointment. He no longer needs the things that people like you want him to need，” she said positively. 当她意识到我不喜欢她用“像你这样的人”的字眼时，她停了一下，然后把手放在我的胳膊上，“听着，”她说，“喜鹊现在终于快乐了。他情绪很好，英俊倜傥，自由自在而又意志坚强。他和兄弟们一起坐在皮鼓前唱歌，他现在一切都很好。以前，每当发表那些反政府和反对美国印第安人事务委员会的言论时，他总会越发气愤，充满怨恨。我曾为他担忧，但现在我不再担心了。你为什么不让他独自呆着呢？” When she saw that I didn't like her reference to “people like you”， she stopped for a moment and then put her hand on my arm. “Listen，” she said， “Magpie is happy now， finally. He is in good spirits， handsome and free and strong. He sits at the drum and sings with his brothers： he's okay now. When he was saying all those things against the government and against the council， he became more and more ugly and embittered and I used to be afraid for him. But I'm not now. 我和赛利娜坐在一家咖啡馆里。 I was sitting at the café with Salina. 她突然说道：“我不知道喜鹊在哪儿，我已经4天没见到他了。” Abruptly she said， “I don't know where Mapie is. I haven't seen him in four days.” “我把他的诗也带来了。”我说，“他有机会进入加利福尼亚的艺术学院，但是我必须和他谈一谈，还要让他填一下这些表格。我相信他一定会感兴趣的。” “I've got his poems here with me，” I said. “He has a good change of going to a Fine Arts school in California， but I have to talk with him and get him to fill out some papers. I know that he is interested.” “不，他不会的，”她打断了我，“他根本就不再做这些没用的、愚蠢的梦了。” “No， he isn't，” she broke in. “He doesn't have those worthless， shitty dreams anymore.” “别这样说，赛利娜，这对他真的是个好机会。” “Don't say that， Salina. This is a good chance for him.” “好了，你爱怎么想就怎么想吧，可最近你跟他谈过吗？你知道他如今怎么样吗？” “Well， you can think what you want， but have you talked to him lately？ Do you know him as he is now？” “我知道他情况很好，我也知道他有这个天分。” “I know he is good. I know he has such talent.” “他是一个印第安人，这次他回到这里是要住下来。” “He is Indian， and he's back here to stay this time.” “你和我一起开车去钱柏林，好吗？”我问道。 “Would you drive into Chamberlain with me？” I asked. 她一言不发。 She said nothing. “如果他是你所说的那种印第安人，不管那是什么意思，如果他这次回来是要住下来，如果他自己亲口对我说出来，我就打消这个念头。但是，赛利娜，”我极力说服道，“我一定要跟他谈谈，问问他想要做什么。你知道我的意思，不是吗？” “If he is Indian as you say， whatever that means， and if he is back here to stay this time and if he tells me that himself， I'll let it go. But Salina，” I urged， “I must talk to him and ask him what he wants to do. You see that， don't you？” “是的， 我知道了，” 她 终于说道， “他有权知道这一切， 但你会明白。” “Yes，” she said finally. “He has a right to know about this， but you'll see…” 我们离开时，她的高跟鞋在咖啡屋前的人行道上发出清脆的响声，当她又谈及喜鹊时，变得焦虑不安。 Her heels clicked on the sidewalk in front of the café as we left， and she became agitated as she talked. “他在卡司特*时，因为法院被烧，惹了麻烦，被判入狱1年。他现在还在假释期间，他的假释期还有5年，可他们连任何对他不利的证据都没有找到。5年呀！你能相信吗？现在连谋杀罪的人都没有判这样重。” “After all that trouble he got into during that protest at Custer when the courthouse was burned， he was in jail for a year. He's still on parole and he will be on parole for another five years – and they didn't even prove anything against him！ Five years！ Can you believe that？ People these days can commit murder and not get that kind of a sentence.” 我们驱车行使在钱柏林的大街上，埃尔吉正站在银行附近的拐角处，我和赛利娜都心照不宣，这个喜鹊的好朋友肯定知道他在哪儿。 Elgie was standing on the corner near the Bank as we drove down the main street of Chamberlain， and both Salina and I knew without speaking that this man， this good friend of Magpie's， would know of his whereabouts. 我们停了车，埃尔吉走了过来，舒服地靠坐在车的后排座位上。 We parked the car， Elgie came over and settled himself in the back seat of the car. 车慢慢地驶到了我们停车的街角处，假释官目不转睛地盯着我们3人，而我们却假装没看见。 A police car moved slowly to the corner where we were parked and the patrolmen looked at the three of us intently and we pretended not to notice. 巡逻车在空荡荡的街道上慢慢前行。我小心谨慎地转向埃尔吉。 The patrol car inched down the empty street and I turned cautiously toward Elgie. 我还没来得及开口，赛利娜说，“她给喜鹊拿了些表格。他有可能进入加利福尼亚的一所作家学院读书。” Before I could speak， Salina said， “She is got some papers for Magpie. He has a chance to go to a writer's school in California.” 总是不太想让别人清楚地了解他的想法的埃尔吉说道，“是吗？”可赛利娜却不想让他就这么不置可否。“埃尔吉，”她嘲弄道，“埃尔吉，你知道他是不会去的！” Always tentative about letting you know what he was really thinking， Elgie said， “Yeah？” But Salina wouldn't let him get away so noncommittally， “Elgie，” she scoffed. “You know he wouldn't go！” “是呀，你知道，”埃尔吉开口说，“卡司特那件事发生以后，我和喜鹊曾经想要躲藏起来，最后我们到了奥古斯塔娜大学的校园。那儿有我们的几个朋友。他开始谈论自由，而这些是我永远都不会忘记的。在那以后当他被捕入狱时，自由便成为了他的主要话题。自由。他渴望自由，可是，老兄，他们总盯着你的时候，你不可能有自由。哦，那个怪物，就是他的那个假释官，是一只卑鄙的看门狗。” “Well， you know，” Elgie began， “one time when Magpie and me were hiding out after that Custer thing， we ended up on to Augustana College Campus. We got some friends there. And he started talking about freedom and I never forget that， and then after he went wants to be free and you can't be that， man， when they're watching you all the time. Man， that freak that's his parole officer is some mean watch-dog.” “你觉得他会拿到奖学金吗？”我满怀希望地说。 “You think he might go for the scholarship？” I asked， hopefully. “我不知道。也许吧。” “I don't know. Maybe.” “他在哪儿？”我问道。 “Where is he？” I asked. 沉默了很长一会儿后，埃尔吉终于开口了：“我想你来得太好了，因为喜鹊需要从这没完没了的监视和检查中解脱出来。事实上，他一直谈道：”如果我和白人交往，那么我将没有自由；那里没有印第安人的自由。你现在应该和他谈谈。他变了。他赞成同白人完全分离或隔离。“ There was a long silence. Then Elgie said at last， “I think it's good that you've come， because Magpie needs some relief from this constant surveillance， constant checking up. In fact， that's what he always talks about. 'If I have to associate with the whites， then I'm not free： there is no liberty in that for Indians.' You should talk to him now. He's changed. He's for complete separation， segregation， total isolation from the whites.” “这是不是有点太过分了？太不实际了？”我问道。 “Isn't that a bit too radical？ Too unrealistic？” I asked. “我不知道。我真的不知道。” “I don't know. Damn if I know.” “好了，”赛利娜说，“你觉得他在加利福尼亚的那所大学里会怎样？可这是他学习和写作的一个好机会。我觉得他会从中找到一种愉快的感觉。” “Yeah，” said Salina， “Just what do you think it would be like for him at that university in California？” “But it's a chance for him to study， to write. He can find a kind of satisfying isolation in that， I think.” 过了一会儿，埃尔吉说道：“不错，我认为你是对的”。 After a few moments， Elgie said， “Yeah， I think you are right.” 然后他又从后排座位上抬起身来说道：“我要过桥了，再过大约3个街区就到了。在我快要下桥的地方的左边有一座白色的老式二层小楼。喜鹊的哥哥刚从内布拉斯加州教养院出来，现在跟他的妻子就住在那儿，喜鹊也在。” “ Soon he got out of the back seat and said， ”I'm going to walk over the bridge . It's about three blocks down there. There is an old， whit two-story house on the left side just before you cross the bridge. Magpie's brother just got out of the Nebraska State Reformatory and he is staying there with his old lady， and that's where Magpie is.“ 现在终于能够和他谈谈，并让他自己作出决定了。 At last！ Now I could really talk to him and let him make this decision for himself. “呵！还有些问题，”埃尔吉说，“喜鹊本不应该在那儿，你知道，因为这是他的假释条件的一部分，那就是他要离开朋友、亲戚和以前的囚犯，差不多是所有的人。可上帝呀，这是他的哥哥呀。等到日落前你们再来。把车停在加油站那儿，只要从那儿绕过那条街走到房子的后门进去，你就可以跟喜鹊谈所有这一切了。” “There are things about this though，” Elgie said. “Magpie shouldn't have been there， see， because it's a part of the condition of his parole that he stays away from friends and relatives and ex-convicts and just about everybody. But Jesus， this is his brother. Wait until just before sundown and then come over. Park your car at the service station just around the block from there and walk to the back entrance of the house and then you can talk to Magpie about all this.” 赛利娜跟我讲述着喜鹊在背井离乡数月后返回鸭溪的情形及他的亲戚是怎样到他姐姐家欢迎他返乡的。“他们来听他和兄弟唱歌，他们围坐在椅子上，欢笑着和他一起歌唱。” Salina was talking， telling me about Magpie's return to Crow Creek after months in exile and how his relatives went to his sister's house and welcomed him home. “They came to hear him sing with his brothers， and they sat in chairs around the room and laughed and sang wit him.” 我们到达时，院子里停着几辆车。赛利娜压低声音说，“她们可能正在聚会。” Several cars were parked in the yard of the old house as we approached， and Salina， keeping her voice low， said， “Maybe they are having a party.” 然而，四周的寂静使我忐忑不安。当我们走进敞着的后门时，看到人们都站在厨房里，我小心翼翼地问道，“出什么事了？ But the silence which hung about the place filled me with apprehension， and when we walked in the back door which hung open， we saw people standing in the kitchen. I asked carefully， “What's wrong？” 没有人答话，只有埃尔吉走了过来。他那充血的眼睛里充满悲伤和痛苦。 Nobody spoke but Elgie came over， his bloodshot eyes filled with sorrow and misery. 他在我们面前站了一会儿，然后示意我们到起居室去。 He stood in front of us for a moment and then gestured us to go into the living room. 屋子里静静地，坐满了人。终于，埃尔吉轻轻地说道，“他们枪杀了他。” The room was filled with people sitting in silence， and finally Elgie said， quietly， “They shot him.” “他们说他违反了假释条件把他抓走了，关进监狱后就枪杀了他。” “They picked him up for breaking the conditions of his parole and they put him in jail and … they shot him.” “可是为什么？”我大喊道，“怎么会发生这样的事？” “But why？” I cried. “How could this have happened？” “他们说他们认为他要反抗，而且他们害怕他。” “They said they thought he was resisting and that they were afraid of him.” “害怕？”我怀疑地问，“但……但是，他有武器吗？” “Afraid？” I asked， incredulously. “But…but…was he armed？” “没有”，埃尔吉说着坐了下来。他的胳膊撑在膝盖上，头低着。 “No，” Elgie said， seated now， his arm on his knees， his head down. “No， he wasn't armed.” 我把喜鹊的诗紧紧握在手里，两手的拇指交替在平滑的纸夹上狠狠地摁着。 I held the poems tightly in my hands pressing my thumbs，first one and then the other，against the smoothness of the cardboard folder.