听英文名着可以耳朵怀孕 | 里昂读《了不起的盖茨比》- 019

听英文名著可以耳朵怀孕

里昂读《了不起的盖茨比》

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　　Jordan’s party were calling impatiently to her from the porch, but she lingered for a moment to shake hands.

乔丹那一伙人从阳台上不耐烦地喊她，可是她还逗留了片刻和我握手。

　　“I’ve just heard the most amazing thing,” she whispered. “How long were we in there?”

"我刚才听到一件最惊人的事情，"她出神地小声说，"我们在那里边待了多久？"

　　“Why, about an hour.” “It was—simply amazing,” she repeated abstractedly.

"哦，个把钟头。"

　　“But I swore I wouldn’t tell it and here I am tantalizing you.” She yawned gracefully in my face: “Please come and see me. . . . Phone book . . . Under the name of Mrs. Sigourney Howard . . . My aunt . . .” She was hurrying off as she talked—her brown hand waved a jaunty salute as she melted into her party at the door.

"这事……太惊人了，"她出神地重复说，"可是我发过誓不告诉别人，而我现在已经在逗你了。"她对着我的脸轻轻打了个阿欠，"有空请过来看我……电话簿……西古奈·霍华德太太名下……我的姑妈……"她一边说一边匆匆离去--她活泼地挥了一下那只晒得黑黑的手表示告别，然后就消失在门口她的那一伙人当中了。

　　Rather ashamed that on my first appearance I had stayed so late, I joined the last of Gatsby’s guests, who were clustered around him. I wanted to explain that I’d hunted for him early in the evening and to apologize for not having known him in the garden.

我觉得怪难为情的，第一次来就待得这么晚，于是走到包围着盖茨比的最后几位客人那边去。我想要解释一下我一来就到处找过他，同时为刚才在花园里与他面对面却不知道他是何许人向他道歉。

　　“Don’t mention it,” he enjoined me eagerly. “Don’t give it another thought, old sport.” The familiar expression held no more familiarity than the hand which reassuringly brushed my shoulder. “And don’t forget we’re going up in the hydroplane to-morrow morning, at nine o’clock.”

"没有关系，"他恳切地嘱咐我。"别放在心上，老兄。"这个亲热的称呼还比不上非常友好地拍拍我肩膀的那只手所表示的亲热。"别忘了明天早上九点我们要乘水上飞机上人哩。"

　　Then the butler, behind his shoulder: “Philadelphia wants you on the ‘phone, sir.”

接着男管家来了，站在他背后。"先生，有一个找您的来自费城的长途电话。"

　　“All right, in a minute. Tell them I’ll be right there. . . . good night.”

"好，就来。告诉他们我就来。晚安。"

　　“Good night.”

"晚安。"

　　“Good night.” He smiled—and suddenly there seemed to be a pleasant significance in having been among the last to go, as if he had desired it all the time. “Good night, old sport. . . . good night.”

"晚安。"他微微一笑。突然之间，我待到最后才走，这其中好像含有愉快的深意，仿佛他是一直希望如此的。"晚安，老兄……晚安。"

　　But as I walked down the steps I saw that the evening was not quite over. Fifty feet from the door a dozen headlights illuminated a bizarre and tumultuous scene. In the ditch beside the road, right side up, but violently shorn of one wheel, rested a new coupe which had left Gatsby’s drive not two minutes before. The sharp jut of a wall accounted for the detachment of the wheel, which was now getting considerable attention from half a dozen curious chauffeurs. However, as they had left their cars blocking the road, a harsh, discordant din from those in the rear had been audible for some time, and added to the already violent confusion of the scene.

可是，当我走下台阶时，我看到晚会还没有完全结束。离大门五十英尺，十几辆汽车的前灯照亮了一个不寻常的、闹哄哄的场面。在路旁的小沟里，右边向上，躺着一辆新的小轿车，可是一只轮子撞掉了。这辆车离开盖茨比的车道还不到两分钟，一堵墙的突出部分是造成车轮脱落的原因。现在有五六个好奇的司机在围观，可是，由于他们让自己的车于挡住了路，后面车子上的司机已经按了好久喇叭，一片刺耳的噪音更增添了整个场面本来就很严重的混乱。

　　A man in a long duster had dismounted from the wreck and now stood in the middle of the road, looking from the car to the tire and from the tire to the observers in a pleasant, puzzled way.

一个穿着长风衣的男人已经从撞坏的车子里出来，此刻站在大路中间，从车子看到轮胎，又从轮胎看到旁观的人，脸上带着愉快而迷惑不解的表情。

　　“See!” he explained. “It went in the ditch.”

"请看！"他解释道，"车子开到沟里去了。"

　　The fact was infinitely astonishing to him, and I recognized first the unusual quality of wonder, and then the man—it was the late patron of Gatsby’s library.

这个事实使他感到不胜惊奇。我先听出了那不平常的惊奇的口吻，然后认出了这个人--就是早先光顾盖茨比图书室的那一位。

　　“How’d it happen?”

"怎么搞的？"

　　He shrugged his shoulders.

他耸了耸肩膀。

　　“I know nothing whatever about mechanics,” he said decisively.

"我对机械一窍不通。"他肯定地说。

　　“But how did it happen? Did you run into the wall?” “Don’t ask me,” said Owl Eyes, washing his hands of the whole matter. “I know very little about driving—next to nothing. It happened, and that’s all I know.”

"到底怎么搞的？你撞到墙上去了吗？""别问我，""猫头鹰眼"说，把事情推脱得一干二净，"我不大懂开车--几乎一无所知。事情发生了，我就知道这一点。"

　　“Well, if you’re a poor driver you oughtn’t to try driving at night.”

"既然你车子开得不好，那么你晚上就不应当试着开车嘛。"

　　“But I wasn’t even trying,” he explained indignantly, “I wasn’t even trying.”

"可是我连试也没试，"他气愤愤地解释，"我连试也没试啊。"

　　An awed hush fell upon the bystanders.

旁观的人听了都惊愕得说不出话来。

　　“Do you want to commit suicide?”

"你想自杀吗？"

　　“You’re lucky it was just a wheel! A bad driver and not even TRYing!”

"幸亏只是一只轮子！开车开得不好，还连试都不试！"

　　“You don’t understand,” explained the criminal. “I wasn’t driving. There’s another man in the car.”

"你们不明白，"罪人解释说，"我没有开车。车子里还有一个人。"

　　The shock that followed this declaration found voice in a sustained “Ah-h-h!” as the door of the coupe swung slowly open. The crowd—it was now a crowd—stepped back involuntarily, and when the door had opened wide there was a ghostly pause. Then, very gradually, part by part, a pale, dangling individual stepped out of the wreck, pawing tentatively at the ground with a large uncertain dancing shoe.

这句声明所引起的震惊表现为一连声的"噢……啊……啊！"同时那辆小轿车的门也慢慢开了。人群--此刻已经是一大群了--不由得向后一退，等到车门敞开以后，又有片刻阴森可怕的停顿。然后，逐渐逐渐地，一部分一部分地，一个脸色煞白、摇来晃去的人从搞坏了的汽车里跨了出来，光伸出一只大舞鞋在地面上试探了几下。

　　Blinded by the glare of the headlights and confused by the incessant groaning of the horns, the apparition stood swaying for a moment before he perceived the man in the duster.

这位幽灵被汽车前灯的亮光照得睁不开眼，又被一片汽车喇叭声吵得糊里糊涂，站在那里摇晃了一会儿才认出那个穿风衣的人。

　　“Wha’s matter?” he inquired calmly. “Did we run outa gas?”

"怎么啦？"他镇静地问道，"咱们没汽油了吗？"

　　“Look!”

"你瞧！"

　　Half a dozen fingers pointed at the amputated wheel—he stared at it for a moment, and then looked upward as though he suspected that it had dropped from the sky.

五六个人用手指指向那脱落下来的车轮--他朝它瞪了一眼，然后抬头向上看，仿佛他怀疑轮子是从天上掉下来的。

　　“It came off,” some one explained.

"轮子掉下来了。"有一个人解释说。

　　He nodded.

他点点头。

　　“At first I din’ notice we’d stopped.”

"起先我还没发现咱们停下来了。"

　　A pause. Then, taking a long breath and straightening his shoulders, he remarked in a determined voice:

过了一会儿，他深深吸了一口气，又挺起胸膛，用坚决的声音说：

　　“Wonder’ff tell me where there’s a gas’line station?”

"不知可不可以告诉我哪儿有加油站？"

　　At least a dozen men, some of them little better off than he was, explained to him that wheel and car were no longer joined by any physical bond.