美国语文第五册 第98期:北美食米鸟(4)

 　　We next hear of him, with myriads¹ of his kind, banqueting among the reeds of the Delaware, and grown corpulent with good feeding. 现在我们再度聆听，它与它的无数同类，穿梭在特拉华州的芦苇丛中，因饮食太好愈见臃肿不堪。

　　He has changed his name in traveling. 旅途中，它更换了名字，

　　Boblincoln no more, he is the reedbird now, the much-sought-for tidbit of Pennsylvanian epicures², the rival in unlucky fame of the ortolan! 不叫食米鸟，改称芦苇鸟了，居然成为宾夕法尼亚州最受热捧的小报趣闻，与伊壁鸠鲁享乐者们享有同等恶名。

　　Wherever he goes, pop! pop! pop! every rusty³ firelock in the country is blazing away. 无论食米鸟飞到哪里，砰！砰！砰！全州老枪火钪争相对准它瞄准开火，成千上万只食米鸟不停地倒毙死亡。

　　He sees his companions falling by thousands around him. Does he take warning and reform? 那么，它接受人们警告或者有所改变吗？

　　Alas⁴! not he. Again he wings his flight. The rice swamps of the south invite him. 哎呀！没有。食米鸟继续振动双翼，南方丰美稻田等待着它的光临。

　　He gorges⁵ himself among them almost to bursting; he can scarcely fly for corpulency. 在那里，食米鸟狼吞虎咽险乎撑死，它的体态变得臃肿不堪，甚至无法飞起。

　　He has once more changed his name, and is now the famous ricebird of the Carolinas. 它不得不再次更名，变成卡罗莱纳州闻名遐迩的稻米鸟，

　　Last stage of his career: behold⁶ him spitted with dozens of his corpulent companions, and served up, a vaunted dish, on some southern table. 这里，将是它一生的最后舞台：看着自己与无数大腹便便的同类被唾弃，最后变成北美大陆南方餐桌上为人称道的一道烘烤大餐。

　　Such is the story of the bobolink; once spiritual, musical, admired, the joy of the meadows, and the favorite bird of spring; 这就是食米鸟的故事，曾经具有精神信仰、富有音乐气质、令人钦佩、追逐自然草原快乐、钟爱春天蓬勃的鸟儿，

　　finally, a gross little sensualist, who expiates⁷ his sensuality in the larder⁸. 最终变异为恶俗拥趸，躲在角落里耽于世俗物质享受的恶鸟。

　　His story contains a moral worthy⁹ the attention of all little birds and little boys; 这篇食米鸟的故事具有典型的道德意义，世上青少年需引以为戒。

　　warning them to keep to those refined and intellectual pursuits which raised him to so high a pitch of popularity during the early part of his career, 故事旨在告诫那些年轻人，必须恪守对美好事物与崇高精神的执著坚守，保持懵懂之初纯洁的品质高度，戒绝世俗世界声色犬马的物欲满足。

　　but to eschew¹⁰ all tendency to that gross and dissipated indulgence which brought this mistaken little bird to an untimely end. 无疑，致命的外在诱惑只会给迷途难返的年轻生命带来过早的凋谢与终结。

1 myriads   

n.无数，极大数量( myriad的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Each galaxy contains myriads of stars. 每一星系都有无数的恒星。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The sky was set with myriads of stars. 无数星星点缀着夜空。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

2 epicures   

n.讲究饮食的人( epicure的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Military men have produced, or diverged in, noteworthy epicures. 军人中已经产生了，或者说分化出了引人注目的享乐主义者。 来自辞典例句

3 rusty   

adj.生锈的；锈色的；荒废了的

参考例句：

• The lock on the door is rusty and won't open.门上的锁锈住了。
• I haven't practiced my French for months and it's getting rusty.几个月不用，我的法语又荒疏了。

4 alas   

int.唉(表示悲伤、忧愁、恐惧等)

参考例句：

• Alas!The window is broken!哎呀！窗子破了！
• Alas,the truth is less romantic.然而，真理很少带有浪漫色彩。

5 gorges   

n.山峡，峡谷( gorge的名词复数 )；咽喉v.（用食物把自己）塞饱，填饱( gorge的第三人称单数 )；作呕

参考例句：

• The explorers were confronted with gorges(that were)almost impassable and rivers(that were)often unfordable. 探险人员面临着几乎是无路可通的峡谷和常常是无法渡过的河流。 来自辞典例句
• We visited the Yangtse Gorges last summer. 去年夏天我们游历了长江三峡。 来自辞典例句

6 behold   

v.看，注视，看到

参考例句：

• The industry of these little ants is wonderful to behold.这些小蚂蚁辛勤劳动的样子看上去真令人惊叹。
• The sunrise at the seaside was quite a sight to behold.海滨日出真是个奇景。

7 expiates   

v.为（所犯罪过）接受惩罚，赎（罪）( expiate的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• He inclined towards all that groans and all that expiates. 他常照顾那些呻吟床褥和奄奄垂毙的人。 来自互联网

8 larder   

n.食物贮藏室，食品橱

参考例句：

• Please put the food into the larder.请将您地食物放进食物柜内。
• They promised never to raid the larder again.他们答应不再随便开食橱拿东西吃了。

9 worthy   

adj.(of)值得的，配得上的；有价值的

参考例句：

• I did not esteem him to be worthy of trust.我认为他不值得信赖。
• There occurred nothing that was worthy to be mentioned.没有值得一提的事发生。

10 eschew   

v.避开，戒绝

参考例句：

• Eschew fattening foods if you want to lose weight.你如想减肥，就不要吃致肥的食物。
• Good kid should eschew bad company.好孩子应避免交坏朋友。