英语听书《白鲸记》第403期

 Admiral Nelson, also, on a capstan of gun-metal, stands his mast-head in Trafalgar Square;  纳尔逊海军大将,也是在一只炮铜色的绞盘上,高高地站在特拉法加广场,

and even when most obscured by that London smoke, token is yet given that a hidden hero is there; 虽说大多被伦敦的烟雾弄得模模糊糊,总还显出那边藏有一个英雄人物;

for where there is smoke, must be fire. But neither great Washington, nor Napoleon, nor Nelson, will answer a single hail from below, however madly invoked¹ to befriend by their counsels the distracted decks upon which they gaze; 因为有烟必有火。但是,不管是伟大的华盛顿,还是拿破仑,或者是纳尔逊,都回答不了下边的欢呼声,不管他们所俯视的纷纭骚嚷的甲板怎么疯狂地请求援助,要得到他们的忠告;

however it may be surmised², that their spirits penetrate³ through the thick haze⁴ of the future, and descry⁵ what shoals and what rocks must be shunned⁶. 不管人们怎么揣测,认为他们的精神已穿过未来的浓雾,远远地看到那些非得避开不可的浅滩和暗礁。

It may seem unwarrantable to couple in any respect the mast-head standers of the land with those of the sea;  把陆上的跟海里的桅顶望人拿来联在一起,无论从哪一方面说来,都似乎有点不伦不类;

but that in truth it is not so, is plainly evinced by an item for which Obed Macy, the sole historian of Nantucket, stands accountable. 但是,实际上却又不然,南塔开特的唯一的历史家奥贝德。

The worthy⁷ Obed tells us, that in the early times of the whale fishery, ere ships were regularly launched in pursuit of the game, the people of that island erected⁸ lofty spars along the seacoast, to which the look-outs ascended⁹ by means of nailed cleats, something as fowls¹⁰ go upstairs in a hen-house. 麦西已经明白表示,这是一件说得通的事。这位可敬的奥贝德对我们说,在捕鲸业初期,在船只还没有经常驶去追逐大鲸之前,该岛居民都在海边竖起高高的圆木,望者就攀着钉牢了的楔子爬上去,有点象鸡只走上鸡埘那样。

A few years ago this same plan was adopted by the Bay whalemen of New Zealand, who, upon descrying¹¹ the game, gave notice to the ready-manned boats nigh the beach. 几年前,新西兰的海峡捕鲸者也采用了这种设计,他们在发现猎物的时候,便对那些靠在沙滩附近。装备停当的小船发出信号。

But this custom has now become obsolete¹²; turn we then to the one proper mast-head, that of a whale-ship at sea. 不过,这种风俗现在已过时了:我们还是言归正传,回到海上捕鲸船的桅顶吧。

The three mast-heads are kept manned from sun-rise to sun-set,the seamen¹³ taking their regular turns, and relieving each other every two hours. 那三只桅顶从早到晚都配置专人看守;水手们按时值班,每隔两小时换班一次。

1 invoked   

v.援引( invoke的过去式和过去分词 )；行使（权利等）；祈求救助；恳求

参考例句：

• It is unlikely that libel laws will be invoked. 不大可能诉诸诽谤法。
• She had invoked the law in her own defence. 她援引法律为自己辩护。 来自《简明英汉词典》

2 surmised   

v.臆测，推断( surmise的过去式和过去分词 )；揣测；猜想

参考例句：

• From the looks on their faces, I surmised that they had had an argument. 看他们的脸色，我猜想他们之间发生了争执。
• From his letter I surmised that he was unhappy. 我从他的信中推测他并不快乐。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 penetrate   

v.透(渗)入；刺入，刺穿；洞察，了解

参考例句：

• Western ideas penetrate slowly through the East.西方观念逐渐传入东方。
• The sunshine could not penetrate where the trees were thickest.阳光不能透入树木最浓密的地方。

4 haze   

n.霾，烟雾；懵懂，迷糊；vi.(over)变模糊

参考例句：

• I couldn't see her through the haze of smoke.在烟雾弥漫中，我看不见她。
• He often lives in a haze of whisky.他常常是在威士忌的懵懂醉意中度过的。

5 descry   

v.远远看到；发现；责备

参考例句：

• I descry a sail on the horizon.我看见在天水交接处的轮船。
• In this beautiful sunset photo,I seem to descry the wings of the angel.在美丽日落照片中，我好像看到天使的翅膀。

6 shunned   

v.避开，回避，避免( shun的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• She was shunned by her family when she remarried. 她再婚后家里人都躲着她。
• He was a shy man who shunned all publicity. 他是个怕羞的人，总是避开一切引人注目的活动。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 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。

8 ERECTED   

adj. 直立的，竖立的，笔直的 vt. 使 ... 直立，建立

参考例句：

• A monument to him was erected in St Paul's Cathedral. 在圣保罗大教堂为他修了一座纪念碑。
• A monument was erected to the memory of that great scientist. 树立了一块纪念碑纪念那位伟大的科学家。

9 ascended   

v.上升，攀登( ascend的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He has ascended into heaven. 他已经升入了天堂。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The climbers slowly ascended the mountain. 爬山运动员慢慢地登上了这座山。 来自《简明英汉词典》

10 fowls   

鸟( fowl的名词复数 )； 禽肉； 既不是这； 非驴非马

参考例句：

• A great number of water fowls dwell on the island. 许多水鸟在岛上栖息。
• We keep a few fowls and some goats. 我们养了几只鸡和一些山羊。

11 descrying   

v.被看到的，被发现的，被注意到的( descried的过去分词 )

参考例句：

12 obsolete   

adj.已废弃的，过时的

参考例句：

• These goods are obsolete and will not fetch much on the market.这些货品过时了，在市场上卖不了高价。
• They tried to hammer obsolete ideas into the young people's heads.他们竭力把陈旧思想灌输给青年。

13 seamen   

n.海员

参考例句：

• Experienced seamen will advise you about sailing in this weather. 有经验的海员会告诉你在这种天气下的航行情况。
• In the storm, many seamen wished they were on shore. 在暴风雨中，许多海员想，要是他们在陆地上就好了。